Secret (Betrothed 9)

“I know my husband would never fool around, so that was the last thing on my mind,” Cassini said. “I was just worried she might stab him or something. She was furious.”

“Devastated,” Balto said. “Truly, deeply, devastated.”

I continued to eat, trying not to imagine the scene.

“Tears,” Cassini said. “Heartbreak. Insults. It was a fucking soap opera.”

“You want me to apologize?” I asked incredulously. “Look, I’m sorry I didn’t tell her I had a twin. My bad.”

“No,” Balto said. “I just want you to know how attached this woman is to you. You said it wasn’t serious, but it’s pretty fucking serious. You should have seen her face, Heath. And I’ve had ice on this injury for two days, and I still look like shit.”

“This happened two days ago?” I asked in surprise.

Balto nodded. “She didn’t mention it?”

I shook my head.

“She’s probably embarrassed,” Cassini said. “It definitely wasn’t her finest moment.”

I put the plate down and finally addressed the situation. “Yeah…she’s crazy about me.” I grinned like an asshole, giving a slight shrug. “She saw a text from one of my girls a few nights ago and lost it. So, this is a subject we’ve already dealt with recently. I guess I’m not surprised.”

“And it looks like you’re crazy about her,” Balto said.

I didn’t bother to deny it. “A bit.”

Cassini smiled slightly. “So…what does that mean?”

“It doesn’t mean anything. I’ll enjoy her until it’s over.” I chose to live in the moment, not think about the painful day when my world would crumble around me.

“Why does it have to be over?” Balto asked. “Come clean about what happened, then give her some space.”

I shook my head. “No. It’ll never work.”

Balto raised an eyebrow.

“I’ve seen her with her father…they’re really close. They have that father-daughter relationship you see in family movies. You know, ridiculous and cheesy.” I bowed my head. “Once she knows the truth, she’ll leave me. And worse, she’ll hate me. So, no, I’m not gonna tell her. The second I do, it’s over. So, I’d rather just wait until the shit hits the fan on its own. Yeah, that makes me an asshole for not being honest with her, for letting her sleep with me when she wouldn’t if she knew the truth…but I don’t care. I had no idea our relationship would escalate into this, so it wasn’t that premeditated.”

Balto didn’t argue with me, perfectly understanding my reasoning. “I’m sorry.”

Knowing exactly how it would end made it less painful, because I already anticipated it. But for Catalina…it would be sudden, horrifying, and completely unexpected. Or maybe we would be together for a long time, a secret relationship that would last years since she didn’t need a husband until she turned thirty. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about it for a long time. “I’m sorry about everything that happened. I understand if you don’t like her now.”

“Don’t like her?” Balto asked, his deep voice filled with surprise. “Why would I not like her?”

I tapped my finger against my cheek. “Because she turned your face into a pinata.”

He glared at me.

“We didn’t like what was happening at the time,” Cassini said. “But we can’t blame her for making the wrong assumption since you didn’t give her all the facts. And the fact that she cared so much…tears down her face…did make me like her. Because she obviously adores you, Heath.”

Balto rubbed his cheek. “And I like any woman who can throw a punch like that. Impressive.”

“Yeah…” I smiled slightly. “She’s feisty.”

“She chased me down on the street and handed my ass to me in less than a minute. Sounds like the perfect woman, if you ask me.” My brother was a no-nonsense kind of man, so he respected people who were the same way. Instead of being annoyed or intimidated by a woman who spoke her mind and put her fist where her mouth was, he found it endearing, which was obvious, considering Cassini was the same way. I’d never forget the time she hit me in the face with a fucking lamp.

I chuckled. “Man, I wish I could have seen that.”

“It wasn’t funny—at the time,” Cassini said. “I don’t appreciate someone striking my husband.”

“Baby, I’m fine,” Balto said quickly. “And I’ve had worse.” He turned back to me. “The four of us could have dinner and break the ice.”

“You want to go on a double date with me?” I asked incredulously.

“Why not?” Balto asked. “This woman is obviously special to you. And you dragged me to the goddamn ballet. At least at dinner, I can eat and drink. I can grab my wife’s ass too.”

Cassini smacked his shoulder playfully.

Balto grinned slightly, like he liked it when she hit him.

I liked it when Catalina hit me too. “I’ll talk to her about it when I see her.” It would be an interesting conversation, to say the least. After our explosive argument over those dirty pictures, our relationship had taken a brief, steep nosedive. “I’m not sure what she’ll say about dinner.”