23. Brie

CHAPTER 23

Brie

“Are you sure about this?” Nik’s fingers clench around the steering wheel as we sit in the parked car. “Eva Novak is going to squeeze you now that she thinks she has you where she wants you.”

“She can squeeze as hard as she likes—until I’m officially leading the Family, she knows I’ve got nothing to give her. So she’ll do as I ask, as long as she thinks she can make money out of it. Right?”

Nik’s eyes darken. “Eva loves money, but she loves power more. Even if she gets the cash from you, she’ll make sure she keeps something else over you for leverage.”

“I’ll deal with that problem when it comes,” I sigh, and as Nik leans closer, I forget about contracts and conspiracies, about Terry’s murder and the Family’s future. There’s just this—her breath against my lips, her hand warm in mine, the way she makes me feel safe and protected.

We’re about to enter the hotel where Eva Novak and the Consortium are staying while they’re in Vegas, where I will sign that damn contract. I could have insisted Eva come to the Golden Sands, but if Larry got wind of things, he would have made a fuss about it.

We enter the hotel, where we’re met by one of Eva’s men, not one I’ve seen before. He sneers at Nik. She ignores him utterly, looking around the lobby carefully, looking for extraction points…or whatever it is that she looks for when she gets that concentrated, serious expression.

I give Eva’s man a bright smile. “Hello, there.”

He silently turns and leads the way.

Nik walks half a step behind me as we follow him through the hotel, into the elevator, and then down another corridor that leads to Eva’s penthouse suite. “Show her who she’s dealing with,” she whispers as we approach the door, so quietly I almost think I imagined it.

Two of Eva’s men flank the double doors, their careful stance suggesting concealed weapons. Their eyes linger on Nik with a mixture of contempt and curiosity. Everyone knows about her defection by now.

The thought sends an unexpected pain through my heart. How many ties has she severed for me?

Nik is ordered to present her weapons—which she does, with a faint scoff, and then we’re led into the suite. Eva is right there waiting for us, standing by the window in a red silk dress that catches the light like spilled wine, her black hair pulled back into a bun as a contrast against all that crimson.

Looking at her is…well, it’s almost like seeing a possible future version of myself, depending on my choices over the next few days and weeks.

No softness. No vulnerabilities at all.

Is that what I’ll have to become to rule the Colombos?

Eva’s bodyguard, Leon, is there to the side of the room. His massive frame unfolds from a leather armchair the moment we enter. His face, already severe, hardens at the sight of Nik. “Traitor,” he spits at her in Russian. “You dare show your face here? After everything Eva did for you, after dishonoring your father’s memory?”

I feel Nik flinch slightly beside me, though anyone who didn’t know her body as intimately as I do would miss it. And I understand her reaction. Years of her life given to the dream of the Consortium, to her father’s training. Years of purpose, of the promise of a family.

All abandoned for me.

Before she can respond, I step forward. “Enough,” I tell Leon in Russian. “Sit down and be quiet. Let the adults handle business.” It’s not just the words that hit him but the tone—pure Eva Novak, though I doubt she appreciates the mimicry. A queen addressing a servant.

The shock on Leon’s face would be comical if the situation weren’t so volatile. But from her position by the window, Eva’s laugh rings out. Even Nik can’t quite hide her smirk.

Leon’s face darkens further. “You dare speak to me?—”

“She said sit .” Eva’s voice cuts him off. Her red silk dress ripples as she walks toward us, making her look as if she’s bathed in blood.

Leon subsides into his chair, but his glare promises future retribution. I hold his gaze steadily, letting him see that I won’t be cowed. Not anymore.

“Mrs. Colombo.” Eva gestures toward a door leading deeper into the suite. “Shall we speak privately?”

Nik moves immediately to block my path, voice firm as she says, “No. Absolutely not.”

I lay a hand on her arm, feeling the coiled tension in her muscles. She’s ready to fight Eva’s entire security team if I ask her to. “It’s alright,” I tell her. “Ms. Novak and I have an understanding now—don’t we?”

Eva’s smile is a masterpiece of ambiguity. “We do indeed.”

