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How many times had I heard Luca tell Violet those words, almost verbatim, with that same reverence in his voice? That he only wanted her. That he only loved her. That he was hers and hers alone.
And then with one misunderstanding, he’d gone and put his dick in someone else. Proving that it was all nothing more than bullshit. It was all just an illusion, and I wasn’t the type of girl to walk around blindly through a fucking fantasy.
“I’m not a princess in one of those Disney movies, Jags,” I told him as I stepped away from him. He frowned down at me, and it physically hurt to see what was in his eyes. “This is real life, not some stupid fairy tale that little girls dream of living in. What you’re talking about—no one loves anyone like that. It’s delusional even to think they could.”
“They can. I’ve seen it. My parents. Yours.” At the conviction in his voice, I felt myself pause and actually started to melt, knowing he was right. Our parents did love each other like there was no one else in the world who could make them feel what the other did. I saw it every day. Mom and Dad were equal parts cringeworthy and kind of adorable all at the same time with how much they were all over each other. I didn’t know whether to smile or gag when I watched them sometimes. They seemed so in love, like they couldn’t live without the other. “Luca and Violet. They are all so in love, and they worship each other. Please, Shaw. Give me the chance to worship you.”
He might have had me if he hadn’t mentioned them again.
“You already hurt me once, Jagger. I’m not looking to be broken and humiliated a second time,” I told him in a voice devoid of all the emotions swirling around inside me.
“I will never do that to you again.” He reached for me, but I only stepped back, knowing if I let him touch me, I would give in. Pain flashed across his face, and he swallowed hard as he dropped his hands at his sides. “Baby, please.”
The hoarseness of his voice, the agony I saw on his face, were nearly my undoing, but I had to stay strong. I couldn’t let either of us go through what Violet and Luca were experiencing.
It was best for both of us in the long run. Because if he broke my heart again, which I knew he inevitably would, it would ruin everything. We wouldn’t even be friends if—when—that happened.
A month before, I would have fought tooth and nail for us. I would have weathered any storm. Faced any obstacle that dared to
get in our way.
But after everything that had happened, I didn’t have the courage to fight for him or us. Not when I knew the outcome would only destroy both of us in the end.
Chapter 12
Jagger
Ma woke me up Thanksgiving morning asking—more like commanding—me to pick up her father from the airport. He’d had an early morning flight out from Virginia, and she’d promised him someone would be waiting on him.
I didn’t mind spending extra time with my grandfather. Ever since Mia found him and brought him into all our lives, I’d enjoyed getting to know Eddie Jameson. He was a pretty cool guy and definitely not what I ever would have imagined a grandfather would be—not that I had much firsthand experience with grandfathers. Uncle Jesse, Cole Steel, and now my own dad were really the only ones I knew, and they didn’t look or act the stereotypical part.
While Dad and Ma left to go to Santa Monica, where this year’s big Thanksgiving dinner was being held at Uncle Shane’s house, I went to the airport to retrieve my grandpa. By the time I got there, he was already outside the airport in the pickup area with his carry-on. I pulled up beside him and rolled down the passenger window.
“Hey, old man,” I called out and heard him laugh.
Opening my trunk, I got out to put his things in and hugged him. Eddie and Ma looked a hell of a lot alike. Same green eyes and a few other similar facial features. But his mannerisms were what told me he and Ma were related, if nothing else did. Ma hadn’t grown up around the man, yet they acted so much alike it was weird as hell at times.
Slapping me on the back, Eddie pulled back to give me a full once-over. “You been good, kid? Haven’t been giving your mom any trouble, have ya?”
I snorted. “Me? I would never—”
“Don’t bullshit a bullshitter, boy,” he said with a booming laugh. “Now, get your ass in the car. I want to see my little girl sooner rather than later. I only have a few days here before I gotta head back to the bar.”
As I pulled into traffic a few minutes later, I glanced over at him in the passenger seat. “You know, you should get a manager for Jameson’s and retire. Move out here to be closer to Ma if you miss her so much.”
“Tempting,” he grumbled. “But I don’t want to push her if she’s not ready for me to be around more often. I’m just thankful to have what time I do get with her.”
I suspected Ma wanted him around more than he realized, but I figured they could sort that out on their own. I didn’t want to say anything about it in case she wasn’t ready to tell him how much she missed him when he was in Virginia. He couldn’t completely hide the vulnerable note in his voice, though, so I changed the subject.
As soon as I pulled up in Uncle Shane’s already overflowing driveway, Ma met us on the porch. She grinned at Eddie and threw her arms around him as soon as he reached her. “How was your flight?” she asked as she pulled back.
“I told you not to put me in first class, Emmie girl. I don’t need no special treatment.” He hugged her again. “And I could have paid for my own ticket.”
“Stop arguing,” she told him. “Next time, the company jet will be ready, so you won’t even have to worry about flying commercial.”
“Girl—”
She gave him a look that had him clamping his lips shut before he even got another word out, forcing me to mask my laugh with a cough. I was just happy to see that I wasn’t the only one my mom could intimidate with just a glare. I knew she could shut up anyone with that look, but it was fun to witness it firsthand.
