Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 98469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
“Nah, it’s really not. Our father and Joseph were both loose cannons, and now, they’ve been removed from the equation. The arranged marriages are done, which is a win for Brielle and me. Giuseppe will either cooperate or we’ll cut him out too. The fact is, our father has been carrying them on his back all these years. Joseph was dead weight, and if Giuseppe is smart, he’ll get on board.”
“Holy shit.” Matteo barks out a laugh. “It’s really fucking happening. Andrey’s dead, and we’re taking over. And we didn’t even have to lift a finger for it to happen.”
I chuckle. “It’s really happening. If Joseph wasn’t dead, I’d send him a fruit basket as a thank-you. Maybe I’ll send his wife one.”
“Speaking of Maria, do you think she’s going to take over Rothschild International?”
“I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter,” I tell him as we walk out. “Our business with them is over. I’m going to meet with our legal team to ensure all ties are cut. And if Giuseppe gives me shit about the way we plan to run the business, we’ll cut him out too. I’ve been playing our father’s game for too long, and I’m done.”
“What the hell do you mean, Brielle is on her way to Russia?” I bark, making my mom jump. “We were gone for a few damn hours, and you shipped her off to another country?”
“I didn’t ship her anywhere,” Mom says, glaring at me. “And don’t you take that tone with me. She wanted to go, and I agreed.”
“And who gave you the right to make that decision?” Matteo cuts in.
“I’m her mother,” Mom says, redirecting her glare at Matteo. “I might have messed up while your father was alive, cowering to that piece of shit, but he’s gone now, and I’ll be damned if, even in his death, he continues to hurt her. She lost her boyfriend and was terrified of having to marry that horrible man, and I wasn’t going to let it happen.” She steps into my face, and even in heels, she only comes up to my chest, but fuck if I’m not proud of my mom for finally standing up for herself. “I’m not going to let it happen.”
“It’s not happening,” I tell her. “I already told Anthony that the deal was off. I appreciate you trying to protect Brielle, but I was never going to let that deal go through.”
Mom’s blue eyes soften, and tears form in her lids. “Is he really gone?” she chokes out.
“He’s really gone.” I open my arms, and she falls into them, letting out a guttural cry. “He’s never going to hurt you again.” I lean over and kiss the crown of her golden-blonde hair. “I’m so fucking sorry we couldn’t stop him sooner.”
“There’s nothing you could’ve done,” she says through her cries. “The only way was to kill him, and up until last year, had he died, we would’ve lost everything. He made sure of that.”
What she means is, up until last year, our father’s will stated that if he died, Giuseppe would take over the company and make the decisions as he saw fit. It was Andrey’s way of controlling me. But after his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, he gave in and changed his will to state that if he died, everything would go to me. Which was why Matteo and I were working on figuring out a way to kill him, but we wanted to do it right because of the three companies being tangled with one another.
But with Joseph’s death, it will force Giuseppe to take a side—us or the Rothschilds—and we all know he’d rather get in bed with the one he knows than the one he loathes.
“You and Brielle are safe now,” Matteo says. “She doesn’t need to go to Russia.”
“But she does,” Mom says with a frown. “She needs a break from this life. She’s going to finish her classes online and spend time with your grandparents. Polina and Boris are excited for her to join them.”
“And that’s what she said she wants?” I ask.
“She was extremely distraught. Wouldn’t stop crying and begging to leave. When I suggested she go visit your babushka and dedushka, she agreed.”
While our grandparents lived in Harbor Point while we were growing up, after our grandfather and our dad got into a huge fight over their differences in the way they wanted to run the business, our grandfather walked away, and he and our grandmother moved back to Russia where he started a gas company that’s now worth billions. The only time we see them is when we visit. Brielle has always been close to them, so I know she’ll be in good hands.
“I want to talk to her when she lands,” I say, and then it hits me. “Did she take the company jet?”