This was my punishment. For everything I’d ever done, this was karma coming back to bite me on the ass. My girl needed me, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to help her. I couldn’t touch her how she needed me to touch her to take the pain away. That I was fucking causing her.
Shaw’s laughter coming closer jerked me into action. “I’ll figure something out, baby,” I promised her. “I’ll find a way to make the ache go away.”
“I wish…” But she didn’t have to finish that thought for me to understand.
“Me too.” I kissed her forehead, praying for the control I needed to make it through the next three years without fucking everything up.
When we were younger, all I could think about was how things would be once we were older. While other guys were thinking of how they could get a girl to show them her bra, I was planning how I would ask Violet how to marry me one day. Those same guys had given me hell over how in love I was with Violet from the time they realized she was my “one.” I didn’t care what they said or did. I knew who I was spending the rest of my life with, and I felt sorry for them because they didn’t understand what it felt like to have someone to love as much as I loved Vi.
But while I was planning our forever with her, I hadn’t thought of how hard it would be in the years leading up to her turning eighteen and us starting that planned future. Back then, I didn’t have to worry about my cock fucking everything up and jeopardizing our forever. I knew I could be strong, because she was worth everything.
Shaw landed on the blanket beside us, still laughing and out of breath. “I hate breaking up the party, but my curfew is in thirty minutes.”
Reluctantly, I lifted Violet off me. I put out the fire while the girls packed everything up. Jagger and Lyric carried the stuff to the SUV while Violet and I hung back, walking slower than the other three.
“I’ll figure something out,” I murmured as I leaned down to kiss her neck.
She leaned into me, her eyes full of the same need that was gnawing at me. “Would it really be so bad if we did…things? As long as we didn’t go all the way, we could…” She broke off and huffed unhappily. “No one would have to know.”
“Are you trying to bring me to my knees?” I demanded with a pained laugh. “Because I’m pretty fucking close right now, Vi.”
Guilt filled her beautiful face. “I’m sorry.”
Cupping the back of her head, I pulled her against me. “I would give anything to be able to touch you, baby. But I know the one thing I would have to give up if I did and the wrong person found out. You. I would have to give you up, and that’s too high a price to pay.”
“Luca.”
I kissed the top of her head. “I love you. I’m going to make this better for you. Trust me to take care of you, Vi.”
“I do.”
“Less than twenty minutes!” Shaw called from the SUV when we just stood there holding on to each other. “My parents are cool, but not so cool that I won’t get grounded if we’re late.”
Violet made an unhappy noise but stepped back. “She’s right. And then I’ll get grounded too. Which means I won’t see you for who knows how long.”
Muttering a curse, I bent and tossed her over my shoulder, making her laugh as I sprinted to my vehicle and placed her safely inside.
With only a few minutes to spare, I pulled into Shaw’s driveway. Jagger jumped out of the back and helped her out while I walked around to Violet’s door and opened it.
My girl smacked a kiss against my cheek before getting out. “Good night. I love you.”
I caught her hand when she would have run off and pulled her back. Leaning down, I touched my lips to hers in a soft kiss. “I love you too. I’ll call you in the morning, and we can spend the day together.”
Her eyes brightened. “Be safe on the drive home. Text me when you get there.”
She started to walk away again, but I couldn’t stand the idea of her being away from me even for a few hours to sleep. But when I would have picked her up and put her back in the vehicle, the front door opened and Axton Cage stepped out onto the porch.
“Ladies,” he called out to the girls. “You have thirty seconds before you are officially late for curfew.”
“We’re home,” Shaw sassed as she stomped up the walkway.
“But not in the house,” her father said calmly. “When I say come home by a certain time, I mean in the house, Bradshaw.”
I heard Shaw groan at the use of her full first name. We all knew how much she hated it, but she didn’t bitch at her dad like she would have us if we dared call her by it. Instead, she climbed the steps of the porch. “I’m telling Mom you’re being mean.”
