But I haven’t said anything against it, no matter how badly I want to. Carina made up her mind. She told Antonio exactly what she wanted. He agreed to give it to her. I can’t get between them. Not on family business. But that doesn’t mean I can just grin and bear it, either.

I fix my tie–no mirror necessary–and stride out into the evening. A string quartet is already playing inside the main house, and the windows are lit and welcoming. Angelica wanted to make a good impression on her first event, and I can already tell she’s outdone herself.

When I stride into the house, the low hum of voices greets me. Up ahead, two young men are having a quiet discussion in the hallway outside the dining room, and many more are standing and talking in the foyer.

Antonio greets each one of them with a handshake and introduces them to Angelica, who hangs on his arm as he dotes on her. I stalk down the hallway, my hackles rising as more voices meet my ears. There have to be a least a dozen men here tonight–all of them wanting a piece of my Carina.

My Carina. That’s something she’s not. I may be obsessed with her, in love with her, fucking unable to escape thoughts of her–but she’s not mine. My loyalty requires I keep my distance and remain respectful as I keep her safe and keep her family’s fortunes on the rise. The thing in the pantry–that was a slip. A bad one. I can’t let it happen again. No matter how much I want her, I have to put her welfare over my need for her. At least, that’s what the level-headed Gilly would do. That’s what I should do. But the moment I get a flash of what it felt like to discipline her with my hand against her ass–I’m dangerously close to snapping again.

“--definitely still a virgin.” One of the young men smirks at the small group he’s talking to.

“The fuck you say?” I step to him.

He looks up at me, his smirk disappearing.

“I-I-I–Nothing.” He swallows hard.

“And this is Carson Falco.” Antonio and Angelica move next to me and introduce the little shit who dared talk about Carina like that.

The prick glances between Antonio and me.

“Did we interrupt?” Antonio asks pointedly, and I realize he’s trying to keep the peace.

“N-no.” Falco shakes his head. “I was just apologizing for speaking out of turn.” He smiles, one I bet he practices in the mirror. The little shit.

“We do that a lot around here,” Angelica adds gracefully. “Let’s get drinks. Carina will be down shortly.”

“Sure,” Falco says a little too quickly, then hurries toward the dining room with Antonio and Angelica following behind.