Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 94024 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94024 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
“Fuck.” King hung his head and then slowly turned around. “She’s a really good tutor?”
“You. Little. Shit!” Dad yelled.
And then King ran for the door.
He was, of course, tackled by Ash, who was mean enough to want King to suffer. At least Ash wasn’t drinking himself to death anymore or banging his head against the wall because, according to him, the pain made him feel better.
“So.” Violet reached for my hand. “Everything good?”
“Everything is…” I narrowed my eyes. “Weirdly normal.”
A gunshot rang out.
A lamp fell.
Neither of us even looked.
“Yup.” She smirked. “Weirdly normal.”
“Geez, Tex, he’s turning purple!” Ash yelled.
“Oh God, I’m going to puke,” Maksim announced.
“What the hell is wrong with you people?” Tank joined in as more loud noises commenced.
“And you?” Violet pressed a kiss to my mouth before talking. “How are you?”
“Deliriously happy that last year, I brought a girl to a club, lost her, found her again, saved her, lost my soul, only to have her bring me back to life again.” I smiled at her. “So, I’m feeling pretty fucking good right now.”
“Good.” She chewed her lower lip. “Because I’m pretty sure that mood is about to change when you find out…”
I felt myself pale. “What happened?”
“Annie needs a place to stay. The dorms aren’t safe for her anymore. Her parents are dead, courtesy of Ash and—” She sighed. “I may have brought it up to your dad, who then took matters into his own hands and—”
“Oh shit, don’t tell me.”
Violet winced. “My dad offered to take her in.”
And there it was.
The bomb exploding as we both turned to see Ash on his phone, his face pale. It was like slow motion as he stomped up to Annie looking ready to murder her even though she probably had no clue why he was so pissed.
He threw the phone onto the ground, breaking it nearly in half, then turned and looked at Violet like he was going to kill her.
I stood in front of her and shook my head slowly as Junior came up behind Ash and took him down.
“He’s not himself,” I whispered.
“He’s not even human anymore at times.” Violet hugged me from behind. “But blood is blood, so we’ll get him through it. One way or another, we’ll get him through.”
I had my doubts this time, but I didn’t voice them. I just focused on the woman holding me and the fact that I knew I could finally lead this Family not because I was strong enough, but because I had a partner who was.
After all, you can’t deny Abandonato blood—it fights for what’s theirs.
“Come on.” I tugged her hand. “Let’s go clean up the blood.”
Epilogue
In vain I have struggled it will not do, My feelings will not be repressed, You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you. —Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Ash
They were already married, so I wasn’t quite sure why they wanted to have another wedding and reception, other than Violet said she wanted her father to walk her down the aisle.
It took every ounce of strength I had to stand up there with Valerian while Violet walked slowly down that aisle—that and a shit ton of whiskey that Junior kept plying me with so I’d be numb enough to keep my anger in check.
I was self-medicating more and more.
And then I just stopped.
Because it made me dream of her.
If I drank too much, I saw her face, and then the nightmare would occur; I’d be in that emergency room with Nikolai by my side telling me to say goodbye.
I never got the words out, though.
They refused to pass my lips.
Because that would make it true.
She’s gone.
But I still felt her in my soul.
How was that even possible?
Annie eyed me from her spot next to Izzy. They were bridesmaids, and even half-drunk, I could appreciate the way her black dress hugged her small, curvy body.
And that was the fucking problem.
I was attracted to her.
I begged God, literally anyone but the girl I blamed for Claire’s death, anyone but the person I hated more than I could ever possibly love.
And yet every single time I saw her.
I burned.
“You may now kiss the bride!” Tex announced, hilarious that he was ordained; yeah, maybe I was a little past drunk if the thought of Tex holding a Bible made me chuckle and sway on my feet.
“You okay?” Junior nudged me.
“Never.”
“Oh good, you’re past the point of drunk, and now you’re going to get the sads again? Buck up, your family needs you.”
But who wants me?
I moved through a haze as I walked with Junior toward the reception at Valerian’s mega-house.
A white tent was set up in the backyard, and there were enough Italian and Russian associates to start an all-out war in the Pacific Northwest.
But everyone was smiling.
Even the ones that had tattoos on their faces.