Page 20 of Volatile Vice

“I love Savannah,” he says. “And with Savannah comes her family. I knew what I was getting into with her. But you… You don’t need this, Ray.”

But I love him…

The words don’t make it out of my mouth. Besides… Though he claimed to love me as well, he left without so much as a kiss goodbye. I haven’t heard from him at all today despite calling him twice.

“I think it’s probably a moot point,” I finally say. “I guess he got what he wanted from me and took off.”

There go Falcon’s fists again, and this time Leif joins him.

“I don’t mean that the way it sounds. I… I took from him as well.”

Falcon begins to open his mouth, but I hold up a hand to stop him.

“Let me have my say, Falcon.”

He sighs and nods.

“The thing is, during the last couple years I never thought anything like that would happen for me again.” A surge of emotion runs up my throat. I swallow it back. “But Vinnie… He showed me that I’m still beautiful, even without hair?—”

“Of course you are,” Leif snaps. “You and Robin are gorgeous, no matter what.”

I resist rolling my eyes at his mention of Robin. Leif and Robin were an item back in high school, and I don’t know exactly how it ended because Robin doesn’t talk about it. Leif is now happily married to a woman named Kelly.

“For Christ’s sake, Leif, let me have my say too.”

He nods.

“He gave me something I didn’t even know I needed,” I say. “I know you don’t like hearing that about your sister, Fal, but I don’t regret what happened between Vinnie and me. Not for an instant. And if he’s gone on his way now, I won’t try to stop him.”

“Good,” Falcon says. “I want you safe, Ray. And that means staying far away from Vinnie Gallo.”

I look at my feet. “It’s pretty clear he made that decision for me.”

“What if he didn’t?” Falcon asks. “What if something came up and he had to leave, and he just didn’t want to bother you? What then?”

I don’t want to lie to my brother. Because the fact of the matter is that I’ll go back to Vinnie in an instant. I’m in love with him. And yeah, he lives in a dangerous world, but the idea of going through the rest of my life without that same feeling that he gave me…

So I lie. I look my brother in his dark eyes and I lie.

“Then I’ll tell him to get lost,” I say. “I’ll tell him I don’t want him, and I never will.”

6

VINNIE

“How the hell does it depend on me?” I demand, still standing over my grandfather.

“Maybe I need to tell you a little story,” he says.

“Please spare me.”

“Sit down, Vincent. And hear me out.”

I suck in a deep breath, counting to ten. Then I take my seat again, opposite my grandfather.

“Once upon a time?—”

“Oh, for the love of God…”

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