26. Look Her In The Eye When She Lies
26
LOOK HER IN THE EYE WHEN SHE LIES
Alejandro
The Present
R ian paces the length of his office with a pinched expression on his face while Damiano starts juggling a paperweight and a stapler.
Dahlia places her final bets and moves all the chips on her side of the table into the pot at the center. If we were using real money, she’d be betting half a million dollars on a hand of cards I can’t imagine are worth much. Right now I’m holding on to four of a kind and there are only two other, very unlikely, hands she could use to win.
“Are you sure about that?”
“Why?” she asks without looking up from her cards. “Want to call my bluff?”
“I don’t know if this is going to work.”
Damiano continues with his juggling as he responds to Rian. “It’ll be fine. Calm down.”
“Anything can go wrong.” Rian stops abruptly by the fireplace. “What if what Morales sent was forged? What if this was a set up?”
“To what end?” Damiano adds a pen to his juggling. “All he wants is to bring Li down for what happened to Amy Walsh and he needs you to do it. I’ll be honest, Ri, I don’t think he’s lying about any of this.”
With Li out of town on business, Rian scheduled the meeting with the investors for tonight. He’s been on the fence about turning against Li since he found out, still unable to accept that his best friend of nearly thirty years was capable of turning on him like this. But now that he’s seen real, tangible proof, there’s no denying it. Li was almost in the grasp of the FBI and he was framing Rian to take the fall in the event of his inevitable capture.
I can’t imagine what he’s going through. Feelings of betrayal, anger, and disappointment all compounded with the fact that the fate of his business and so many others now rests on his shoulders. Voting out Li won’t be easy but I’m willing to do my part to support him despite the incessant urge to strangle him to death.
Dahlia hasn’t taken her eyes off him. She gazes at him with longing and regret and it sets fire to my insides. I can’t stand to share her with anyone else but I have no one but myself to blame.
It’s petty and immature but I push the rest of my chips into the pot as well, desperate to steal her attention away from him. “All in.”
She turns her head but almost immediately looks down at her cards, avoiding my direct gaze at all times. “This has been a very informal game of poker.”
I lay out my hand on the table. Four of a kind, an entire suit of hearts.
Upon inspecting my cards, a subtle smile takes form on her lips. This time she meets my gaze and displays her cards for me to see.
A royal flush .
Defeated, I slump back in my seat. “How the fuck did you do that?”
“I learned from the best,” she replies slyly.
Neither of us can help the grin on our faces. Diego would be brimming with pride to see his protégé completely massacre me at one of my favorite games. We gather up the cards and chips and she sorts while I shuffle for another round.
“You’re going to drop them,” Dahlia sing-songs.
Damiano looks over, offended. “Am not.”
He tries adding a fourth object to his juggling—a computer mouse, I think— but the stapler slips from his hand and he fails to catch the paperweight in time. All four objects rain down on him and the pen nearly pokes his eye out. He winces and covers his face with his palm and Rian scoffs, turning around to pinch the bridge of his nose like he can’t believe he’s in the presence of such stupidity.
My shoulders shake with silent laughter and Dahlia cracks a smile but attempts to hide it under waves of dark hair. It’s even longer now than it was in Barcelona, a mix of beachy curls and loose ringlets, the different textures in her hair adding depth to its natural color. Of course it’s beautiful because she’s beautiful but it’s different…I haven’t quite gotten used to it.
Rian stops at the edge of the table. “We should leave too. The investors are probably already arriving.”
“Sasha knows to bring them to the upstairs conference room,” Dahlia says. “He’ll meet you guys up there.”
Rian nods. “All right.”
I leave the cards on the table and get up from my seat. Dahlia turns her head and our gazes meet. Her lips part as if to say something but Rian interrupts her.
“Don’t leave this room.”
Then he looks at me—cold, menacing, vicious—and without prompting, stops where Dahlia is seated. Glides his hand up the length of her neck before cupping under her jaw and tilting her head back as he kisses her. A little gasp leaves her as his grip on her jaw tightens and he slips his tongue into her mouth, devouring her right in front of me as if I won’t put a bullet through the back of his skull without hesitation.
