Page 82

Eden
“Keegan, no!” I lunge for him.
The crack of the gun goes off seconds after I’ve wrapped my hands around his body, tackling him to the ground.
The sound reverberates through my head, muting everything else. My blood pulses in the silence.
Thump, thump.
Thump, thump.
Beneath me, Keegan’s body moves, and all at once, I’m being thrown into the present.
He cries out, a long, anguishing sound that rips straight through me. He and I are suffering the same turmoil; the same grief. We’re connected by more hurt than one could ever imagine.
“You dumb fuck.”
Hands wrench me off him, and I fall to the side, rolling on the cobblestones. I get to my hands and knees and watch as Leon Forbes pulls his son up from the ground, shaking him.
“What are you doing? What the fuck are you doing?”
Keegan’s head lolls to the side but eventually, he stares straight ahead at his father. Blood runs down the side of his face, soaking his hair. “I hate you. If I wasn’t here, you’d be nothing.”
Leon screams in his face like a madman. He shoves Keegan away, who barely manages to stay on his feet. I wobble on the stupid heels as I stand, then bend to pick up the black gun that’s been lost in the exchange.
Keegan rips it from my grip.
“Don’t!” I seethe.
He can’t. Both of them can’t die. Tears well in my eyes. I’m standing here in a wedding dress that should have been hers, right next to the only man she ever loved. I can’t let him do this. “If you do it, he wins.”
“I always win!” Leon yells, his whole body shaking. He’s been thrown over the edge. He’s lost it. It’s as if his body has cracked open and lava has already decimated the tiny town below while the villagers run for their lives.
I’m not running anymore, though. I won’t.
I take a deep breath, summoning my sister’s confidence. “He’s not worth it.”
Forbes starts cackling. “You little bitch.” He sighs. “I don’t know what I hate more, thinking that my grandchildren will have half your wild DNA or that my stupid-ass son just tried to blow his brains out.”
Keegan points the gun at him. The priest takes a few steps back, but Leon gives him a withering glare that makes him stop in place. “You’re not done yet.”
“Yes, he is,” Keegan states, his hand steady now. “The girl I was meant to marry died. I’m not taking Eden as a wife.”
“You’ll do as you’re told.”
“No, you’ll do as you’re told. You’ll rip up the contract and let Eden marry Leonardo Jarvis or I will put a bullet in your brain.”
Forbes shakes his head. “It doesn’t work like that. I’ve worked Alistair for years. I am owed. If you only knew the depths I’ve gone to. Marry them,” he snaps at the priest.
A body moves out from around the trellis. Large, bunched muscles lead to a hand gripping a gun pointed right at the priest’s head. “If you marry the woman I love to someone else, you’ll be eating out of an IV for the rest of your life.”
My heart skips a beat when I recognize Leo. Alaric and Oliver trail behind him, each with their own murderous faces. Devon Forbes takes up the rear of our happy little party. The odds have officially swung in my favor.
Leon shakes his head. From the back pocket of his nice suit, he pulls out a pack of cigarettes and lights up, taking a long drag. I’ve never seen him smoke anything other than a cigar. When he lets out a breath, a trail of smoke lingers in front of him before dissipating.
“This is my fault. I got too greedy. Temptation, that’s what I’ll call it.” He takes another drag. “God, but she would’ve been so fucking worth it, if I’d actually gotten the chance.” Smoke releases between his words until he blows the rest out. He turns toward me. “It really wasn’t fair watching the two of you grow up.” He places his cigarette in his mouth and then reaches down to cup himself. “Then when I found out my son was too much of a pussy to pop her cherry, I knew it was for a reason.”
“You son of a bitch!” I lunge at him.