“How am I being mean?” Axton asked, his tone still calm. “By calling you by your name? FYI, baby girl, your mom was the one who named you. If I’m being so mean by using it, you should take that up with her.”
“I have to go,” Violet said with a sad smile.
I let her hand go, promising myself I would see her again in only a matter of hours. “Love you.”
“Ten, nine, eight,” Axton counted down, and Vi squealed in distress as she took off running.
“I love you too. Bye,” she called as she rushed onto the porch and into the house.
As she disappeared inside, Axton laughed. “Thanks for getting them home safely, boys. Now get your asses back to Malibu.”
“Night, Uncle Ax,” Jagger said as he got back into the SUV, and Lyric moved into the front passenger seat. “Night, Shaw!” he called louder.
She stuck her head out of the door. “Night, Jags!”
I just stood there, hoping Violet would reappear so I could have one last look. Instead, my phone buzzed with a text. When I looked at the screen, it was to a picture of her blowing me a kiss, which was just as good.
“See you later, Uncle Ax,” I told him as I walked around to the driver’s door.
“Be careful on the road.”
I glanced up at the house just in time to see Violet standing at one of the windows. She waved, and I felt my heart contract.
Just a few hours, I promised myself as I drove away. Then I’d be beside her again.
Chapter 15
Violet
I was on my way downstairs when my phone rang. Smiling when I saw it was Luca, I answered. “Good morning.”
“I talked to my sister last night,” Luca said in a quiet voice, as if he were trying to keep others from hearing him.
Heat instantly filled my cheeks, because I instinctively knew exactly what he’d talked to Lucy about. We hadn’t discussed what I’d told him on the beach two Fridays before, and I’d had mixed feelings about that. I’d wanted him to find a way to help me, but at the same time, I was so embarrassed about it too.
“I…” Pausing at the bottom of the stairs, I leaned against the rail. At my delay, Oscar came running out of the kitchen and barked unhappily at me, wanting attention. “What did she say?”
“I can’t really talk about it right now, but I was hoping we could meet up after school today? Friday was my last game, so there’s no football practice to worry about.”
His team had lost the third week of the championship because his quarterback had thrown not one but three interceptions, two of which the other team had scored with. It had been a huge letdown for Luca since this was his last year of high school football, but he hadn’t seemed all that heartbroken over it when we’d all gone to dinner together afterward.
“Violet?” I frowned when I heard Mom’s voice coming from the kitchen. She sounded distressed, and I started walking even as I answered Luca.
“I’ll wait after school, and you can pick me up. I’ll make sure Mom knows I won’t—” I entered the kitchen to find Dad standing with his phone to his ear. His face was deathly pale as he listened. But it was the tears in Mom’s eyes she was trying to blink back that had my heart stopping. “I have to go,” I told Luca and hung up before he could say
anything.
“You and your brother aren’t going to school today,” she told me in a quiet voice as Dad continued to listen.
“Wh-why not?”
“Honey, Uncle Drake woke up ill this morning. Lana took him to the hospital, but…” Tears were already starting to spill down my face.
“No!” I cried, then whispered, “He didn’t die.”
“No, no,” she rushed to assure me, her face turning green. “But he’s very sick. The doctors want to do the surgery today rather than wait until next week.”
I suddenly felt light-headed. I still hadn’t let myself think about Dad giving part of his liver to my uncle. It was too scary to contemplate, so I hadn’t let it enter my head. And if it tried, I would push it back. But now, there was no more hiding. It was happening, sooner than anticipated, and I couldn’t stop it.
I didn’t want to stop it. Not really.
Dad was going to save his brother by giving a part of himself to him. I would have happily done the same thing for Mason or Luca or anyone else in my family. And I wished it were me who was doing it now rather than my dad, because all the “what-ifs” that could go wrong and take my daddy away from us was so much more daunting than if I were taking the risks.
