Page 255 of Power Play

The question took some of the edge from my anger, but it didn’t erase it. I stepped closer.

“Then they make that choice.”

Her eyes widened. “You make everything sound so fucking black and white.”

“Sometimes it is.”

“They’re my family.”

“You share blood, mi hada, but this isn’t what family is supposed to do.”

“They’re all I have left of Charles.”

“That isn’t true.”

Her face hardened. “Don’t.”

“You have his memory and your own life. You have people who love you.”

“It isn’t the same.”

“I know.” My chest tightened. “You still can’t sacrifice your life to what you lost.”

Her breath caught.

I had pushed far enough and probably too far, but I couldn’t walk it back.

“I have lost people too. You know that better than almost anybody now.” My voice roughened. “Loss doesn’t earn the right to control whatever survives it.”

Tears slid down her face. I wanted to hold her and promise I would wait forever.

That was exactly why I couldn’t.

“I’m not asking you to stop loving them,” I said more quietly. “I’m asking you to decide whether loving them means they get to decide if you love me.”

Her mouth trembled, but she didn’t answer.

I waited until the silence hardened something inside me again. “Okay.”

Fear flashed across her face. “Ryan.”

“I need details and the truth. I need to know where I stand before I put any more of my fucking heart into this.”

“I just told you.”

“You told me what happened at dinner.” I stepped back. “Now you need to decide what happens next.”

Her breathing turned uneven. “You’re giving me an ultimatum.”

“I’m telling you where my boundary is, and I’m warning you before you cross it.”

She flinched, and I hated that, but I meant every word.

“I want you at that game as my girlfriend. I want you in the stands wearing my number. I want to walk out of that locker room afterward and know exactly who I’m looking for.”

Charm cried silently.

“I want Thanksgiving with you. I want all our friends to know what we are. I want your parents to know I’m not some phase they can wait out. I want the whole fucking thing.”