Feathers and Thorne Series Books 1 - 3: The Complete Collection

Chapter Twenty-Three

Carter

I pour myself a generous amount of whiskey and lift the glass up to my lips. “Aren’t you supposed to be in town on business?”

Daniel steps out of the shadows of the hallway with one hand shoved into the pocket of his pants. “I do, but I can attend to multiple things at once.”

I take a long sip of my drink and study my uncle. “How are you going to manage all of this if you take over?”

Daniel doesn’t stop walking until he’s standing opposite the kitchen counter. “I’ll figure it out.”

I set the glass down with a little more force than necessary, causing some of the liquid to slosh over. “That’s not a good enough answer if you want to be the head of the Blackthorne family.”

If I’m going to be handing over the keys to the empire, I need to know my uncle can handle it. And while a part of me desperately wants to believe he’s the solution to my problems, I know better than to put all of my eggs in one basket.

Not where the Blackthorne empire is concerned.

“I don’t have the answer you want, Carter,” Daniel replies in an even voice. His eyes dart over to the bottle, and he pauses. “Let’s face it, nothing I tell you is going to be enough.”

I take another sip of my drink, and it burns a path down my throat. “What’s your fucking point?”

“You already know what you have to do,” Daniel says, his eyes flashing with emotion. “Especially with another Donahue on your case. Do you really want another target on your back with everything going on?”

I grip the glass a little too tightly. “Explain.”

“You want to go home to Isabella and your daughter every night,” Daniel points out, pausing to step into the kitchen. He rummages through a few cupboards before pulling out an empty glass. Then, he sets it down on the counter and pours himself a drink. “I understand that, but you and I both know that isn’t going to be possible right now.”

“Make your point faster,” I warn. “You might be Anita’s brother, but I’m not a fucking saint.”

And he is trying my patience.

“What happens the next time there’s a war? Or the next time someone tries to infiltrate the inner sanctum? You can’t keep sending Isabella away, and you’re going to end up missing out on a lot if you keep disappearing.”

“You’re going to have one less pretty tooth in that mouth of yours if you don’t get to the point faster,” I snap, my heart racing unevenly inside of my chest. “You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know.”

Or anything I haven’t spent the past few weeks worrying about.

But going around in circles isn’t going to help anyone, least of all me.

I didn’t spend weeks searching for answers at the bottom of a bottle and getting into all sorts of fights to end up right back where I started. And I didn’t condemn myself to weeks without Isabella, only for my uncle and I to end up having the same conversation.

I know he’s right, but I’m still having a hard time imagining myself stepping away. Especially when I don’t know Daniel as well as I’d like.

Daniel knocks back his drink and pours himself another one. “What’s different this time is that you’re here. You’re back with Isabella, and the fact that you’re having a baby is becoming a reality. It’s not something you can run away from anymore.”

I have Daniel by the scruff of his neck before the words finish leaving his lips. “What did you just say?”

Daniel shoves me away and spares me an annoyed look. “You can’t keep lashing out like this, Carter. It was fine before when your position as head of the family wasn’t being questioned, but things have changed.”

I scowl. “Who have you been talking to? Have you been rallying my own family against me?”

Daniel peers into his drink, and his expression turns thoughtful. “A lesser man than me would. A smarter man would have already had a few Blackthornes in my corner, but out of respect for Anita and your father, I’m not going to.”

I grip my glass hard enough to make it shatter, but I don’t flinch when a few of the shards nick me. Daniel doesn’t look up or acknowledge the gesture. And I can only pray that neither Anita nor Isabella come out during the commotion because I need them to be somewhere else.

Anywhere else.

A part of me knows what I need to do in order to ensure my empire is in good hands, but the other part of me is reluctant. Have I really walked away from Frances and several other opportunities to prove my worth only to wind up in the same position?

I don’t want to be that man anymore, but breaking my old habits is hard. Harder still when Daniel knows how to push my buttons, and Isabella is sound asleep upstairs.

But her voice is in my head, steering me in the right direction, and I can still smell her perfume on my skin. I have to do better. I need to.

With a great deal of reluctance, I unclench my hands and blow out a breath. “You can’t keep showing up like this and acting like you know better. Even if it feels like you do. We can’t have a fucking deal if you keep hovering and snooping.”

“What if I take a step back and observe?”

I dig my nails into my palms. “I’m listening.”

“I’ll attend meetings, go on stakeouts, whatever you want me to do in order to earn your trust,” Daniel continues between sips of his drink. His shoulders are growing more and more relaxed, and he’s losing some of the edge in his voice. “We’re on the same side here, Carter. I don’t want to go around in circles, either. It doesn’t benefit either of us.”

I pour myself some more whiskey, my mind racing the entire time.

On the one hand, trusting Daniel is the solution to my problems and the Hail Mary I’ve been waiting for. Yet the memory of Rich Donahue weaseling his way in and making similar promises is still fresh in my mind. As is the thought of what he and Lilian almost did to Isabella, to keep us apart and ensure my enemies had power.

I need to know Daniel has enough Blackthorne in him not to turn. Otherwise, we’re well and truly screwed.

“I need more,” I tell Daniel, pausing to give him a long look. “I’m not going to put all my eggs in one basket just because you’re telling me to. I need fucking more.”

Something to prove his allegiance has more to do with loyalty and less to do with power. Because if I leave the Blackthornes in the wrong hands, it won’t just be my family’s heads on pikes. It’ll be mine, Isabella’s, and our daughter’s too.

Fuck.

When did everything get so complicated? How were any of the previous Blackthorne heads able to walk away so easily? And why were they able to place their trust in others where I can’t?

Even if Rich hadn’t turned out to be a spineless bastard, I still would’ve been reluctant. The Blackthorne empire and the purpose and drive it’s given me is all I’ve ever known.

