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“Which is the reason why I stepped in.” He grasped my wrists gently, pulling my arms from around my stomach. “I understand you better than anyone else ever will. Being the child of an addict isn’t easy, but we do what we have to do to survive.” His lips lifted on one side. “And that’s what we’ll do now. We’ll survive…together.”
Hope blossomed in my chest. Maybe things would be different now. Maybe I could start a life that wouldn’t be filled with chaos and darkness.
“Okay,” I whispered, not wanting to break the precarious position we were in.
“I only have one rule.” He pressed his body to mine, his hands trailing up my arms and around my back. He held me to him, and I sighed at the feel of his heart beating against my chest. I’d never felt safer than in that moment. “You have nothing to do with them again.”
My head snapped up. “What?” I tried to back out of his hold, but he held steadfast. “I can’t—”
“Yeah, you can.” He drilled his eyes down on me. “You wanted a fresh start, but you were never going to get it with them. They’ll drag you down. They’ll always drag you down.” A muscle in his jaw jumped as he clenched his teeth. “It took me eight years to realize you can’t help someone who doesn’t want the help.”
“But what if—”
“What if?” He shook his head. “What ifs will only keep you tied to them. Break the chains, Luna. Break them. Escape. And never look back.”
My heart beat wildly, the thought of turning my back on my parents something that I couldn’t comprehend. But what if he was right? I stared around the kitchen and focused on the drawings pinned to the refrigerator. This wasn’t just a house, he’d made it a home. For him. For Cardo. For Chiara. And now I was here. He’d brought me in, and yet, I still couldn’t fathom why he would do that for me.
He’d walked away after our night together. He’d acted like I didn’t exist. But tonight, he hadn’t had a choice, and now we were stuck here, whether we liked it or not. It didn’t matter what plans I tried to come up with in my head, none of them would protect him and the kids. I had the fate of their lives in my hands, and I would never cause harm to them.
I hauled in a burning breath, making the decision. I may regret it, but in that moment, I knew there was only one thing I could say. “I’ll break the chains.”
CHAPTER 12
MATEO
I idled at the end of the pathway, my stomach churning with nerves. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was picking Aida and Luna up at the same time or if it was what I planned to do afterward.
It had been three days since Romeo had dragged Luna down into the basement. Three days since she’d confessed her sins to me. Three days since she’d witnessed what my mom was like. I ground my teeth at my last thought. I should have known that my mom would use the kids against me. She’d perfected her shot over the years and never failed to hit the jugular.
But she’d made a mistake. She’d shown me her hand, and now I’d put things in motion that would have her out of our lives for good. I wasn’t even sure if Cardo and Chiara missed her. They were so much happier now that we lived in a house they weren’t kicked out of at every opportunity. I blew out a breath. This was what I’d worked eight years for. Eight years of long hours and dedication. Eight years of dragging myself up, determined to be more than what my mother was.
It was all coming to fruition, but now a wrench had been thrown in the works. A wrench with light-brown hair and blue eyes. A wrench that had taken root in my brain and now it looked like she was there to stay.
It’d be all too easy to let her occupy my every thought. But I couldn’t let it happen because I had too many things going on at once. I didn’t have the time for her too. It was the harsh reality. Which was why I’d kept my distance since that night.
Scoffing, I shook my head. It didn’t matter whether I got caught up in her or not. After today, there would be no backing out.
My stomach dipped as I caught sight of Luna walking beside Aida, a genuine smile pulling at her lips. I hadn’t seen that since the morning in my apartment all that time ago. The morning that had set this entire thing in motion. The morning that had made me wish I was a normal twenty-something guy who could have his fun without any consequences.
But I wasn’t that guy.
I’d never be that guy.
I didn’t shy away from my responsibilities. I hadn’t since I was sixteen years old.
My heart raced as the back door opened, my body not getting the memo on how I was meant to feel about her. This was why I’d stayed away from her. Aida slid in and I stared at her in the rearview mirror, expecting to see Luna get in next to her, but when the passenger door opened up, I whipped my head around.
“Hey,” she greeted, her voice light and airy. She had no idea what was about to happen. No idea that by the end of the night she wouldn’t be her any longer. She adjusted herself in the front seat then closed the door at the same time as Aida did.
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nbsp; “Didn’t I call this?” Aida said, leaning forward and pushing her head between the seats. “I knew you two would get together.”
Her words broke some of the tension I was feeling, and I blew out a breath, thankful that for at least a little while, they’d be a buffer between me and Luna.
“No you didn’t.” I chuckled, putting the car in drive then pulled away from the curb.
“I did!” She leaned back, laughing. “I just didn’t tell you.” She clicked her belt in place and settled back, her attention drifting off to a place in her mind I knew she hated. She didn’t do it as often as she used to, but what happened still haunted her. It didn’t help that she had the scars to remind her at every opportunity too.
