Tamsin smirked as Mrs. Savona went white.
“It’s quite a funny story actually. I don’t know if you heard about the family legacy.” Landon didn’t give anyone a chance to say yes or no before he carried on. “Well, here’s the thing. It’s true. We all know when we see our woman. She becomes our everything. We fail to care about and see any other woman other than her. That’s why we’ve got Gabriel Colton there. Spoiler alert, he’s not a Colton.”
“Landon,” Maddox said.
“Before our dear old daddy met our mother, the fierce Charlotte Denton, he decided to fuck around with his enemy’s wife. Tada, lo and behold, our old half-brother. What was I talking about? Oh, that’s right. My girl. The one I call my own, she died. Some prick ran her over, killing her. Kind of went a bit sick in the head.” He put his fingers to his temple and pulled a stupid face. “I’ve been chained up. Of course, I had to meet the perv that would marry my little sister. Sorry, sorry, did I say perv? I meant fiancé.”
She was struggling not to burst out laughing.
If looks could kill, Landon would be dead with how their father glared at him.
“Wow, that is an overshare, and we’ve not even had soup.”
Mason was next to her, and she did everything in her power to ignore him. He was clearly used to having attention. She didn’t know why she felt like that, only he rubbed her the wrong way.
I need to get away.
She made it through the first course, and by the main meal, they were talking plans.
“We think on Tamsin’s eighteenth birthday we can have the wedding,” Maddox said.
“We can make it a double event, birthday and wedding. Wouldn’t that be lovely?” Mrs. Savona said.
“Great.” Sarcasm dripped from her voice.
“Where will Tamsin live?” Jacob asked.
He hadn’t spoken much since she arrived downstairs. Landon seemed to take all of the attention away.
“She’ll live with me,” Mason said. “I have a penthouse suite.”
“Close to home?” Charlotte asked.
“No. I’ll take her back home with me.”
She wouldn’t be close to her brothers. After listening in to her parents’ previous conversations, she knew it took over five hours.
“I need some air.” She didn’t wait to be excused. Leaving the dining room, she walked straight past the kitchen and out into the garden.
Gripping the stone wall, she took in several deep breaths.
This was going to happen. Her time was running out.
She didn’t want to get married.
She didn’t want to do as she was told.
The only escape for her was one she created herself.
Running away.
“Are you okay?” Mason asked.
She turned to see he’d followed her out. They were in privacy, and clearly her parents were keeping her brothers at bay.
“Are you a pedophile?” she asked.
“No.”