After what feels like an eternity, he finally pulls away from a wide-eyed, blushing Dahlia whose red lipstick is nothing more than a smeared memory across her bottom lip.
“We’ll be back soon,” he says calmly and then throws over his shoulder. “Don’t get left behind, Narvaez.”
Damiano swears under his breath and follows his friend into the hall. I cut across the room in three long strides but Dahlia gets up from her seat and throws herself against me. Hands scouring my body, she touches my back and explores the pockets of my suit jacket before finally finding the gun tucked into my side. She retrieves it and empties the magazine.
“ Don’t ,” she warns gently and steps aside to allow me passage.
“I don’t need a gun.”
“Maybe. But my telling you no is more than enough.”
R ian carries himself well and by the end of the investors’ meeting, he’s successfully plunged the knife into Li’s back, securing control of the company with a unanimous vote. None of this would’ve been possible without the proof Special Agent Morales was able to procure and I suppose we have Dahlia to thank for that. The worst yet best undercover spy we’ve ever encountered.
For my part, now that Li’s been voted out and Rian will be taking control, I still intend on selling my shares to Sasha Antonov. Despite their estranged relationship, there’s no malice behind my desire to sell to Antonov, on the contrary. Sasha and Rian need to work through their issues not just for their mother’s sake but for their own. They’re still brothers .
Diego is an extended part of me. Without my brother, I’m off balance and directionless, stumbling through life with a missing limb. Our parents raised us to love and rely on each other. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to treat the closest person to me like an enemy.
At the end of the meeting, Rian takes time with each investor, shaking their hand and thanking them for their time, while Damiano walks them out and swears them to secrecy. From the looks of it, the investors were equally as appalled with Li’s actions as we were and the danger of an FBI investigation was enough to get them to flip, quickly and without resistance. I’d arrived in New York with the intention of getting Dahlia back but instead found myself enthralled in a far more serious problem. What Li had planned could’ve been catastrophic. Not as world-ending as Dahlia thought but the second the FBI finds its way through the cracks of an operation, they are near impossible to get out. They spread like mold in the walls, causing the house to deteriorate from the inside out and by the time you realize it’s there it is almost always too late.
I have no intention of staying here longer than needed so I abandon my half-finished drink and make for the exit. Hopefully I make it to Dahlia before Rian does. I’ll need to pick a fight with her over something ridiculous so she gets upset and goes home early; anything to get her far away from here. Aside from not trusting the crowd that frequents The Empress, Rian reminded me of something very important tonight.
I’m not the only one Dahlia cares about. And though it kills me to admit it, I need to change my approach otherwise I’ll lose her for good. Last night may have confirmed my suspicions—she’s still in love with me and never stopped—but it also taught me she has more self-control than I thought she did. In a moment of weakness, she still managed to keep me on the other side of her wall for protection.
On the way out I feel the presence of someone behind me. Rian steps out of the room almost immediately after, abandoning the last few investors in the room to Damiano’s care.
“You’re doing this because of Dahlia.”
“I do everything for her; you’ll have to be a little more specific.”
“Do you still plan on selling your shares to Antonov?”
“I intend on encouraging a bit of brotherly love between you.”
“Why not sell them to me instead?”
He has a good point. Then again.
“I think it’s best we keep things between us as limited as possible,” I reply diplomatically. “We can’t help the business ties that already exist between our families; we shouldn’t complicate things further by throwing money into the mix. Those shares are worth a fortune and I doubt you’ll give me an offer to compete with Antonov’s.”
Rian stops and so do I.
“She warned me you’d be like this. Possessive, dominant, controlling?—”
“She told you what I’m like in bed?” I tsk and shake my head. “If you needed a bit of help, you could’ve just asked.”
I watch his restraint deteriorate in real time. His shoulders tense and his lips thin to a fine line. Through gritted teeth he replies, “Don’t test what’s left of my patience, Narvaez. Avoid a problem and sell your shares to me instead.”
A thought occurs to me. “What are they worth to you?”
His eyes narrow slightly.
“Are they worth as much as she is?”
Rian takes a menacing step forward but stops the second a door opens and closes at the end of the hall.
“Hey,” Dahlia says. “How did it go?”
