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“They weren’t in rival gangs?” Ethan asks with a weak laugh.

I chuckle tiredly. “No, surprisingly. My mother wasn’t a part of this world at all. She didn’t even live or go to school here,” I tell him, a bit of sadness creeping over me as well, but I try to keep my tone light. “She was just in town visitin’ a friend and met my father on the beach one day. They had a whirlwind fling that week, she left, and then she showed back up a month later with her things and never left.”

Ethan nearly chokes. “Jesus, that’s…well, I guess when you know you know.”

“Yeah. My father is a son of a bitch, but she loved him, flaws and all,” I say slowly, my chest feeling tight. “I wanna believe he loved her. Maybe he just lost sight of it in all the…power.”

It’s silent, so much so that it unnerves me. I chuckle, trying to let off some of the tension.

Ethan’s hand slides to my cheek and his thumb caresses it.

“I’ve never felt anything like this before,” I say. “Told anyone this. Cried in their arms. Held them so close for so long. Felt so…soft.”

Ethan brushes a tuft of my hair behind my ear and turns my head so that his nose brushes mine. “Me, either,” he admits. “But I think you need it a lot more than I do.”

I swallow the lump in my throat and brush my lips to his. I’m about to kiss him,reallykiss him, and perhaps fuck him to sleep again, when my phone starts to vibrate aggressively on the floor nearby.

“Motherfucker,” I hiss.

Ethan jumps, startled, and pulls back from me. I lean in and kiss his nose several times before finally sliding out of bed and stumbling in the dark until I find my phone.

The light of the screen blinds me for a second. “Fuck, shit.”

I swipe to answer the call and put it to my ear. “You know, you’ve got the worst fuckin’ timing, brother,” I snarl.

My eyes shift to Ethan, who’s sitting up in bed and holding the blanket in his lap. The light of my phone allows me to see him better—his ruffled hair, his hickey-covered body. I barely process what my brother’s saying.

“Huh?” I ask.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, you asshole. Screw your head back on. I said, Father is pissed and wants to talk to you right now. Family meeting,” Marco tells me.

I hold the phone tighter, hearing the frame creak. “It really can’t wait until sunrise?”

“The sun’ll be risen by the time you get here, Dante. You’ve got until Father finishes his second coffee and smoke, or your ass is grass.”

I growl under my breath and my free hand balls into a fist. “Can’t even get a fucking morning to myself. I’ll be there.” I hang up before Marco can reply, but I see the text he sends me as it pops up in my notifications.

Marco: is the ass really that good?

I angrily text him back.

Me: you’ll never know, jackass

I huff and start trying to find my clothing.

“What’s going on?” Ethan asks. The light on the nightstand startles me, and I grimace as I adjust to it. “Sorry.”

Once my eyes adjust, it’s easier to find my clothing. “Family meeting. Can’t wait, apparently. Got wipes?”

Ethan blinks at me and then nods, sliding off the bed. I watch him walk, legs wobbly for the first few steps, and then he leaves the room. When he returns a minute later, he’s holding a container of baby wipes. “Here, let me get it.” He pulls a couple out, steps over to me, and slowly wipes the cum off my stomach and the front of my thighs. I shiver at the feeling, then look athim with surprise as he steps behind me and does the same to my back. He even pays attention to my ass with his cleaning.

“Is this alright?” Ethan asks.

I sigh and close my eyes for a second. “It’s perfect, thank you, puppy.”

He tosses the wipes in the small trash can by the bed after wiping his own stomach and chest, and then sits down on the bed. “When will I see you again?”

I snort. “You say that like I’m going off to war.”