Quinn
The front door of the Mariano estate closes behind me, and I breathe a sigh of relief. It’s over with, and I made it out alive. It went a hell of a lot better than I could have hoped, and I know my da will be pleased. He’ll want to know all the details, just to ensure that I didn’t embarrass him.
I feel as though someone’s watching me. I don’t turn and let them know that they’re affecting me.
No, I keep my head held high, my pace steady, and my hands loose at my sides.
I learned a long time ago that how you leave a room tells people as much as how you entered it, and I'm not giving anyone watching through those windows anything to read.
Marco walks me to the car. He's extremely polite, and the smile that he gave me the moment he saw me made me relax somewhat. He greeted me and welcomed me to the Mariano estate. I guess I’ve always been more comfortable around the staff, as they have been the only ones to treat me as more than a mere inconvenience.
I slide into the car. "Thank you, Marco."
"Anytime, Miss Delaney."
I smile. "It was nice meeting you."
Once Marco closes the car door, Fergal, my driver and guard, pulls away without me saying a word. I sit back in the seat and look out the window, watching as the Mariano estate slowly fades until we’re out of the gates and onto the road heading toward home.
I don't try to process all of it at once, there's no point in that.
I know that if I sit here and go through every detail of the last hour in one go, I'll tie myself in knots, and I can't afford knots right now.
I need to be clear-headed when I get home and will no doubt end up facing the firing squad.
Lorenzo was exactly what I had expected.
Cold and calculating. I could see his mind working with every word I spoke.
It was as though he was trying to figure me out.
But he spoke to me with respect, which is unlike what my family usually do, unless it’s Dáithí or Caden, and he was straight to the point, which is something I like.
He laid everything out so there’s no confusion about what our marriage will be.
No false hope and no opening to read into later and regret.
I like that I’ll know precisely where I stand. There's a strange kind of relief in knowing that. Once I understand the dynamics, I’ll be able to adapt and survive, just as I have done in the Delaney household.
The answer to your question is yes.
That was surprising to say the least, I didn’t expect him to answer that question, let alone say yes.
From everything that I know about the Italian Mafia, family is first. Everything else is inconsequential.
For Lorenzo to want me to give him loyalty above all else is surprising, but I’m glad that he answered my question and that he was honest about it.
He wants my loyalty above everything. Fine.
I can give him that, but I won’t blindly trust him.
Trust takes time to build, and if I’m honest with myself, with the way that Lorenzo has laid out how our marriage will be?
Trust is going to be hard to build. I’m also not stupid.
I noticed that he never said anything about loyalty to me.
Then again, is anyone loyal to me?
For my family, it’s always the Clann that is top for loyalty, then my mam and da, then Dáithí, followed by Dáire, Conn, and then Caden. I’m nowhere near anyone’s top spot, and I’m used to it.
What’s having one more person demand loyalty and not return it?
Entering the house, I pull in a deep breath.
The tension in the house is still as thick, if not thicker, than when I left this morning to go to the Mariano estate.
It’s as though the entire house is on edge, and I know why.
We’re all wondering if there’s going to be any retaliation for Dáire and Rurik’s betrayal.
Just because Lorenzo has agreed to marry me, it doesn’t make up for what Dáire has done. She has put the Syndicate alliance at risk during a time when it’s supposed to be rebuilt.
Mamie rushes toward me with a tea towel over her shoulder and an expression on her face that's trying very hard to be neutral, but I can see the fear and wariness.
"Your mother's in the sitting room," she says, and the way she says it tells me exactly what I need to know about what's waiting in there. It’s about to be an ambush. Great, just what I need right now.
I give her a thankful smile. "Thanks, Mamie."
She hurries away, not wanting to risk the chance of my mam’s wrath if she’s found talking instead of working.
I don't go to the sitting room. I need time to prepare. Why should I be bombarded the moment I walk through the door just because Mam’s on the warpath?
Instead, I go to the kitchen, pour myself a glass of water, and automatically check the counter before reaching for anything else.
Years of having a peanut allergy have made it second nature.
One careless mistake and my day gets a lot more complicated than I need it to be.
