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“Ever?”
I shook my head. “Probably not. It’s not his fault. If we met under different circumstances, it could have had another outcome. But right now…I’m not sure what I want.”
My father rubbed his hands together, his thoughts a mystery. “I’ve always tried to treat you and Conway the same, but honestly, I never have. Conway didn’t bring a woman around to the family until he was almost thirty, and I never questioned him about it. But with you, I’m constantly worried when I shouldn’t be. You’re a very smart and capable young woman. I should just keep my mouth shut the way I did with Conway. But when your mother told me you were in love with someone but ended things, I got concerned. Conway ended things with Sapphire when things got too serious, and I don’t want you to make the same mistake. I should let you figure this out on your own, but naturally, I can’t. I talked some sense into Conway, and I think that helped bring them back together. So now I’m doing the same with you…”
I knew his concern came from a good place, but he had no idea how tense the situation really was. He couldn’t even fathom that I would love a man so wrong for me. That I would be so deeply in love that I couldn’t leave him. “I know you mean well, but…it’s complicated.”
My father nodded slightly, rubbing his palms together. “Can I meet him?”
Only one man would walk out of that situation alive. “I don’t think that’s a good idea…”
“Tesoro, I’ll be on my best behavior.”
My father could be in a coma, and it wouldn’t make a difference. He would still shoot Bones right between the eyes. “I don’t know…”
“Just think about it. That’s all I ask.” He raised his head and looked at me, discomfort in his eyes. “I’ll drop it now. Ball is in your court, tesoro. I just want to give you some advice…it’s rare to fall in love more than once, at least, not with the same intensity. If your mother and I hadn’t ended up together, I know I wouldn’t have ever felt that way again. If you love this man in the same way, you should hold on to it as long as you can. Don’t push him away because you’re scared or because he’s not exactly what you pictured in a husband. I wasn’t what your mother was looking for and I certainly didn’t deserve her, but I’ve become everything she’s ever wanted—because I love her.”
A knock sounded on my door.
It was ten in the evening, and I hadn’t left for Bones’s place yet just in case my parents were still watching the apartment. I knew it wasn’t Bones because he would have told me he was back the second he landed in Italy.
I pulled out the gun Bones gave me and slowly walked to the door, keeping my footsteps muffled as they tapped against the floor. I finally reached the peephole and looked on the other side.
It was Max.
“Open the door already. You sound like a bear when you breathe like that.”
I lowered the gun and opened the door. “What are you doing here?”
“I could ask you the same thing. You know Bones doesn’t want you here.”
“How did you even know I was here?”
He held up his phone to my face. “I’m watching your tracker.”
“Excuse me?” I hissed. I wasn’t even happy about it when Bones started to do it.
“He asked me,” Max explained. “It’s my job to look after you while he’s gone. I’m watching Shane’s wife too…who’s also a pain in the ass.”
“If we’re such pains, why don’t you just ignore us?”
“Can’t do that,” he said simply. “And if I ever leave a lady behind, as much of a pain as she is, Bones better stay on her. So now I’m here to haul your ass back to his place. Had a nice night with your family?”
So he really was watching what I was doing. “I can make it back myself.”
“I’ll follow you anyway. When you’re inside the building, I’ll leave.”
I rolled my eyes and walked back inside. “Now you’re the pain in the ass.”
Eleven
Bones
“You doing alright, man?”
Shane rested his forehead against the window, gauze wrapped around his torso where he’d been stabbed. His eyes were closed, but he was still breathing.
“Stay awake, Shane. We’re almost there.”
“Tell Cynthia—”
“Shut up. You aren’t going to die.”
“I don’t know, man. I feel so weak right now…” He’d bled out all over the seat in the Hummer. His breathing was getting heavier and shallower.
I drove as fast as I could down the dark road, knowing we only had a few minutes before they appeared behind us. We’d accomplished what we set out to do, but it didn’t go down as simply as we wanted.
