Page 160 of The Crowned Garza

The Garza men have been like family. A trusted team. I have unique relationships with each of them individually. I hold secrets they’re all hiding from each other. Maybe Nervousness sneaked in on the tail of Sadness—brought on by my decision to say goodbye to those relationships.

Do I hate them for what they did to me? Not at all. Knowing each of their personalities well means being able to guess at their reasonings behind their actions. They felt hoodwinked, insulted, and needed to react in ways that would make them feelincontrol.

And I get it. I do. But Tillie getting hurt in the process altered my willingness to be understanding and accommodating of their feelings. They were so angry at me that they forgot to protect her. But no one’s ever laying a finger on her again.

From now on,she’smy priority.

I straighten my bow tie then open the door to the conference room.

Trent, True, Tripp, and Reuben are seated at the large table. Three of the four men glare at me as I stride in. I’m twenty-two minutes late. On purpose.

I’mneverlate, for anything. But this should make a statement.

“Gracious of you to bless us plebeians with your presence,” Trent bites.

I take a seat at the other end of the table, putting distance between us. “Okay, let’s—”

“Wait, wait, before you begin,” Reuben cuts in. He picks up his phone and stands, backing up as he aims the camera at the others.

“What is it?” I ask, impatient. “I’m on a time crunch.”

Reuben stares pointedly at the men.

True bounds up, grinning excitedly.

“I’mnotfucking doing that shit,” Tripp grits out.

“A deal’s a deal. But that’s up to you all, man. I’m just on report duty. My wife’s been loving having me home.” Reuben shrugs and turns to me. “Per Tillie’s instructions, there’s something these fools should do before you begin this meeting with them. She said if they don’t, you should leave. You aren’t allowed to resume anything here until they do it.”

Ah. “Do what?”

“Bros, c’mon,” True urges. “It’ll only take a minute. Swallow your pride. It ain’t nothing in the grand scheme of things.”

With a miserable grunt, Trent reluctantly shoves to his feet. “Let’s just get this over with.”

“Fuck that,” Tripp snipes. “I’d rather go back to underground fighting.”

“Bro, if you don’t get your sunflower-looking ass up, I’m gonna bash your fucking face in,” True says, turning threateningly toward his brother. “Maybe you’re fine not seeing Soleil, butIwanna go back home to my goddamn woman. And we need to get this place back up and running before Tor returns and reams our asses out. Suck it the fuck up!”

Tripp glares at True, and I sit back and cross my arms, fully expecting an entertaining fistfight since Tripp tends to responds to threats about as well as a lion responds to an encroaching hyena.

Disappointingly, Tripp merely grumbles something under his breath and stands.

Bummer.

They pick up their phones.

“Where’d she send it again?” Trent asks Reuben.

“In the chat.”

The men swipe around on their screens. Trent and Tripp clench their jaws, while True grins.

True clears his throat as if as a cue, then in an inharmonious chorus, they read from their screens, “Dear Guy, The Great. We apologize. We are deeply sorry and repentant of our actions. We harmed you because we are jealous, pathetic losers with small dicks and oversized egos. Your greatness threatened our toxic masculinity and so we felt the need to chop you down. We promise to know our places from now on, and submit to you as the superior being. Forgive us, O Great One.”

“Well done.” Reuben laughs like it’s the funniest thing he’s ever seen as he records them with his phone. “Next thing now.”

True is beaming, wholly unfazed, but Tripp and Trent glower at me as if they’d rather be pumping me with bullets.