Page 108 of Guarded

“Good Boy,” I say, scratching him behind the ear. He runs back to the room, and I turn to find Ari staring at me emotionally.

“How’d you get him to do that?” she asks.

“We respect each other,” I say, shrugging it off.

“Thank you for being nice to my dog.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“He doesn’t repulse you?” she asks, suddenly becoming emotional in her drunken state.

“Not at all. When I was little, I had a dog like him. His name was Charlie.”

“What happened to him?” she asks.

“My mom killed him.”

I realize then and there that I could have said anything but the truth. Ariella starts crying maniacally.Fuck.I move to pull her off the counter and back into my arms.

“Hey. Ya. Why are you so upset? What’s really going on, Ari?” I ask. She’s drunk, and I can’t help but notice how overly emotional she’s got since Guapo showed up.

“I can’t take Guapo with me when I get married. God, I’m getting married. He wore a sweater. A wool sweater in ninety-degree weather.” She sobs while rambling on about Preston and his mother.

“Hey. No llores.” I wipe her tears, kissing each new one that falls. “Guapo can come with me.”

She looks up, her sad eyes searching mine.

“You’d do that for me?”

“I would do anything for you.”

“Except be with me?” she

I dodge the question because how do I tell her she deserves better when I know Preston wasn’t better? There’s so much happening around me with Leatherface, the club, and trying to locate Tala. I can’t pull her into all of that.

“Here, I want you to have this.” I untuck the rosary beads from my shirt and drape them over her.

“You’re giving me your rosary beads?”

“Ya. They’ve always had a way of keeping me safe.” I reply.

“Thank you.” She smiles, taking in the rosary. The tense emotions drift as quickly as the song changes in the background.

“Dance with me.” She says, falling into me. The smell of Don Julio on her lips. I push her up and move a tendril of hair out of her face.

“Can you dance?” she asks again.

She lowers herself unsteadily to the kitchen floor. No was the simple answer because I didn’t dance. But for her, I’d do it.

“Dance with me,” she repeats, her voice low as she wraps her arms around me. I sway to the music playing in the background, convincing myself I am doing it for her.

Deep down, though, I knew it was for me. She wants love, and I can’t give it to her, but that doesn’t stop my possessive need to own her. I’ll take advantage of every little moment when she feels like mine because there will be a day when she doesn’t. Just a rare occurrence, like a shooting star passing by.

Chapter 31

Nero

“What? Do I have a powder sugar mustache?” Ariella asks.

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