Page 43 of Wicked Angel

I’d fought him at first, resisted, but once it became clear that he wouldn’t stop, I’d … just accepted it. His mouth was positively wicked and I had a feeling that he would easily control me and make me come again and again with that damn thing.

I strode into the small space that had been prepared before the wedding to find my father there, adjusting the cuffs of his white shirt sleeves beneath his charcoal gray suit coat. The sight made me all the more aware of how soaked my panties were and how my skin burned with the memory of Gaven’s touch and tongue. I only hoped he would assume that the pink on my cheeks was blush from my makeup.

“Ah, there we are, Angel. Come, let me look at you.” My father smiled and held his arms out for me. Carefully, I moved toward him. “You look absolutely stunning, sweetheart.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, stepping into his embrace. The hug was slightly awkward. Considering that the last time he’d seen me, he’d been angry and disappointed over my attempt at running away, it made sense. As he pulled back, I gripped his arm and stopped him from retreating. “I love you. You know that, right?” I asked.

Raffaello Price was a big man, a strong man. Before my very eyes, though, his expression softened in a way I hadn’t seen since my mother had been alive. He reached up, and the entirety of his hand cupped my cheek.

“My sweet child,” he said. “I know you do.”

“I never wanted you to be disappointed in me,” I told him. “I just … felt trapped.”

“This is what’s best for you.” His words sounded like an assurance, and for the first time, I wondered if they really were. Perhaps the idea of leaving behind the world of criminal organizations and danger was genuinely impossible. As if he could hear my inner thoughts, my father continued. “You are my daughter,” he sighed, “and that means that there are many eyes on you. Eyes that you never see. Eyes that you will likely never meet. They are there, nonetheless. Gaven is a man who will protect you from those who mean to harm you.”

“I—”

He shushed me with a finger over my lips before dropping his hand away. “I know you don’t understand it now, but someday you will,” he said. “If I could have given you the life you wanted—the normalcy you craved, I would have. I’m sorry I couldn’t. All I can do now is find safety for you.”

Silence descended between us, but thankfully he didn’t move away. Instead, he allowed me time to collect my thoughts as I formulated my response. “Will…” I inhaled sharply as my eyes began to burn. “Will I still see you?” I asked.

My father’s face scrunched in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean … well, I assume that I’ll have to move out—to go live with Gaven. I just…” My eyes were watering quickly and I tilted my head up to keep the tears from falling. After a moment, I lowered my head back down to meet his gaze. “I want to know if I’ll still see you often.” Despite everything, I would miss my father. As much as I disagreed with what he was doing and the decisions he’d made in his life—I could hate a man’s job but still love the man. I still loved him.

“Of course.” My father gripped my arms and pulled my back into his wide chest. “You’re not going anywhere, Angel. My child, did you think that? Is that why you were so afraid?”

I sniffed hard. “What do you mean I’m not going anywhere?” I asked.

“Gaven is moving here.” My father’s response shocked me enough that I pulled away from him and scanned his face for a sign of dishonesty. I found none.

“He’s moving here?”

He nodded. “Gaven is going to be the next head of the Price Family,” my father replied, “with my beautiful daughter at his side.” He tucked a strand of hair that had fallen loose behind one of my ears and gazed at me. “You will see me as much as you want, and as much as my schedule will allow. Perhaps, you’ll even be able to do some of the things you want to.”

“I have to give him an heir, though,” I said.

My father nodded again. “Yes, but I’m sure that won’t take long. Then there will be months between your pregnancy and the baby’s birth. You can do whatever you want, love. We will give you all the opportunities—so long as you remain safe within the fold.”

I bit down on my lower lip as my eyes sought the floor.Safe within the fold—still a part of the organization. Still a mafia wife, but … maybe he was right. Maybe it would be easier after I gave Gaven what he wanted. An heir and then … freedom. The next question would be however, would I be able to leave a child behind? I doubted it. In fact, I’d shied away from the thought, but the second Gaven did impregnate me would be the moment I’d be locked to him forever, more so than by any ring or wedding.

“My sweet Evangeline,” my father said, distracting me from my thoughts as he took my free hand that wasn’t squeezing my bouquet tightly. “I know this isn’t the life you envisioned for yourself, but thisisthe life for you. It was the world you were born into. You were meant for this.”

I stood silent, waiting for him to continue. There were no words to describe the mess of emotions that snaked through me since I’d learned my fate. Betrayal, hurt, anger, curiosity, and now … even lust.

“I don’t know what I would do if anything were to happen to you because of who I am,” he continued, his words lowering to a whisper. “But now I know you’ll have someone to protect you after I’m gone.”

A knife sliced into my heart at the grave comment, and I squeezed his hand. “Please,” I begged, “let’s not think like that. You’ll be around for a long time.”

“Long enough, maybe, to see the next generation of Price Heirs,” he teased.

My heart stuttered to a stop, but I pressed the dizziness they brought forth down. “Maybe,” I squeaked out.

He grinned ruefully and, for a brief moment, I could see the handsome man my mother had fallen in love with. Despite the darkness that plagued our family, what he did and who he was, he was still the man who had held me in his arms and shielded me when I was a child. I couldn’t help but love him.

“All right, my Angel, we can save all other conversations for after your wedding, but I want you to know that while you may not see it now, this is what your future needs. Do you understand?”

Not even a little,I thought, but I murmured my assent, leaning in for another hug. While still in my mind, the thoughts of only a few minutes prior had quieted, my focus shifting to the music playing in the ballroom where my wedding waited to begin. With a deep, steadying breath, I hooked my fingers in the crook of my father’s arm and started forward.

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