“I know,” Eve said pensively. “And I won’t pretend my family are a bunch of innocent victims. My dad and brothers have fueled the fire at different times, but Dom said your father never really got over losing his brother. That it made him bitter and looking for someone to blame.”

  “That’s such an understatement.” A sheen came into Astrid eyes as she looked to the pool again. “Dad was so proud of the fact that he had never hit us. That was his bar of good parenting because his father used to give them the belt. But the way he talked to us and things that he did, they were still abusive. Mom was totally codependent, feeding his moods and opinions so he wouldn’t turn on her. I’ve had eight years of Jevaun and counselling and I was still a nervous wreck that Dom was coming over.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “Because he looks and sounds so much like Dad,” Astrid admitted in a pained whisper. “But look at him. My kids think he’s the cat’s pajamas. They hardly ever see him, but they were so excited he was coming.”

  Dom was on the diving board, holding Maya’s feet so she could do a handstand before toppling backward into the water. He waited while Jevaun boosted her out of the way before he did a flip, making her scream with laughter as his splash swamped her as she clung to the ledge.

  “If you’re not pregnant, why did you marry him?” Astrid asked. “Is it really just to end the feud? Or something more? Love at first sight? I’m a romantic. Don’t hate me.”

  “I couldn’t hate you,” Eve said truthfully. Astrid was far too earnest and nice.

  But she couldn’t look at her, either. All she could see was Dom, four years ago, walking into a club and looking straight at her.

  He glanced over now as he came up against the edge of the pool. She felt the same hot arrow pierce her chest.

  Yes, she thought. I think that’s what it was. For her, at least.

  “Okay?” Dom skimmed closer, maybe reading the conflicted joy that was closing around her like a fist.

  Eve nodded and worked up a brave smile. “I’m just explaining to Astrid that being trapped on that island forced us to talk about how the feud was only causing pain on both sides. I suppose we could have tried matching one of your sisters to one of my brothers...” She was joking to deflect from deeper, trickier explanations around why she had agreed to marry him.

  Because I love him.

  Astrid seemed to find the idea of her sisters with a Visconti highly amusing. Her laughter pealed out and the conversation moved to other things.

  * * *

  “That was a fun day,” Eve said sincerely as the tender motored them through the dark from Grand Cayman back to the yacht.

  “It was,” Dom agreed, sounding introspective.

  “I was going to arrange a lunch with your mom and mine, to talk about the reception. Astrid suggested I do something similar with Ingrid, so she feels included in the arrangements. She thought that might help smooth the way with her. I wish Dad would get back to me.”

  Her father’s silence, screaming of his sense of betrayal, was eating holes into her gut, especially now that Eve was realizing she’d been in love with Dom for years.

  It sounded ridiculous even in her own head. She hadn’t known anything about him when they’d met, not even his name. Maybe chemistry was what some called love at first sight, but her intense emotional feelings toward Dom were the reason he’d been able to hurt her so deeply by walking away that morning in Budapest. She’d felt loss. It had been amplified by the belief they would never have a chance. Ever.

  However nascent and illogical that initial infatuation had been, she was learning it had underpinnings of deeper regard. As she came to know him better, she was learning why she loved him: because he was patient with children and stood up for his sisters and had overcome what sounded like a really difficult childhood.

  She wanted to ask him about that, but a wave of compassion rose in her, one that wanted to hug the boy he’d been—shunted aside and living with the anger of a man his sister was still afraid of. Eve closed her hot eyes, looping her arm across his chest as she savored the weight of his arm across her shoulders. He tightened his hold, snugging her safe and warm against his side while her heart expanded too big for her chest. It hurt to swallow, her emotions were so sharp inside her.

  “I shouldn’t have said what I did this morning,” he said in a low voice. “It’s been bothering me all day. It’s something my father would have done, trying to put someone in their place by saying something ugly. I don’t want that feud between us, Eve. I want it gone.”

  “Me, too,” she assured him. “I want us to be like Astrid and Jevaun.”

  “In what way?” His arm loosened and he looked down at her, expression shuttering.

  In love. That’s what she wanted to say, but she didn’t want to set herself up for a stiff dose of reality so she described the love she’d seen between them.

  “They’re affectionate and trust each other to have their back. They’re a team, especially where the kids are concerned. They make each other laugh.”

  She heard the rumble of acknowledgment in his chest. A frown of consideration settled on his face.

  Was she watching him take a prescription for what she wanted out of their marriage and weigh whether he could deliver it?

  She didn’t know how she felt about that. It fell somewhere between pandering and endearing and made her wonder if he even knew what love was?

  “Astrid said—” She glanced at the driver of their boat, who seemed far enough away not to hear them over the engine. “She said something about how dysfunctional she thought your family was.” Eve didn’t know if Dom knew that his sister saw a therapist so she skipped mentioning it. “Is that something you believe, too?”

  “Yes.” No hesitation.

  “Have you ever talked to anyone about it?”

  “Like who? Astrid?”

  “Or a professional?”

  “There’s no point. You can’t change history.”

  “But you can reframe how you think and feel about it.”

