Keep Me (Rebel Hearts Heists #2) - M. Sinclair Page 0,26

fabricated polite, confident and almost jovial exterior.

I try to put aside my unease as we sit down. The dinner is a delicious and very high-end five course affair and champagne flows liberally. I don’t miss some tension in the happy couple as we chat about our imminent college graduation and the guys’ football victory in the State Championship. I begin wondering what’s the matter, when after the dessert plates are cleared and a special reserve brandy is served, Van Der Beck clears his voice.

“Ok, let’s cut to the chase, shall we?”

For a second, my insides clench in terror, fearing that the reason for our presence here has already been discovered and almost expecting some goons coming to take us away like in a gangster movie. But I couldn’t be farther from the truth.

“Blaine, your mother has been agonizing about this for months and I know that she’s been hesitant to ask for fear of being refused but I want my bride to be happy so … would you consider walking your mother down the aisle to give her away at our wedding? It would mean a lot to the both of us and it would start our life as a family on the right note.”

I see Blaine tense up but before he can reply, Casper Van Der Beck continues: “I know our overall relationship has been tense since the events that went down a couple of years ago, but just be reassured that I bear no grudges and I don’t hold you and Royce responsible for your father’s mistakes.”

This man must be a fucking great liar, because if I didn’t know that he framed Royce’s father for his own crimes, if I didn’t believe the guys when they swear that that’s what happened, I would completely believe in his ‘honesty.’

Again, Blaine opens his mouth to speak after meeting Royce and Kaden’s eyes for a millisecond but this time it’s his mother, the one who interrupts, blurting out: “And I’d love it if Sloane could be a bridesmaid. I was gonna have just my two goddaughters Elsie and Georgia, but I would love for my son’s girlfriend to be in the wedding. I know how important you must be to Blaine if he brought you here.”

To my surprise, Blaine agrees for the both of us. And normally, I guarantee you that he’d get his ass kicked for speaking on my behalf but I saw the look passing between him and the others, so I’m sure that they think this will be good for our plan.

River

Dinner with Blaine’s mom is quite a tense affair: everyone seems to be studying everyone else and I almost can’t taste the amazing food. I’m too preoccupied with the way Royce is looking at Van Der Beck and with the feeling of Blaine’s mom’s gaze constantly on me.

Fuck, I knew it! I knew that saying that I was Sloane’s brother was the stupidest idea of the century. I’m sure this is why Alicia whatever whatever—how many fucking last names does a woman need, seriously?—keeps staring at me, because Sloane and I look nothing alike and she probably suspects that we lied. I feel really relieved when dinner is over and our guests offer to give us a tour of the resort and casino.

“Uhm, I’m sorry ma’am, sir … I feel really beat, jet-lag is kicking my a— I mean, it’s really killing me. Would you consider it rude if I got an early night? I never can sleep properly on an aircraft …” And between being almost sliced alive by a psychotic FBI agent, being arrested and held by the FBI, and interrogated, and the flight over the pond, I haven’t had any proper sleep in three fucking days. But I don’t say any of it and thank our guests when they graciously allow me to part with the rest of the group.

Before I walk away, Sloane squeezes my hand and whispers in my ear, “Leave your door unlocked, Rivs. I miss sleeping in your arms. I won’t be long.”

I smile at my beautiful kitten and I have to appeal to all my fucking self-control not to kiss her the way I want to and instead I give her a chaste and hopefully ‘brotherly’ kiss on the top of her head. “Night, sis. Don’t gamble all the family fortune away.”

She laughs at my goofiness and then follows Blaine and the others into a different elevator that, rather than leading directly to the penthouse, leads to the general