Rian ignores her. “Forcing your way back into her life wasn’t enough so now you’re trying to buy her back, too?”
“I don’t need to buy what’s already mine.”
“Dahlia’s a person, not a possession to be owned and bartered away. She has the freedom to choose who she wants to be with.”
“And you think she’ll choose you?”
“I know she will.”
“Fine. Then ask her.”
When she’s close enough to touch, she extends a hand to Rian and touches his shoulder, the gesture more uncertain than it is comforting. I have no idea what the two of them see in each other. They are as poorly matched as water and oil.
“Is everything okay?”
Taking note of Rian’s deteriorating patience, I decide to use his weakness to my advantage.
“She’s right here,” I taunt. “Ask.”
Her brows furrow with concern. “Ask me what? Did something happen?”
“Go ahead,” I coax gently. “Look her in the eye when she lies to you.”
Immediately, Dahlia’s cheeks drain of color and Rian’s eyes turn nearly black.
“What’s going on?” she asks.
“Rian’s a little shy, so I’ll ask. Gun to your head, who are you choosing: me or him.”
Dahlia chokes on air. “ What ?”
“Gun to your head,” I repeat, slowly enunciating each word. “Me or him?”
She scoffs and after a few false starts, eventually finds her voice again. “What an absurd thing to ask me.”
“If it’s so absurd, then you should have no trouble answering.”
Rian snaps, “Watch yourself, Narvaez.”
Eyes never leaving his, I say, “She can’t answer because she’s still in love with me. Not you.”
My gaze drifts over to meet hers and if looks could kill, the fire in Dahlia’s eyes would incinerate me on the spot.
“?No lo vas a negar?”
Dahlia loops her arm through Rian’s and practically drags him away. “Don’t listen to him. He’s trying to provoke you.”
“Is it working yet?” I spin on the heels of my feet and follow them down the hall, remaining a few paces behind. “I heard O’Neil has a famous right hook.”
“ Fuck you , Alejandro.”
Dahlia tries storming past me, but I grab hold of her wrist and spin her around. Her heel gets caught in the carpet and she momentarily loses her balance. We come face to face, her lips a breath away from mine.
“Tell him in front of me. Look him in the eye and tell him you aren’t in love with me anymore.”
Her lips press together and her hands tremble with rage. I watch as her eyes gloss over and she eventually closes them. “I hate you,” she whispers. “I hate you so much.”
“Not the same thing.”
I feel it before I see it.
Dahlia trips and loses her balance when I push her behind me.
Rian’s faster than I thought. I know the hit is coming but instead of dodging him, I brace for the impact and let his right fist connect with my jaw. Dahlia lets out a yelp and tries to intervene, but I’ve been waiting for the opportunity to beat the shit out of him since I got here.
There’s power and force behind his punch and it sends me back a step or two but doesn’t throw me off for long. I drag the back of my hand across my bleeding bottom lip while Rian seethes in place, shoulders rising and falling with every ragged breath he takes. Before we lose momentum, I pin Dahlia in place with a look of warning as I yank off my suit jacket.
“Don’t move an inch . Because if one of his hands gets anywhere near you, I’m going to have to kill him instead of just kicking his fucking ass.”
Rian lets out a grunt of anger and charges forward. I swipe a nearby decorative vase off a side table and swing, smashing the glass against his temple. All chaos breaks lose.
We tumble to the ground and despite being disoriented by having the vase crushed against the side of his head, I land, almost breaking my wrist with the weight of my own body, and he manages to get the upper hand. He pins me to the floor and lands several punches, two to the face and four to my ribs. The pain ignites me, propelling me forward, lighting a fire in the core of my body.
The next hit he throws, I manage to dodge with ease. His fist hits the floor instead and I trap his arm before elbowing him in the face. Rian’s head kicks backward and I throw him off me. I’m the first to get up from the floor and when he gets to his knees, I deliver a kick to the center of his chest and send him reeling back several feet. Rian braces himself on his forearms and waits only a second, then he’s back on his feet, throwing punches, teeth bared, eyes delirious with fury.
