“You’re back!”
Remy approaches me in the foyer of Caleb and Victoria’s apartment like a warrior princess, her hair loose around her face, and her gray eyes flashing. All that’s missing is a chariot and winged horses. And damn! An image of her in a sheer gold robe bursts behind my eyes, creating a distraction that I could do without.
Remy is angry.
Understandable, given that she had no clue about our mafia legacy.
“Why can’t I leave? Is that it now? Are you going to keep me prisoner here forever?”
“Remy, calm down.” I suppress a smile. She’s even more beautiful when she’s angry, but I’m not so clueless that I think smiling will help diffuse the situation. “No one is keeping you prisoner.”
“So, why can’t I leave?” Her chest is heaving with the effort of controlling her rage at me.
I glance at the bodyguard tasked with keeping her safe and dismiss him with a curt nod. “I—we—wanted a chance to explain things first.”
“Don’t you think you should’ve done that sooner? How do you think it felt to find out from Victoria and Sienna? They thought I knew. They thought, strangely, that you and Bash would’ve explained your ‘family connections’ as a bare minimum, as we’re having a baby together.Babies.” She shakes her head at her own mistake.
When she looks away, I move closer, keep my voice calm even though what I really want to do is hold her in my arms and promise her that everything will be alright. “You’re right, Remy. We should’ve explained sooner. We shouldn’t have assumed that you already knew this about us.”
“Well, I’m glad we got that sorted.” She barely makes eye contact. “Can I go now?”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes. Maybe.” She stares at the window as if it might give her clarity. “I don’t know, Cash.”
Closer. “My little sister always says that if it isn’t a definite yes then it’s a no.”
She gives a small smile. “That could apply to staying too.”
“But you’re still here.” I reach for her hand and she pulls away.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Cash. You haven’t explained anything.”
“I’m sorry, Remy.”
“That’s a start.” The look in her eyes hits the target directly in the center of my heart.
She is putting her trust in Bash and me when we’ve given her very little reason to do so, and I feel floored. The list of ways in which we need to make things up to her keeps growing, while she continues to show up for us with nothing but affection.
Do we deserve it? Perhaps not. But if this were a fight to the death, and winner gets to spend the rest of his life making Remy feel loved, I would enter that arena with my head held high.
“I’ve learned things from you that I never expected to learn,” I begin.
“Such as?” At least she’s curious enough to stay and listen, and I’ll take that as a win.
“I’ve learned that our reputation means nothing to the people we care about, and neither would I want it to. I’ve learned that our lifestyle is a privilege that’s easy to fuck up without even realizing. But most importantly…” I pull her into my arms. “…I’ve learned that I would give it all up for you, Remy Jones.”
“You’re serious.”
“More serious than I’ve ever been in my life.”
“You know I would never ask you to do that for me.”
“I know.” I press my lips to hers. “But I do want you to do something for me.”
“Did anyone ever tell you how demanding you are?”
She’s teasing me, and I would fist-pump the air with joy if it didn’t mean having to let her go. “Frequently.” I kiss her again. “I want you to come and see the Titan.”
