Page 25 of Unbroken Promises

Me: Oh my God. I am going to slap you so hard when I see you.

Hoodie Guy: Promises, promises. . .

Me: Seriously though. Sierra’s little sister Quincy is apparently obsessed with you. One look at my shirt, and she hasn’t been able to stop talking about you since. It’s kind of adorable, in an awkward sort of way.

Me: Oh man. She just asked if I could get your autograph for her.

Me: And she’s blushing so hard right now.

Me: Would it be mean if I laughed?

Hoodie Guy: Well, that’s rude. Ain’t no shame in my player game. Seriously, that’s cute though. Of course, I can sign something for her if she wants. Tell her that one of these days she will have to come up for a visit and then we can all grab lunch together or something. I could introduce her to some of the guys from the team.

Me: It still weirds me out that people like you enough to want your autograph

Hoodie Guy: Again. RUDE.

Me: I mean, to be fair, it is equally weird when people ask for mine so. . .

Hoodie Guy: Get used to it babe, this is our life now. You, the world class Olympic gymnast. Me, your sexy-as-fuck NHL star boyfriend. You and I are going places. . . hopefully sexy placeswith lots of sex. . .

Me: Oh. My. God. Now you are just being ridiculous.

Hoodie Guy: You know, I’m just teasing. But seriously. Come home. I miss you.

Me: My home or yours?

Hoodie Guy: My homeisyour home. You are my home. But I miss you.

Me: I miss you too. I’ll call you later tonight, ok? Have a good practice.

Hoodie Guy: Stai attento. Torna presto a casa da me, amore mio.

Me: *Heart emoji*

ChapterTwenty-Three

Theo

Present Day

Acrack fills the air and I feel the crunch against my fist as the cartilage gives away and blood spurts profusely, pouring down the guy’s face and onto the floor. Three days. I have been away for three fucking days thanks to my last away game. Three days without seeing the face of my Little Sparrow, without being able to follow her in the shadows, make sure she’s okay. Having to rely on the intel that Finn was willing to give me. And here I am now, having to put this motherfucker in his place when I should be spending my time checking on my girl.

“Answer the question, jackass.” My tone is low, threatening. I am not in the fucking mood for this shit right now.

“I-I don’t know. I swear it! I don’t know where the money is, I don’t have it!”

To my left, Tony lets out a dry, humorless laugh. “And that, right there, is the problem my friend. You see, it’s not justmymoney that you stole. Not even my friend’s here. It’s theGiovannimoney, and that, my man, is a slight that is not so easily forgiven.”

I force myself not to roll my eyes, but sometimes it’s a bit difficult. Being Dante’s son, Tony heads up the West Coast section of the “family business.” Since Tony was raised by his mother, far removed from the family dealings, he isn’t exactly a natural at this. It was never a problem, would never have been a problem, if I hadn’t killed my father and then stepped down from my role as the head of the family, leaving it to my uncle instead.

Dante had never anticipated that he would be in the position he is now, nor that his estranged son would be his sole heir to the kingdom since I refuse to step up and take my rightful place. So, Dante called in a favor, of sorts. I get to use all the family resources, every whim at my disposal while I hunt down the fucker responsible for tearing my life apart, and in exchange, Itryto teach my cousin to lead his future kingdom. Emphasis on the word “try.”

Over the last several years I have stepped back more as Tony has started to find his stride, but the posturing that he does during these little “interviews” is still cringeworthy as fuck.

I click my tongue while shaking my head in admonishment. “Denny, Denny, Denny.” The man shrinks back into the hands that are holding him in place, his face becoming paler with each repetition of his name. “That’s a bad choice, Denny my boy. You see, if you don’t have the money, we’ll have to find some other method to collect the payment.”

Shaking. The bastard is literally shaking in his once-pristine Jordans. “I-I can get you the money. Please. All I need is a few more days. An extension. Please!” He stammers this last part, gagging on the taste of his own blood.

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