Lorenzo #3
Quinn's awake when I open my eyes. I spot her sitting at the table, her bare feet on the chair, her knees pulled to her chest. She's focused on the window, looking out onto the city. At the moment, she has no idea that I’m awake and watching her. I take the opportunity, assessing her. It’s very rare that I get to see her so unguarded.
She’s fucking gorgeous, that has never been in question.
She’s stunning and I know that every single man and woman at our wedding yesterday was jealous that she is my wife.
I sit up and my movement has her looking my way, her eyes wide but emotionless and I fucking hate that she’s guarded again.
"Morning," I say.
"Morning,” she replies, just as emotionless as her eyes.
"I'll have someone bring breakfast," I say as I get to my feet. I need to shower and get ready for the day.
"I'm fine."
"You should eat."
Anger flashes in her eyes. "I said I'm fine."
I hold her gaze for a moment, trying to decide if it’s worth an argument. I know Quinn. She’ll fight me tooth and nail on almost anything. After last night, and the fact that her eyes are puffy from her tears, I decide to let it go. This isn’t worth the fight.
"I’m going to shower. If you change your mind about breakfast, just call down to reception and they’ll sort it out.” I don’t wait for her to answer. I know she won’t. She’s closed off today. I make my way to the bathroom and get ready for the day ahead.
I have a feeling that it’s going to be a fucking tiring one.
When I leave the bridal suite an hour later, I’m surprised to see Daithi waiting for me. He’s resting against the wall a little way down the corridor. He looks at me the moment I close the door to the suite.
"How is she?" he demands.
"She's fine."
"That's not an answer."
"Daithí—"
"I saw her face last night when she came back from the terrace.
" He steps toward me, his voice is low and menacing. If I were a lesser person, I’d be cowering at his tone.
"Whatever happened out there, I saw what it did to her.
I've been watching people tear her apart for her entire life and I know the look.
" He stops in front of me. "What the fuck did you do? "
"Nothing happened with Daire—"
"I know nothing happened with Daire." He says it with absolute certainty, which is a relief that someone fucking believes me.
"Daire cornered you in a compromising position so that Quinn would see it.
She's been doing it since they were children.
" His jaw tightens. "The question is what you did, because Quinn came back in there looking like she'd been hit, and you were nowhere to be found. "
I hold his gaze. "This is between Quinn and me."
"It stopped being only between you and Quinn the moment you let my sister spend your wedding night believing the worst." He gets closer. “She has spent the entirety of your engagement thinking she’s second best and last night, you letting Daire get that close only solidified that thought.”
Fuck, she said that, said that Daire was the choice and Quinn was the replacement.
"Quinn feels as though she has no value beyond being a pawn.
She learned it in our house and I let her learn it and I will not watch her take it into her marriage.
" His voice drops to a vicious whisper. "If you hurt her, Lorenzo, I swear to God I'll kill you.
Not a threat, but a motherfucking promise, I will end you. "
"I know," I say, gritting my teeth.
"Do you?"
"Yes, I know you mean it, and I know she doesn't deserve what happened last night."
"Daire lied to you," he tells me as he straightens to his full height.
"About Orla, probably about everything she's ever said to you.
" He looks at me steadily. "Quinn came to our mother when she was sixteen, she saw what Daire was doing to that girl and she tried to stop it and our mother slapped her across the face and called her a liar.
" His voice is barely contained with rage.
"Think about that. Think about what it means that the only person who tried to help Orla was Quinn, and the person who punished Quinn for trying was our mother. "
I go very still. What the actual fuck?
"That's not the version Daire gave you," he says. "Is it?"
"No," I say. "It isn't."
He looks at me for a long moment. "Ask yourself what Daire gains from you believing the worst about Quinn." He steps back further. "And ask yourself why our mother buried this the way she did, and whose version got buried with it."
He walks back down the corridor and into the elevator. I watch him leave and think about what I’ve been told versus what I know about Quinn. Daire has definitely lied to me. Hell, Daithi was probably right. I doubt Daire’s said an honest word at all to me.
But the question is, what does she gain from doing so?
I reach for my cell and call the only one that can help me work this shit out. Ciro.
"Tell me about the Orla timeline," I demand. “We all know that something isn’t sitting right about it. But what?”
“Well good news on that front, both Marco and I have been digging and Marco’s found something.
The friends who said they didn't remember Quinn and Orla being close," Ciro begins.
"All three of them remembered Daire and Orla being close.
And one of them said something that Marco flagged.
" He pauses as though he’s flipping through pages to find the exact wording.
"She said Orla started pulling away from everyone around the same time she pulled away from Daire. Not Quinn. Daire."
Fucking hell. More lies from the viper.
"That's not what Daire told me."
"No," Ciro says. "It isn't and there's something else.
The timeline of when Orla deteriorated doesn't line up with what Daire described.
Daire said Quinn isolated her over months.
But from what this friend remembers, the deterioration happened fast. Over a few weeks, after something specific happened. "
"What happened?"
"She doesn't know, or she won't say." He sighs. "But Marco thinks she knows more than she's giving up, something scared or hurt Orla badly. Something happened that wasn't a slow campaign of isolation."
The version Daire gave me is coming apart at the edges and I can finally see why Quinn has pulled away and become closed off from me, she believes that I chose her sister, when the truth of the matter is, I didn’t give a fuck who I was marrying.
It was for duty, that is all. It’s why when Daire was up close with Bruno, I didn’t give a shit.
Because that night, I was fucking Sabrina.
It didn’t bother me who or what Daire was fucking as long as she was discreet about it.
Whereas the same can’t be said for Quinn.
If I find out she’s been anywhere near another man, I’ll kill them without a second thought.
"Keep pulling," I say to Ciro. "I want everything." I end the call and stare at the closed door to the bridal suite where Quinn is.
I fucked up with her, I know I have. The question is, where do we go from here?