Every detail was put beneath the microscope and analyzed to an inch of its life.
Every decision was made and unmade as the event day drew closer to conclusion.
Cora couldn’t even imagine what this was costing her parents.
Neither Giovanni nor Elise seemed to care.
Leaving the display room where Monique had dutifully arranged every fine detail on white clothed tables for Elise to peruse, Cora made her way back to the main part of the house. Her flats clipped softly on marble, echoing slightly in the humming silence.
Had it always been so silent? She wondered.
As a child, it had always been filled by her and Elise running through the halls, laughing at the top of their lungs as they played out whatever game they’d concocted. Later on, it was music and the trill of their voices as they danced along to whatever was blaring in the rec room stereo. Her entire life was painted throughout those halls and each moment had Elise with her creating those memories.
But this, the milestone they’d been hoping for since Cora was old enough to paste Disney princess dresses into a scrapbook was tainted by blood, loss, and death. It was memorialized in fear and vengeance.
It killed her.
“Hey sweetheart.” James appeared at the end of the hall, a dark silhouette against a blinding wall of sunlight radiating from the window behind him. “I’ve been looking for you.”
She went to him, desperate to feel something beyond the crippling cold seeping through her limbs.
His arms were already there, already open, waiting. They closed around her, a fortress of muscle and warmth securing her against the man.
She breathed him in, soaking her senses in his scent.
“I don’t want this,” she murmured into shoulders that had been there to heft her fears and pain every step of the way. They cradled her cheek now as she closed her eyes. “It’s not how it’s supposed to be.”
His lips found the top of her head in a hard stamp that she felt all the way down to her toes.
“I have something for you upstairs.” He drew back and grazed the underside of her chin with two fingers. “When you come back, I’ll have fixed everything.”
“You can’t—”
One dark eyebrow quirked. “Don’t doubt me, woman. Now go.”
There wasn’t a part of her that believed James could fix the mess her entire world had become. He couldn’t bring back Roman. He couldn’t restore her father’s empire. He couldn’t take away the haunted darkness in her mother’s eyes. Those were things no mortal man could accomplish.
But she obediently made her way up the stairs to her room. It remained as she’d left it that morning, the bed made, the floors tidy. It looked exactly as it had when she’d been living in it, except there were male clothes in her dresser, male boots in her closet, and male things in her bathroom.
She preferred them there.
She liked seeing his things amongst hers. It made the room less feminine, less lonely. And it made what they had just a little more real. She still had no idea what that was exactly, but she relished in it. She woke up in the morning expecting his weight, expecting his mouth, expecting his hands and cock before the day started. She loved seeing him at the table with his paper and at dinner with his hand on her thigh. If she didn’t know any better, she might have thought herself falling for her husband.
The idea was terrifying. James would have lost his shit if she ever told him. But the more she thought about it, the more certain she was.
She loved her pirate, and not just any kind of love, she was in love. Hard.
But that was something she wouldn’t tell him. He’d be gone before she finished vomiting up her feelings. He was so against it, so tainted by the very possibility that it was almost insulting. But she told herself she already had all the important parts of him.
His attention.
His affection.
His loyalty and trust.
Did she really need him to actually say it?
Teetering back and forth on the idea, Cora moved deeper into the room, her gaze scanning all the places a surprise could be placed.
She found it in the bathroom. It was the sliver of light glimmering through the partially open doorway that propelled her to push it open further. She stepped over the threshold and paused just inside to admire the sight of a million lit candles clustered over every available flat surface, and surrounding a filled tub frothy with lavender scented foam. The entire room glowed a warm, buttery gold and smelled of heaven. Along the rim, the light glittered off the flute of champagne resting alongside her favorite bottle of Pinot Noir.
Cora gasped, overwhelmed by the sheer display of thoughtfulness from a man she would never have guessed possessed an ounce of gentleness in the beginning. He was always purely brute force and dominating, but occasionally, he’d do something unexpected and sweet, and her heart tripped all over itself.
Yet he’d forbidden her from falling for him.
It was laughable.
Nevertheless, she stripped quickly and slipped into the bath, gasping as the heat radiated up her limbs to her neck.
She reclined and let her eyes close.
JAMES
James watched as Cora ascended the stairs, her lethargic strides coinciding with the slump in her shoulders. He waited until she’d reached the top before making his own way to the ballroom, a useless bit of space that made no sense to him why anyone not in the sixteenth century would have. But his problem didn’t lie with the room itself, but the woman guarding it like Cerberus guarding the gates of the underworld.
Only, he was fairly certain the three-headed dog from Greek Mythology was probably kinder.
He found Elise exactly where he knew she would be, knee deep in party planning. She stood by a table of silverware, waving a small spoon in the event planner’s face.
“Is this supposed to be a shrimp fork?” she was seething when James approached. “These are all ridiculous.”
James stopped just behind her.
“Ms. Harris, may I have a word, please?”
Elise spun, hazel eyes going wide before she realized it was only just him. “Not now, Captain. I’m in the middle of something.”
James gritted his teeth. “Now.” He bit out, putting the full force of his authority into it. “Leave,” he told the two watching him with stunned expressions.
