Besides, if he killed one of her family members, it would be a setback he wasn’t sure his plan could survive. Rose and he might be similar in so many ways, but they differed on that subject. He liked his cousin and barely tolerated the rest of his family. She loved hers with a loyalty that baffled him. They were just people, and people were all motivated by selfish means, which led to them disappointing or betraying you.
He wanted to consider her naive for that belief, but history spoke for itself. The O’Malleys were insular and clannish and might fight amongst themselves on occasion but would join ranks and battle to the death the moment one of theirs was threatened. The greater Romanov family couldn’t say the same, but Dmitri Romanov had adopted at least that part of his wife’s family traits after marrying her. “This ends with my ring on your finger. Make your peace with it now.”
“Dante—”
“We’ll be landing soon.” He leaned back and motioned at her lap. “Buckle in, Rosa.”
For a moment, he thought she might argue, but she finally pulled the belt over her hips, glaring all the while. Neither of them spoke as the plane touched down. A smooth landing, but he expected nothing less from his man. Rose tensed, and he could practically see her flipping through scenarios and trying to decide the best way to turn the tables on him.
A few minutes later, the door opened with a faint sound. The pilot would stay in the cockpit while Dante and Rose left the plane; the better to provide reasonable doubt should it ever come to that. It wouldn’t, but the pilot was loyal, and Dante rewarded loyalty.
He propped his elbows on his knees. “You have—”
“Let me guess. Another of your choices.” Her gaze tracked the open door, and he waited for her to realize she couldn’t successfully make a run for it from here. It didn’t take long. She huffed out a breath and motioned an impatient hand in his direction. “Well, let’s hear it.”
“You can be a good girl and obey and enjoy a nice hot shower and decent meal when we get to our destination.” He paused. “Or you can be foolish, and I’ll lock you in a room with only a cot until you’re in a better mindset.”
“Wow, Dante. Such a difficult choice. So nuanced.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll be good.”
No, she wouldn’t. She just wanted to gather as much information as possible before she made her first escape attempt. And there would be an escape attempt. He almost looked forward to it. He’d planned for every eventuality he could think of, but Rose had surprised him once before. She could very well do it again. A thrill rolled through his body at the thought. He truly didn’t know what she’d do, and he fucking loved that.
Dante stood and caught her looking at the bedroom door. “Leave the phone.”
“Why let me call in the first place?”
“Take a guess.”
She pressed her lips together and started for the door. “I can’t decide if you want the Verduccis to go to war with both Romanovs and Capparellis, or if you want us to go to war while the Verduccis laugh and watch. The latter won’t work. Even if Romeo doubts the truth of what happened, he can’t afford to ignore it just in case it is the truth. He’ll come after you.”
“I look forward to it.” If it was easier for her to believe that this was all some ruthless plan to start a war, then so be it. The only person he gave a fuck about right now was Rose, and he would have gone to even greater lengths to have her.
He chose not to admit the main reason he allowed the call was so she’d stop worrying that her family thought she was dead. He didn’t want Rose distracted. He wanted her focused on him entirely. If he told the truth about his motivations, Rose wouldn’t believe him, so he didn’t bother.
He followed her down the stairs. Dante slipped his hands into his pockets and watched Rose look around, horror slowly dawning on her pretty face. She usually had a relatively decent poker face, but it was nowhere in evidence now.
Now, she’d realize how foolish it was to continue to defy him.
They stood on a tiny runway in the middle of some cleared space with tall grass and weeds. A field, he supposed. There was space in case a landing plane couldn’t make it with the limited runway involved. It would be a rough ride when they ran out of pavement, though. He’d never personally experienced it—his people were the best—but it paid to have contingency plans. A forest bordered the field, trees thick enough to create the illusion of a green wall, lush and thick.
Rose turned to him, hazel eyes wide. “Where are we?”
“It doesn’t matter.” The space was intentionally generic, and he highly doubted Rose Romanov could identify the trees to narrow down the location. If it weren’t for potential cell tracking, he wouldn’t bother to keep the phone from her. As it was, the plane needed to get back in the air. He had several stops to make, each lingering just long enough to cloud the issue should someone—namely Cillian O’Malley—attempt to track their location.
Eventually, they’d find this place, but by the time they managed, this whole thing would be over.
Checkmate.
He watched the knowledge settle through Rose. She ran her fingers through her hair and gave a hoarse laugh. “Wow, you really went all out with this. I’d be impressed if I didn’t want to wring your neck.”
“Always violence with you, Rosa.” He jerked his chin to the east. “Let’s go.”
When they reached the edge of the asphalt, Rose balked. “Dante, I’m barefoot. You can’t honestly expect me to—what the fuck?”
He scooped her into his arms and kept going without missing a beat. She lifted her hand threateningly, and he stopped her with a glare. “A shower and a hot meal.”
“You are such a bastard.”
“Si. We’ve already covered this.”
She held herself stiff in his arms as he made his way through the field to the tree line. Behind them, the plane’s engines roared, and it shot down the runway and into the air. Right on schedule.
Dante wasn’t one to admit mistakes often, but it took all of fifteen minutes before he realized he should have chosen better shoes. And holding a tense Rose wasn’t exactly easy. If she’d just relax… He knew better than to order it, though. She might decide she wanted to run, and this area was filled with brambles and thorns. She’d rip her legs to shreds, and he’d still catch her. Better for them both to suffer through this short trip as they were.
By the time the house came into view, Dante was sweating, in pain, and fucking furious. He didn’t bother to gauge Rose’s reaction to the cabin. He just marched up to the front door, set her on her feet, and grabbed her arm. “Do. Not. Run.” When she jerked against his hold, he gave her a little shake. “I mean it, Rosa. I’m in a foul mood, and you’ll only get hurt.”
“I didn’t ask you to carry me.”
“Hush.” He maneuvered himself between her and the door and used his free hand to key in the code to unlock it. Then he shoved her in ahead of him. The first slap of air-conditioning after that hike was both painful and welcome. Dante kicked the door shut behind him, barely pausing to ensure it locked properly, and then headed for the bedroom. He registered Rose trying to dig in her heels, but it hardly made a difference. He was stronger and she had to know hat. Stubborn woman. “Shower,” he barked.