“You gave me shit,” I sneer, turning to meet his glare.
“The fuck I did,” he retorts. “You didn’t give me a chance to make things right. You showed up at my house before I was even healed from the explosion and took your fucking cut off.”
“Make things, right?” I question, laughing bitterly. “Motherfucker I know you think you’re God but you ain’t shit, Parrish. You can’t make anything right. Your club is dying, and it’s dying a slow death.”
Slamming his fist down against the counter that separates us, he leans forward and glares at me.
“You of all people should know better than to underestimate me, Pipe. Now, I get it. What happened to Oksana was horrible— “
“You don’t get nothing. You don’t even get to say her name,” I holler. “Don’t fucking play me, Parrish. You never gave a damn about my wife. You, like everyone else, thought my marriage was a joke.”
The wounds are still as fresh as they were when I sat at his table on a Sunday with Oksana at my side and the men I called brothers took turns ripping on her.
“You go around preaching to everyone, encouraging them to find their heart and congratulate them when they do. I found my fucking heart, and you didn’t so much as give me a pat on the back. You took your fucking jabs whenever you got the chance. Now, me and Oksana we may not have had a story like you and your old lady but we had something good, something real—and she sure as fuck didn’t deserve to get killed for a club that never gave her so much as an ounce of the respect they give Reina.”
“You got it all wrong, brother,” he protests.
“Call me brother one more fucking time and so help me Jesus, I will put a bullet in you,” I sneer.
“Like it or not, I’ll never stop calling you my brother,” he shouts angrily.
“You seem to have forgotten what brotherhood is,” I tell him. “Let me remind you, Parrish, aside from never leaving a brother behind, we don’t lie and steal from one another. We protect each other and those we love. If you were my brother than you would’ve kept my old lady as safe as you keep your own.”
“You think I wanted any of this? You think I wanted Oksana’s blood? Pipe, I didn’t see any of this coming. For fuck’s sake, they blew up my clubhouse on my wedding day. It could’ve been Reina in the morgue. It could’ve been my daughter too.”
“But it wasn’t,” I argue. “Your wife is safe at home caring for your boy and your daughter is tucked close to Blackie night after night.”
“So, they were lucky,” he says, rubbing his hands over his face. “Would it be better if they were dead too?” he asks, peeling his hands away. Gripping the edge of the counter he stares back at me. “Would it make you feel better if I was the one who buried my wife? Would it change your stance if I put my little girl in the ground?”
Instantly, I feel guilt and I hate myself for it. I hate myself for letting Jack’s grief overpower mine, but he lost a child already. After a tragic accident, Jack buried his two-year-old boy, and I stood next to him as he did so.
“Blackie handed you a knife and gave you the chance to cut the teardrops from Charlie’s face. He delivered retribution to you for Oksana because he buried his wife and knew your pain better than anyone.”
When Blackie laid his wife to rest, I stood next to him too. I watched him fall to drugs as the grief tore through him and the guilt swallowed him whole.
“You hurtin’ we all hurtin’, brother,” he adds. “But you leaving like you did, you didn’t give us a chance to help you.”
“I don’t need your help,” I defend.
“This ain’t you, Pipe,” he accuses, tipping his chin toward me. “The brother I know doesn’t give up. He doesn’t give up on himself or his club,” he pauses. “We’re sinking man,” he admits.
Hearing the desperation in his voice, I lift my eyes and peer back at him.
“Got all these people I’m responsible for and I can’t keep them safe. I can’t keep them breathing because I don’t know what’s coming next. I sit night after night and wonder who’s next to die.”
“Not my problem anymore,” I tell him.
“You used to sit next to me and make sense of everything,” he recalls.
“Got yourself a vice president to do that for you, Parrish.”
He doesn’t respond immediately but after a few moments pass, be slaps his palm against the counter. Accepting defeat, he gives me a curt nod.
“I hear you, brother,” he says finally and pushes off the counter.
He’s right about one thing—for years I was the man who made sense of his head. I know Jack better than he knows himself, better than any of his brothers know him. I also know he may be turning his back and accepting defeat now but it won’t last long.
He pauses at the end of the kitchen and turns slightly to glance at me once more.
“For what it’s worth, I visit your old lady every time I go visit my boy and I’ll keep on showing my face because it’s what brothers do.”
I don’t respond and he turns away, disappearing out of my line of sight. The door clicks closed and a moment later I hear his engine purr to life. Turning back to my beer, I empty the contents into the sink and chuck the bottle into the trash. I make my way out of the kitchen and to the front door. Leaning against it, I slide my body down until I’m sitting on the floor staring at Oksana’s shoes.
It only takes a second before I’m transcended back to her death.
Climbing the debris to get to her, I find her shoes.
Then I spot her.
I try to cradle her body against mine but I’m not sure where to touch her. Knowing the simplest touch will leave her decapitated, I sit beside her and stare into her lifeless eyes.
Then they come to remove her from the scene of the crime.
I hear the zipper on the body bag.
I feel my fingers slip from the gurney as they take her from me forever.
There are things in this world a man can forget.
Things he can forgive.
Losing his heart isn’t one of those things.
For when a man loses his heart, he’s left in ruins.
Other Books by Janine Infante Bosco
The Tempted Series: *all can be read as standalone*
Illicit Temptations (Book One) – Michael & Nikki
Forbidden Temptations (Book Two) – Anthony & Adrianna
Uncontrollable Temptations (Book Three) – Jack & Reina
Reckless Temptations (Book Four) – Riggs & Lauren
Lethal Temptations (Book Five) – Blackie & Lacey
Eternal Temptations (Book Six) – the conclusion featuring all six couples which includes Victor & Grace.
The Nomad Series: *all can be read as standalone*
Drifter – Book One
Wanderer – Book Two
Roamer – Book Three
Loner – Book Four (coming soon)
A Nomad Series Novel: *can be read as standalone*
From the Ruins (coming soon)
The Riverdale Series: *should be read in series order*
Pieces – Book One
Broken Pieces – Book Two
Fitting the Pieces – Book Three
Jake’s Journal (Book 3.5) novella – companion to the series.
About the Author
Janine Infante Bosco lives in New York, she has always loved reading and writing. When she was thirteen, she began to write her own stories and her passion for writing took off as the years went on. At eighteen, she even wrote a full screenplay with dreams of one day becoming a member of the Screen Actors Guild.
Janine writes emotionally charged novels with an emphasis on family bonds, strong willed female characters, and alpha male men who will do anything for the women they love. She loves to interact with fans and fellow avid romance readers like herself.
Janine loves interacting with fans feel free to contact her on any of her social media sites.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jan
ine-Infante-Bosco-Author/491551810973318?fref=ts
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8095100.Janine_Infante_Bosco
Website: http://www.janineinfantebosco.com/
Amazon Author Page: http://smile.amazon.com/Janine-Infante-Bosco/e/B00NTS80V6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2?qid=1437152451&sr=8-2
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