My phone rang in my hand, and I knew in my heart it was Luca calling back. I lifted it to my ear just as Dad hung up his.
“Baby.” Luca’s voice only made my tears fall faster. “I just heard, and I’m on my way to the hospital now with my parents.”
Dad gave me a grim smile. “It’s going to be okay,” he promised. “My part is super easy. By tonight, I’ll be complaining about not being able to run for a while. You’ll see.” He kissed the top of my head then took Mom’s hand. “Give me ten minutes, and then we’ll leave.”
“Vi?” Luca’s voice murmured.
“Luca,” I gasped. “I… What… I can’t…” I knew I wasn’t making any sense, but I couldn’t put together a full sentence. I was scared, and there was absolutely nothing I could do to change whatever outcome was going to occur.
“It’s going to be okay, baby.” He echoed Dad’s words. “I’ll be right there beside you.”
Hearing that promise eased some of the constriction in my throat, and suddenly I was able to breathe. Gulping in oxygen, I leaned back against the counter and closed my eyes, just listening to Luca’s breathing. At my feet, Oscar nudged my hand with his nose, offering comfort.
The sound of running feet hit my ears, and I lifted my tear-filled eyes to watch as Mason rushed into the kitchen. He looked so much like Dad my heart ached just looking at him, but it was the sight of the same stark fear I was feeling blazing out of wet blue-gray eyes that had me offering him my hand.
With a strangled sob, my little brother threw himself against me. He was three years younger than me but already two inches taller. He wrapped his long arms around me so hard, it pushed the air out of my lungs.
“Violet, are you okay?” Luca asked.
“I-I’m okay,” I told him in a strangled voice. “Mason needs me. I-I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay, babe. I love you.”
“I love you too.” I hung up before I could start sobbing and wrapped both arms around Mason. “It’s going to be okay.” I was trying to ease his fears, but I wasn’t so sure I believed anything I said.
“You don’t know that,” he choked out. “Anything could happen. I’ve been looking online. I’ve learned about everything that could go wrong. Not just with Dad, but Uncle Drake, too. They could both die, Vi.” His shoulders began to shake, and he buried his face in my hair. His sobs stabbed me straight through the heart, and I had to fight back my own.
But I was the oldest. I had to be strong for both of us.
By the time we got to the hospital, Aunt Emmie had already woven her magic. There was security everywhere. I barely noticed them, however, as we were ushered up to a waiting room where my family was already starting to fill the many seats.
As soon as I walked through the door, Luca was there to hold me. But I couldn’t fall apart on him, not yet. Mom and Dad had followed Mason and me into the waiting room so he could hug everyone, and I didn’t want the last time he saw me before surgery to be with tears streaming down my face.
I absorbed as much of Luca’s strength as I could and then pulled back. Dad was already hugging Uncle Nik and then scooped up Aunt Emmie. She whispered something in his ear, and he laughed quietly before putting her down. Others came over to hug him in turn, and I waited, leaning against Luca as I watched them all interact for a few more minutes.
The door opened, and a nurse in surgical scrubs stood there. Dad’s gaze went around the room until it fell on me and then Mason. “You two can’t come with me,” he said with regret. “Only your mom until they take me down for surgery.”
I nodded my understanding, but Mason didn’t like this news. I hugged my brother against me, promising him without words I wouldn’t leave him. Our gazes locked, and after a tense moment, he gave a single nod.
Dad crossed the room and pulled us both into a tight hug. “It’s going to be okay, kids. I promise. I’ll be back to being a pain in both your asses soon enough. My part is simple. It’s your cousins you need to think about.” I heard him swallow hard. “Uncle Drake needs your good thoughts and prayers more than I do.”
“Okay, Daddy,” I whispered, not wanting him to hear how weak my voice was.
“Yeah, okay,” Mason echoed.
Dad pulled back and then kissed my forehead. “The press might get crazy. Don’t go anywhere without security, one of your uncles, or Luca.” I nodded, unable to speak without sobbing. His gaze went to Luca, who was still behind me. “Take care of her for me, son.”
