Page 268 of Dark Love

Hope finds me at a picnic table that just kind of showed up by the fence. “Are you hiding?”

“Yeah.” There’s no sense in pretending not to be. “My mom is trying to introduce me to every single man in the neighborhood.”

The kind, sweet child laughs at my pain.

“Wait until you’re old enough.”

“My dad would literally kill someone that tried to date me before I turn thirty.” She pouts.

“Trade you?”

We both laugh.

“So why isn’t Vex here? Your mother wouldn’t be trying to fix you up if your boyfriend was sitting next to you.”

“Because he’s Vex.”

“Ahh.”

Does she really understand? She’s part of a mafia family.

What happened to my nice, quiet life?

Gabe saunters over. “Hope, got anyone for me to beat up today?”

“Prue doesn’t like fighting at her parties.”

Gabe looks down at me. “Well, hello again.” He slides the empty chair closer to mine and sits down.

A flirt and a fighter. “Hello.”

“Uncle Gabe, she has a boyfriend.” Hope wrinkles her nose at him.

“Don’t see him around. Are you the type to lose your mind over a football player?” Gabe gives me a practically lecherous look.

I try hard not to laugh, but fail at it.

His entire body relaxes. “My heart just broke, never to be fixed again.” Gabe raises a hand to wave some friends over.

“That’s very apparent. So, do you actually play football?”

Hope stifles a laugh.

“You really don’t know who I am?” Gabe gapes at me.

“Hope’s uncle.”

“What is this world coming to when a beautiful woman doesn’t know who the best quarterback in the world is?” Gabe puts a fist to his chest.

A massive man walks up to the group with a plate mounded sky high. “Hardly the best. Did you see that sack last game? Did you forget how to run or something?”

And another joins.

Then another until there’s a wall of muscle surrounding us.

Hope scoots over. “I hope you don’t mind my uncle inviting a few friends. That tends to happen a lot around here.”

Who in their right mind would care when there have to be at least two hundred people wandering around my house, backyard, and now in the street? “Not in the least. Will the police come knocking at my door soon?”

---