  “I don’t want to talk about my feelings. I don’t want to feel them.” He didn’t sound disparaging or even self-deprecating, only resolved. “This is what I’m doing about the past.” He gave her another squeeze. “That history is over. We’re moving forward from here.”

  In what way exactly? she wanted to ask, but they arrived at the yacht. And, because it had been several hours since they’d done so, they went directly to their stateroom to make love.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  DOM HAD NICO come to his head office for their first meeting on the post-nuptial contracts. It wasn’t meant to be a power move. Eve was down the hall, finishing up her meeting with his hiring team so she would join them momentarily.

  While he had her brother alone, however, he said, “Your father is ghosting Eve. It’s starting to upset her.”

  “He’s angry with me, not her. And they’re away, sailing in the Galapagos with friends. It was planned ages ago, before this and—” Nico let out a hacked-off sigh. “Dad’s had some specialist appointments lately that haven’t gone as well as he’d hoped. That’s confidential,” Nico added with a warning look. “But it’s adding stress to this situation that wouldn’t have been here otherwise.”

  “Understood. But is that why your mother hasn’t nailed down a date for the reception?” They’d suggested a date in November before the holiday parties started, but Ginny had demurred, something else that was distressing Eve.

  “Yes. Dad has a procedure scheduled as soon as he gets back so they want to see how that goes.”

  Dom nodded at the assistant who glanced through the window. She came in with a cart of fresh coffee and trays of fruit and pastries.

  “How long do you think this will take?” Nico eyed the food. “I thought we’d agree on the high-level points and let our lawyers work out the nitty-gritty.”

  “Eve’s been tied up all morning. She doesn’t really eat breakfast.”

  “She’s been like that since she was a kid,” Nico said with a shake of his head. “And she runs when she’s stressed so she gets too skinny at times. If that’s what she’s been doing lately then, yeah.” He nodded with approval at the cream-filled eclairs and bagels with cream cheese. He waited until the assistant had left to ask, “She’s definitely not pregnant?”

  “My assistant?” Dom deadpanned. “I haven’t asked. I’m not allowed.”

  “Eve. Obviously.”

  “Can I give you a word of advice?” Dom was enjoying this. “Don’t ask about my sex life with your sister unless you really want to hear about it.”

  “This is why I’d rather keep hating you,” Nico said without heat and helped himself to a cup of coffee.

  Dom wasn’t just protecting Eve’s modesty. She’d been quite desolate to learn on the last day of their honeymoon that she wasn’t pregnant. Dom had been surprisingly disappointed himself, not that he’d shared that with her. He hadn’t wanted to make her feel worse, as though she’d let him down or anything. He wasn’t even sure why he found the idea of having children so appealing. They’d been fresh back from watching the circus that was Astrid and Jevaun’s life, which really was a lot of work, but he kept thinking about Eve saying she wanted what they had. The affection and tag team of parenting. The trust.

  And there was something very simplistic about spending time with children. They were so unreserved, wrapping their wiry little arms around his neck, secure in the belief he would keep their head above water. He’d enjoyed watching Eve play a game with the toddler when he woke, holding him in her lap while she used the tail of her braid to tickle his arm and hand and cheek, both of them grinning and giggling.

  He wanted to give her that. He wanted to give her everything she asked for if it would make her smile like that.

  A sensation of the floor shifting beneath him struck, as though he stood on the tip of a diving board, toes curled on the edge, muscles gathering to jump and flip.

  “Here she is,” Nico said as Eve came through the door in a whirl of energy that pushed him into the deep end without any grace at all. Just a big, unexpected plunge with an accompanying rush in his ears and a loss of his breath.

  “Hi.” She hugged her brother very briefly, gaze on the table. “Oh, my God. Thank you. I’m starving.” She came around the table to Dom. She clasped his arm and rose on her toes to kiss the corner of his mouth. “Seriously. You’re my absolute hero for this.”

  She took the chair he held for her and began filling a plate from the tray, oblivious to the fact he felt punched in the face for no reason whatsoever. He didn’t even know what had happened to him a moment ago. Low blood sugar, maybe?

  “How did the meeting go?” Dom asked her as he and Nico also sat.

  “Good. I’m leaning toward the London project, but we can talk later about how that would fit with your schedule. Why isn’t Dad calling me back?” she asked Nico abruptly.

  “They’re sailing—”

  “Oh. The Galapagos. Right. Mom was looking forward to that. Tsk. Okay, we can cover family stuff later, too.” She waved. “You two talk business while I eat.”

  They did, discovering quickly that they were mostly on the same page, even sharing the same concerns over how much they should integrate the two companies.

  “You should put together a task force,” Eve interjected. “Jackson would be a good lead, which might not be your first choice, if you’re worried about bias,” she acknowledged in Dom’s direction. “But you want someone with attention to detail, who will keep you out of trouble with the FTC, but could find where the alignments would reduce costs versus where the individual branding is an advantage.”

  Dom looked to Nico.

  Nico knew exactly what he was thinking and said, “I don’t hate the idea.”

  “Of Jackson?” Eve looked up from her plate of fruit.