Dahlia’s screaming at us to stop, but we ignore her. Rian lands another punch to my kidneys but when he throws out his left fist, I hit him with an uppercut that sends him flying against the wall behind him. He doesn’t allow me to advance on him because he yanks a mirror off its hook and sends it in my direction. I manage to block it with my forearm at the last second but it’s enough time for him to land a hit that almost has me seeing stars.
I catch his fist before he swing again and lock him into a position with his arm trapped behind his back. I grab him by the back of the neck and send him face first into the corner of the side table.
We go on like this for no more than a few minutes but it may as well last a century. Damiano is the one to eventually pull us apart with the help of a few security guards.
“Enough!” Damiano yells at his friend. “Are you trying to fucking kill each other?”
Rian and I lock gazes from across the hall. Dahlia runs to him first and the smug look on his face is enough to send me lunging for his throat. Rian steps forward, primed and ready for a second round, but Dahlia throws herself between us.
“?Basta, Alejandro!” She pushes against my chest. “Alejandro, enough! ?Se acabo!”
Damiano says something in Rian’s ear and tries dragging him down the hall and into the nearest room. I’m surprised by Dahlia’s strength when she manages to lock an arm through mine and drag me away from the disaster we created in the hall. We round a corner and without knocking, she throws open the nearest door and practically flings me into the room, locking the door behind her. It’s a private box, one of the few that overlook the dance floor that patrons can rent for more intimate gatherings like birthday parties of bachelorettes.
She wastes no time in reprimanding me.
“Are you insane? Have you lost your mind ?”
My head is spinning and I lean against the sofa behind me for support.
“What the fuck is the matter with you? What is it, do you get off on being so insufferable? Huh?” she demands. “Are you just going to sit there and stare at me like I’ve grown a second head?”
I drag my tongue across my teeth then spit up a mouthful of blood at her feet.
“ Alejandro !”
“Do me a favor and shut up for five seconds. Your voice is grating . Like nails on a chalkboard.”
Her cheeks flush with heat. “After tonight, I want you on the first flight back to Barcelona. You don’t need to be here anymore, ?jodiendome la maldita vida! Eres una bestia .”
My skull is throbbing . My vision is swimming and my ribs ache but I can’t focus on anything that isn’t her .
Furious and near murderous, she’s striking to behold. I always thought Dahlia was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in person, closer to a character from fiction than something real and tangible. She was so different when we first met. I remember the way she’d blush and look away because she couldn’t meet my gaze head on. I remember every outfit she wore during those first few weeks she spent in Barcelona; feminine skirts and dresses, light and carefree, almost as modest as they were romantic. Now, everything from the way she styles her hair to the color she paints her nails is different and I can’t help but wonder if Rian knows her as well as I do.
Does he know that the reason she curls in on herself in her sleep is because when she was little and her parents were struggling, they went an entire winter without heat in the apartment and that was the position she’d fall asleep in—trembling and hiding under as many blankets as she could, desperate to keep herself warm?
Does Rian know how she likes her meals or what utensils she uses when eating or how her hair has to be braided before bed every night or the knots she wakes up in the morning will be too painful to comb through? Does he even care ?
I bet he doesn’t even know her middle name or that she prays before bed every night, a near silent mantra she whispers under her breath whose words are almost inaudible to anyone not paying attention.
“Are you going to keep punishing me for the rest of our lives?” I ask quietly. “Because I can admit to being wrong but I can’t wait forever. Not even for you.”
“Then don’t .”
Dahlia goes to leave, and I push away from the sofa to grab her. I spin her around, and she pushes at my chest, but I don’t let her get away so easily. Every time she resists, I guide her away from the door until I eventually have her cornered. Dahlia realizes she’s trapped and attempts to escape by elbowing me in the ribs, but I pin her arms to her sides and kiss her.
Her lips thin and she presses them together, barring me entrance. I refuse to let up until eventually her mouth opens but only long enough to bite down on my bottom lip so hard she nearly rips it off. I hiss and pull away and the second there’s a breath of air between us, she strikes the side of my face with the back of her hand. My cheek stings but no more than any of the other injuries I’ve incurred this evening.
“?Eso fue bien merecido!” She barrels past me and escapes the corner she was trapped in. “En tu vida , no me vuelves a poner una mano encima.”