Page 82 of My Darling Mayhem

A gasp of surprise cut into my voice as I greeted him. "Juan?"

His eyes grew as he looked me over, and then a smile. A genuine one. "Henrietta."

Archer's gaze never left Juan's. Even as my real name was spoken out loud, and I'd never even told him. Regardless that he insinuated he knew, I still had never shared it.

"It's Wren now."

Juan merely dipped his face, nodding. "Heard that, actually, but figured the first time we spoke in almost twenty years, I'd use your real name."

My gaze flitted over his form, trying to pick at who he was and compare it to who he seemed to be now. He appeared older yet looked almost the same as I remembered him. He had the same defined jaw, a narrow nose, and the same dark brows that arched nicely over his amber-brown eyes. A few lines appeared near his eyes and near his mouth. Smile lines. Which led me to believe my brother led a happy life. He had the same black hair but with a few streaks of gray styled so it fell back from his face, just a tiny piece touching his brow. He was as tall as Archer but not as broad. Juan had a narrow frame, and everything about him seemed as it was nearly twenty years ago when I last saw him, all except the gold wedding band around his left ring finger.

He stood slowly as if he didn't want to scare me off. Archer took up residence behind me, like a guard on duty. I was grateful that my mother had been here to put my son to bed, especially with how late I had come in; guilt still tugged at my belly, making me feel like I'd done something wrong by leaving.

"What are you—" I started, but he dipped his head, shoving his hands into his pockets. He wore tan cigar pants with a thin, long-sleeved knit shirt. The gray hue made his dark hair pop against his brown skin in the low lighting of my living room.

"Been a long time." He cut me off.

As I stared at him, my eyes watered, and I processed how much time had passed. How he'd been a part of so much of my childhood, and then when my mother took him with her, hewasn't. They'd left me behind, and I'd never even explained how much that hurt.

Examining his face, I tried again and skipped over whatever pleasantries he wanted to share. "What are you doing here?"

His eyes flicked to Archer, then me. "Right to it then. Okay."

My mother muttered something in Spanish, and at that moment, I wanted to stop everything and introduce Archer. I wanted to tell them that I had a boyfriend and was happy and in love, but I knew my family wouldn't be excited for me—not if our families had been at war for twenty years.

Archer shifted so he stood next to me, then wrapped his hand around mine.

Juan caught the movement and glared over my shoulder. "I'm here to deliver a warning. One I hope you both heed because as much as I have tried to fix things, it's officially out of my hands."

I glanced up at Archer, but his jaw was tense, and his gaze was locked on Juan.

My brother continued, "Recently, there has been a change in leadership within El Peligro. The new leaders are not only young but ruthless. Archer, I'm sure you've noticed a few warnings being issued to your men."

I saw Archer nod out of the corner of my eye, but he was tense, too, like he was ready to run at Juan at any second.

My brother toyed with a string on his slacks before continuing. "I was made aware of a plan they have to take you out. Since you're seeing my sister, I came here to remove her from the situation. You need to stop seeing each other."

My mother scoffed, adding, "Should have never started to begin with."

Take him out. What did that mean? My heart raced at my brother's words; he was already talking again before I could respond.

"Renny, you either come home and allow Archer to remain here, or Archer, you need to go back to where your club is. Leave my sister and nephew alone."

"Neither of those options are happening." Archer's voice was calm but deadly.

My mother muttered something about me being irresponsible, and I shot her a scowl.

Juan watched Archer, steady and solemn. Both of them looked like they were two seconds from pulling weapons on each other.

Archer gave in first, asking, "Want to clue me in on why this is happening with the new leadership? I don't understand what changed."

Juan's jaw tensed before his eyes found the floor. It was a move he kept making, and it seemed so strange compared to the person he used to be. My brother used to stare people in the eye until they backed down. He'd never lower his head in shame like this. It made me want to press pause on all this and pull him away, asking what the hell was going on with him.

"We've been at war with each other since my father ran things. He always wanted the territory west of Manhattan. Ten years ago, it came into our possession through a game of cards, but your club never recognized the change of ownership. At the time, I was running things, and because I was pushing to improve the route, and what you were pushing wasn't damaging the neighborhoods, I didn't care that you kept it."

Archer shifted next to me. "Pardon my language, but what the fuck are you talking about? Ten years ago, I was president. I would have known about such a game and something as big as territory shifting."

Juan's head tilted. "I didn't play for it. Looks like you didn't either."

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