Neither one needed to be told twice. They turned and hurried from the room just in time to miss Elise whirling around to snarl at him.
“How dare you, Mr. Crow! Do you have any idea how much work—?”
“Stop,” he cut her off. “You’re acting crazy.”
Elise gasped. “How dare—”
“Do not dare me again, Ms. Harris,” he warned. “I have a problem with being challenged, or dared. I tend not to take it very well. Now, you are going to listen to me, because the very foundation of your relationship with your daughter depends on it.”
Anger dissolved with a flutter of her lashes and was replaced with a scan of the room, possibly searching for Cora.
“Where is she?”
“I sent her upstairs to relax.” He puts his hand up when she started to open her mouth again. “She needed it. This was supposed to be her day, but she’s miserable. I don’t like seeing her miserable, Ms. Harris. It upsets me and no one likes me when I’m upset.”
“But why is she upset?”
“Because she was under the impression that you would be planning this together. As a team. But she hasn’t been asked her opinion once in three weeks, which bothers me, because her wants and needs are the only reasons I agreed to this—”
Elise burst into tears.
James immediately ceased speaking.
Fuck...
It was the last thing he’d expected, and for several long, straining seconds, he didn’t know what the fuck he was supposed to do.
“I’m so stupid,” she sobbed. “I didn’t mean to hurt Cora. I didn’t even ... I’m a bad mother.”<
br />
James sighed. “You’re not a bad mother. I shouldn’t have yelled at you. I’m sorry.”
But the apology did nothing to slow the flood of tears washing down her cheeks.
James reached for a napkin folded in the shape of a swan and pressed it into her hand.
“Please stop,” he pleaded. “If Cora sees you, she’ll skin me alive.”
The partial teasing earned him a wet chuckle as she wiped at her face.
“I don’t blame her for being upset.” The napkin was bunched in her hands. “We’d been planning this day for years, and she’s right, this isn’t how it was supposed to be. I ruined everything.”
“No,” James said quickly before she could cry again. “You can still fix this.”
She squinted at up at him, looking very dramatic with her lashes spiky and her cheeks flushed. Even in pieces, Elise Harris looked remarkable and elegant, like an olden time TV starlet.
“How? There’s only three days before the event and so much has already been spent...”
“Don’t worry about the money,” he assured her gently. “Just give Cora what she wants.”
She sniffled delicately. “She must hate me.”
James raised an eyebrow. “Have you met her? I don’t think that’s possible.”
Elise sighed. “You’re right. I should talk to her. Fix this.”
He didn’t stop her when she left the room. He waited until he couldn’t hear the click of her heels before expelling the air from his lungs.
That hadn’t gone the way he’d expected. Her falling apart hadn’t happened in his head when he’d first decided to confront her. They’d talk and he’d convince her to let Cora participate and everything would be fine.
Damn women.
But at least it was done, he thought. The only person left to talk to was De Marco about leaving a trail of bodies leading up to Cora’s big day. He personally didn’t care who De Marco killed, but Cora didn’t need to know about it.
After that, he needed a drink and his woman.
But first things first.
CORA
The silk hissed as Cora fastened the sash securely around her waist. The fabric glided like a lover’s hands over her soft skin, making her a little homesick for James.
But she would rectify it later. For now, she just wanted to snuggle under the duvet, her body warm and relaxed from the bath, and nap.
She got as far as the bed when the door opened without knocking. She expected James, but was surprised when Elise poked her head in.
“Hey,” the woman murmured. “Should I come back?”
It had been weeks since she’d been alone with her mother. She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do.
“No,” she decided. “Come in.”
Elise slipped into the room and shut the door quietly behind her. Then she stood there, looking tiny and lost.
“I’m sorry, darling,” she began. “I’ve made a mess of things.”
Cora blinked, not having expected that at all. “What? No, you didn’t—”
Elise put a hand up to stop her. “I took away your big day by making it all about what I wanted. I didn’t even...” she broke off with a shake of her head. “I let this party become my box and that wasn’t fair to you. This is your day. It should be what you want.”
Cora sighed and lowered herself onto the bench at the foot of the bed. “That’s just it, I don’t know, because I don’t want this.”
Elise visibly started. “What?”
There was no hiding it anymore, she thought, pulling in a bracing breath. “This party scares me, Mom. I have nightmares about it. I wake up in the dead of night reaching for James because I keep seeing him dying over and over again and I can’t stop it.” Her head rocked slowly. “This party is going to get him killed.”
“Oh sweetheart.” Elise crossed the room and claimed the spot next to Cora. “No one is going to do anything. I promise you. I’ve been very clear about that. Nobody would dare disrespect my wishes in my house.” She took Cora’s hand. “Now, enough of this. We have three days to fix the disaster I’ve created.”
Cora snorted. “Just leave it. Dad’s going to be furious when he gets the bill as it is.”
Elise pushed to her feet and took Cora with her. “Your father isn’t paying for any of this. We offered, but James insisted he would take care of it.”
Cora stopped. “James?”
