Vicious Minds (Children of Vice 4)

“No, stay.” She grabbed my arms. “Take your shoes and jacket off so we can cuddle.”

“Cuddle?” She said it with no shame. We cuddled now?

“Pali! (Hurry)” She waved her hands at me, apparently tired of using English or Italian to speak and telling me to hurry up.

Why was I going along with this? What was wrong with me? I took off my shoes and my jacket lying beside her across the bed. She turned, pressing her back against my chest.

“Am I the boss or you?”

She answered by lifting her shirt and putting my hand on her stomach. My eyebrow twitched, and I moved closer.

“Since you left, she’s been moving around like a big fish inside of me. Calm her down,” she ordered, obviously not very pleased with being the fish bowl.

“What language? English, Italian, Irish, or Korean since we are in Korea?”

“Are you making fun of me right now?”

I grinned, even though I no longer recognized myself anymore. Slowly I rubbed circles on her stomach, watching the lights of the city shine through the curtains. It was well after 2 AM, but it seemed people were still celebrating.

“You aren’t saying anything.”

“She’s my daughter. She’ll understand silence, just like her mother.”

She nodded and relaxed against me. “What does the rest of your family think of my remodeling?”

“Doesn’t matter. Renovations start in a week.”

“True. Do you like your room?” she asked. “Don’t get used to it. The bachelor pad is just a cover. I’ll be changing it later.”

“Yes, boss.”

“What is the work you wanted to talk about?” She changed the topic smoothly. She wasn’t slick nor was she trying to be.

“My brother is leaving for Boston in a few weeks. He wants to run away from our family, the Callahan name, and keep studying medicine there.”

She laughed softly and I could feel it against me. “Your brother is either not bright or lying to himself. I suspect it’s the latter. He must know there are more Irish people in Boston than in Chicago. He’s not running from the Callahan name—”

“He’s running from me,” I whispered, knowing that to be the truth as well.

“Exactly. But can you blame him? It must be hard living in your shadow.”

“You do it.”

“With the knowledge that I’m not always going to be in the shadows. I’m simply delaying my gratification, but I know it will come. He does not have that knowledge.”

That was also true.

“You want me to watch out for him? He’d notice anyone else.”

I paused, realizing that we weren’t on the page. “No, I wanted to use it to see if we could trap my parents. Harm him, forcing him to come home, and then get my parents.”

“It’s too much.”

“What?”

She shifted and turned over to face me. The contacts she wore now were blue. “I told you, do not rush because of me and this child.”

“I am not rushing—”