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“Deacon,” she whispers.
I turn now, facing her, cupping her face in my hands. “She needs to know she’s loved. She needs to know that no man has ever loved a woman this much.” Her eyes well with tears, but there’s a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.
I turn my head to face the douchebag. “She needs to know that my love isn’t conditional. I’ll love her no matter what she wears, the career she has, or what she orders to eat at a restaurant. I’ll love her if she wants to stay home on a Friday night instead of going out. I’ll love her if she wants to lounge all day on Sunday in her pajamas. I’ll love her even after I leave this earth. Unconditionally. Irrevocably.”
Ramsey crushes her body to mine, wrapping her arms around my waist, and buries her face in my neck. I don’t hesitate for even a single second to return her embrace. I place my lips on the top of her head and breathe her in.
A slow clap fills the quiet room, reminding me where we are and that I just let these two assholes witness an intimate moment between us. Not my finest moment, but my anger at her ex and her father and her mother’s blatant disregard for their actions, mixed with the love that I have for her, pushed me to the edge.
“Nice show. It’s over. We’re getting married. I’ll overlook your indiscretions. This time.” Robert, the douche, reaches for Ramsey, and if I thought I felt rage before my speech, I was dead wrong. Seeing him reach for her, the thought of him touching her after all the times he hurt her, I see red.
I start to release Ramsey, but even with trembling hands, she’s able to hold onto me. “No,” she whispers softly. “He’s not worth it.”
“Aw, look at that. She has you trained. That pussy must be good,” Robert says, licking his lips.
“Motherfucker.” I step forward, but Ramsey wraps herself around me, jumping in my arms. I stop moving, my hands landing on her thighs.
“Let’s go home, Deacon. Take me home.”
“You’re already home,” her father says, his voice booming. He’s losing his aloof appearance, and that gives me some satisfaction. He’s pissed he can’t control her.
Not anymore.
“Raymond?”
“We’re good,” he assures me.
“Let’s go.” I don’t put Ramsey on her feet. I turn and make my way to the stairs with my girl still in my arms.
“Donald!” Robert screams. “Do something. You said she would stay and all of our problems would go away. You started this mess. You better fucking fix it.” Robert’s voice sounds panicked.
“You ready, baby?” I ask Ramsey. Fuck these assholes. We don’t owe them a damn thing. They can work this shit out on their own. I don’t give a flying fuck what they need to fix.
“Take me home, Deacon.”
twenty-five
Ramsey
“You can’t just let them leave!” Robert shouts as Deacon starts to move toward the stairs.
“Donald. Fucking stop her!” Robert yells.
I don’t know why, but I say, “Stop.” Deacon freezes.
“Rams?”
I release my legs from around his waist and slide to the floor. I turn to face my father, which places Deacon at my back. He wraps his arms around my waist, holding me to his chest. My aunt and uncle are standing next to us, and Uncle Raymond moves into the same pose as Deacon, wrapping his arms around Aunt Carol. We’re a united front.
“What’s going on?” I ask my father.
“All you need to know is that you’re moving home, and you will marry Robert.”
Deacon growls from his spot behind me, and that sound gives me courage. This man loves without boundaries. I open my mouth to tell my father to go fuck himself, but it’s my mother’s voice that stops me.
“Donald, it’s over.” She stands in the doorway of the room where Aunt Carol was locked. She’s the one that held her while Robert pulled me into the hallway, leaving Aunt Carol and my mother locked in the bedroom.
“Shut the fuck up!” my father yells at her.
My mother rolls her eyes, which is more emotion than I’ve seen her show in years. “You got yourself into this mess. It’s not Ramsey’s job to fix it.”
“Angela,” my father sneers.
“He’s in debt. The firm’s in debt,” my mother speaks up.
“I told you to shut the fuck up!” my father screams, causing the vein in his forehead to pop out.
“I’ve remained quiet long enough.” My mother’s eyes flash to mine. “I never wanted to be a mom.” Her eyes flash to her sister. “You suffered because of that,” she says, finding my eyes again. “However, this has gone on long enough.”
“Angela.” My father’s voice holds a warning that my mother doesn’t heed.
“Your father and his firm invested money that wasn’t theirs.”
“Shut. The. Fuck. Up.” My father moves toward her, but I’m surprised when Robert steps in front of her.
