Lessons in Sin

A tissue appeared beside me.

Oh, Galen.

Magnus glanced at the bodyguard, and in two seconds, his long legs eliminated the space between us. He took the tissue from Galen, pocketed it, and spun my chair around, putting my back to the table.

Our eyes locked as he lowered to a crouch, set the pen between his lips, and lifted both hands to my face. I held still, hyper-aware that my entire family was watching.

Slowly, tenderly, he rested his thumbs on my cheeks and brushed away my tears. His touch jolted through my body, and we both skipped a breath.

“You’re really here?” I whispered.

“Told you,” he murmured around the pen between his teeth. “I promised I would stay with you. Keep you.”

“Fucking roar for me.” I cried through a laugh.

“Always.” He withdrew his hands to retrieve the pen, keeping his eyes on me as he addressed the room. “Unless there are questions, sign the contract.”

Papers rustled, accompanied by the din of multiple conversations.

“What are they signing?” I asked. “You own Kensington Hotels now?”

“Yes. I’m a silent owner with a controlling interest.”

“A majority of voting shares.”

“You’ve been reading the books I gave you.”

“All of them. What does this mean for my family? The merger?”

Us?

I didn’t dare ask. As of five minutes ago, there was no us.

“It means that everyone in this room knows I will fight to the death for you.” He stood and turned my chair toward the table.

My attention flew to my mother, and I found her staring back.

“I only just learned about Magnus’s interest last night.” She signed the paper before her and passed it to Hugh Kensington with a mien of indifference. “Evidently, Magnus and Hugh have been negotiating behind my back for weeks.”

“Magnus made an offer I couldn’t refuse.” Hugh signed the paper and handed it to Magnus. “He agreed to all my terms, and I agreed to his one condition.” Hugh gave me a pointed look. “He was very specific about his interest in you.”

“Marriage is the key provision in the merger.” Magnus placed the contract in front of me and opened it to the last page.

Two signatures were missing. Mine and his.

I felt every beat of my heart as I skimmed the words.

Companies were bought, sold, merged, and liquidated every day. This negotiation was far more significant and complex than a standard corporate merger.

What made a dynasty was the practice of intermarriage between ruling families. The bonds of kinship and generations of heirs had built my family’s empire into what it was today. This contract followed that tradition.

It wasn’t a merger between the Kensingtons and the Constantines. Magnus owned the Kensingtons now, effectively removing Tucker from the equation.

This was a merger and intermarriage contract between Magnus Falke and my family.

But I only needed to glance at the intensity in Magnus’s expression to know he hadn’t come for business or money or power.

He was here for love.

CHAPTER 38

TINSLEY

A feeling of breathlessness shimmered through me, tingling my limbs.

Was this really happening? So many questions swirled in my head. I didn’t know where to start.

I met Magnus’s eyes—When will my heart stop skipping at the sight of him?—and asked, “Are you still a priest?”

“I officially left the priesthood one month ago. But you and I both know I left long before that.”

A thrill ran through me, and I looked around the room, taking in all the expectant expressions. “Everyone knew about this but me?”

“I told your siblings last night.” My mother cocked her head. “They know your history with Magnus.”

“Why wasn’t I told?”

“Magnus requested we wait until today.”

And she listened to him? What world was this?

I turned, drinking in the magnetic glow of his deep blue eyes. He regarded me so profoundly, so unnervingly focused on my every twitch. And therein was my answer.

He wanted to see my expression when I learned about the new contract. He wanted to be certain that I approved of this. That I loved him.

“Are you asking me to marry you?” I tapped the signature line, my pulse quickening.

“No, Miss Constantine.” He held out his pen. “I’m demanding it.”

The throb of my heart became a full-body thud-thud-thud as everything inside me resurrected with energy and life.

“You’re lucky I’m into the bossy thing.” I accepted the pen, the words blurring through tears while I signed.

He signed after me. “It’s done.”

The relief in his voice was palpable. I felt it. Basked in it.

As the room began to clear out, he gripped my hand and pulled me to my feet, interlacing our fingers in a silent promise. He wasn’t letting me go. Not now. Not ever.

My siblings hugged me on their way out. The Kensingtons and their staff said their goodbyes. Then my mother approached.

Six months ago, she’d sent her henchman to eliminate Magnus. Now she was building a future with him. But she’d gotten what she wanted. A merger between powerful families and then some. She hadn’t only gained the strength of the Kensington dynasty. She’d acquired Magnus’s wealth and power as well.