“No,” Santiago said. “We’re not leaving her alone with you. You’re way too out of control right now.”
Dante looked at Santiago. “I’m not going to hurt her, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“Why should we believe that?” Maya asked. “Look at you! You’re a mess and not in your right mind.”
Tears fell down Dante's cheeks. “I would never, ever hurt Em. Ever.”
“Leave us.” I was still sitting in my chair. Both Santiago and Maya looked at me nervously.
“Eric won’t allow it,” Santiago said. “He’ll be in here the second we step out.”
“If Maya can stop Dante,” I said, “then the two of you can stop Eric. Five minutes.”
Santiago let a small smile form on his mouth. “Five minutes.” He took Maya by the arm and they left the room.
Dante stayed standing against the wall, the tears still falling. He turned his gaze to the ground.
Putting my hand on the table, I used it to help me up. I walked over to Dante, taking his hand in mine. “Dante, what's going on?”
He wouldn’t look up at me. He rubbed his eyes with his free hand. “I’m sorry, Em. I don’t know what’s come over me. I’m just so confused right now.”
“About what?” I had a feeling of where it was going to lead, and it made my stomach queasy. But we needed to air everything out if we intended to still work together.
Dante's eyes finally found mine. “Us.”
I swallowed and licked my lips. My mouth felt dry. “What about us?”
“Em.” He looked up at the ceiling. “I think I’m in love with you.”
I wanted to drop his hand and leave the room. I never thought I’d have this conversation with him. Our friendship had always seemed so stable and sure. I forced myself to stay where I was. “You think?”
He cracked a smile and looked down at me. “Yes, I think. It’s so confusing. I can’t explain everything I’m feeling. It wasn’t until a couple of months ago that the feelings started.”
“What kind of feelings?” I asked.
“Different kinds.” He sniffed and wiped some tears from his eyes. “I started to get nervous when I was around you. At least I think it was nervousness. My stomach felt unsettled. I get jealous when I see you with Eric.”
He let go of my hand, walked over to the table, and rested the palms of his hands against it. “Every time you get sad, or you’re having a rough day, you always go to him. I understand why. He’s your boyfriend. Fiancé now. But I wanted to be the one you came to. I wanted to be the one who held you and made you feel better.” He turned his head to look at me. “Remember that one day a month or so ago when we were out target-shooting and you hit the bull’s-eye five times in a row?”
I nodded as the blood rushed to my face. I’d never done it before. I was so excited after it had happened that I ran over to Eric and threw my body on his, wrapping my legs around his waist. Then I kissed him, even though a lot of people were watching. My happiness had gotten away from me. I didn’t mind little kisses in public, but I normally left that kind of kissing to when we were alone.
“As I watched the two of you kiss, it all of the sudden hit me that I wanted to be the one you were kissing. I wanted to be Eric at that moment.”
My voice was a whisper. “But Whitney.”
Dante stood up straight. “Yes, I love Whitney. She'll always have a piece of my heart. But people change. Times change.”
“I don’t know what to say, Dante.” I twisted the ring that Eric had given me only days before. “I’m in love with Eric. I want to marry him. I do love you, Dante, just not like that.”
He nodded slowly. “I know, Em. I know you love him and would never leave him. I’m not asking you to do that.” He approached me cautiously and took my hand. “This is something I need to work out on my own. Like I said, I’m confused right now. I shouldn’t have let my emotions run away from me like that. I’m so sorry. Will you forgive me?”
“Of course, Dante.” I smiled at him. “I’ll always forgive you, no matter what you do or say. You’re one of my best friends and you always will be.” I thought of Zoe and how she was in love with him. “You’ll find someone else, I know it. You’re such a great guy.”
“Just not great enough for you.” His face was sad again.
“Dante …”
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” He pulled me into a hug. “I love you enough that I want to see you happy and I know that Eric's the right guy for you. He treats you well and loves you unconditionally. I couldn’t have lost you to a better guy.” He let out a small laugh. “Now, if it had been Santiago, then I would have fought for you.”
