Page 118 of Beautiful Beast

“She was kind. Always made me smile and laugh. She’d read to me every night. Very giving.”

“What was she doing with your father, then?”

It takes me a second to realize Erik is joking, but when I see his smile, I smile back. “I have no idea. I think it was an arranged marriage. Like us.”

“It’s common in our world.”

“I’m not sure she was happy with him. Whenever he’d enter the room, her smile would dim a little. But I only knew her until I was ten. We never reached my teenage years. We never fought because I was still just a kid. So, I’ll always think of my mom asperfect. I never got to see her any differently, which saddens me. I wish she were still around so I could see her as a human.”

“I can understand that. My parents died when I was in my twenties. They had to put up with me as a teenager. I was a little rebellious.” He flashes me a secretive smile.

“I’m sure.” I sidestep a kid who runs past us. The boy laughs as he runs into his mom’s arms. Pure innocence. Not a care in the world. “But the man I know now doesn’t seem rebellious. You’re too practical for that.”

“I became the man my father wanted me to be once I turned twenty. He expected me to shape up and take over, so I did. I was growing in the business, finding my way, when he was murdered.”

“Shot, you told me.”

He nods, his eyes far away, reliving the memory. “I was the one who found them. They were at their home. Shot in their bed. I never called the police. That was something my father instilled in me. Never get the police involved. I called one of my father’s men, and he helped me.”

“Did you ever find out who did it?”

“No. I had my suspicions it might have been the Mafia. There was a man named Antonio De Luca. I know he and my father had it out.”

“What happened to him? I don’t recognize his name.”

“You would’ve been just a kid when he was in power. He was shot by his mistress of all people, so that dealt with that. His power crumbled and for years; men battled over it. It wasn’t until Dante took over a few years ago that the Mafia started to become strong again. He rallied men to his side. I rallied men to my side. And we’ve been at each other’s throats for years. Always missing each other.”

“You’ll get him.” I shudder at the memory of Dante smiling at me. “He scares me. I think he wants my sister.”

“I know. He’s alluded to it.”

“We have to protect her at all costs, Erik.”

“We will. I’ll make sure to kill Dante. It has to happen.”

We will, I notice he says. Not him. Not I.We. We’re in this together, and it feels pretty good to have a partner I can lean on. I don’t have to go at this world alone anymore. I don’t have to pretend to be so strong.

“I’m sorry about your parents.”

He shrugs, acting nonchalant, but his eyes tell a different story. “It was over a decade ago. I wasn’t close with my father. We butted heads, but I respected him. Didn’t make us friends, though.” He motions to a bench, and we take a seat, watching the people around us, walking through the grass, having a picnic for lunch, enjoying the beautiful weather. None of these people live in the dark world we do. I feel a flash of jealousy, but it’s pointless. I’m a Bratva wife, and I’ve learned to accept that now.

“Your mother?” I ask. “Were you close with her?”

“She could be cold, but she doted on me. My father thought she was making me too soft, so he kept us apart for many years. My mother and I had just started to rekindle our relationship when she died.”

“That must have been hard.”

“It was.” He scoffs softly. “Listen to me. Baring my soul to you. I’ve never spoken this way with anyone before. In the past, I would’ve died before revealing such personal things about myself.”

“Why?”

“Because when people know your weak spots, you become vulnerable. It puts you at risk.”

“Are you worried I’m going to use your parents against you?”

“No. Not now. Not when I’ve seen too much from you.”

“What do you mean?” I ask breathlessly.

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