Broken Promise (The Denton Family Legacy 1)

“Exactly¸ and she spoke to him that she wanted her shift back. Staying in her apartment baking oatmeal cookies isn’t going to keep her going for long.”

“Lou bakes?”

“Yep, she has for a long time. It was something she learned when we were young. Mom and Dad employed a cook, and Lou would spend all hours in the kitchen with her. They got close, and then because our parents are fucking evil, they fired her ass, leaving Lou heartbroken about it for weeks afterward.”

“Speaking of your parents, we’ve got to pay them a visit.”

“What about?”

Jacob paused. He didn’t know if it would be a good idea to tell Riley his father’s suspicions. Landon had been approached in high school about doing more fights, and they believed it was the Moores who’d done it.

“Come on, just spill. I know you’re going to be wanting to have more than a date with my sister. Whatever else you’ve got about our family, just hit me with it. I know that our family isn’t the most liked.”

“Most liked?”

“Yeah, we’ve got older brothers that are petty criminals that just piss everyone else off. My parents are hungry for power and money. They find out that you’ve got a thing for Lou, and they would be all over it. They’re gaining enemies every single day.”

“How are you and Lou not affected by your parents?”

“You mean, why are we so different?” Riley asked.

“Yeah.”

“By the time Lou and I came along, they’d already been dealing with the fights. They weren’t around all that much. We got nannies, cooks, staff to take care of us. They’re awful people, shit parents, but they knew how to pick a decent nanny. Put simply, Jacob, we weren’t raised by our parents.”

It made a lot of sense to Jacob. “You can tell.”

“I know our parents, and even our brothers aren’t liked. We’re used to it.”

“How does Lou handle your fighting?”

“She doesn’t, not really. We’re brother and sister, twins, but to be honest, we’re really great friends as well. I know, clichéd as shit, but it’s the way it is with us,” Riley said.

“You taught her how to shoot, and that came in handy.”

“Yeah, she comes across as this hard ass, but she’s really not. I wanted her to be able to protect herself.”

Jacob liked Riley, he really did, which was a change for him. Usually he could only stomach his brothers, which was why his guards that his father put on his ass stayed far away. Jacob wasn’t known for playing friendly, and he doubted that he would ever be.

They were silent for several minutes, and Jacob took a drink of the coffee.

“So, what happens with the red zone? David is no more, and I heard the brothels have been closed since Wednesday. That’s got to be a shitload of dough wasted,” Riley said.

“It’s not. Maddox is interviewing potential candidates. If he could, he’d put Bruce inside them, and be done with it.”

“Bruce? He the guy guarding your mother?”

“Yep, and Dad’s not about to let him leave my mother. He loves her too damn much.”

“Speaking of love, how does this whole, ‘Lou is mine’ thing work? Do you just know? Is it a feeling? I don’t want you to fuck her over.”

Jacob glanced over, not understanding why he was suddenly so chatty. “What the hell is going on with you?”

“I’m bored, and I figured I may as well check out the guy who wants to be with my baby sister. In case you didn’t know, she’s only a couple of minutes younger than me.” Riley grabbed his coffee, taking a sip. “Lou, she loves with her whole heart.”

“How do you know that?” he asked.

“I’ve known my sister since birth. You’ve known her just over a week. Give me a break, I know my fucking sister okay? She talks the talk, but it’s all a cover. She’s sweet, and I tell you what, she’d make one heck of a mom. We were out shopping about a year ago. I wanted to buy something for the woman I was seeing, and I didn’t have a clue what to get her. We’re in the mall, and it’s busy, I mean fucking no space kind of busy. It was insane, and I just wanted to leave. On the way out of the store, there’s this little kid. A girl, and she stood there at the door with her thumb in her mouth, couldn’t be more than three. I don’t remember what she was wearing, or even what she looked like other than the fact she was young. Lou, she crouched down so the girl wasn’t afraid, and started talking to her.” Riley chuckled, but it was more of a disgusted sound than anything else. “People were coming and going, and even though I was moaning, Lou wouldn’t be rushed. She waited until the girl took her hand, and together, they started to hunt every single store to find her mother. For over an hour, Lou was searching for the kid’s mother. Finally, the mother came rushing toward us, sobbing, and hugging her kid. Lou could have simply handed the brat over to security. She didn’t. Once you have Lou’s love, there’s no backing out. She’s all in, and that is never going to change.”