“Always,” Luca rasped out, unable to hide his own emotions. Luca hugged Dad with Mason and me still between them, squeezing us against their bodies.
My brother laughed, and I couldn’t help smiling a little as they smooshed us together.
“Shane.” Mom’s soft voice had Dad stepping back. He kissed the top of Mason’s head, then wiped his thumb over my cheek. It was only when I felt him brush away a tear that I realized I was crying.
“I love you two more than anything,” Dad told us in an emotion-choked voice. “I’ll see you both soon. I promise.”
“I love you, Dad,” Mason told him, his chin trembling.
“I love you, Daddy,” I whispered.
He grinned, then took Mom’s hand and followed the nurse out. The door closed behind them, and I felt myself begin to sway, but Luca’s strong arms caught me and lifted me against his chest. As he carried me to the nearest chair, I finally let the sobs free.
Luca’s warm hands rubbed up and down my back. “Cry all you want, baby,” he murmured at my ear. “I’ve got you.”
Chapter 16
Luca
It was a few hours before Aunt Harper returned, alone. By then, Violet’s tears had dried, and she was sitting quietly beside me. Mason sat on her other side, and the two of them held on to each other, while I held on to my girl, silently offering her every ounce of my strength so she could get through this.
Aunt Lana and four of her kids joined us, and I felt bad Nevaeh had to make the trip home alone, knowing her father was already in surgery. But she worried us all when she arrived and just sat down, not making a sound—not even blinking her eyes behind her glasses.
Lyric and I shared a look before glancing back at our scary-smart cousin. It was like she was a ghost sitting there. Not touching anything, not speaking, barely breathing at times. I figured she was in shock, and no one could reach her as they tried time and again to interact with her.
The room was almost at capacity with our family by the time a surgeon came to talk to us.
Uncle Shane had come through his part of the surgery beautifully, according to the doctor. As soon as he left with the promise of a nurse escorting Aunt Harper to his room after Uncle Shane was out of recovery, I could lite
rally feel Violet deflate. Exhaustion was weighing down on her, and I could tell she was ready to drop. But she just sat there, trying to be strong for everyone else.
Hours later, after a crazy blowup between Nevaeh and her boyfriend, once he’d arrived, Aunt Harper came back to the waiting room and pulled me aside.
We moved to a less crowded corner, and she glanced over at her kids. “How are they?”
“Tired, but good. How is Uncle Shane?”
She gave me a small, genuine smile. “He’s good. In a lot of pain, but he’s going to be fine. So is Drake, from what Lana told me just a few minutes ago. I’m so relieved that everything turned out so well.” Her pretty purple eyes went straight back to Violet. “You’re sure she’s okay? She’s so brave and strong, but she forgets it’s okay to be the weak one every now and then.”
“I think a good night’s sleep is all she really needs,” I assured her.
“You’re probably right.” She took my hand, giving it a firm squeeze. “Would you do me a favor?”
“Anything.” I loved this woman just as much as my own mother. She’d always been in my corner. Supporting my relationship with Violet every step of the way. She knew I would never hurt Violet, that I would gladly die for the girl who meant the world to both of us.
“I’m going to stay the night. Shane will sleep better if I’m with him, and I honestly don’t think I could make myself walk out of this place without him right now. But the kids need the comforts of home. Would you mind driving Vi and Mason home for me?”
I was already shaking my head. “You know I would never turn down more time with Violet.”
She laughed softly. “Believe me, I know. Every time I see you two together, I can’t help but remember when you were barely two years old and would put your hands on my pregnant belly, telling me and anyone who would listen ‘mine’ over and over again.”
“I felt her in my heart even then,” I told her honestly.
“I believe you.” She handed me a set of keys. “Take my vehicle since you came with your parents. I’m not going anywhere, so I don’t need it. Just drive carefully.”
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