Chapter 13: : Chapter 13

“Whiskey?” Daniel asks me as I watch Aria’s throat tighten as she stares at the table. She did well, but still, watching it was fucking agony.

“Give her a minute,” I speak into the microphone to Eli as I nod at Daniel. The amber liquid swirls in the bottle and reflects the pale moonlight filtering into my office.

Sitting back in my chair, I refuse to acknowledge how on edge my body feels. I’m on the edge of breaking down once again. My throat is dry and tight, my fingers and toes numb.

“She loves him,” I admit the truth that splinters my chest in a whisper as I stare at the screen. It was clear to see in the way she spoke to him and held him and comforted him. But more than that, it’s obvious he loves her as well.

That’s something I can’t allow.

“I don’t want to hear you talk about the woman you love, not in that context. Not about her loving someone else.” Daniel’s response leaves no room for negotiation and I turn to him as he hands the tumbler to me.

Bringing the glass to my lips, I know what he’s referring to and maybe it makes me coldhearted, but the pain that lies in between his words brings me comfort. The whiskey burns my chest as I tilt back the glass and take it all at once.

“Another?” I ask him, holding out the glass for him to refill even though his is still very much full. Three fingers’ worth of whiskey is still evident in his glass.

He fills mine higher than before; the bottle that was full only two days ago is nearly empty now. As I take a large swig, I can hear his blunt nails tapping rhythmically against the glass. He leans against the window behind me rather than taking his seat.

“You have all of his files, so you could blackmail him into leaving.” Daniel offers me a way to take care of the pesky problem. It’s a solution that would work for most people, but not for Nikolai.

“He’s irrational,” I answer him, knowing all too well Nikolai won’t stand down.

“You mean stupid?” he jokes, and I give him a rough chuckle in response, but the smirk that tries to tug at my lips ultimately fails to show itself.

“Do you think she’ll hate me now that she knows I set her up all along?” I ask him. The nerves roil in my gut, and I shut them up with another swig. That’s what I’m truly worried about. Everything else is meaningless. But that piece of information could hurt us. Romano set it all up, technically, creating the meeting between the two of us. But I’m guilty and won’t refute what he told Aria.

“I’m sure she already blamed you.” Although there’s a hint of humor in his answer, the truth of it causes my blood to turn to ice.

I scoff as I watch as my songbird stand, pushing in the chair and staring long and hard at the empty one across from her before preparing to leave. She doesn’t stop staring at where Nikolai was sitting and every second her gaze stays there, the crack in my heart feels like dry lightning splitting the sky into two.

“She loves you,” Daniel says from behind me, but it doesn’t offer me any comfort.

“Will she when this is over?” The question alone causes the pain to run up my spine and I put the glass to my lips, only to find it empty. With a sigh, I place it on the desk.

The truth is, I don’t think she will.

“I’m more concerned with her giving orders and trying to interfere, aren’t you?” Daniel questions. Glancing over my shoulder, I watch my brother sip the whiskey although his eyes stay on mine.

“She can do as she wishes,” I tell him the same thing I’ve told Eli. “I want to see what she’ll do.”

“She’s different than I thought.”

I feel restless as I watch his gaze flick to the screen, no longer focused on the back room and instead, watching Eli accompany Aria back to the safe house. Men are in multiple homes spread throughout the two blocks and each of them has eyes on her as they move from street to street.

“How’s that?” I question him.

Bringing his gaze back to mine, he sets his glass on the windowsill and tells me, “She’s… more…” he chooses his words carefully, “involved than I thought she’d be.” The nervousness that prickles down my fingers intensifies when he adds, “I’m not sure what to make of it.”

Cracking my knuckles, I don’t look him in the eyes when I respond, “It means she’ll be even more disappointed when all of it is over.”

My brother considers me for a moment before nodding once and picking up his glass to finish off the drink.

He runs his fingers along the rim of the empty glass, watching as he does so and tells me, “I’m taking Addison out for the night.” His lips pull down into a frown and his eyes reflect a well of sadness. “She hasn’t been to The Hard Stone.” He finally looks up to me and I nod, letting him know I heard him. The Hard Stone is the restaurant next to the Red Room. It’s heavily guarded already, as is the club.

“I hope it goes well,” I offer him, and it’s genuine. I hate what’s happened to them. I don’t want to see my brother revert back to the man he is without her. There are only two versions of him. And I greatly prefer the one who is loved by Addison and loves her in return.

Running my thumb over the pad of my pointer, I think about Aria being all alone tonight and how she’ll be thinking of Nikolai.

“Keep her out late,” I tell Daniel, waiting for his eyes to reach mine. “Don’t come back to the safe house for a few hours.”

He lips are slow to pull into a smile, but they do.

“Do you have plans with your girl as well?” he asks me with a sense of humor that lights his eyes.

“I do now.”