My soured laugh is hard. They may be friends, but Leo has no idea how stubborn my wife can be. He has no idea the fight she has inside her.
He didn’t see her. He didn’t hear her.
“Don’t let me die.”
“You’re not dying. You’re going to be okay.”
Sputtering a throaty laugh, her hands desperately push her ripped flesh back together. “Pick her. Always.”
“Belles…”
“Promise.”
“Morena.”
I know what she’s asking, and I can’t promise that I won’t do whatever it takes to keep her with me. I can’t choose between her and our little girl.
“Please. Her first.”
“Arabella.”
“Cariño…”
I hate her for making me choose. For making me fail at my vows all over again. I swore I’d protect her. Eternally. I’d keep her by my side for always.
“Okay.”
“Whatever you’re thinking, stop.” Leo tips what’s left in the bottle into my glass. “She’s one of us—she doesn’t get to run away. Besides, she’s got promises to keep. Vows to uphold. So, stop being a motherfucking pussy. Drink up, get some sleep, and then we find her.”
Walking away, he looks back at me one more time, “We’ve all lost something…someone. It’s up to us to make it count. I have a great place to start.”
Chapter 2
Christopher
Leo sips his coffee as he goes through the financial reports in the papers. He hasn’t said shit today. It’s past midday, and I know he’s been up for a lot longer than I have.
I doubt he got much sleep. He and Cassie were pottering about before she left with Wayne. I was too much of a fucking coward to face her, even with alcohol still lining my system.
Toby’s whines after she left wouldn’t let me back to sleep. He’s all about Cassie, and I have no idea how Leo puts up with his noise.
Checking his watch, he takes a sip of his coffee. “Freddie and Casper will be here in a bit.”
“What’s going on?” The smell of the strong coffee makes my stomach turn. My cotton mouth is so dry, my words sound slurred. “What were you doing last night?”
Grinning, he folds the newspaper he’s currently reading into a quarter and then throws it onto the middle of the table. One of his cufflinks pops off with the force of his movement. “You mean when you were strangling my girlfriend?”
Fuck.
His stare narrows with his belligerent pout as he rolls his shirtsleeves up his arms. Checking the time once more, Leo huffs as he states, “I had to see a man about a dog.”
“What dog?”
“We have unfinished business, Christopher. We have a kitty cat to drown.” His eyes light up when they meet mine. For a pretty boy, his gaze holds a sinister gleam.
He likes to taunt and tease. He’s the kind of guy that smiles and nods at all the shit you throw at him and then, like an overblown balloon, he bursts. You push him and he won’t stop until he’s ground you down.
Especially when it comes to Cassie.