Page 18 of Possessive

I forced myself to stop fussing and lie still. "What about him? He seems nice enough."

"For a mobster?" Gianni asked with another chuckle. "He's a good guy if he's on your side. If he's not, he's good at fucking people up. The best part, he's good at making people think he's on their side until it's too late." He made a slicing gesture across his throat.

"So I should be careful around him?" I asked. Truthfully, being around so many people was already overwhelming, and it was only three of them. Four if you counted Terry. I'd be more than careful.

Gianni rubbed his chin. "Good question. Damon is dangerous, but no more than Reuben. The difference is, if Damon double crossed you, he'd have me and Reuben to answer to. Does that mean he won't? If he does, he's going to cover his tracks pretty fucking well. There'd have to be a helluva payday in it from someone else, for him if he did that. So yeah, be careful, but don't be afraid to give him your trust either. He's one of the most loyal people I know."

"If he's loyal to you, then you're loyal to him," I said slowly. "What's to stop both of you from turning on me?"

"The fact I'm not an asshole," he said. "I don't hurt women unless I have to."

"Unless Reuben tells you to," I said.

"I've been known to disregard his orders when they go against my moral compass," Gianni said. "Yes, I have one. It mostly points north."

"So you keep turning until it suits you," I said.

He grinned. "Something like that. I've never been the kind of person to follow blindly. Reuben would have to have a very good reason for me to lay a hand on a woman before I'd consider it."

"Like what?" I was getting sleepy, but this was the most interesting conversation I'd had in years, and the least painful. I wasn't ready for it to end yet.

"Like being complicit in handing her daughter to a monster." His expression darkened. "Standing by and letting it happen. Knowing what was going on and saying nothing. Caring more about her own ass than her children."

I pushed the end of the blanket aside with my feet and lay with them sticking out. "You think my mother did that?"

He shrugged. "No way to know now. But if she did, she's the kind of exception I'm happy to deal with."

"How?" I asked. "What could you do that wouldn't make you as bad as Kurt?"

"I don't lay a hand on innocent women." He glanced down towards my bare feet.

"Which brings us back to people being innocent." Uncomfortable, I slid my feet back under the covers. "My mother might have been innocent of what you're suggesting. My siblings didn't know, she also might not."

"I hope she didn't." He looked back at my face. "Because that would be a really shitty thing to do."

He was quiet for a moment before jerking up straighter so suddenly I flinched.

"Sorry, sweetheart. It just occurred to me to ask if you wanted to hear some of your brother's music." He pulled his phone out of the back of his trousers. He knelt down beside the bed and tapped the screen to load a video. Holding it sideways, he turned the screen around to face me.

I read the text beside the video. "Wolf… Venom?"

"That's the name of the band. Look, here's where they come on stage."

I squinted at the screen. I recognised Zeke Brantley, who walked to the front of the stage where the microphone was set up. Behind him I caught a glimpse of blonde hair. My heart skipped a beat as my brother slipped behind his drums and picked up his sticks.

The rest of the band took their places. A couple of them looked familiar, but I couldn't put names to faces.

On some cue I couldn't see, they started to play. All of my attention was on Asher, who grinned as he played. He grooved at the same time, looking like he was thoroughly enjoying himself. Of course he did, he'd always enjoyed making music. And life in general. He was the one who should have been nicknamed Sunshine, not me.

"They're not bad, are they?" Gianni asked. "They're one of the biggest bands in the world right now. Living their best life and touring all over the place."

"They're a bit…loud," I said.

They finished playing and Gianni turned off the phone. "That's what Reuben always says too. That they're loud. He prefers his music soft and in the background. If he listens to it at all."

That definitely sounded like Reuben. I couldn't picture him rocking out to music like that.

"What about you?" I asked. "What kind of music do you like?"

---