A smile formed on my lips. “I would have asked you to fight for me if it had been Santiago.”
“Good to know.” He pulled back and looked down at me, brushing some stray hairs out of my face. “Please don’t punch me, but there’s something I need to do.”
I almost opened my mouth to say something, but his lips were on mine in a matter of seconds. I tried to push him away, but he held on tightly. I finally just gave in and let him kiss me, thinking of anything else I could, like butterflies and chocolate and anything that would take me to my happy place. Like Eric. He was my happy place.
Dante pulled back, kept his eyes closed and scrunched his face together, ready for my punch.
I surprised both of us by laughing instead. “I’ll let it go this one time since you’re obviously having a bad day. But if you ever try that again, I will hurt you.”
He stood there, staring at me, his face even more confused than when we had started our conversation.
“What?”
He scratched the back of his head. “I guess I was just expecting more.”
My jaw dropped slightly. “Are you saying I’m a bad kisser?”
He put his hand over his mouth and laughed. “Not bad. I just didn’t feel the chemistry. It was nothing like when I kissed Whitney.”
“Normally, I would be totally offended by that statement,” I said, folding my arms. “But since it just means you aren’t in love with me like you thought, then you’re off the hook.”
His laugh started quietly and then got louder as the seconds ticked by. He sat down in a chair, holding his stomach as he laughed.
I glared at him as he laughed and waited for him to stop, but he didn’t. He sat there, laughing, fresh tears forming in his eyes, but from happiness instead of sadness.
“Is it really that funny, Dante?”
He snorted, making himself laugh even harder. “Yes!” He wiped some tears away. “What was I thinking?” He looked up at me and snorted again. “I’m worse than Santiago.” He took a few breaths, but it didn’t stop the laughing. “Which is quite embarrassing.”
He stood and took me into his arms, spinning me around a few times. When I yelled out in pain, he immediately put me down and his laughter finally stopped. “Oh! I’m so sorry, Em. I completely forgot you’re hurt. Are you okay?”
Eric stormed into the room, pausing when he saw my lips pursed together from the pain, and Dante standing next to me with his hands on my arms, some tears from the laughter still resting on his cheeks.
Dante dropped his hands and looked at Eric. “I owe you an apology.” He turned to me. “I owe both of you an apology.”
Santiago came into the room, followed by Maya. Santiago folded his arms. “You owe us an apology, too. And a thank you, because it was quite hard to hold Eric back that whole time. The guy’s freaking strong.”
“What was all that laughter about?” Maya asked. Her gaze went back and forth between Dante and me, trying to read our faces.
I sat down and put my hand on my wound. The pain medication had worn off.
“I just realized what a fool I’ve been,” Dante said.
Santiago laughed. “Hey, we could have told you that a long time ago.”
“I’m sorry,” Dante said. “I shouldn’t have acted as I did. But Em and I talked it o
ut and we’re good. Everything will go back to normal. I promise.” He held out his hand to Eric. “You’re a good man and I’m happy Em has you.”
Eric stole a glance at me, his face thoroughly confused.
I smiled at him. “Take it. Everything’s fine.”
He grabbed Dante’s hand, shaking it firmly.
Santiago whistled. “Can I tell you how happy I am now that that’s finally over? Now, let’s get to work. We have a lot to do before we leave.” He slapped Dante on the shoulder and then left the room. Maya and Dante followed him out.
Eric sat down next to me and started to say something, but I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely, until I was sure Dante’s kiss was completely off my lips. Then I kissed him a little bit longer because I enjoyed doing it so much.
When we finally left the conference room, we’d only gone a couple of steps before Samantha called out my name. I turned around and saw her running toward me. “Marie wants to see you for a minute.” She came to a stop and eyed my stomach. “How are you feeling?”
“In pain,” I said. “I think the medication wore off.”
Samantha nodded. “I’m sure it has. I’ll give you some more right before we leave.”
