Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 82715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
I moved through the men and wrapped my arms around Otto’s waist, laying my head against his chest. “Thanks, Otto-mobile,” I said softly.
“Fuck,” he murmured again, his arms coming up to encircle my head, his biceps resting on my shoulders. He shuddered again as he laid his cheek against the top of my head.
It was so weird. When I’d left three years ago, he’d been the same height as me and now suddenly he was man-sized. He’d grown up when I wasn’t there to see it.
“We’re headed out,” Tommy said, patting Otto on the back so hard that I felt it. “Come on, son.”
“You good?” Otto asked as he pulled away.
“Yeah.” I let him go and tried to smile. It must’ve been really unbelievable because Otto snorted.
“You stay here,” Gramps ordered, pointing at Michael as he shuffled by. He kissed my forehead and kept moving, which made me sigh in relief. If he’d babied me even a little, I would’ve fallen apart.
Michael tried to argue. “I’m not—”
It was the first time I’d ever seen that particular expression on Gramps’s face as he stared Michael down, and I hoped I’d never see it again. “You stay here and take care of Emilia.”
Michael’s mouth snapped shut.
In less than a minute, the house was empty except for the three of us. The silence was deafening.
“I’m so sorry I wasn’t—”
“Save it,” I murmured tiredly, cutting him off. “Just save it.”
“Emilia—”
“No.” I put my hand up to stop him as he walked toward me. “I’m not—I can’t do this right now.”
“I shoulda been here. I know that now.”
“Oh, you know that now?” I asked sharply. “You know that now?”
“Yeah, I know it now.”
“Why didn’t you know it before? Where the hell were you?”
“I went with Rum,” he said, running his hands through his hair. “We went to a house my dad’s demoing. Just blowin’ off some steam. Just—”
“You left me at the club by myself so you could go demo a house?” I hissed in disbelief as I took him in. He was covered with a fine layer of dust that I hadn’t noticed before.
“I do that sometimes,” he explained. “When shit’s too much. It clears my head. After that shit at the club, I needed a minute.”
“You didn’t think that maybe I needed a minute?” I asked quietly, disappointment making my shoulders slump. “That maybe going back into the party your family was throwing us alone wasn’t what I wanted to do?”
“I figured you’d leave,” he said, taking another step forward. “Bring Rhett home and decompress.”
“You left me there by myself,” I said, my voice nearly inaudible. “You were pissed at me, and you left without a word.”
“You really wanna talk about who left who?” he asked, getting defensive.
I let out a bark of laughter so raw that it hurt my throat. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“Yes, you did,” he replied flatly. “You had a choice.”
“Yeah, well, so did you,” I spat back. “And you’re not eighteen, pregnant, and scared out of your mind.”
“I thought we’d taken care of him.” He glanced at the living room. “I didn’t think he’d be back.”
“So, that just makes it okay?” I shook my head. “You know what, I’m not even mad about that.”
“Bullshit.”
“I’m really not.” It was true. I wasn’t angry that he hadn’t been there. Neither of us had realized how nuts Parker was. Neither of us had anticipated it. “I’m angry—no, not even that. I’m disappointed—”
Michael scoffed.
“I’m disappointed,” I said again, my voice wobbly no matter how hard I tried to keep it steady. “That you took off the minute you were pissed, just like I’d known you would.”
Chapter 12
Michael
“That’s not fair,” I ground out, frustration making my hands ball into fists. “I left for a few fuckin’ hours.”
“And how’d that work out for you?” she asked softly. “You get what you needed?”
I swallowed hard. No, I hadn’t. Tearing down a wall hadn’t hit the same as it always had before. The entire time I’d wanted to come home and have it out with Emilia, but I’d been too stubborn. I’d just kept going, waiting for the familiar release of tension that never came.
Emilia was quiet as she lifted her hands out in front of her, watching as they trembled.
“I’m so sorry,” I choked out, moving forward. “I thought he was gone.”
“Yeah,” she whispered. “So did I.”
I wanted to hit something. I wanted her to hit something. Hit me. If we were angry, maybe we could overlook how badly I’d failed her.
I hadn’t thought for a second that asshole Parker would stick around after we’d sent him on his way. If I had, I never would have left her and Rhett alone. I’d still been strung pretty tight, though, which was why I’d sent Otto with her. I’d felt a little better knowing someone was with her until I got home. I just hadn’t wanted her coming back to an empty house alone.