Beautiful Nightmare (Dark Dream 2)

He laughed. “Okay, I can do that. I’ll text you when we’re all on our way back, too.”

“Thank you,” I said, grasping his hands to pull him into a fierce hug. “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered as he squeezed me back then gently pushed me away. “You’re just trying to butter me up so I forgive you for ditching me on this boring ass outing.”

“Is it working?”

He shook his head at me again, but winked when he turned to open the door. “Be careful and get some rest if you can, when the family gets back it’s Christmas tea and opening presents early. Utter calamity.”

“I’ll look forward to it.” And a part of me did. It would be strange to take part in a Constantine family Christmas tradition without truly being a member of the family. While knowing finally, after all this time, that they, or Caroline at least, was my enemy and would never be my friend.

“I wish you could stay, it would be good to have you part of the family,” Elias said before he closed the door behind him.

And something about that resonated with me.

Part of the family.

That was what Caroline had dangled before me like a carrot on the end of her stick, leading me toward something I couldn’t see in the distance.

She seemed almost desperate to make me her ward, but why?

Obviously, because she needed something.

Why had Tiernan done the very same thing?

To get revenge on the Constantines.

But why me? Why was it important to be my guardian?

Because of Lane’s hidden will.

It took everything in me to wait until the commotion downstairs died down, until I saw the cars peel out of the circular drive. Only then did I finally cave in and call Tiernan.

“Sweet thing,” he answered warmly. “I hope you’re calling to tell me you are coming home earlier than expected. The Gentlemen and I were going to take Brando ice skating, but you and I could always stay behind and I could show you even more inventive ways to use a croupier stick.”

“A croupier stick?” I asked, momentarily sidetracked by the husky intent in his tone.

“My makeshift crop at Inequity. Check the marks on your sweet ass in the mirror, I’m sure it will spark your memory,” he said, drily.

Heat burned in my cheeks. “Stop distracting me. I called for a reason. Why was it important that you became our guardians?”

“Bianca––”

“No, I’m not mad or anything, I just need to know. It has something to do with Lane’s supposed hidden will, right?”

“Well, now we know there probably is a will if that key he left in your painting is anything to go on. But yes. My private investigator found a gap in Halcyon’s history.” I knew the name of the Constantine’s Fortune 500 acquisition company and my heart started to pound even harder. “They’d acquired a company near the end of Lane’s life called Colombe Energy Investments––”

“Dad’s green energy company,” I supplied, mind whirring. “He named it after me. Colombe is Latin for––”

“Dove, yes, I figured that out.”

“So, you think Dad left the company to Brandon and me in his will?”

“I do. It seems like Halcyon hasn’t had control over the company or profits from it in the five years since he passed away. Seeing as how its grown into one of the leading green energy conglomerates in the country, this is obviously surprising.”

“Obviously,” I whispered, struck dumb by the revelations. “You needed guardianship of me so you could gain control of the company when you found the will. It would be a complete embarrassment to the Constantines for a Morelli to takeover a lucrative company that should have belonged to them.”

Tiernan’s silence was answer enough.

“That’s why you took me in,” I whispered as my thoughts stampeded through my head, creating enough clamor to make my ears ring.

Through the cacophony, I couldn’t make out what Tiernan said next.

“I have to go, I’ll call you back later,” I said swiftly before ending the call and tossing the phone on my bed.

I couldn’t tell Tiernan that Caroline had been trying to make me a Constantine. He’d go ballistic in a way I was sure both he and the Constantines would not recover from. He would also undoubtedly insist I return to Lion Court immediately, but I refused to leave without checking Lane’s locked office.

I grabbed my robe from the chair and tugged it on as I darted from my room and down the grand staircase to the main floor. Lane’s office was in the left wing of the house, on the opposite side of Caroline’s like a matched set. Of course, it was locked, but I had an idea how to open it.

Henrik answered my call on the first ring.

“Anca,” he said, his rich baritone pouring through the line like molasses. “Are you calling to have Ez come pick you up? We miss you.”