Page 42 of If You Could Only Feel
“I figured.”God, what fucking assholes.
Michael snorted. “Yeah, real pieces of work, those two.”
“So, what made them leave?” I was curious to see if Justice had gone ballistic on them or if Michael went all Grim Reaper.
“Justice was holding her own, and honestly, I don’t think they had even noticed me in the apartment. It was when her father tried to push his way inside that I made my appearance known.”
I had to smirk. I could only imagine how Michael made his presence known. “And how did you do that?”
He grinned. “I walked up behind her and pretended to be you.” I finally had to laugh. His grin turned into a mischievous smile. “I told them that since there were obviously here for money, then they must know that I-or, well, you-had enough money to make sure they were never heard from again.”
My eyes bulged, all laughter gone. “You threatened to have themmurdered,Michael?”
Michael cocked his head and scoffed. “Why, yes, Gabriel,” he said, his voice sounding as logical as I’ve ever heard it. “Yes, I did threaten to have them murdered. And before you start praying for my soul, you know those two parasites, so I’m pretty confident you would have threatened to have them murdered your damn self.”
Okay. He had a point.
I shook my head at the bizaare nature of this conversation. “And what did Justice say when you threatened to murder her parents?”
My blood thirsty brother’s entire face lit up. “She told them she’d testify that it was self-defense if their bodies were ever found and we ended up in court.”
I chuckled.
My entire future flashed before my eyes and I saw myself having to keep Michael and Justice away from each other. Or have the best criminal lawyer in the country on retainer.
I took a deep breath as I realized I wouldn’t have it any other way. I looked over at the closest person in the world to me and my heart warmed like it did every time we were serious. “Thank, Mike,” I said, the gratefulness I had for him and my brothers cemented into my very core. “I appreciate it.”
He winked. “Don’t mention it.”
I was about to go check on Justice when a thought occurred to me. I looked back at Michael and my forehead furrowed. “What the hell are you doing here, anyway?”
Michael laughed and clasped his hand on my right shoulder. “I’m here saving your marriage,” he chortled. “You can thank me by naming your first kid after me.”
I scowled. “Aren’t Aiden and Denise supposed to name their first kid after you in thanks, too?”
His smile took up his entire face. “We can’t have too many Michaels in the family, Gabe.”
“You’re certifiable, you know that, right?” He just shrugged a shoulder, totally accepting his mental diagnosis.
We made our way back into the living room, with Michael taking leave, and me kneeling next to the couch, looking at my sleeping wife.
Justice was so beautiful with her crazy colored hair, her honest blue eyes, and her strong backbone. I’d had seen her around school before we were ever paired up on that project that I’ll forever be grateful for, but she had kept to herself and I still believed in my father’s depiction of females, so I never approached her; I never approached any girl. But three days into our project, she became the only thing that matter to me, outside my brothers. That’s why I never questioned Mason when he told us he fell in love with Shane at first sight. It’s, also, why I never questioned Aiden when he steamrolled Denise. I knew instant love existed because that motherfucker came after me when I was only 15 years old.
Now, I just had to prove it to Justice.
I reached out and started caressing her cheek. “Hey, baby…” I kept touching her until her eyes fluttered open.
She blinked herself awake and after a few seconds of studying my face, she whispered, “Gabriel…”
I smiled. “Hey, baby.” I stood up and stepped back as she stretched and became fully awake.
Justice sat up and her head started to swivel around, taking everything in. “Where’s Michael?”
“He just left,” I answered, and when her eyes met mine, I said, “He told me about your parents.”
Her ocean colored orbs rounded, and she stood up, placing her hands on her hips, facing me. “Can you believe those…those…thosethem?” she asked, affronted. “I…I couldn’t…Jesus, Gabriel. Had it not been for Michael, I might have beaten them with a lamp!”
I was definitely going to have to keep those two apart from now on. “Good thing you didn’t,” I deadpanned. “Blood splatter is always the weak link in manslaughter cases.”