Elise nodded. “Said he wanted to make sure you got everything you wanted.” Elise smiled a little. “He’s a good man, Cora. He cares about you. It almost makes me forgive him for taking you.”
Cora laughed but her mind was a million miles away from that room and that conversation. It was wrapped around the promise she’d made to James about never falling in love with him and wondered if it was still breaking that promise if no one else knew about it.
It was his fault anyway. He’d left her no choice. He’d practically shoved her into it. He couldn’t be the perfect man, the perfect lover, the perfect husband, and not expect her to love him. It didn’t happen like that.
“Cor?”
She blinked and faced her mom. “Yeah, okay.”
Elise beamed. “And I will stay completely out of it. Support only.”
“Don’t you dare.” Cora hooked her arm through the other woman’s. “You singlehandedly saved us from having the wrong lilies at the tables. I need that kind of fast thinker.”
Cora grinned when Elise laughed and elbowed her. “Evil child.”
“Besides, someone has to tell Monique the plans have changed ... again.”
Elise grimaced. “She’s going to kill us all in our sleep.”
Cora laughed. “Well, you better call and make up with Deidra after yelling at her. She might be the only person who can save us from that clipboard wielding woman.”
Elise groaned. “God, James was right, I have been a monster to everyone.”
Cora stopped. “He said what?”
“No, no, he didn’t exactly say those words, but he was right. I’ve been a nightmare.”
Cora squeezed her arm. “You were stressed.”
Hazel eyes shone in the dim lights filtering through sheer curtains. “I’ve never felt so useless, Cora. He won’t even let me talk to my friends to explain what is happening and why he’s doing this.” Her voice broke. “He’s just ... killing everyone, all our friends, people we’ve known for decades without a shred of proof. I don’t even know how to talk to him. He’s completely shut me out.”
“Dad never does anything without a reason,” Cora pointed out. “You always told me that. We have to be supportive for him.”
“This is different,” Elise whispered. “This isn’t my husband. I don’t know who—”
“It’s him or them,” Cora reminded her. “Only the strong survives in this world.”
Elise closed her eyes. “I know you’re right. I just hate being so powerless.”
“You’re Elise De Marco Harris, you’re never powerless. You’re going to get through this like you always do, with grace and a smile. Now,” she smoothed her mom’s hair back. “We’re going to put on a bad ass party and we’re going to smile and act like we couldn’t be happier, right?”
Elise stared at her a long moment, expression torn. “I don’t know whether to be proud or heartbroken right now.”
“Scared,” Cora decided for her. “Very scared, Because I’m going to out party plan the great Elise Harris.”
Leaving her mother laughing, Cora padded to the dresser and pulled out clothes. She took them with her into the bathroom.
“Mom?” she called through the crack in the door.
“Yes, demon spawn?”
“When did you know you loved Dad?”
There was a minute of pause before the answer.
“About a week after I met him.”
Cora frowned. “That soon? Then why did you wait five years to marry him?”
The hesitation was longer this time.
“Because he was already engaged to be married to someone else.”
Clad in only a top and panties, Cora scrambled out with her pants dragging after her.
“What?”
Elise winced.
“You never told me that!”
Her mother laughed tightly. “I didn’t want you to think badly of me.”
“Well, now you have to tell me.” She dragged her pants on, never taking her eyes off the women refusing to meet her gaze. “Who was she? What happened? Oh my god, I have so many questions!”
A fine crinkle formed over Elise’s perfect nose. “She was the daughter of a rival clan. Disgustingly beautiful and lethal. I only met her the one time, but I’ll never forget her face.”
“What happened to her? Where is she now?
Her smile faded. “I killed her.”
Cora froze. “Jesus!”
“Not so I could have your father to myself, but because I was her initiation into her father’s chair.”
“So, it was you or her,” Cora clarified.
Elise nodded. “When I met your father...” the lines around her mouth melted into a dazzling smile, the one Cora recognized as the one she wore every time she told this story. “I was in Milan, in this grand, presidential suite overlooking the most stunning view of the city. I was wearing nothing but that year’s summer swim line, and he walked in like he owned the place, this foul mouthed asshole with an ego that shouldn’t have been able to fit through the door.” Elise bit her lip, her cheeks scarlet. “But I couldn’t deny the way he made me feel when he was close. He infuriated me, he still does, then he’d look at me and I would forget everything. For a week, he chased me, sending me the most beautiful and rare flowers, and the best chocolates from around the world. He tried so hard to seduce me and I loved making him beg.”
Cora laughed at the devilish glint in her mother’s eyes. “But it clearly worked. He married you.”
“Yes and no.” Elise went to the bench and sat. “First, he made me fall in love with him. It happened so seamlessly, I didn’t even feel the trip. I just woke up one morning, looked over to where he was sleeping in my bed and it hit me, I loved him, this beautiful, insufferable man I knew next to nothing about, except that he made every part of me complete. It scared me. I didn’t want to be one of those women who fell for a guy in a week. Weak women did that and I wasn’t weak. So, I ran. I packed my things and I went back to England. I returned to my cramped, lonely little apartment so sure I would never see him again. A man like that, he would have another woman in his bed by dinner.”
Blood Script Page 35