Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 100086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
“That’s not fair.” She was having a difficult time getting a full breath when it felt like he’d sucked up all the air in the room. This was the exact thing she’d left New York to avoid. I should have run farther. “I don’t want any part of this. I’m not taking sides.” She hadn’t even been aware that there were sides when she started falling for Cillian. She should have known better.
“Then you never should have let the O’Malley boy so close.” He moved to the door and paused as he opened it. “When it comes right down to it, all we have in this world is family, Olivia. You’d do well to remember that.”
She waited for the door to close before she picked up the vase on the rickety end table and threw it at the wood. It hit the door but, being plastic, didn’t shatter into a million pieces. She cursed and hurried over to pick up the scattered flowers before Hadley could come investigate. What the hell am I going to do? Dmitri might be content with careful non-threats right now, but that wouldn’t last. The longer she didn’t do what he wanted, the more explicit the consequences would be.
He’ll take Hadley. He wouldn’t even hesitate. If what he said is any indication, he’s already preparing for it.
It was possible he’d started preparing for it the second he realized she’d never bend to Andrei’s will.
“I never should have put Sergei on the birth certificate.” She’d had a moment of sentimental weakness when he’d shown up at the hospital and held their daughter for the first—and probably only—time. Stupid. It wouldn’t have ultimately changed anything, though. All he needed was a paternity test to prove that he was the father, and he’d have rights to Hadley. With the Romanov finances backing him, he’d be able to tie her up in court indefinitely.
And that was if they even bothered to go the legal road. It was just as easy for Olivia to go to work one night and come home to find Mrs. Richards incapacitated and Hadley gone to God alone knew where.
The band around her chest got tighter at the thought. Oh God, oh God, oh God. What am I going to do?
Running sounded like a really great plan, but she couldn’t run on no cash, and if the ease that Dmitri found her with this time was any indication, she wasn’t very good at it. They’d need new identities, cash to spare, and connections she just plain didn’t have. He’d find them. It probably wouldn’t even take him a month with his resources.
“Mama?”
She pasted a smile on her face and turned to her daughter. “Hey, baby girl. How about we watch some Beauty and the Beast while I make pancakes?” Some cuddle time might be able to beat back the panic making black dots dance across her vision.
“Up!” Hadley lifted her arms, and Olivia was all too happy to scoop her up, grab the throw blanket off the back of the couch, and get them set up in their favorite spot. She turned on the movie and settled in, letting the feel of her daughter, healthy and whole, in her arms relax her.
Her mind circled the problem as the movie progressed, but the solution didn’t magically appear in front of her face. If anything, the more she thought about it, the clearer it became that she was in over her head in a big way. As much as she hated to admit it, Dmitri was right—there were only two options. She either had to obey him like a well-behaved lap dog, or she had to ask for help. She wasn’t a fan of either option. Olivia had always taken care of herself, and the idea of needing to lean on someone stuck in her throat.
She looked down at Hadley. For you, baby girl, I’ll do it. I won’t like it, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you out of Romanov hands.
Really, there was only one person she could ask for help who’d actually have the resources to do something effective. Cillian. She cuddled her daughter closer, considering. She liked him. She liked him a lot. That didn’t mean she completely trusted him. Plus, trusting him with her and trusting him with Hadley were two very different things.
She’d told him that she had a past, but it was a big leap from having an abusive boyfriend like she’d let him believe and having one of the strongest cells of the Russian mob on the East Coast on her ass. It was entirely possible that he’d offer her something similar to what Dmitri had—his power for her information.
It was like choosing between the rock and the hard place. Neither of them was a great option.
You believe Cillian is different.