Page 56 of Forbidden Vows

He contemplates for a moment. “She’s pretty straight edge. Not much of a rule breaker. Do you think it’s because you two are related? That’s pretty taboo. Hooking up with your stepbrother.”

“Yeah, I guess.” But something tugs in my chest, telling me that there’s more to her words.

“Maybe ‘cause you’re in a mafia?” He narrows his gaze. “Last night, didn’t she say she teaches?”

“Kindergarten.”

“Criminal Minds vs. fingerpainting. Seems like a conflict.” He gazes off for a second, saying, “Wait. If you and I are half-brothers and she is your stepsister, does that make her my half-stepsister?”

“I guess?”

“Cool. I like her. She’s sweet.” He puts the cup down. “So, why haven’t you told her yet?”

“I think if she feels something for me, she’ll stop herself…” The rest of the words come out in a pain-filled rush. “Because I’m not good enough for her.”

Haze’s brow narrows. “Have the two of you ever been alone?”

My cock stirs thinking of our alone time in my bat cave. “Yeah. Of course we have.”

“No. I don’t mean alone for a few hours. I mean like away from everything. Somewhere you can spend some time being Blaze and Cleo.”

He makes a good point. “No, I guess not.”

“You need time together, to see if there’s anything real there,” he says.

I agree. “That makes sense.”

He leans in, briefly touching mine before pulling it back. “And you absolutely are good enough for her. Never let me hear you say my brother isn’t good enough.”

“Thanks, man.” His words mean a lot to me.

We both head towards our respective vehicles, ready to carry on. I let a little prick of hope come over me. I know exactly what has to happen. I know what I need to do?—

My phone rings. It’s Dame. I pick up on the second ring.

“Mate. We’ve got an issue.” His voice is tight, strained with tension. “I lost the girls.”

And in that moment, my whole world shrinks.

Chapter Sixteen

Cleopatra

“We were laughing too hard to be watching for Dame. We forgot we were even with a guard,” I explain.

“Doesn’t matter.” He paces before me, kicking up drywall dust as I go. “You knew the rules. I was so clear with you. It’s your safety on the line, for God’s sake. How can you not respect those rules?”

“It wasn’t like that.”

“What was it like? Try to explain it to me, because I don’t think there’s a single excuse you could come up with to make me think what you did was okay.”

“We switched stores. We assumed he was behind us.”

“You already know how I feel about assumptions.” He gives me a pointed look. “And you know exactly where they lead.”

I swallow. Hard. I glance at the floor. “We were just being girls. Having fun.”

“Being girls? That’s your excuse?”

---