50. Ginevra

CHAPTER 50

Ginevra

T hat’s the last box, all packed up. I glance around the guest room that housed my childhood things. Finally, the time feels right to pack them away and put them in storage. I haven’t visited them in months.

The painting crew will be in here next week, then I’m turning this room into my own personal space. Meditation has been part of my therapy, so I’m dedicating this space to rest, relaxation, and mindfulness. I can’t wait to decorate and furnish it eventually.

Switching off the light, I head downstairs to the living room and flip through the open tabs on my laptop. A sound up the hall catches my attention.

Lexa huffs as she comes out of Blake’s home office. We’re back in New York for a while, through the holiday months, then January second we’ll be flying to Italy and spending the rest of the winter months at our new home. By spring we’ll be back here.

“That man is impossible,” she complains with a sigh. “I don’t know how you live with him.”

I close my laptop and gesture for her to sit down on the sofa. “What happened?”

“Okay, so the whole reason I came here was to ask him for a place at Titan Enterprises.” She flops down across from me. “I really want a job there. But Mr. Gatekeeper won’t give me one because he says it could be a conflict of interests.”

“How so?” When she showed up this evening, I had no idea she was seeking a job from my husband.

“Because of Eion Bane.” Lexa folds her arms. She greatly resembles an angry pixie. “Yes, I had Eion rescue me from that disaster of a wedding, but that doesn’t mean I’m now the enemy. I don’t even like Eion—he’s a pompous ass. I swear if I get the chance to work at Titan Enterprises I will be completely loyal. I’d never tell a Bane any of our trade secrets. I’m a Baron, after all, my loyalty is to this family. I swear it.”

“You should be in there begging Blake, not me, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

She leans forward. “But there is. You have him wrapped around your little finger. If you tell him to give me the job, he will. I just know it. I probably should have come to you first,” she mutters. “Could have spared myself the humility.”

“I don’t think he’ll give you the job just because I ask him to.” I let out an awkward chuckle.

“But he will. I know it. Will you please ask him?”

I sigh. It’s not my place to interfere with his business, but he should give Lexa a chance. She deserves a position at Titan Enterprises as much as Liam. “Okay, I’ll talk to him.”

She claps her hands. “Thank you! It means a lot. Really. You’re the best sister-in-law I could ever wish for.”

I laugh. “You win. That’s the best flattery I’ve heard in a while.”

“I mean it.” She leaps up, hugging me. “You’re the best. Good night.”

“Good night,” I call after her, as she’s already halfway to the door. Lexa even moves like a fairy, or a sprite, flitting here and there.

“I see how it is,” a deep voice speaks right behind me and I squeak in surprise. “You two are teaming up on me. That’s hardly fair. I might be able to deny my sister something she wants, but not my sister and my wife.”

“It’s good to know your limits,” I tease.

He pours a scotch and sits beside me. “You understand my concerns though, don’t you?”

“I can see your point of view. But keep in mind your brother’s boyfriend is a bratva underboss, and you’re not worried about him selling family secrets to the Russian mob.”

“ Touché . Though they don’t own a rival real estate development business like Eion Bane.”

“I don’t think Lexa has it in her to betray you. She’s far too sweet.” I think back to when she helped me poison and steal from her mother. “Mostly sweet. You should give her a chance.”

He groans. “I will.” Blake tips his head at my laptop. “What are you looking at on there?”

I pick it up and set it on my lap. “I was just scrolling through cooking school websites. It’s nothing really, just an idea for the future. Maybe.”

“Gin.”

“What?” I glance over at him.

“Cooking is your passion—and your talent.” He takes the laptop from me, clicking through the tabs. “Barilla Academy in Parma, Italy. Le Cordon Bleu—Paris, London, Australia, even Thailand. Where do you want to study, magpie?”

“Um… Is that a serious question?” I swear Blake continues to surprise me every single day. Beneath his grumpy, rude exterior, he has a heart of gold and the soul of a poet. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was a romantic.

“I’m always serious, you know that. Just say the word and we’ll be off to whichever destination you choose.”

Wow. Okay.

“Paris?” I lick my lips, and this time say it with resolve. “Paris.”

Blake closes my laptop. “Good choice. I know a realtor in Paris who can help us find a place. We can start looking online tomorrow.”

My pulse stammers. A warm, glowing sensation fills me from head to toe. This is happening, like really happening. I’ve had all the information about each school’s programs sitting in my email for a couple of weeks, including links to their applications.

I just… I thought the idea was more of a dream than a reality. Until now.

“This is really happening. We’re moving to Paris so I can go to school?”

Blake draws me in for a sensual, unhurried kiss. “Of course we are.”

“That’s a dream come true.”

“I want to make all your dreams a reality. You deserve every single one of them.”

I melt against him, happier than I’ve ever been in my entire life. Our relationship may have started as fake, but what we have together now is the most real thing I’ve ever experienced. I want it forever. I want us forever.