Page 127 of On The Edge

And one of those voices I happen to recognize.

Oh. Shit.

If tonight wasn’t weirdly dysfunctional and perfectly Navarro all at the same time—what, with Dominic’s quiet, clenched jaw, with the effusive Sofia’s nonstop talking as she tries to make everyone comfortable, the strained demeanor of Cruz himself, and the loud laughter from the couple of oblivious friends—it definitely became so when Genevieve Navarro waltzed in unannounced and clearly drunk.

“I’m here. We can start,” she says, clueless to the fact that dinner ended well over thirty minutes ago. All of the dishes have already been cleared, and the cake has been cut and plated for those who want to indulge in it.

“Mamá . . .” Sofia says, her eyes flicking to her brother, then her dad, and then back to her mother.

By the expressions on everyone’s faces, she wasn’t expected to attend.

“What?” Genevieve says brashly as she walks up to a very stiff Cruz and gives him an obscenely loud kiss on the cheek. Or maybe it’s only loud because the entire outside patio at the restaurant that had been reserved for the party, is dead silent. “No one is going to keep me from wishing my baby boy a happy birthday.”

“Máma,” Cruz says as he grimaces before taking a step back and out of her reach. “Thought we’d see you in Austin. Not here.”

A light bulb goes on for me. Cruz searching the stands during testing. His checking of the guest logs. His foul mood and his request for some space as he spent the better part of a night on the roof of the hotel after the race.

“Something came up.” She smiles sloppily. “You know how it goes.”

“Something always seems to come up now doesn’t it, Vieve?” Dominic says, stepping forward.

“Dom. Of course you’d be here. Imparting your wisdom. Holding tight with your iron fist.” She picks up someone’s half-drunken glass of wine from the table beside her and gulps it. “I would assume you’d have one of your trollops with you.” She makes a show of looking around as my cheeks heat for Cruz and his sister. “Or is she waiting back in the hotel to suck your cock?”

“Mamá,” Sofia warns, her shoulders sagging and tears filling her eyes as every non-Navarro here shifts uncomfortably.

Genevieve throws her head back and laughs like she doesn’t have a care in the world while I watch Sofia shrink inside herself, Dominic harden, and Cruz disengage.

“Genevieve. Your behavior is uncalled for,” Dominic says and for the first time ever, I see a flicker of emotion other than disdain on his face. Maybe it’s sadness. Maybe disappointment. But I doubt it’s about anyone but himself.

“Dom. Let’s get real. I’m always uncalled for but considering I’m here, all will be forgiven.” She turns and I wince when her attention lands on me. “Madison. How lovely to see you again. I was certain Cruz would have fucked you out of his system by now. I’m so glad he hasn’t. Just another reason to piss Dominic off. But don’t you worry, with time, you too can be part of this controlling, fucked-up family.”

When she goes to reach for another drink, Dominic steps up and grips her wrist. “That’s enough, Vieve. This is not the time nor place. See yourself back to whatever hotel you’ve charged to my card for the night and make sure you’re out of town by morning.”

And I thought he was callous with Cruz.

Is this what Cruz has had to deal with his whole life? No wonder he’s so guarded about the intricacies of his family.

“You don’t get to tell me what to do. No wonder you’ve turned our kids against me.” She sneers.

There is complete sadness in his eyes when he stares at her. There is longing too and as much as I’d have compassion for anyone else in his situation, I don’t for him. Dominic Navarro seemingly has none for anyone else but himself, so why should I waste mine on him? “You did that yourself and I’ll never forgive you for that.”

She shakes her head but then holds her hand up with a smirk on her face and begins to back away. Dominic stands like a gatekeeper, protecting all of us.

And I’m not sure I want him protecting me from anything.

But it’s when I look back toward where Cruz was that I notice he’s gone. Much about the same time everybody else does.

My heart sinks to my feet and my stomach pitches.

“Maddix?” Sofia asks with grief in her eyes.

“I’ll go. Let me find him.”

I can tell it’s hard for her to step back and let me, but she does just that. “Okay.” She reaches out and squeezes my forearm. “Please tell him I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I wanted to do something nice. I wanted to—”

“I’m sure he knows and understands. This isn’t your fault.” I lean in and kiss her cheek and then leave.

The streets of Monaco are quiet tonight, the tourists busy doing other things, and the locals steering clear of them. I’m grateful for it as I make my way back to the house.