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“That’d be good.” He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a lingering kiss.
She headed down the hallway.
His mind wandered back to his father then to Rita and Bella’s dad. A familiar fire flamed in Damon’s chest whenever he thought about men like them. He knew what it was like to be victim to that behavior, and he wanted to protect everyone in that position.
Sometimes he wanted more than that. He wanted to not only stop the men harming others but to give them a taste of their own medicine.
That scared him. These fervent desires and powerful urges weren’t anything new. He was used to fighting them or trying to ignore them. But pushing them down didn’t work the way it once had. They were growing stronger, clawing their way to the surface.
Given his dad had been a notorious serial killer, Damon had to be diligent — vigilant — in not letting those stirrings rise in him. If anyone stood a chance at giving in to thoughts like those, it was him. The darkness was in his blood. Not only had his father been a monster, but he’d been the one to raise Damon.
Sure, his mom had played a big part in his early childhood, but she was completely absent for most of what he could remember. He’d clung to what he could, poring over her pictures and writing down everything she’d taught him.
Maybe what he needed was to find his old boxes and refresh his good memories. Her legacy was just as important as his dad’s. It was what he needed to cling to so he could avoid becoming his father. He’d always promised himself he would fight everything Cal Jones had passed onto him.
Not just for himself, but for Ariana too. Their future. They wanted a family together. More thanwanted— they weretryingfor a baby. After Rita and Grayson’s gender reveal party, they’d decided it was time.
Exciting as the thought of starting a family with her was, nothing scared him more. What if he couldn’t fight his genetics? Or worse yet, what if he passed them along to their children? It was almost enough to make him put on the brakes, but he couldn’t do that to Ariana. Besides, he’d proven he could live a normal life despite his upbringing and genetics.
Any child they had would have a diluted gene pool, mostly full of good, caring people. Ariana’s entire family was full of kindhearted, normal people. People like his mom. Cal Jones was only a small part of that, and he and Ari would raise their kids in a home full of love with no strife. Lots of positive nurture, very little negative nature.
That would make all the difference.
He hoped.
ChapterEight
Ariana pulled into the parking lot at the bar and grill. The Mexican restaurant was Rita’s pride and joy. When her ex-husband Boone was cheating on her and murdering people — not that she knew about the killings until later — her focus was on creating a thriving business. Once he started cheating on her, Boone didn’t care what Rita did as long as she stayed out of his hair. It had worked in her favor, as the restaurant was now one of the most popular places to eat in town.
Inside, she found Maya and Olivia in a booth tucked away in the back hidden by numerous potted trees. That was where Rita wanted everyone to meet to work on the party planning. Bella had been itching to get out of the house, but Rita didn’t want her out of her sight.
Not with their dad and Neil thinking of her as their property.
It was the perfect way to hide in plain sight. The restaurant was packed, which was typical for a Saturday. Rita didn’t usually come in this early on a weekend, but several people were out sick.
That was one thing Ari didn’t like about her favorite holiday. It was the time of year people tended to get sick because of stark weather changes. Living near Washington’s beautiful western coast meant warm sunny summers quickly turned to chilly rain, bringing in a wave of colds with it. But clearly plenty of people were healthy given how many customers filled the tables and booths.
Ari slid into a seat next to Maya. Her twin Olivia sat on the other side of Bella.
“Where’s Rita?” Ariana grabbed a chip and dipped it in the bowl of salsa in the middle of the table.
“Filling in for a manager.” Bella nudged a pitcher of soda toward her. “She said to start planning without her.”
“How are you holding up?”
Bella rubbed her bloodshot eyes, which had dark circles underneath them. “I’ve been better. It’s hard to relax, you know? I keep expecting my father to jump out and drag me home.”
“You’re safe at Rita’s. Between their security system and Grayson, I don’t think anyone could get to you no matter how hard they tried.”
“I hope you’re right. But I’d rather talk about the party. It sounds like so much fun.”
Olivia’s eyes lit up. “I can’t wait! People are still talking about the one Ari threw last year. The kids I nanny for have told me all about how they turned their garage into a haunted house for kids to go through before getting their candy. They told me kids who live in other neighborhoods try to get in here just for the Jones’s house.”
Maya lifted a brow. “You’re a legend? I didn’t think you two had lived here very long.”
“We’ve had a few Halloweens in Rosy Hills. This will be our first in our newly built house. It was fun to be able to give input on the floor plans. I had this in mind the whole time.”
“I want to hear all about it,” Bella said. “This will be my first Halloween party.”
