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Her gaze shifts over my shoulder, and I’m suddenly aware of my brother’s presence in the doorway behind me. “Yes, it is,” she says quietly.
I run my hand down my throat. Swipe a finger over my collar pin.
She’s right about one thing: going back to work isn’t my Happy Ever After, but I was never meant to have one of those, anyway. And no one makes romance movies about men who fall in love with girls who ruin their lives without even trying.
I tilt my chin, meeting her glare with a tight, humorless smile. “I guess you got lucky, then.”
Before I put my fist through a wall, I turn and stride out to the driveway. The sky is as gloomy as my mood, and the wind is as cold as my heart.
Angelo’s lazy footsteps crunch over the gravel behind me.
“I’ve got to drop off some paperwork at the port first, so we’ll take separate cars.” His focus drops to my curled fist. “Don’t drive yourself off the cliff now, will you?”
“You better hope I don’t, brother. You’ll never navigate Tor’s sleazy contracts without me.”
Despite the January frost creeping across the windshield, I pull out of the grounds with all four windows rolled down, partly because Penny’s scent still seeps out the walls of my car, and partly because I’m hoping the sharp wind will slap some sense into me.
No more fucking moping. I told Angelo I was back and now I just need to convince myself that I mean it. Gripping the steering wheel, I force myself to focus on what lies in wait for us in Cove. I wasn’t joking about Tor’s sleazy contracts. My legal documents might be confusing, but his are just one big, fat loophole, designed to trip up anyone who’s stupid enough to sign on the dotted line.
Last night, he agreed to handing forty-nine percent of Cove over to us, but I know in the cold light of day, he’ll blame that on the concussion, then shove some terms and conditions, loaded with a million get-out clauses, under our noses.
A weak zap of energy crackles down my spine. This is exactly what I need—to bury myself in business. Heated meetings, spreadsheets, plans for bigger and better events. Anything that makes the memory of red hair and deep blue eyes fade.
The drive is uneventful, except for when I spot a copper-haired girl walking down Main Street and I slam on my brakes. Or when my fingers twitch to connect my cell to my car’s Bluetooth because listening to Penny’s calls while driving alone has become second nature.
Even if I caved and opened the Sinners Anonymous inbox, I know there’d be nothing new for me in there. I’ve been obsessively checking, and, unsurprisingly, she hasn’t called the line since I told her I owned it.
As my car climbs the hill to the church, a familiar Harley winks at me from underneath the willow tree. Frowning, I glance at the sedans in my rear-view mirror and slow to a stop.
What the fuck is Gabe doing here?
I feel out-of-sorts walking up to the old building, like I’m going to find something dark and depraved behind its heavy doors. Guess that’s why I slip my gun out of my waistband as I step inside.
The dust has been disturbed, dancing in the small slivers of light that have broken through the boarded-up windows. It takes a few moments for my eyes to adjust to the shadows and hone in on the imposing silhouette sitting in the front pew.
My footsteps echo off the vaulted ceiling as I walk down the nave, but Gabe doesn’t turn around.
I sit on the opposite end of the pew. Gaze up to the Virgin Mary judging us from above the altar.
“You’re a massive cunt. You know that?”
No response.
I let out a tense breath, running my palm over the wound on my stomach. It’s barely tender anymore, and the physical scar will be no bigger than the length of my thumbnail. But the mental scar of being stabbed byDante,of all fucking idiots, is large and gnarly.
It’s not like I won’t get over it, though. Besides, only a week before, Gabe saved my life.
“Well, I accept apologies in check-form only.”
As my joke prickles the silence, my words feel hot against my own ears for two reasons. First, it sounds like something Penny would say, and second, my brotherstillhasn’t moved.
He sits with his hands resting on his thighs, spine rigid, his face fully concealed by the shadows.
And suddenly, seeing him like this, I realize how much progress he’s made over the last month. Ever since the port wentboom,I’ve seen glimpses of his old self, the brother he used to be before that one Christmas. He’s spoken in full sentences, even learned how to use his phone. And I swear, I’ve even seen him smirk from the other side of a dining table when I’ve told a shitty joke.
I’ve been so wrapped up in everything Penny, I haven’t realized how big a deal it is.
I clear my throat. “Anyway, it’s old news. Wanna come to Cove with Angelo and I? He’s worried about you, man. Besides, we’ll come to an agreement with Tor a lot quicker if you’re playing pit bull.” I pause as the silence snowballs down the pew. “I’ll even let you punch him. Not with full power, though. The bastard won’t get back up.”
