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“Anything I want?”Oh, the possibilities.
Giving me a sharp nod, he warns the man in front of him, “Malice is creative, and he enjoys getting his hands dirty.I get another shit call like I did today, and I’ll give you to him as a fucking present.”
“Oh my.”The woman finally speaks, drawing Carmine’s attention.
Reaching a hand forward, I watch as she flinches but doesn’t move away as Carmine tilts her chin up to look at him.“Don’t worry, I’d never let anything happen to you, either.”
I feel Odette sigh happily behind me.I had no idea that she wanted her father to begin dating again.Hell, I don’t think the man himself knew he would be interested.However, I suspect it’s just this woman.She’s sparked something inside of the tough gangster.
Approaching us, his gaze falls to Odette and the way she’s holding onto me, a satisfied smirk crossing his features.“You need a doctor for this?”He takes her hand, turning it this way and that, inspecting the damage.
“I told you, I’m fine, Daddy.”The love she has for this man can’t be masked.Despite my best efforts, I’m fucking jealous.I want it to be that obvious she’s in love withme.I want the whole fucking world to know because I’d burn everything to the ground for her.Without hesitation.
“I’ll have the family doctor waiting after school,” he assures her before shifting his sights to me.“Make sure she ices it.”I nod.If I could convince her, I’d be taking her to the hospital now.“Deal with that cunt.”He nods towards Margo, who is dumb enough to glare at the man.She still hasn’t learned her lesson yet.“Both of you to class.”Christ.
He’s gone before I can inquire about homeschooling Odette.The option should have been on the table long ago.Lock her up for my enjoyment, and none of this shit would be happening.
Spinning around, I cup her face in my hands and slant my mouth across hers.Her surprised gasp gives me time to sweep my tongue into her mouth, licking across her sweet, warm cavern before pulling away.
Taking hold of the ice pack someone finally offers, I place it on her knuckles, shaking my head.“You need someone hit; next time, let me.”She levels me with a mutinous glare as I guide her out of the school office and to her math and calculus classes.Christ,her intelligence is going to kill me with boredom.
Entering the back of the classroom, we garner a few stares before taking our seats.Since she knuckled up with her writing hand, that leaves me to take notes for her.I don’t understand a fucking thing that’s being said, but when I feel Odette rest her head on my shoulder, nothing else matters.I’ll do whatever she needs for as long as she needs it without complaint if I can get this kind of affection from her more often.
By the time the bell rings, my dick is ready to punch holes through walls, and my head is about to fall off from all the shit I just unwillingly absorbed.
“You’re really fucking smart,” I comment.Wrapping an arm across her shoulders, I kiss her temple as we head to her next class.
Fucking biology.
Death by intelligence, it’s what’s going to be etched in my gravestone.
CHAPTER9
Odette
Anger still simmers inside me as we walk into the house, and I’m immediately accosted by Daddy’s doctor, turning my hand in every which direction, making me move my fingers.Forming fists and doing stretches I don’t want to; I’m ready to hit the man.
“Are we done?”I snap when he starts pushing down on the bruises.Yanking my hand free of his grip, there’s a deadness in his eyes as he looks down at me.
He gives me a sharp nod before addressing my father.“She’s fine.Some bruising, but nothing that won’t heal without trouble.”They exchange an envelope, and the doctor is gone as swiftly as he came.
“I don’t like him.”I cross my arms, feeling defensive.Malice’s hand feels gentle on my back, and while I want to lean into him—he always makes me feel so safe—I’m still irritated.“Is someone going to tell me why Malice wasn’t there this morning?”It’s the one thing plaguing my mind.Yesterday, they made it seem like he would be glued to my side, and then, on day two, I felt completely forgotten.
“He had something to handle.”I hate that they won’t fill me in on things.They think I’m too fragile to understand their world, the darkness and destruction they cause every day.It’s a lie; I’m not.
Okay, so maybe I’m a little fragile, but like porcelain, not glass.You can break me, but I won’t shatter into a million pieces.They just need to stop shielding me from every little thing.
“Whatever.”Shaking off Malice’s touch, I walk away, heading to the kitchen to grab a muffin I smelled when I came home and a can of Mountain Dew before heading up to my room.
Despite my eagerness to be treated as an adult, I’m still in school, and right now, I have an essay to write about how our childhood affects our futures.
Slamming my door shut, I flip the lock for good measure.Opening the balcony doors, I take my things out there to sit in the warmth of the sun.
My mom used to tease me that I was like a sponge, soaking up the rays like it was my birthright.If I could sleep outside, I would.There’s nothing I love more than nature.There’s a raw primality to it that can’t be tamed.
Exactly like Malice.
I’ve watched him nearly my entire life.First, as children, even when he wanted nothing to do with me and followed our fathers everywhere, then as a budding girl with a crush, and now as a young woman in love.He’s simultaneously everything I want in a partner and everything I despise.