My eyebrows rose. “We?”
“Of course.” She smiled at me. “You shouldn’t be going at all, but I know there’s no point in arguing with you, so I need to go to keep an eye on you. My father would turn over in his grave if I let something happen to you.”
I thought about Austin. There was no way Vice President Oliver would have been happy with his son’s choices. I hadn’t talked with Samantha about it yet, but news spread fast around New Haven. “Are you sure you want to go?”
A frown formed on her lips. She had the same look of disappointment in her eyes that her father used to get when I did something wrong. “I’m going for you, Emmie, only as your nurse. You will be my only worry and the only thing on my mind when we’re there.”
“But your brother …” Eric started.
Samantha held up her hand to silence him. “I don’t want to talk about him. He has crushed my heart and our mom’s. I trust all of you to deal with it properly; I just don’t want to be involved in the process. He’s still my brother, after all.” She looked me in the eyes. “And no matter how foolish our brothers can be, it’s almost impossible to stop loving them.”
I nodded. I felt the same way about Joshua. “So, Marie wants to see me?”
“Yes,” she said. “She’s still in her room. Follow me.”
When we got to her room, Samantha left us. Eric stayed outside to give us some privacy. I walked into Marie’s room and saw her sitting in the chair next to her bed, holding little Mack in her arms.
Marie recently got a haircut, her short brown hair in an A-line.
She smiled when she saw me. “I’m glad to see you’re alive.” She held out Mack. “Want to hold him?”
“Yes.” I took the other chair in the room and slid it next to hers. Taking Mack into my arms, I sat down and leaned back in the chair. He slept peacefully, all snuggled in a blanket. I kissed him on the forehead, the smell of lavender soap filling my nose. “I swear that is one of the greatest scents in the world. Nothing tops that of a freshly washed baby.”
Marie smiled. “I know.” She touched my arm. “I can’t get mad at you right now since you’re holding my son.” I looked at her in confusion as her face tightened. “In fact, that’s why I handed him to you.”
“I don’t understand,” I said, shaking my head. “I brought back Gideon alive and unharmed.”
“Yes, you did. Which I thank you for. But that didn’t mean that you had to get yourself hurt instead.”
I furrowed my eyebrows. “It’s not like I asked that guard to stab me. He just did.”
Marie's angry look fell off her face. “I know, Emmie. I just wish it hadn’t happened. But I'm glad you’re alive.”
Gideon and Eric both walked into the room. Gideon kissed Mack on the forehead and then kissed Marie on the lips. He sat down on the bed, motioning for Eric to sit next to him.
Marie took Gideon’s hand and glanced between me and Eric. “Now that we’re all here, Gideon and I have something to ask the two of you.”
“What is it?” I asked.
Gideon looked at Marie. “Do you want to be the one to ask, or do you want me to do it?”
“I want to, of course.” Marie laughed for a second and then pulled herself together. “Eric, Emmie, well, Gideon and I were wondering … no, we were hoping that the two of you would agree to be Mack’s godparents.”
My heart swelled. Even though no one had godparents in our old city, I had learned about them from my father.
“Of course, we’ll give you time to think it over,” Gideon said. “No rush. But we just wanted to throw the idea out there.”
Eric and I looked at each other, both of us smiling big. We didn’t need time to think about it.
“Yes!” We both shouted it out at the same time.
Gideon laughed. “Good!”
Marie leaned over and looked at her son lying in my arms. “Gideon and I love the two of you dearly and we want you to be involved in Mack’s life.”
Some tears formed in my eyes. “Thank you so much. We love you, too.”
Eric kneeled next to me and Mack, kissing him on the cheek. “And we love this guy even more.”
We all sat there in silence, watching Mack sleep, completely unaware of the troubles going on in the world. It was a few minutes of peace that all of us needed.
Sighing, I rubbed my temples. “This isn’t good.”
We were sitting in a conference room in Headquarters. Since my office was in disarray, I had our security bring President Coleman, Brandon, and a couple of their guys there instead.
