On The Ropes (Tapped Out 3)

secrecy?

You’re not anything to each other. You can’t be.

Knowing that and remembering it when she seemed so fragile and beautiful next to her older, harder sister were two different things. The light in Carly was so strong, still. My urge to tuck her in and protect her wasn’t something I could wish away or ignore. I’d been struggling with it since the day we met.

That it was a distraction I didn’t need didn’t cause the desire to go away.

“Lorenzo threatened the people I love, once he realized his threats on my life wouldn’t sway me.” Mia rubbed the wrist of the arm that had been broken. “In the end, I lost, anyway, so they got what they wanted.”

“You threw the fight?”

Her head came up, her eyes blazing into mine. “No, I said I lost. She beat me, fair and square.”

Fox cursed under his breath. “Fair and square, my ass. Those goons dragged Olivia through the crowd to throw you off your game. Somehow they knew you’d care. You shouldn’t, but you did.

“What were the threats, exactly? Vague doesn’t help me.”

“How does any of this help you? Why do you even care? At best, we’re friends. At best,” Mia repeated, making it clear she didn’t even believe we were truly that.

It took everything I possessed not to make eye contact with Carly. “Friendship matters to me. I told Fox that too. I don’t have many friends, so the ones I have I don’t take lightly.”

“There’s a big long river between not taking our friendship lightly and risking your life to help us. Not that we need you to,” she added. “I lost, a ton of bets were cashed in that night, and Lorenzo hasn’t contacted me since. Everything has been quiet.”

“Until today.” I glanced back at the skewered chair. “That is definitely not quiet.”

She rubbed her wrist again, saying nothing.

“The threats were against me,” Fox said after a moment. Mia’s eyes went to slits, but she didn’t admonish him. “And Carly.”

“Me?” Even as my hands went to fists, Carly pushed her way in front of her older sister to speak to Fox. “Why would they threaten me?”

Suddenly, it was all so clear.

Because you’re in their club every night. Because they have you right where they want you.

When the Mia situation had occurred with Lorenzo, Carly had already been dancing at the club for months. Mia and I hadn’t known it, but Lorenzo and his men surely did. Marco in particular.

It hadn’t been a coincidence that Marco had chosen Carly to bring to the back room that night. They hadn’t been finished with getting their retribution, and they’d accomplished two things by setting us both up. I’d proven my loyalty by doing as they asked, especially since it skirted the laws of consent, and they’d taken another shot at Mia via her sister.

Two questions remained. Were they finished taking shots at Mia, through Carly or otherwise? And was there another reason they’d pushed me and Carly together that night?

Easier to take out two ducks with one shot.

“It was just idle crap. They just snatched onto the first handy target.” Mia rubbed Carly’s shoulder. “Nothing at all for you to worry about. I took care of it.”

I didn’t miss the look that Mia and Fox exchanged. They didn’t believe that for a minute.

“Lorenzo hasn’t attempted contact since the fight. You’re sure of it.”

“Yes, no contact. Why would he? He got me to fight, which was what he wanted. It was just one stupid punch,” she added defensively. “What kind of pussy is he, making such a big deal about nothing?”

“It’s a matter of honor in front of his men. Without honor, you’re less than worthless. At the very least he would want to make an example of you, to ensure no one else would try something similar.”

The more I spoke, the more pieces of the puzzle snapped together.

I was being set up.

Just as Mia and Fox—and even Carly—didn’t trust my motivations, neither did the Andrettis, for good reason. Not only was I a Costas by blood, the son of one of their biggest rivals, I was aligned with Mia and had even campaigned for leniency on her behalf.