Page 57 of Fighting With Light

“If you remember correctly, I did mention that you and I should attempt to be better than others perceive us to be,” I tell her.

She nods and hugs my head closer to her chest. “I didn’t forget. But why should I care what other people think of me?”

“You shouldn’t, Aelia. It’s more about what you think of yourself. My brothers think I’m a smart idiot. Granted, I have made myself out to be that way, but they haven’t seen through that because I haven’t let them. I don’t want to bethat guy anymore. Nor do I want them to think I just travel the world, surf, climb, and sleep with random women. I want to be different.”

Her hands pause and she grips my hair, forcing my head back. “So being with me temporarily and building a case against our fathers is your way of proving them wrong?”

I shrug and lay my cheek against her chest. I can feel each dull thud of her heart as it pounds against her bone, and it calms my own. It makes me feel like this isn’t one-sided.

“You don’t think they will take you seriously, do you?”

I close my eyes and take another deep breath of her, trying to relax the tightness in my throat. I can’t answer her question because I don’t know what the answer is. I know my family loves me and wants me safe while I’m out on my own. It bothers Mom to no end, but this is just how it is.

Aelia keeps running her hands through my hair, making my eyes drop. I refuse to live my life waiting for my dad to do something. Sure, it makes me a little paranoid because I have to watch my own back and my brothers aren’t just a twenty-minute drive away. I mean, I know if I called them, they would be on a plane and get to me as soon as they could, but time would not be on our side.

Part of me wonders if I’ll be alone forever because of my family situation. I don’t like the idea of getting women involved in my life beyond the casual. Especially now because I saw what happened with Kai and Cordi, I would have been beside myself trying to protect Cordi. When those men broke into their house, it scared me, and I don’t like thinking about the man I would have become. It would have been worse than the one I am.

But Aelia understands that darker side of humanity because she was born in it. The only difference is she doesn’t like it, but she accepts that she’s in it, and once you are in it, there is no getting out.

Marco Costa signed her life on the dotted line the moment she was born, just like mine was. We don’t get to choose our families, but we do have a choice not to bring anyone else into the chaos.

I’m afraid of the man I will become being alone. The life I’ve lived has kept those fears at bay until now. Surfing and climbing are not forever. It’s not something I could easily do at eighty-years-old.

If I live that long.

But maybe I won’t, and it wouldn’t be an issue then. Regardless, it’s not something I thought about until now.

“Hey, where did you go?” she asks.

I lean back away from her warm body and her eyebrows scrunch together. The concern in her eyes makes me angry. I don’t deserve it, and I want to throw her off of me, but I don’t. I shake my head and tap her thigh.

“I’m good, let’s get ready,” I rasp.

Still holding onto me, she dips down, pressing her lips to mine.

“This is going to be fun,” she says, smiling against my mouth.

I grin back because she shouldn’t be excited. She should be nervous. But I’m excited, too.

Maybe we’re both just a little crazy.

21

Liam

We kept the SUVthat Ben got because I thought it might come in handy, and it has. With Aelia sitting in the back seat, I pull up to the shipping yard gate and she rolls down her window.

“How can I help you?” the man asks. I watch him through the tinted windows. He appears to be a normal guy. He has a taser for a weapon and he looks like he sits on his butt most of the day.

“Oh, thank God someone is here! I need your help,” Aelia gasps and sniffles into her silk handkerchief. She made her makeup run, so it looks like she’s been crying for hours.

“How is that?” he asks.

“Well, my fashion house sent a box to be shipped out with another massive order that wasn’t supposed to come here. It has unreleased pieces, and now our clients are going to kill me because the designs are custom and…well, you don’t want to hear about that. And…” she trails off, and the tone of her voice would make any man say yes. “I was hoping you could help me. I just need to grab the box and it will be like I was never here. Please, I could lose my job over this,” she says, her voice breaking right on cue.

The guard looks at the gate and looks at her. “I can’t let anyone in here without credentials.”

“Please, I’m begging you, I…I worked so hard to get here and this wasn’t even my fault.” Aelia turns up the waterworks and sobs again.