Page 58 of Surrender (Angels Halo MC Next Gen)

Turning my eyes to the island counter, I nodded.

“Your happiness is important,piccolo mia.To both of us. She wants the best for you.”

“Elias is the best,” I argued, jerking my gaze back to him. “He makes me happy.”

His lips tilted into a brighter smile, full of the kind of love only Papa could give me. Affection. Adoration. But his eyes were still awash in sadness. “Go home. Tomorrow. Don’t let anyone or anything stop you. Not even me, Sammy.”

CHAPTERTHIRTY-ONE

samara

Ryan grumbledas he walked into the dining room. I kept my focus on my coffee rather than him as he dropped down into a chair across from me, unbuttoning his suit jacket as he got comfortable.

“Threat of war is officially over. A low-level gang took out Kovak and his men at one of his other warehouses last night. The gang is going to absorb Kovak’s business. They have already reached out to let me know they don’t wish to inherit the possibility of war with us.”

“Smart thinking.” I buttered my toast, disinterested in the topic of business. “I’ve arranged for Walter to be around more. Especially in the evenings. The sundown effect seems to be when Papa has his worst periods of disorientation. Please keep me informed about his appointments and updated on any periods of confusion.”

“If you stick around, you won’t have to worry about being kept in the loop,” my brother snarked.

Refusing to let him guilt me, I bit into my breakfast. “I think I will just maintain contact regarding Papa’s health through Walter. He’s a health care professional. And for some reason, I find I trust his opinion on our father’s illness more so than yours.”

“What happened to family first?” he grumbled.

“You have your little family, and I need to return to mine.”

He snorted. “Tell me something, Sarama. Do you think Elias Reid would be so besotted with you if he knew all the things you have done to keep his attention?”

Chewing my toast, I tried to ignore the pang his question caused deep in my soul.

“You’ve spun a nice fairy tale. He may even care for you. Or rather, this version of you.” Ryan smirked when I remained silent. “But would he feel the same if he unraveled the truth? Saw just a glimpse of your true, twisted, depraved self?”

Taking my time wiping my mouth with a cloth napkin, I lowered it back to my lap before turning my disdain on a man who had no business lecturing me on the depravation I’d been capable of in the past—and would gladly continue to practice in the future to keep what I ached for the most.

That his words cut, that they only echoed the voice in my head that tried daily to make me see that same reasoning, only made me resent him more. Because I was afraid he was right.

“Asking me that is a tad hypocritical, Ryan. You should worry about your own sins rather than judging me for mine.” Taking one last sip of my coffee, I stood. “I’ve already said goodbye to Papa. Let’s keep any future contact between the two of us to the absolute necessities, shall we?”

Muttering a curse, he stood. “Don’t leave like this. You and I are not enemies. Despite everything, I always thought we were close. You’re my baby sister. I love you.”

I smiled at that.Despite everything.Meaning our brokenness.

“I love you too. But trying to keep me from going home—the only place that has ever felt truly welcoming—is quickly making you persona non grata in my book, dearest brother.” I picked up my phone, ready to leave him and everything else behind once and for all. “You’ve made your stance clear. Let me make mine just as crystal. I don’t need your approval for how I live my life.”

By late afternoon, Pacific time, I parked my car in front of my apartment building, releasing a relieved breath that I was finally home. The suffocating feeling that had swallowed me up from the moment I’d had to leave twelve days before lifted.

Closing my eyes, I slowly inhaled, a taste of peace easing its way into my heart.

Elias’s truck wasn’t in its typical spot, but I knew he was at a construction site. There had been an electrical issue, and all the electricians were working double time. He’d stepped in to help take some of the load off Chance.

Inside my apartment, I found Daisy sitting on the couch watching some nature drama. Elias had texted me two days into my visit to New York to tell me it soothed her while he was at work. I’d cried myself to sleep that night, missing them both so much every inch of my body pulsed with a pain only they could soothe.

Her head tilted as I stepped inside, her huge, blue eyes giving me a displeased once-over. Shutting the door, I stood there for a moment, letting her decide if she hated me for leaving her for so long.

With a meow, she finally made up her mind, jumped down, and came to weave her perfect little furry body between my legs. Bending, I scooped her up and rubbed my cheek against hers. “Mommy missed you so, so much, Daisy.”

She licked the tip of my nose but quickly began to squirm. As soon as I set her down, she walked back to the couch, hopped up onto the little nest of blankets Elias must have made for her, and went back to watching an emu tend to her eggs.

Bemused, I rolled my case into the bedroom. Elias must have been sleeping there each night because his side of the bed was in disarray. A pair of athletic shorts was on the floor, along with one discarded sock. When I walked into the bathroom, the shower stall was still wet from his morning routine, the scent of his body wash lingering in the air.

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