All I’ve ever wanted to know until I learned Isabella was pregnant.

“Pick someone else,” Daniel suggests, pausing to tip back the rest of his drink. “Look into me and do whatever tests you want but have someone else in mind to hand over the reins to.”

I raise an eyebrow. “What makes you think I want someone else?”

Daniel sets his glass down and straightens his back. “Because you and I both know that you need to walk away if you have a chance in hell of having a family. And with the way you’ve been behaving the past few weeks, a meeting is going to be called soon.”

I grip the edges of the counter and counter backward from ten. “Are you telling me my own family is going to vote me out?”

Daniel grimaces. “That’s what I’ve been hearing. I don’t know how true any of this is, and obviously, you’re free to look into it yourself, but I just thought you should know.”

I frown and push back against the anger, quickly rising through me. “Why? Why are you trying to help?”

“Because if it were me, I would want to know. Because if I had put in this much work to build the Blackthorne empire, I would hope that someone had enough decency and enough balls to tell me the truth to my face.”

I snort. “Are you telling me that you’re that kind of man?”

“Don’t take my word for it.” Daniel picks up his glass and tilts it in my direction. “Pick someone as a backup. Anyone you trust.”

I release the counter and stand up straighter. “How about I make you another fucking deal? Don’t tell me how to run this family, and I won’t beat you so badly you won’t be able to walk straight for a week.”

Because I’m itching to wipe the smug smirk off of his face.

And although I know Anita won’t take kindly to me beating up her brother again, I know that she’ll understand. Given enough time, she’ll even forgive me. It’s what Anita and everyone else does.

I carry the empire on my back, and I’m giving a free pass to the amount of fuck ups I can get away with. It’s a system that works, or at least it used to.

With Daniel here calling in to question how I’ve been running things lately, I can’t help but wonder if he’s right. Out of everyone I know, he has the most experience, and he has enough Blackthorne blood for the others to embrace him wholeheartedly. Hell, I’m sure they’d even be happier with him, but there’s no denying the withdrawal symptoms I’m experiencing.

And I haven’t even walked away yet.

“You can’t solve everything by beating people up,” Daniel points out, pausing to give me a long look. “And we’ve already established that I can take you in a fight.”

I step out from behind the counter and flex my wrists. “You want to take this outside?”

“Both of you need to stop it.” Anita comes out of her room in a robe, with her hair piled on top of her head. “You’re family. You should be helping each other, not beating the shit out of each other, and definitely not in my kitchen.”

“I’m going back upstairs.”

Because I don’t want to do anything stupid.

Trying to put my violent tendencies behind me is hard, but not as hard as having to be away from Isabella. Each step I take up the stairs brings me one step closer to her. When the door creaks open, my dove is sitting up in bed with the covers drawn up to her chin and a book propped open. She glances up at me, and her smile nearly brings me to my knees.

I’d burn the whole world down for her if she asked me to.

Her smile grows wider as she places her bookmark and snaps the book shut. Then she pats the spot next to her, and I pause to kick the door shut with the back of my leg. Exhaling, I crawl onto the bed and bring my head to rest in her lap. She winds her fingers through my hair and massages my scalp.

There’s nowhere else I’d rather be in that moment. All I need to do is figure out how to keep us here, suspended in time, and we’ll be okay.

“I heard raised voices. Is everything okay?”

“Daniel is here.”

“You really don’t like him, do you?” Isabella’s small but deft fingers are still moving steadily, sending little pinpricks of pleasure throughout my skull. “Is it because he’s offering to take over, or is it something else?”

I pause. “I have this feeling about him. Maybe it’s because of Donahue. He’s made it fucking impossible to take anyone’s word…”

“Even your own uncle?”

I glance up at her and frown. “Especially my uncle. If he really means well, how come he hasn’t been around the past few years? Where was he when this war first started? Or when you got kidnapped? Where has he been all these years?”

I don’t mind a man who covets power so long as he’s upfront about it.

But there’s something unsettling about my long-lost uncle showing up when he did, and I can’t tell if it’s my own fears or if it’s my gut trying to tell me something.

“Didn’t you say he’s head of the Blackthorne family in Hong Kong? He was probably busy there or something.”

I cup the back of her neck and give her a deep kiss. “This is one of the many reasons why I fucking love you, dove. You always try to see the good in people.”

Isabella’s answering smile lights up her whole face. “It’s not always easy, but it makes life easier.”

I give her another kiss and linger. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She sighs and wraps her arms around me. “Do you think you’ll be able to figure out how you feel about Daniel within the next few months? Maybe by spring.”

I draw back and study her face. “I might. Why do you ask?”

“Wedding invitations are supposed to be sent months in advance, and he is Anita’s brother and your uncle. I don’t want to exclude him, but I won’t invite him if you’re not comfortable.”

I pull Isabella up and smile. “Did you just say wedding?”

Isabella laughs, and it’s like music to my ears. “I know things have been hectic, but maybe this is exactly the right time to plan a wedding. I’ve been thinking about it, and I know it seems kind of silly, but I… I’d like to be married before our daughter gets here.”

My smile grows bigger. “I think that’s a great idea.”

Isabella’s expression is earnest and hopeful. “Really? You don’t think it’s silly?”

“Not at all. We could all use something to celebrate. Let’s give the Blackthornes the best goddamn wedding they’ve ever seen.”

“What about the truce? What about—”

I press a finger to her lips. “I don’t want you to worry about any of that. Pick whatever theme you want and whatever destination you want. I’d marry you in the middle of a fucking desert if I had to.”

Isabella winds her fingers through my hair and presses her forehead to mine. “I can’t wait to be married to you, and I can’t wait to be a parent with you.”

I wrap my arms around her waist and draw her closer. “I can’t wait either.”