Page 117 of Heart of a Villain

“Sorry to hear that.”

“Still arrogant, I’m seeing.”

“I see no reason to change.”

“Well, I officially take my seat when my bride and I return from our honeymoon.”

“But you taking your seat does not relinquish Chefe’s power. If he agrees that she stays with me, you’re not in a position to change it. Seems pointless, doesn’t it?” Adrían leaned closer. “Sitting on the throne while Chefe remains the neck that turns your head?”

“You might still be arrogant,” Lorenzo said, gesturing to him, “but you’re the one standing here in jeans and a T-shirt, buying pastries, with two kids and a woman dirtier than the back of a whore’s throat.”

“Who you’re fighting me for.”

Lorenzo, chuckling, shook his head. “Gano, you’re not who you were. Perhaps you might want to stay out of Brazil? It might not be the place you remember.”

Lorenzo was right about one thing only; he wasn’t who he used to be. Back then, he’d carried his anger in his back pocket, which skilled adversaries had been able to see coming from a mile away.

Over time, he learned how to love.

He learned how to give everything to ensure those he carried in his heart remained safe and well protected. Now that he fought for someone other than himself, he was far more than he used to be.

“Gano, Acoisa is coming with me.”

Adrían, smiling, patted Lorenzo’s shoulder. “Think that one through,” he said. “If she goes with you, I won’t be far behind, and you’re right. I’m not the man I used to be. I might be worse. See you soon, princesa.”

He stepped around Lorenzo and joined Sayeda and the boys outside, and it was all he could do not to grab a piece of metal from one of the display stands and shove it into Lorenzo’s throat. But Julien and Gage already had their hands full. Plus, he didn’t want to have to create a new identity and leave Sweden to avoid homicide charges. He wanted to stay with Sayeda, and he wanted Sayeda to be close to her sister.

They walked down the sidewalk.

When Theo started to lag behind their longer strides, he picked him up and set him on his shoulders, icing speckles in his hair be damned. He loved this kid, his brother, and he was madly in love with their aunt.

Theo leaned down to “whisper” in his ear. “Adrían, I don’t like that man.”

“Me either, Theo,” he said, eardrum ringing.

“I’m gonna tell Daddy.”

“What do you think your dad will do?”

“Daddy can be scary sometimes. Not the bad kind of scary. I’m never scared of Daddy, but if somebody’s mean to me or Mama or Jojo, Daddy gets scary. I don’t think anybody’s mean to Tiare, but I think Daddy would get really scary because she’s just a baby.”

“Does he make a face?”

“Uh-huh.”

He turned his head. “Show it to me.”

Theo scowled, his tiny face wrinkled as if pinched by a large hand.

“Meu Deus, that is scary. I’ll have nightmares later.”

“I’m sorry, Adrían.”

“It’s all right. You didn’t know your own powers.”

Josiah had shuffled Sayeda to the inside portion of the sidewalk, and it didn’t matter who approached them; Josiah never allowed the other person to create a gap between his and Sayeda’s bodies.

They’d all been pitching in to teach him cage fighting, which they were sure Ayesha would soon figure out on account of the way Josiah’s physique was changing. Now that he was beginning to feel more powerful, it was clear that Josiah was starting to grow increasingly protective and responsible for the family. Today, it was probably more potent because Sayeda and his mother had the same face.

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