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Did I enjoy the knowledge that he was suffering a major loss at my hands, essentially doling out the fatal blow my father had been too upstanding to deliver?
Of course I was.
Was it theonly— or even the primary—reason I’d taken this course?
No.
“Nalani’s worth to me has very little to do with her father,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “The wedding will be just after the New Year, in Sugar Valley.”
Immediately, Grandma Calli’s face lit up, and she leaned in a bit, eyes wide and excited. “Like your Mama and Daddy?”
“Exactly.” I nodded. “I thought it would be a good way to honor their memories.”
Really though… it was kinda tricky.
On one hand, I questioned how much of anhonorit could be, considering the utter lack of a “relationship” between Nalani and I. Frankly, I wondered a bit if it wasdisrespectingthe real, undeniable love connection between them to follow the footsteps they’d taken to cementtheirbond to seal the deal on what was nothing but a contract.
It ate at me more than most things did.
But it would make my Calli happy and that was the driving factor for a lot of my decisions as of late. And the last of whatever romantic ideals Jess hadn’t managed to stomp out of me wondered if continuing a tradition around weddings in Sugar Valley for the Sterling family might actually… plant a seed of the same kind of marital success my parents had found.
Well… maybe not the same, considering the way it ended.
But what they’d had until the untimely end was something to admire.
“You must’ve knocked the bitch up or something?”
Immediate heat flooded my chest, and I turned to Bree with such ire she sank back in her seat a bit. “First of all, don’teverrefer to my wife in that manner. Second of all—” I looked to Grandma Calli, shaking my head to dispel the notion that had made her face light up even further. “No, she’s not pregnant.I’mnot that fucking irresponsible. Why would you even go there?” I asked Bree, who shrugged.
“It’s the only reason I could see for rushing to marry someone you barely know versus someone whose been around for years.”
“LikeJess, right?” Ares said and instant discomfort replaced the indignation on Bree’s face.
“Well, yes. Of course I’m referring to Jessica.”
“Of course.” Ares scoffed.
Across the table, I gave him a look that sent his attention back to his plate.
“Can we stop bringing Jessica up?” I asked. “She doesn’t have anything to do with anything, so I’m not sure why we’re talking about her.”
“She was damn near part of the family, Ri,” Titan said, with his usual mischievous smirk. “We can’t miss our almost sist—”
“What the fuck did Ijustsay?”
“Some bullshit.”
“Excuse me,” Ms. Wallace barked, from the kitchen doorway. “Last I checked, this was Calliope’s house, and whatshesaid was, she didn’t want that language at her table.”
A chorus ofsorryandmy badwent up around the table, catering to the two older women’s sensibilities. Ms. Wallace had been with the family long enough that she was basically an extension of Grandma Calli. They were best friends and had been for years and years.
Everybodylistened when they spoke.
The conversation shifted to whatever my brothers had going on, prompted by Grandma Calli deciding to take the heat off me and putting it on Titan to ask about his weekend in trouble.
Yet another thing that pissed me off.
He was too old—and too recognizable—to still be getting into the kind of trouble he did. Titan was using his early thirties as a repeat of his twenties, doing dumb shit that annoyed me to no end.
