Page 31

Holding up his hand, he cut me off. “Not the fucking car, I'm talking about the girl. What the fuck did you do?”

“What are you talking about?”

Growling, he leaned against his desk, his eyes black as tar. “There's a girl in our home, and she doesn't belong here—youdon't belong here.” Tapping his fingers against the desk, he let his eyes settle on mine. “What the hell were you thinking, what did you do this time?”

“What are you talking about? I didn't do anything, I met her at a bar, and I thought—”

“You thought what? You'd get a quick piece of ass after taunting Disesto?” His mouth folded into an angry scowl, brow arching high. “You said you were done, you swore you'd never come back here. Is she one of theirs? Is that how you got her?”

“What? No, she's not.” My jaw hung open as my eyes widened, baffled at his words. “What the hell do you think I did? Do you think I stole her from them? Do you really think I'd do something like that? Why would you say I was taunting them?”

How did he know that I was out for Disesto?”

I had been so careful, doing everything I could to keep this secret to myself. Emery was the only person that could tear down the wall and expose me for what I had done. And that put her in danger, it nailed a target to her back.

Fuck! I did it again!

It was like I carried some fucking black magnet that dragged people into the war zone around me. And no matter how much I tried to fix it, I only made it worse.

Sighing, my father dropped his gaze to the floor and shifted against his desk. Pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket, he handed it to me. “It was on the car.” Folding his arms, his eyes hardened. “We moved to get away from this, to get away from you and the shit that follows you. But you just can't help yourself, can you? You keep bringing it back. This is why I told you not to ever come here.”

Unfolding the paper, the note was quick and to the point.You don't get to walk away, not now, not ever. You and your girlfriend are dead. We're coming for you.

“You need to get rid of her and get the hell out of here. Your mother has had enough to worry about because of you. She doesn't need this shit too. You just keep fucking up, it's like you can't help yourself. It's not over, is it, Porter?”

“It never was over.” Crumpling the paper in my hand, I threw it into the small garbage beside his desk. “I'm trying to end it for good, but it isn't as easy as moving away. I can't run anymore, I'm sick of it. And after what they did, after what they did to our family, I can't let them live. They won't stop until I'm dead, so why shouldn't I take matters into my own hands? I'm done hiding.”

Standing up straight, Franco stepped to the small bar he had against the wall, and poured two short glasses of scotch. Picking them up, he walked to me and handed me one of the drinks.

He didn't speak for a moment as he took a long sip and watched me through the glass. Smacking his lips together, he asked, “Is that right?”

“Yeah, it is right. After what happened to Zander, after they tried to pin all that shit on me, did you really think that I'd just let it all go? I couldn't, someone had to do something.”

“She isn't theirs? You're not lying to me?”

“No, she's not. I met her at the bar, but it's complicated now, I can't explain it.”

Pointing at me with his cup, he smirked. “Did I ever tell you about the first time I saw your mother?”

Shaking my head no, I threw my head back and downed the alcohol in one gulp. “That's one of those stories you left out I guess.”

“We met in a bar. You know they say you can never find love in a bar, but they're wrong. I did, I found your mother, and I knew the second I saw her that she was the one.”

“Why the hell are you telling me this? What does this have to do with anything?”

“I'm telling you because your mother said she saw something in your eyes last night. She said you looked different, that there was a gleam in your eye she had never seen before. She told me that when you were sitting beside that girl on the bed, you looked at her the same way I used to look at your mother.”

“Used to?”

Rolling his head on his shoulders, he closed his eyes. “I say used to because time changes things. Back then, we were young and our relationship was new. That fades after awhile, eventually you find yourself standing in the background, wondering where the hell your life has gone and why it ended up the way it did.”

“I get it, I fucked up your life. Thanks for the reminder.”

“I'm saying, don't lose sight of what matters. Right now, that girl might look good, you might feel a tingle in your chest and a jerk in your pants. But that will change, especially with your past. If you do feel something for her, don't drag her into this, she'll have to spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder. Forget about what you feel right now and do what's best for her, send her away.”

Rolling my eyes, I laughed. “Are you serious? Franco, you think I like this? Do you think I want to have to worry about her?”

“I just want to make sure you understand. You didn't think about us when you jumped into this shit, and I never could have imagined when I met your mother that we'd be living on eggshells because of her damn son. I never expected to lose my son because of you. Don't fuck up her life too.”