Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
I always knew stepping in as Art’s heir would paint a target on my back. Any time large sums of money were involved, people were going to come out of the woodwork looking to grab a piece of it for themselves. I’d managed to stay ahead of Art’s enemies—and former friends, for that matter—in the two years since he died, but now it felt like a noose was starting to tighten around my neck.
I couldn’t deal with any of that right now, though. Romy was going to come looking for me any minute, and I was standing here naked and shivering. I had to get my shit together for his sake.
After a quick shower, I spent a minute or two trying to get my hair to look decent before going to get dressed. I put on a clean pair of briefs and was zipping my jeans when I heard a knock and a soft, “Hello?”
I went into the living room and found Romy fidgeting on his side of the open connecting door. He looked cuddly in his gray sweat pants and huge T-shirt, and I had to fight the urge to scoop him into my arms.
He started to say, “I can go away if you need more time, or—”
“No, come in. I’m going to make myself a drink. Would you like one?”
“Sure. I’ll have whatever you’re having.”
He followed me to the bar cart in the corner. It turned out he was more confident about initiating contact than I was, so while I poured a couple of whiskeys, he ran his hands down my back.
I felt him hesitate when he got to a jagged scar just above my waistband, three inches to the left of my spine. He traced the area around it gingerly as he murmured, “That looks like…”
Part of me wanted to deny it, because I had a feeling it would upset him. But as an EMT who must have seen all kinds of shit on the job, he probably knew exactly what it was, so I told the truth. “Remember when I said I was stabbed in prison? That’s one of them.” I turned to him with two glasses in my hands and indicated a scar on my ribcage. “This is the other.”
Romy frowned as he took the drink I offered him. “Someone literally stabbed you in the back.”
“They did. The good news is, both of those handmade shanks were on the short side, so neither did much damage.”
He searched my face and said, “You must have been so scared while you were in prison.”
“Yeah, at first, but I grew up while I was inside. I got stronger, physically and mentally, and eventually, the fear went away. It was replaced with—” Did I really want to tell him this? It wasn’t exactly flattering.
“With what?”
“Rage.” Why sugar coat it? He should know that about me.
He tilted his head as he studied me. “But not anymore, right? Not since you got out?”
“I’m still fueled by anger. Sometimes, I want to burn the whole world down.”
“Really?”
That was the absolute truth, but I tried to take the edge off it with an attempt at a joke. “I’d toast marshmallows on the embers.” With that, I clinked my glass to his and tossed back the whiskey.
He finished his drink too, and we both set aside our glasses as he told me, “I can’t decide if you’re kidding.”
I grinned a little. “Only about the marshmallows. I’m not a fan.”
“Well, I’d probably be pretty angry too, if I’d been wrongly imprisoned for a decade.” Romy moved closer and tucked his head into the curve between my neck and shoulder. Then he whispered, “If I had one wish, I’d go back in time and make sure you never got arrested.”
“You shouldn’t waste your wish on me, baby. I mean, sure, what happened to me sucked, and I would’ve loved to avoid it. But I was already pretty fucked up when I went in, so it’s not like I’d be an upstanding member of society now if I’d never been locked up.”
“But you were just a kid when you went in. It wasn’t fair.” He sounded like he was on the verge of tears.
I tried to find something positive to say about my time in prison, for his sake. “It wasn’t all bad. I’d dropped out of high school, and while I was locked up I took classes and got my diploma. I also developed a love of reading and began educating myself on everything from math and science to history and literature. I’m pretty sure that never would have happened on the outside.”
While I was talking, I draped my arms over his shoulders and started idly playing with the hair at the nape of his neck, which was just barely long enough to curl upward. Meanwhile, he nuzzled against my chest. The effortless intimacy between us was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. But then, that could be said for all of this.