Page 46 of Heart of a Villain

She took a moment to respond.

“Usually, I give my ‘client’ that autonomy, but you’re not my client,” she said. “You’re my friend. You’re becoming a part of this family, and you know who my family is. Who I’m married to. We’re not of the ‘if love comes back around’ variety. You want her? Go get her. I wasted two years trying to avoid Joel. Yes, we eventually found our way to each other, but I was scared. I was afraid that falling for Joel meant letting go of Curtis. Curtis didn’t have an illness. He didn’t have a slow death I could prepare for. He was killed. I talked to him one day, and the next, I would never,” she swallowed, “talk to him again. Just like that.”

As he studied her face, he realized he didn’t feel the tug to go to her to satisfy a need to be close to her—to feel that she was real. He wanted to comfort her for her.

Risking Joel’s wrath, he closed the gap between them and enclosed her into his embrace.

“Adrían, you’ve been through a lot, and although seeing Sayeda again is good news, I know it opened something raw. But be Adrían. She needs ‘Adrían.’ It’ll be everyone’s job here to give her what she’s wanted for years—a home, love, a family, friends—but only you can give her what she needs.”

Risking certain death, he leaned back and wiped her tears with his thumbs.

“Do you know how insane someone has to be to love any one of you guys?” she asked, sniffling. “Everybody talks about Giorgio, but none of you are stable. When you lock on, you lock on. When the right person comes along, even if it means eliminating everyone in the vicinity to get to that person, you guys will actually do it.”

“And you like it,” he pointed out. “If you didn’t, you wouldn’t intentionally press Joel’s buttons.”

“You guys put me up to it. And god, Gage is the worst offender.”

“He suggested the lap-sit?”

“You know he did. And I don’t like riling Joel up, but the thing is…well, he gets so jealous, and when he’s jealous?—”

“Blah, blah, blah.”

“Look, you’re one of us now, and we’re practically best friends, though ‘bestie’ is a designation I’ll leave for Joel since you two are so adorable together. That bullet you jumped in front of? I know that was for him, not me.”

“No, it definitely was for you.”

“Sure.”

“So your advice to me is?” he redirected, laughing.

“Carpe cor eius, honey. Forget seizing the day. Seize her heart.”

“Mrs. Lattimore?” Joel called from the kitchen entryway. “I’m honey.”

CHAPTER

TWELVE

“Tayler, can I talk to you for a minute?”

Tayler handed Grey, who was sleeping with chocolate stains on his little T-shirt, to Gage, who carried him the rest of the way to the car.

“Of course, Seda. What’s up?”

Sayeda gently took her elbow and pulled her off to the side, closer to the garage doors, which were more than far enough out of earshot. Tayler came without a hitch or fuss, and it would forever be incredible each time she realized how much they put up with her because of their love for Julien.

“I have a question of a…medically sensitive nature,” she prefaced. “Eesh said you’re a doctor.”

Tayler nodded. “Yes, and I’ll be able to practice freely in Sweden in about six weeks.”

“What was your specialty?”

“Pediatric oncology.”

“Does that mean you can’t help an adult?”

“I did my residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics before my fellowship. I’ve got you, sis.”

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