Page 182 of Forbidden Fate
I swallow. “It shouldn’t be.”
“But it is.”
I look down at my hands. They’re shaking. “I can’t be with him.”
“I know.”
I shake my head. “I can’t bring him into this family. I can’t sit beside Eagle knowing Cruz is the reason he almost died.”
“I know.”
“I did the right thing.”
Daniela’s eyes fill with sympathy. “Maybe you did.”
Hawk drops his jaw. “Maybe?”
She doesn’t look away from me. “Doing the right thing doesn’t always make it hurt less.”
I press my lips together to keep from crying.
I’m not sure what to say next, when—
The doorbell rings.
All three of us freeze.
Hawk frowns. “Who the hell is that?”
“Maybe our mother booked an entertainer for my welcome home party,” I say, trying to sound jovial but failing.
Hawk frowns at me.
“What?” I say. “Fireworks. A mariachi band. A magician who makes trauma disappear.”
The doorbell rings again.
Hawk is already moving. “Stay here.”
“No.”
Mom appears near the dining room entrance, wiping her hands on a towel. “Who is it?”
“That’s what we’re finding out,” Hawk says.
Vinnie’s voice comes from somewhere behind her. “Hawk?”
“Got it.”
Hawk reaches the front door first.
I glance through the side window.
Every drop of blood in me turns cold.
Because it’s Cruz.
Hawk opens the door. “Who the hell are you?”