President Coleman sat opposite me at the end of the table. He was sitting up straight, doing his best to make himself seem more important than me. I may have been taller than him, but he was stronger. His hands were clasped together, resting on the table. “No, I’m afraid it’s not. They’ve taken control of my city and I want it back.”
“If you think I can help you,” I said, sitting back in my chair, “then you’re sadly mistaken. In case you haven’t noticed, we have our own problem here.”
“Then hurry and fix it,” Brandon said. He was sitting next to President Coleman with his arms folded to make his arms look huge, which they were. “Take back your city and then help us.”
I adjusted my tie. “It’s not as simple as you think. They have about the same amount of people I have. They have the means and the willpower to fight back. I can’t just waltz in there and seize control.”
“Brandon told me you have a spy in there right now,” President Coleman said. “What have you heard from them?”
“She’s already gained the trust of Janice,” I said. “She’s on a mission right now, but I haven’t heard from her for two days.”
“What’s the mission?” Brandon asked.
I tried to keep my cool and hoped my face didn’t give away my disappointment. “I’m not sure, but she said it could change the entire outcome of this war.”
President Coleman scoffed. “What’s the point of a spy if they don’t give you valuable information? How do we know if this change will benefit us or them?”
I put my hands under the table so they couldn’t see me ball them into fists. My rage was harder to control with each passing day. “Janice thinks it will benefit her, of course, but we have the advantage of knowing ahead of time what their plan is.”
“That’s if your spy tells you the plan.” Brandon shook his head. “Do you know if you can trust this spy?”
“We can.” Dean stood near the door. I’d forgotten he was there until he spoke. Apparently, he wasn’t the sitting type. “President Randall has used her as a spy before to get information about Emmie. She never let him down.”
Brandon looked at Dean but pointed at me. “She was a spy for President Randal
l, not him. There’s a difference.”
I needed to change the subject before I exploded. “President, how did they get control of your city? What happened?”
President Coleman shifted uncomfortably in his seat, straightening out his suit coat in the process. “Emmie did a broadcast to our entire city. She told them New Haven had a cure for the disease that's spreading around Kingsland. She bribed them.”
“She told them if they rallied against us, she would give them the cure,” Brandon said. I could tell it was hard for him to talk about it since he’d lost his sister to the disease.
“Do they really have a cure?” I asked.
“I believe so,” President Coleman said. Something passed between him and Brandon that I couldn’t pinpoint. Brandon seemed upset with him.
I shook my head in disbelief. I knew they had been trying, but to have the cure was amazing. “Impressive.”
“So, Austin,” President Coleman said, “how do you plan on winning back control of the other half of your city?”
My mouth turned up into a smile. “Well, simple, really. We need to eliminate the revolutionaries since they are the ones pulling the strings.”
Dean didn’t hold back his laughter. “I still don’t think you can do that.”
“I agree with Dean,” President Coleman said. “How could you possibly kill the four of them before they kill you?”
I ignored Dean, even though I could feel him staring at me. “We have something of theirs that they will want back.”
“What do you have?” Brandon asked.
“A girl,” I said.
“A girl?” President Coleman furrowed his eyebrows. “How could a girl be leverage for you?”
Crossing my feet at my ankles, I clasped my hands together. “We took her from New Haven. I know Emmie well enough to know she’ll come and get her.”
“What does this girl mean to Emmie?” Brandon asked.
“Emmie would sacrifice her life for anyone in New Haven,” I said.
President Coleman raised his eyebrows. “Is she really that reckless?”
I nodded. “And then some. She’ll come for the girl herself. The revolutionaries will come to try to stop her. I’m sure they’re already on their way. Once they get here, we’ll set up a meeting so we can try to come to an agreement.” I smiled. “Although, we won’t because we'll assassinate them before we do. With the revolutionaries gone, New Haven will crumble. We’ll be able to seize control.”
Rise (New Haven Book 3) Page 20