The private room is smaller, more intimate. Eva closes the door with a soft click and then invites me to take a seat at the small table in the center, where a large, thick envelope is waiting. “The contract.” She slides it across the polished surface of the table to where I sit. “Though I should remind you it won’t be worth the paper it’s printed on if you don’t take control of the Colombo Family.”

“I’m a woman of my word. I trust you are as well?”

“Of course. But I’d advise you to remember that the Consortium maintains neutrality in all matters.” Eva passes me a pen. “We’ll trade with Larry Caruso or Vince Sabatelli just as easily as we’ll trade with you.”

“I understand,” I say, accepting the offered pen. “And we have a deal.”

I sign with a flourish, not missing the way Eva’s lips curve slightly as she watches. There’s something almost maternal in her expression—proud but also slightly mocking, like she’s watching a child play at being grown up.

It’s a familiar attitude.

“You know this contract is ridiculously overpriced,” she says, amusement coloring her tone. “You must have wanted that time with Joe Buccino very badly.”

I match her smile. “I’ll just have to make sure the Colombo Family starts making better money to pay for it.”

Eva hesitates—the first time I’ve ever seen her do so—before speaking again. “The Consortium maintains its neutrality, but what I’m about to tell you is…shall we say, woman to woman?”

“Go on.”

“Watch out for Dominika Kusek.” Eva’s voice drops lower, intimate almost. Like we’re girlfriends sharing secrets. “She’s happy to play both sides.”

“Nik is loyal to me,” I tell her calmly.

“Is she? Did she tell you that I called her to dinner when she was first guarding you? Asked her for information?”

My heart stutters, but I keep my face carefully blank. I think of Nik’s hands on my skin, her promises of protection, her fierce declarations of loyalty. But I can’t resist taking the bait. “Did she…provide any?”

“Oh yes. She told me about your late husband’s younger, male lover—though just about everyone in Vegas knew about that—and she also told me about someone skimming money from the casino.”

My stomach cramps. I force myself to breathe evenly. “Anything else?”

“She tried to feed me some nonsense about the Colombos wanting a deal with the Triads.” Eva waves a dismissive hand. “As if I don’t know they deal exclusively with the Gattos in Vegas. But more importantly…” She leans closer, her perfume rich and dangerous. “That tracker that led us to you in the desert? It was one of hers. Consortium issue, one of the numbers assigned to her. She put it on that car and turned it on, Mrs. Colombo. She wanted us to find you.”

The room seems to tilt slightly. I’d been so sure, that night in the desert, that Eva was only acting like Nik was faithful to the Consortium, that it was just a play to undermine my trust…

“Why are you telling me this?” I manage to ask.

Eva’s expression thaws fractionally. “Because I see myself in you, Brie. A woman making her way in a man’s world, fighting four times as hard for a third of the respect.” She touches my arm lightly, reprovingly. “Don’t let love make a fool of you. For women like us, a cold heart and a warm bed is the best way to live. Letting anyone get too close…” She shakes her head. “It’s dangerous.”

“Thank you for your advice,” I tell her stiffly, rising from the table.

“You’re most welcome.” Eva stands also, professional mask sliding back into place. “Good luck with the Family.”

I leave the private room on legs that feel like water, but I force myself to walk straight and tall. Perhaps she’s right. Perhaps that’s what power costs—the ability to trust, to love, to believe in anything except strength and control.

Nik waits where I left her, tension in every line of her body. She steps close to me automatically, and I have to fight not to flinch away.

We’re led back out of the suite and deposited back in the lobby.

“Everything okay?” she asks softly, as soon as we’re alone, and there’s such genuine concern in her voice that it makes my heart crack.

I turn to her with a false smile. “Perfect. Let’s get out of here.” I want time to think before I talk to Nik about Eva’s accusations.

In the car, Nik pulls me close, pressing a kiss to my temple. “You were amazing in there,” she tells me with sparkling eyes. “Total queen.”

I close my eyes to kiss her back, just in case she can read something in them.

Because what if Eva’s right? What if a queen can’t afford to have a heart?