Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 61101 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61101 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
Dante doesn’t say a word but pushes away from the door and saunters toward us. Stopping beside Harper and me, he pulls us into his arms, where we fit snugly against his chest. His warmth offers me a safety I’d never felt before I met him.
I was used to men being brutish, angry, and violent in their actions. Whenever I was close to one, there would be pain followed by a sense of abandonment. In my broken mind, all I wanted was affection, but I never received it.
Until Dante.
He’s not soft and gentle, though. He has a firm, commanding presence. He allows my demons to dance alongside his, and if I crave pain, he delivers it in a way that doesn’t scare me. He offers me solace when he toys with my body.
It might sound toxic, but his life experiences fit with mine. In many ways, the three of us shouldn’t really be together, but we find our whole among all the broken pieces. Where I’m missing something, Harper fills the gap, and the same applies to Dante.
It’s like a puzzle of destruction that becomes a mosaic of twisted perfection.
“I don’t want either of you to fear anything,” he says as he holds us in his arms. “We will never become those monsters, because we’ve learned what not to do.”
“It still scares me, though,” I mumble into his chest, allowing a tear to fall freely down my cheek.
Dante steps back and cups my face with his hands. Once again, his demanding nature has my eyes never leaving his. I can’t look away from those penetrating orbs.
“You’re not alone,” he tells me adamantly. “You never will be again, sweetheart. And if there’s something worrying you, we’ll all sit down and talk about it together. You can’t let things fester. They’ll only hurt more if you hold onto them.”
His voice is like silk. It drapes over my sensitive skin, causing tingles in its wake. Dante may be a cold-blooded killer, but he’s also a caring, affectionate partner. He wouldn’t admit to it, but I see it when he’s around us and when we visit our brothers.
“I know,” I say, nodding while I stare into those eyes of endless sky blue. “I’m still unsure about what I can say and do. I suppose it will take time. I’ve been feeling so many different emotions since I saw my mother tonight. I didn’t think it would be like this.”
The tears burn my eyes as I fight them off. I’ve cried so much I’m exhausted. I don’t want to cry anymore.
Dante nods in understanding. “It was the same for me when I learned who my father was, but I was much younger. For years the confusion and hatred I felt toward him made me hate myself. There are times I’m still afraid that what he did to me and Drake, what he taught us, will manifest itself in me someday.”
Dante has never been open about his feelings or his thoughts, especially in relation to his father. He hides a lot of the emotions he struggles with, and I’ve often wondered if he’s trying to shelter us from his darkness. I would never try to force him to talk about his feelings, but seeing him vulnerable like this, knowing his fears match mine, eases the ache in my chest.
“We all grew up with examples of how not to be parents. The people who were meant to protect us, hurt us instead,” Harper whispers, and the pain that slams into my chest, realizing we’re all broken, steals my breath.
“But they are not who we are,” Dante says. “They chose that life, the darkness. We can choose differently.”
Nodding, I add, “We can. And we will.”
I’m ready to take my mother on. I want to see her face-to-face and make her pay for what she did to River and me. I can’t make her experience the trauma I suffered, because no one can know what it was like unless they’ve traveled the same path, but I can exact my revenge in my own way.
“She should be waking up by now,” Dante announces as he looks at me. “Are you ready for this, little raindrop?”
His hand cups my face, his thumb swiping at my cheek, and I realize there was a tear trickling down it. Dante doesn’t like to see us cry. He’ll do anything in his power to ease our pain. It’s one of the many reasons I’ve fallen for him.
Our relationship isn’t what society would deem normal. But with Harper and Dante, I’ve found something I never want to lose.
“I’m ready. I didn’t think I would be, but I know it’s time for my mother to talk, to admit her wrongdoings and pay for her sins.”
Many people believe you should allow karma to punish those who have hurt you. Some even say you shouldn’t seek vengeance at all, because it doesn’t change anything. But I think if you’ve suffered like I have, then revenge is the only way to move on. As much as this won’t erase the past, it will offer me the closure I need.