Lucian Morelli exited the elevator first, charging the air with tension. Dark eyes, black hair, sinister aura—he was the polar opposite of my petite, blond, bright-eyed sister-in-law, who accompanied him.

He tried to keep her pinned to his side, but she broke away and tackled Tinsley in a hug.

“I missed you.” Elaine pulled back to search Tinsley’s eyes. “Are you doing okay?”

“Yeah. I’m good. Thank you so much for coming.”

As the sisters reunited, I met Lucian’s gaze over their heads. We stood in a silent stand-off, simmering with distrust and animosity.

Maybe Elaine was the only reason he’d agreed to this meeting. Maybe he had no interest in harming Tinsley. Hell, he’d allowed my guards to strip him of weapons and risked his life to enter my domain.

That didn’t mean I trusted him.

“Elaine.” I gave her a warm smile. “Welcome.”

“Thank you for…” She wriggled her nose. “Well, you didn’t invite us. But thank you for letting us in.”

“Now that you’re here, let’s get this over with, shall we?” I gripped Tinsley’s hand and led our guests into the dining room.

During the first two courses, the girls dominated the conversation. They’d seen each other so infrequently that they barely took breaths to eat.

Lucian remained quiet, responding in grunts and single syllables, biding his time, observing every detail like a creeper, and using up too much oxygen at my table. But whenever he looked at Elaine, his eyes softened into something almost human.

I recognized the unguarded emotion. He would die for her. Kill for her. He would go to the ends of the earth to protect her and those she loved, including Tinsley.

With a sigh, I reclined back in the chair. “You would never poison my wife.”

The girls fell silent, their mouths pausing mid-chew.

Not a hint of surprise registered on his face. He knew exactly why Tinsley had invited him here.

“No, I wouldn’t,” he said. “For the same reason you would never poison Elaine.” He lifted his whiskey and took a swig. “Or me.”

The sisters sat across from each other, sharing private looks. With their pale blond hair and bewitching blue eyes, they could’ve been twins. Same physical traits, same rebelliousness, same Constantine blood.

For as long as they lived, their bond would serve as an unbreakable truce between Lucian Morelli and me. Together, we would guard those two women with every drop of blood in our bodies.

“You could’ve just called me and asked about the wine.” He sat back and loosened his tie.

“No offense, but I don’t trust a word from your mouth.”

“No offense taken. Now that we’ve met…” His gaze slid to Elaine, and he winked at her. “You know my weakness.”

She flipped him off, and Tinsley laughed, shattering some of the tension.