Page 38 of Under His Control

I cared, and I’d fucked it all up by telling her that I felt the opposite.

When I walked in and saw her holding Olivia, it hit me hard. The image of her with my child was a peaceful, safe one. One that I liked and would’ve taken another moment to savor if I hadn’t been hurt and pissed.

Eva wasn’t just someone to fuck and have fun with. We were toxic, opposites and so combative, but when we came together, it just made sense.

Realizing how much my feelings were changing was a challenge to accept. Facing that realization when I felt wounded and targeted—unjustly—had me fighting it all the more.

“Dammit,” I muttered, knowing that I’d need to apologize and somehow explain that I hadn’t meant a word of what I'd shouted. I didn’t want to scratch an itch with her. I wanted more than a causal fuck buddy.

And that means I need to stick around and make it right.

The next morning, I headed down to breakfast, hoping that I’d see Dante. For once, he wasn’t making breakfast. Tessa was.

“Hey,” she greeted, quickly smiling at Olivia waving at her.

“Hi. Hi. Hi.”

I couldn’t help but be in a better mood. No matter how shitty I slept, hearing my daughter’s little voice so peppy and happy improved my outlook on life.

“How are you doing, Liam?” she asked as I set Olivia in the high chair that I’d bought for her. It was compact and easy to stow away, not taking up much space as we overstayed as guests in this house.

“I know you’re fine. You’ve always been so tough. But about… why that happened last night.”

“Also fine.” I glanced at her as I strapped Liv in. “I was hoping to see Dante.”

She raised her brows. “To tell him that you want to take off?”

I shook my head. “To accept his offer.”

She set her hands on the counter and tilted her head to the side. “You do?”

“Yeah. I do.”

“Because of last night?”

“Because it makes sense.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “What that vet said to me in the bar got to me. I slept on his unsolicited advice, and things seem clearer now. It is weird to readjust to civilian life, but I need to figure out a path forward.” I gestured at Olivia. “For her.”

She nodded, smiling softly. “Yeah, you do.”

“You’re the closest thing I have to family, Tess, and if I can find another ‘family’ through you…” I shrugged. “Then I’d be an idiot not to appreciate it. Fitting in with a group is a blessing in disguise. While I’d never join a bunch of idiots like those bikers, I feel like I’ve already been indoctrinated here, with the Constellas.”

“And you won’t worry about working for the ‘bad guys’ or anything like that?”

I smirked at her. “As if I’ve always been a saint.”

She laughed. “No, you haven’t, you smug, stubborn bastard.” She winced and covered her mouth, catching herself too late for cursing around Olivia. Fortunately, she was more preoccupiedwith the toy on the high chair tray to care about what was said between the adults.

“If I’m going to be identified as someone within the Constella Family, then I may as well act the part,” I added.

“I’m glad you’ll stay.” She looked down and furrowed her brow for a pensive moment. “I worry every day that Romeo could be hurt. Dante, Franco, all of the men. And now, I’ll worry about you too, but I already had been doing that.”

I approached her and pulled her in for a hug. “And I’ll be as careful as I’ve always been.”

She hugged me back for a long moment, then released me with a bright smile. “I think he’s in his office. They’ve been up all night tracking the bikers and looking into how to retaliate.”

Now that’s something I’d love to get onboard with.The fucker who gave me this black eye would be reuniting with my fist in a bad way. As soon as I could make it happen.

I headed to Dante’s office and knocked on the door.

---