"I Caught My Boyfriend Cheating—Then Drank Whiskeys And Met His Mafia Boss Father"

I wasn't supposed to be there. Ronan had ordered me to stay in the penthouse under Viktor’s watch, but when news came that Finn had marched into a Shaw ambush, I refused to be left behind in a glass cage while lives were on the line. Ronan, realizing I was as stubborn as I was brave, had pulled me into the armored sedan beside him.

As our motorcade pulled up to the dark docks, the sound of sporadic gunfire echoed across the water.

"Stay in the vehicle with Viktor," Ronan commanded, reaching into his suit jacket and pulling out a sleek, black suppressed handgun. The cold efficiency with which he racked the slide sent a chill down my spine. "Do not open these doors for anyone unless it is me."

"Ronan, be careful," I said, grabbing his forearm.

He looked down at my hand on his sleeve, a fierce, dark satisfaction flickering in his eyes. He leaned over, pressing a hard, lingering kiss against my forehead. "Wait for me," he growled, before stepping out into the foggy darkness.

Ten agonizing minutes passed inside the silent, bulletproof car. Viktor stood outside the driver’s door, his hand resting on his hip holster, his eyes scanning the fog.

Then, a sudden commotion erupted near the side entrance of the warehouse.

A man tumbled out of the side door into the dim amber light of the yard. It was Finn.

His suit was torn, his face bruised and bleeding, stumbling blindly toward the cars. Right behind him, two men in dark coats with raised handguns burst out of the shadows, aiming straight for Finn’s back.

"Finn!" I screamed, forgetting everything, throwing the car door open.

"Lara, stay down!" Viktor yelled, drawing his weapon and firing two rapid shots that dropped the first gunman instantly.

Finn scrambled across the wet gravel, lunging into the back seat of the sedan beside me, his chest heaving, his face pale with sheer terror.

"Lara?!" Finn gasped, staring at me in shock as blood dripped from his split lip. "What the hell are you doing here?! Where is my father?!"

"He’s inside saving your life because you're a complete idiot!" I shouted, backing away from him as far as the leather seat would allow.

"Lara, listen to me!" Finn begged, grabbing my wrist with a shaking, desperate grip. "You have to help me! My father is going to kill me! Dominic Shaw set me up—Meredith told me we could buy out the riverfront contracts together! I didn't know she was leaking our shipping routes!"

"You didn't know because you were thinking with your ego!" I yelled, yanking my wrist out of his grasp. "You betrayed your family, Finn! You betrayed me!"

Before Finn could answer, the warehouse side doors flew open again.

Ronan walked out into the dim light.

He didn't run. He didn't rush. He stepped through the curling fog like an ancient reaper, his black coat billowing around his tall frame, his gun held low at his side. Two of his lieutenants trailed behind him, dragging a bound and gagged mercenary across the gravel.

Ronan approached the open door of the sedan.

He looked down at Finn sitting beside me. The look in Ronan’s eyes wasn't just anger; it was absolute, cold disgust.

"Out," Ronan commanded flatly.

Finn shrank back against the leather seat. "Father... please... Shaw tricked me—"

"Out of the car, Finn," Ronan repeated, his voice dropping into a register that made the wet gravel beneath his boots feel like ice. "Before I forget that your mother gave birth to you."

Finn scrambled out of the car onto his hands and knees, weeping open tears of terror as Viktor grabbed him by the collar, dragging him toward a secondary security vehicle.

Ronan stepped into the car, closing the door behind him. He dropped his gun into the side pocket, wiping a drop of blood from his cheek with the back of his hand.

He turned to look at me. I was shaking, the adrenaline slowly leaving my body, leaving me cold and breathless.

Ronan reached out, wrapping his heavy, warm arms around my waist, pulling me directly into his lap. I didn't resist. I buried my face into his neck, clinging to his shoulders as the heavy sedan sped away from the dark docks.

"I told you to stay in the car," Ronan murmured against my hair, his hands resting possessively against my back.