Total pages in book: 150
Estimated words: 142818 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 714(@200wpm)___ 571(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142818 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 714(@200wpm)___ 571(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
He studied me, rubbing at his chin. “I’m excited to be a grandfather,” he said finally. “Thought I’d like to be a little older,” he shrugged. “Thought I’d be walking you down the aisle before that happened. Thought you’d give me some gray hairs before you settled down, if you ever did.”
I grinned at his bald head.
“I feel betrayed,” he continued in a more serious tone. “Not by you, but by a man I consider a brother. And I get that you’re no one’s property, that you made choices on your own. Not asking you to understand or even respect how things work here, but I’m telling you I’m an old dog. I’m trying my best to learn new tricks, but I can’t promise I’m not gonna bare my teeth, draw some blood along the way.”
I leaned toward him, giving him a pointed glare. “You’re not to draw his blood.
“Can promise not to use any weapons,” he offered. “But, honey, I’m gonna have to at least punch him in order to move forward. We don’t really do cocktails and long conversations. We fight shit out.”
“You know that’s fucking insane,” I threw my hands up.
He nodded. “Maybe. But that’s the world you’ve got yourself into. You’re smart enough to understand that.”
“Maybe,” I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “But I’m not going to like it.”
He grinned and leaned toward me, kissing my head. “Maybe this next generation will be a little more peaceful.”
A crash and a shriek of delight sounded from somewhere in the house.
We both looked in the direction where my baby brother was likely smashing something for the joy it brought him.
“Or maybe not,” he countered with a wink, standing and walking out of the room.
“Swiss,” I called when he was almost gone.
“Yeah, baby doll?” he asked, turning.
“Please don’t hate him,” I requested quietly.
He looked down at his boots , jaw set. “Don’t hate him, Violet. Just love you a fuck of a lot.”
“I love you too,” I whispered, my throat thick with tears.
He smiled at me and closed the door, leaving me with my thoughts.
Swiss was not my last visitor that night.
I was halfway through the plate of cookies and still on the same page of my book when the door to my patio quietly opened and closed.
The dark shape entering my room did not scare me.
I’d been hoping he’d come, even though I hadn’t made peace with him yet. Even though I hadn’t found a way to bury my father and his influence properly.
He didn’t come to me right away. He stood there, half illuminated by my lamp, half in shadow, staring.
Even now, after everything, I was still uncomfortable under his gaze. Not in a bad way. In the way that I was reminded that no one had ever looked at me like Elden did. No one saw me like he did.
I was frozen in place as he stared then eventually crossed the distance between us to sit on my bed.
“You’re brave to break into the house of the man who pointed a gun at your head today,” I commented, unable to think of anything else to say.
Though it was the truth. Swiss had promised he wasn’t going to kill Elden, but that promise was fresh, raw.
Elden did not respond to that. He kept staring at me with that tortured devastation on his face. “I’m sorry,” he finally said, trailing the back of his knuckles down my face.
I waited for more. For the ‘but. Nothing came.
“You’re sorry,” I eventually questioned, puncturing the silence that had felt like it would suffocate me.
“I’m very sorry,” he repeated, his tone serious.
I swallowed my smile. Even though today was heavy, very heavy indeed, it was quite something seeing Elden look so sincere and apologetic. But there was something else too.
“You’re not adding any amendments?” I asked him.
A crease formed between his brows. “The point of an apology is to not add amendments.”
“I received two apologies today,” I informed him. “From two different men.”
Elden’s gaze remained intense but stony now. “You deserve two different apologies from two different men.”
I swallowed hard. “I’ve never been apologized to by a man who was important to me before,” I said in a small voice. “I know for a fact that my father never uttered the words ‘I’m sorry’ to me. Even though he definitely did things worth apologizing for, and that’s not counting all the things he did to my mother.”
The words burned like acid.
Elden’s expression was tight, his back ramrod straight and his eyes squinting with anger. “Hate that you haven’t experienced what it’s like to be loved by a real man.” “Real men apologize, Violet. Without amendments, without excuses. And although he did indeed hold a gun to my head earlier today, I’m glad as fuck that for the rest of your life, you will have a father who is unafraid to apologize to you when he fucks up. Ready to go to battle for you and then back down when you battle him right back.”