Page 57 of Dirty Legacy

“If that makes it easier for you, yes.”

She tries to pull away, but I don’t let her. “Some marriage we have.”

“You can hate me, angel. I’m prepared for that. But you will survive this war and you will have my child.”

Her gaze is cool. “Fine. Are you done?”

“For now.” I let her go. She shifts so her back’s to me. I stand and step away, frustrated with myself.

There was a moment. A brief one, but last night, in bed, I felt it. The animosity was gone. The hate faded. We were people, man and wife even, and it felt good. I felt normal with her. I want to hold on to that feeling, but it’s already slipping away in the cold light of reality.

She’s my wife, but not because she wants to be.

“Send my mother in to see me when she arrives. I’ll be here.” She looks back over her shoulder. “In my cage.”

I let her have the last word. Some battles aren’t worth fighting.

16

ANGIE

I’m pacing around the room when Lisa brings me lunch.

“Caesar salad and grilled chicken, exactly as requested.” She takes the lid off the plate with a flourish. “Huh? Huh? Pretty nice, right?”

I have to admit the food looks delicious. “Have you heard about my mom yet?”

“I swear, I’ll tell you the second I do.” She gets me set up near the couch. “Now come on. Pregnant ladies need to eat, right? You’re growing a human inside of you.”

“That sounds so weird.”

“But it’s like the most common thing in the world, right? Humans have been having babies forever.”

“Easy for you to say.”

“You think I’m not going to have kids?”

I wave that away. “You’re young.”

“Angie, you realize we’re the same age, right?”

“Oh.” I hadn’t thought about that, but Lisa doesn’t seem upset.

“Look, I know you’re having a rough time right now, and I’ll try to make you as comfortable as I can, but just hang in there. Connor might seem rough around the edges, but he means well.”

“How much do you know about him? My husband?”

“Oh, god, I mean, we’re not close by any means, but we’ve both been in the same family⁠—“

“Crime family,” I correct.

She flashes a smile and nods. “We’ve been in the same crime family our whole lives. Connor’s always been hard. He wasn’t born to lead though, not officially anyway. There was all this fighting years back, like back when I was little, and he ended up taking control. The Maguire family’s been so much better off since then, honestly. He changed so many lives.”

“He feels like everything is on his shoulders.”

“That’s true in some ways. But he’s only one man, you know? From what I’ve seen and heard, Connor’s a fair boss. He treats his people well. He can be generous, but he’s also tough on weakness and doesn’t tolerate failure. Everyone respects him. Honestly, anyone else would’ve been abandoned already.”

“Are people upset? About this war, I mean?”