Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 94513 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94513 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
His brooding expression told me this wasn’t going to be pleasant. Not that anything in my life ever was.
“Okay,” I replied. “When?”
His gaze dropped to my body, then back to meet my gaze. “Now. She’s out of bed before noon for the first time in two months.”
“Do I need to change?” I asked since he’d seemed displeased by what I had on—or it was his displeasure with me in general.
“No, that’s fine,” he said. “Unless you have a bigger bra.”
I glanced down at my chest, then back at him. “This is the only one I have. What’s wrong with it?”
His eyes dropped again, and I crossed my arms over my chest, not liking the way he made me feel.
“It’s too small. Your tits are coming out of the top of it. I can see it through your shirt.”
I couldn’t believe he was talking about my boobs. My face was on fire.
Did he get off on humiliating me? Was that a thing for him?
“Let’s go,” he said and started for the door.
I followed him with as much enthusiasm as I would if I were walking to the gallows. I wished Than could take me or Linc maybe. I preferred to have as little interaction with Bane as possible.
Fourteen
Bane
I’d give her one thing; she was good at staying quiet. Most females were uncomfortable when no one was talking, and they rambled on about shit just because they didn’t like silence. This one hadn’t said one word since we’d left the kitchen. It wasn’t like she was pouting about the bra comment either. I’d have picked up on that.
I opened the front door of my parents’ house and waved a hand for her to go on inside. The house was peaceful compared to when I’d left here last night. There had been too much drama, aggression, crying, and shit that had nothing to do with my brother’s absence—just selfish reactions. Why Saylor’s behavior had surprised me, I wasn’t sure, but I’d thought she’d have been sensitive enough not to make the situation all about her. I’d been wrong. It might as well have been the Saylor show.
My mother’s heels clicked on the marble floor, and I closed the door behind Halo. Of course she’d been listening for us. She’d called me before I even woke up this morning. That was a rarity. The woman liked to sleep in late. Since Crosby’s death, she’d been taking her meds and sleeping well past noon and barely coming out of her room the rest of the day.
“Oh.” My mother’s breathless gasp as she entered the foyer wasn’t a bad one.
Halo’s worry was so thick that I could feel it, but she had no reason to be. I wouldn’t have brought her here to be attacked. She didn’t believe that though.
“Mom,” I said, turning to look at her, “you look beautiful this morning.” And it was a fucking relief.
My entire life, she had always looked like this. Crosby’s death had taken the vibrancy from her eyes, and she had given up on caring about anything at all. She had lost weight, and her cheekbones stood out. My brother had been her baby. I wasn’t sure she would ever recover from losing him. I knew she would mourn him for the rest of her life, but Halo had given her a reason to live.
She batted a manicured hand at me, as if I were being silly, but her eyes never left Halo.
“Halo, this is my mother, Grissele. Mom, Halo.”
My mother walked toward her slowly with wide eyes almost full of wonder. The ache of loss was still etched in the lines of her face, but she was hopeful.
“She’s …” Mom started, then smiled softly. “You’re breathtaking.”
I wanted to shake my head. Of course that was my mom’s concern. Was the girl carrying my brother’s baby going to add to the gene pool in looks or take away from it?
“Thank you,” Halo said, watching my mom with hesitancy.
This was obviously not what she’d been expecting. My father’s response to her would be more along the lines of what she had built up in her head. He wasn’t thrilled that Crosby had knocked up a girl behind Saylor’s back.
“Those eyes,” Mom said, as if mesmerized.
Yes, Mom, she’s fucking gorgeous, but what did you expect?
This was Crosby we were talking about. If he was going to have a secret baby momma, she wasn’t going to be ugly.
Mom blew out a small breath, then a shaky laugh. “I’m sorry,” she told Halo. “You—I—I’m—it’s all a lot to take in. Until yesterday, I thought I’d lost my beautiful boy forever. And now, we have you, and you’re carrying my baby’s baby.” She stopped, her eyes welling with tears, and she sniffled in her feminine, ladylike way. “You’ll have to forgive me. I might cry several times today.”