"Yes, nearly a year ago."
"What, boy! What took you so long?"
"I've just turned nineteen."
"Oh. Well, that explains everything. At least he's got you now. So who do I gotta kill to get a drink around here?" Mr. Santini says, arching his brow at his son.
"Depends on what kind of drink you want. I'll let this one be on the house, though," Anthony replies.
"So what are you planning for the wedding?"
"We only just got engaged, so I really don't know. I only have a few family members and some friends, but I hadn't given it much thought."
"I'm thinking in three days before you leave,” Anthony chimes in as he hands a beer to his dad and brings us ladies a bottle of water each. As soon as he sits down next to me, I’m out of my seat and in his lap. I’m doing my best not to be turned on in front of his parents. At least my blush can be mistaken for embarrassment.
"How about Vegas? We could get it together with Emiliano and Roxie,” his mother says.
"No... I’m good with here. My woman deserves a nice, calm ceremony,” he answers way too quickly for my tastes.
Taking offense, I ask, "You wouldn't like a Vegas wedding?"
"You're not old enough to go into the casinos, so it wouldn't be too much fun for you." Oh, duh. Totally forgot that minor detail. "Hold on. We have company." Blade checks the camera and then says, "Trouble's arrived, and she brought her lap dog."
"I think she's more the lap dog," his mom says. Blade lifts me off his lap and back into my seat, and then kisses my lips. Again, I turn a bright shade of pink.
"Hey, I don't want to think about my baby girl sitting on any guy's lap,” Mr. Santini growls, making me laugh.
Anthony shakes his head with a chuckle so deep that it goes straight to my core. I give him the look to let him know just what he did. He turns around without a word, and I can see that he’s adjusting himself as he walks to meet them. Roxie comes in with a handsome man by her side, and she looks completely different. Her belly's round as hell. I missed a lot in the past few months.
"Mom, Dad, we made it. Emiliano was taking forever picking his clothes." She rolls her eyes while the guy smirks.
"Roxie, you remember Jules. Emiliano, this is my fiancée, Julia Walker." Anthony comes to my side, holding my good hand. "Jules, this is Roxie's husband, Emiliano Martin." I stand up to be polite, but my caveman doesn’t like that Emiliano’s too close, so he pulls me against his side. From the look on his face, Emiliano doesn’t give a shit about me. His eyes are back on his wife.
Roxie closes the distance and throws her arms around me for a hug. I’m caught off guard, but I welcome civility, even if it’s just for Anthony’s sake. "I'm sorry my brother's a bonehead. Men—you need to knock them about a bit before they get it,” she adds, tossing a smirk back at her husband.
"Sirena, I always knew you belonged to me. I just got knocked around before I could get to you."
That’s curious. I don’t know their story. I’ll ask Anthony about it later when we’re alone. One of the many things I’ve learned about my man is he’s not extremely loquacious.
"True. So where is the food? This baby is hungry."
"You should have told me, my love." He scowls, pressing his hand softly to her belly before kissing her cheek. I watch the tender scene unfold, and I’m happy for them.
"I didn't want to be full when I got here. I expected my brother to have food ready, the damn slacker."
"Brat. Dinner's in the oven, and there's a tray of treats and fruit waiting in the kitchen."
"Well, excuse me." She nudges Anthony and marches straight into the kitchen.
"She's been craving fruit so bad lately. It's a good thing the hotel keeps a lot in stock at all times," Emiliano says with a chuckle.
"Seconds later, Roxie comes out of the kitchen with the tray in hand and a fork digging into the freshly cut cantaloupe.
****
By the next morning, the ladies have everything squared away for the wedding. Anthony and I are getting married in three days at Cowboy's ranch where it can be set up nicely.
I come downstairs after another passionate night. I thought with his family under his roof, it would keep him at bay, but the man isn't the only walking bundle of testosterone on a mission. There were noises coming from every bedroom. I had to laugh because Anthony still held his hand over my mouth, claiming he didn't want my orgasms shared with anyone but him.
"Good morning," I grumble, entering the kitchen to see his mom and sister already getting breakfast started.
"Morning, Jules. I hope you don't mind that we started cooking. We're not used to Anthony having anyone."
"No. It's not a big deal. I just didn't get a lot of sleep." I look at the phone Cyber gave me to double check the time. "Dang it, it's already nine."
"Do you want a cup of coffee?" Roxie asks as I take a seat on my favorite chair—Anthony’s chair.
"Sure. I could really use it." My phone starts ringing. I don't recognize the number, but it's a Dallas area code, so I answer. "Hello."
"Hello, this is Detective Hughes. We met briefly at the hospital." Weird introduction. I take a look at my phone again, wondering if it’s not a spammer.
"How can I help you?" I don't remember meeting a detective, but I could have still been out of it.
"I need you to come in to talk. Or we could meet. I need to get a formal statement."
"I'm sorry, but I'll have to check with my fiancé. I'm currently not in the position to drive myself anywhere. Hold on. Let me get him,” I insist, hopping off Anthony’s chair and going to look for him
"No. That's okay." He ends the call so fast he doesn’t actually finish the word “okay.”
"Wow. That was weird." I stare at the phone.
"Who was that?" Anthony snarls behind me.
"Do you remember a detective coming to my room? A Detective Hughes?"
"Yes, she came, but you two didn't speak because you were still out of it."
"She?" Now something is most definitely up.
"Yes." I explain what happened on the call, and immediately he's on the phone to Cyber.
"I'm really sorry about what happened to you. I know if I hadn't told my brother that stuff, he wouldn't have walked away from you that day."
"Don't be sorry. I said what I said, even if I didn't mean it. As a sister, it was the best thing for you to tell him."
"I suppose, but I feel like..."
"It's not your fault at all. It's not anyone's fault but that asshole who attacked me." My bandaged hand is a daily reminder that this isn't over, but that call has just ruined my day.
Anthony comes into the room again and wraps his arms around me. "I'm sorry, Precious. Cyber's looking into the call. Whoever it was called from the Dallas Police Department's line, but it wasn't Detective Hughes. She's at another crime scene at the moment."
"I just want this to be over."