  “Of you.” Dom sent a patronizing glance at Nico. “This is what happens when you hold someone back. They lose sight of how much value they bring to a given situation.”

  “Me? I’m biased on both sides,” Eve argued.

  “Exactly,” Dom said. “You’d want what’s right for the whole, not one or the other. We’d need committees on both boards to provide arm’s length oversight.”

  “Agreed. In fact, we can allocate a budget and let her run it as a consultant so she’s not on either payroll. She could hire her own team to evaluate and make recommendations.” Nico nodded. “But no more digs about how I can’t see her potential.”

  “Sorry, Dom.” Eve’s hand came to rest on his. “Needling my brother over his colossal shortsightedness falls under my purview.”

  “I defer to your expert knowledge on that front.” He shared an amused smirk with her and pinched her fingers into his palm.

  “Are you two having fun?” Nico asked with heavy sarcasm. “Would you be interested in running a team like that?”

  “You know...” Eve nodded. “I think I would.”

  * * *

  Eve was settling into something that felt a lot like marital bliss.

  She hadn’t started working yet. She had hired an agency to work out the structure of her consultation proposal and they were being absolute sharks about it. That was earning her good-natured complaining from both Dom and Nico about the cost, but there was rueful approval in those remarks, too.

  The negotiations on the post-nuptial agreement were going smoothly, but the reception date was still in the air while she waited for her parents to return from their trip.

  In the meanwhile, Eve had lunch with Ingrid and two more of Dom’s sisters. Dom had wanted to come with her, acting so protective she couldn’t help loving him a little bit more, but she’d finally reminded him, “I can stand up to you, can’t I? Are you really worried I can’t handle her?”

  With a grumble, he acknowledged Eve was a “pretty tough cookie” and let her go alone.

  Thanks to Astrid paving the way, it hadn’t been too painful. His sisters were stilted, but Eve had the sense Ingrid’s presence kept them from being as welcoming as they might have been if she hadn’t been there.

  Ingrid came across as cold and self-centered, but she also struck Eve as someone who lived in fear. Fear of being irrelevant, fear of losing what she had, fear of being judged. Eve left feeling sorry for her and the children who had to bear the weight of all that insecurity.

  At least Ingrid had promised to put together a guest list which told her she was willing to attend. It was small progress, but progress all the same.

  Finally, Eve’s parents returned home. They stayed in the Martha’s Vineyard house for a couple of nights to recover, then came into the city the day before her father’s procedure was scheduled.

  Eve invited them to the penthouse for an early dinner. She kept the menu light, conscious of the fact her father would have to fast before his surgery tomorrow.

  “You’re nervous,” Dom noted, stilling her hand as she tremblingly shifted a butter knife two millimeters—as though its position would affect the outcome of this meeting.

  “This is a lot bigger than Daddy’s Little Girl marrying the town bad boy. I know you’re ready to let bygones be bygones, but I’m not sure he is and that puts me in the middle.”

  “I would never ask you to choose between us, Evie.” He rubbed her arm through the soft wool sweater she wore over tailored blue trousers. “You asked me once how our marriage would bridge the divide. You’re it. You’re the bridge.”

  “I hope that doesn’t mean I get walked all over,” she said wryly.

  “No.” He cradled the side of her face in a warm hand. “You’re one of those feats of engineering that everyone marvels at because they thought it was impossible.”

  “Your poetic turn of phrase is a marvel,” she teased, starting to lean into him, lifting her smiling mouth to invite a kiss.

  The elevator sounded and she abruptly pulled back, then ran her suddenly clammy hands down her hips. They moved to greet her parents as they came out.

  “Mom. Dad.” Eve hugged each of them, feeling their stiffness as she did. “Have you two ever actually met Dom?”

  “No.” Her father stared coldly at her husband while he ignored the hand that Dom started to offer. “Nico said this was your choice. Is that true?” her father asked her bluntly.

  “Romeo,” her mother murmured.

  “Yes,” Eve answered firmly. “Come in. Let’s talk.” She waved toward the lounge.

  Her father didn’t move. He flicked his gaze around and shook his head. “This isn’t right.”

  “Dad. Dom isn’t his father. I know you had—”

  “You don’t know,” he near shouted, making her jump.

  “Let’s keep this civil.” Dom touched Eve’s elbow and stepped forward so she was shielded half a step behind him.

  “We’re still out of sorts from travel,” Ginny excused, earning a glare from Romeo.

  “My mother would tan my hide for this.” Her father’s eyes dampened. “She refused to marry a Blackwood and I cannot believe Nico made you do it instead. We have options, Lina. I don’t blame Nico for the mistakes he made. No one has a crystal ball, but he never should have pressured you to fix the problems he created. We’ll restructure. You don’t have to do this.”

  “Dad.” She felt Dom’s hand tighten on her arm. “It’s done. We’re married. Happily.” Mostly.

  “Don’t lie to me.”

  “I’m not. I—” She looked up at her husband, not having expected to tell him like this, but she let the words spill past her lips. “I love Dom. I have since the first time we met.”

 

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