Page 39 of His Lair

“Although, she really was my mother. You don’t have anything to be jealous about,” I assure her.

“She’s beautiful,” Lailani says.

“On the outside,” I add. My motherisbeautiful on the surface. Dig any deeper and that’s when you find the ugly.

“Does she live here? In Vegas?”

“She has a house a couple of hours away. She usually only shows up when she runs out of funds,” I confess.Why the fuck am I spilling all this shit to her?

“Where is she now?”

I run a hand through my hair. “Emmanuel took her home to his place for the night.”

“Why? I mean, if she doesn’t come to town often, shouldn’t you spend time with her? You didn’t send her with your friend so you could come here, did you?”

“The last thing I want to do is spend time with my mother. I came here because I wanted to see you. You are the only person I want to spend my night with.”

“You don’t like your mother?” Lailani looks at me skeptically.

“I like you more,” I tell her, which is true.

I love my mother in ashe’s my mother and the only one I have kindof way. I’d never turn my back on her completely. But I’m not blinded by her either. She’s batshit fucking crazy—the kind of crazy I don’t want in my life on the regular.

“Do you get along with your parents?” I counter, realizing I’ve never asked Lailani about her family and that she’s never mentioned them.

“My mom died when I was young. My dad raised me alone. I get along with him okay.” She shrugs.

“I’m sorry. Do you have siblings?”

“No. Just me.” She smiles. “Do you have any siblings?”

“I have Louie, Carlo, and Emmanuel,” I tell her. “They’ve always been like brothers to me.”

“That must be nice,” she says.

Vibrations pull my attention away from Lailani’s face to my phone screen.

Carlo:

Sammie, I need to find a babysitter, someone trustworthy. Someone already on payroll would be preferred.

Louie:

Bring my niece to me if you need to go out.

Carlo:

You’re likely to be with me, idiot. I can’t take a six-year-old to meetings or to the warehouse.

Louie:

Charlotte will watch her.

Carlo:

I think I need a more permanent solution.

Emmanuel: