“You’re going to do something for the family.”
Yep, this was incredibly bad.
“No the fuck I’m not.” I locked my arms over my chest and glared at my brother’s back until he slammed the glass down and turned to face me.
“You are, Ci. You’re not going to like it but you’re going to do it because the alternative is far worse than what I’m going to ask of you.”
The alternative.
My father and brother were so deeply embedded in organized crime that the alternative could mean the consequences of their actions had finally caught up with them. For the past thirty-four years, I’d managed to remain disconnected from the life they claimed. But gauging the look on my brother’s face, that would no longer be a possibility.
“No, Merrick. You made a promise.”
His eyes softened again. “I did and I’ve kept that promise for as long as I could.”
“Promises don’t have expiration dates, Merrick.”
“In our world they do. Dad messed up. He really fuckin’ messed up, Ci, and if I were a lesser man, I would kill him myself. I need this because it’s the only way to keep him alive. His debt is open ended and the only payment they will accept is…”
Me.
“No, absolutely fucking not.”
“One year. That’s all he’s asking. You marry Warren Harte for one year and the debt is paid.”
“Warren. You want me to marry that sick bastard. You know him, Merrick. You’ve warned me about the man and now you’re proposing I marry him.”
That deep scowl returned but for a different reason. He did know Warren and no matter what Merrick was asking, the thought of Warren hurting me turned his blood to liquid heat, same as it had when he’d learned years ago that the man had taken an interest in me.
“He will not lay a fucking finger on you.”
“That’s another promise you’ll make but can’t keep. What are you going to do, move in with us, lay in the bed between us every night? There’s no way you can…”
The door opened and my mother walked in. “Leave us, Merrick.”
“Ma, I can’t do that. I need to square this away with Cia and you know why.”
“I do and I don’t fucking care.” She turned hard eyes on him before stating one last time, “Leave the room, Merrick. I need to talk to your sister.”
His eyes bounced between us before they landed on our mother. He nodded and reluctantly left us, closing the door behind him.
“Please don’t tell me you agree with this?”
“I don’t, and unless it’s what you want, I will not ask you to marry a man you haven’t chosen for yourself.”
I scoffed. “This is not what I want.”
“Then leave and I’ll handle things.”
“Leave?” I glanced at the door. “Merrick said…”
“Your father’s well-being is contingent on you agreeing to this unreasonable request because he acquired a debt he can’t pay.” I nodded. “All of this is true but none of this is your issue or mine. I’ve been telling your father and brother for years that their actions have consequences. Your brother wants to save him but that’s neither Merrick’s responsibility noryours. This is not your problem to fix, sweetheart.” She placed a hand on my cheek and I closed my eyes briefly.
“He’s my father,” I stated quietly. I loved my father more than I could express. “If they hurt him…”
“Still not your concern. Your life is your own. I will not allow the men in this family to guilt you into solving their problems. They’ll figure it out. They always do. The problem is they want an easy fix and I won’t grant them one at your expense. If this is notwhat you want, leave now. If you stay, you’ll be married into the Harte family in two days.”
Two days.Christmas. Their fixation on assuring I was where they needed me to be now fully made sense.