I stand at the counter for thirty seconds just letting myself revel in the silence before whatever comes next.
Just as I take a sip of water, I hear footsteps and turn to see Caden appear in the doorway.
He doesn’t say anything at first, just glances at my cheek.
He clocks the makeup, but doesn't say anything. Thankfully, my makeup skills at covering bruises have gotten better, and Lorenzo didn’t notice today, which is a huge relief.
"How'd it go?" Caden asks.
"Fine."
He leans against the doorframe. "Fine, like actually fine, or fine like you're going to tell me about it later when no one's listening?"
I grin at him. He knows me too well. "Bit of both."
He nods, satisfied with my answer. "He's in his office, by the way, and has been asking for you."
I put the glass down. "When is he not?"
Can I not get a moment of peace in this damned house?
Since Dáire fucked up, it’s been constant.
I’m being called to have meetings with Da and then with Mam.
Da to ensure I know what the hell is expected of me as the daughter of the head of The Clann and Mam to make sure that I don’t embarrass her as she tries to guide Mamie to teach me the ‘right’ way of being a wife of a mafia man.
Like I don’t know what the hell I’m doing? While she’s been fawning over Dáire for years, Mamie and the rest of the staff have been teaching me.
Da's behind his desk when I enter his office, and the way his back’s hunched over his desk, it looks as if he's been sitting here since I left this morning. His hair is disheveled like he’s been running his hands through it.
That’s something he does when he’s trying to work things out.
I scan his office and note that Tony's not here, which is unusual, as Tony and Da are usually joined at the hip. So it’s just us.
Da looks up, his gaze goes to my cheek first, just as Caden’s did, and just like my brother, he notices the makeup.
I see the small nod of approval, and I want to tell him to fuck off with his approval, but I know better than to antagonize him.
It’ll just fuel his rage, and I don’t want to be hit again.
"How did it go?" he asks with a raised brow, his tone cordial, not like a father speaking to his daughter.
"Well," I respond in the same tone.
He sinks back against his chair, crosses his arms over his chest, and waits. God, the man is infuriating. If he had a specific question, he should damn well ask it.
I sigh. “He knows what he needs from the marriage, and I know what's expected of me. We're aligned on the arrangement," I tell him, giving him the most condensed and watered-down version I can.
He doesn’t speak, he just watches me. It used to freak me out, the way he’d sit in total silence, unblinking as he’d wait for you to either spill your guts with whatever the hell you’d done or you’d fill the silence just to try and stop that unyielding stare of his.
I’m used to this crap, so I hold his gaze without flinching.
I may not be what my parents wanted, but I’m even more stubborn than the two of them put together.
"Good," he says, finally taking his gaze from me. "The formal announcement goes through the Syndicate at the end of the week. There'll be a dinner at the Mariano estate tonight, informal but important. You'll be in attendance."
Tonight? How am I only finding out about this now?
As much as I want to grit my teeth and yell at him for the secrecy, I know it’ll be no use. He does whatever the hell he wants, and I don’t factor into his decisions. So I nod and plaster on my perfectly mastered smile. "What time?"
"Seven. Caden will take you. Your mam and I will also be in attendance. We’ll arrive separately. Your sister isn’t dealing well with this situation. We don’t want any further upset for her."
“We wouldn’t want that now, would we?” I snap, unable to keep the disbelief out of my voice.
His eyes narrow on me. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I don’t answer. There’s nothing good that will come out of me doing so. “Quinn, you had better answer me,” he snarls, spittle flying from the corner of his lips.
“It’s always about what Dáire wants and how Dáire’s feeling.
She caused all of this chaos, and it’s her who’s being coddled like a damn child.
She’s twenty-four, da, she knows damn well what she’s done is wrong, but you’d swear by the way everyone’s acting, I’m the one that had sex with someone and got pregnant. ”
He rises to his feet, planting his hands on the desk.
“You are getting very vocal lately, Quinn. You need to remember your place. You are a child, that’s all that you are.
You do not speak about things you don’t know anything about.
You, of all people, should remember what Dáire and this family have been through because of your jealousy. That’s all that this is, jealousy.”