Page 6 of Hextreme Measures

He wasn’t sorry. He’d met Ofelia thanks to his job. She was his whole life now. Sure, he still loved and appreciated the work he did with the police department. Ofelia was the one who made him happy, however.

He had never been this angry with his mother. Yes, it was just a party. She’d suckered Ofelia into believing that her future mother-in-law was on her side, however. Now, Ofelia felt betrayed.

“I’m really disappointed in you,” Sully said finally, his voice low. His shoulders slumped in defeat. “You promised her this wasn’t going to be a big thing and that you would listen to what she wanted. You lied to her face.”

Madeline made a protesting sound. “Marie said —”

“Don’t!” Sully whipped out a finger. He didn’t care who was looking but knew his mother would care. He didn’t look out at the crowd of socialites he knew was watching him right now. “I’m familiar with Marie’s work. I know she had something to do with this. I’m not an idiot. You two did it together.”

“It’s just a party, Zach,” Madeline whined. “Why are you so worked up?”

“Because Ofelia deserves whatever her heart desires.” That was the part that bothered him most. “She doesn’t ask for anything. She was willing to forego a party because she didn’t want to be the center of attention. Then you promised her the party of her dreams even though you had no intention of following through.”

Madeline’s expression started to slip. “You’re being dramatic.”

“Whatever.” Sully took a step away from her. He could have left it there; he knew he’d given his mother something to think about, and she would be treading lightly around him until the wedding. He decided to be mean, though, just like his mother. “Don’t think this won’t factor into how much time we let you spend with our children.”

With that, he turned on his heel and stormed away, leaving his mother gaping in his wake. He didn’t have to search for Ofelia. He knew where she was. She’d been huddled in the same corner with Angelique since she arrived and realized nothing was how it was supposed to be.

“Hey, baby.” He tried to smile at his fiancée, but it fell flat. “So, I talked to my mother.”

Ofelia snorted. “Yes, I talked to my mother, too.”

“You need to start calling me Angelique Yomama,” the siren interjected quickly. “I’m not done gaslighting Marie, no matter what she thinks. Remember that, Angelique Yomama.”

Sully couldn’t be certain that Angelique wasn’t drunk, so he ignored her and focused on his fiancée. “We don’t have to stay here.”

Surprised registered on Ofelia’s face, then suspicion. “What do you mean? It’s our party.”

The bitterness lacing her words wasn’t lost on Sully. “No, this isn’t our party. It’s their party.”

“They’ll be mad.”

“I don’t care. Do you?”

Ofelia glanced around. The few friends — real friends — who had made the guest list had already snuck away when they realized what sort of party they’d been invited to. The only people left were friends of Madeline and Marie.

“Nope.” Ofelia was grim as she shook her head. Across the way, she saw her brother Felix dancing with Amelia, Sully’s sister. They were having a baby together and trying to figure out the whole dating thing, even though they were already bonded for life. “Just let me tell Felix. They can leave if they don’t want to stay, too.”

“Yes, that will really kill our mothers,” Sully agreed. “Let’s do it.”

Ofelia sent him an amused look. “You’re worked up.” It wasn’t a question.

“I dislike, very much, being gaslit in real time by my mother.”

“Yeah, I get that.” Ofelia sent a glare in Marie’s direction, but her mother was focused on her friends. “I totally get that.”

Sully followed her gaze. “I told my mother that the amount of time she’s allowed to spend with future grandchildren will be affected by this,” he supplied. “You should do the same to your mother.”

Ofelia pressed her lips together and raised her eyebrows as she searched his face for signs of truth. She found them. “Are you being serious?” she sputtered when she could no longer maintain her composure.

“Yup.” Sully had never been more serious in his life. “They need to learn their lessons. At the very least, they’ll be on their best behavior until the wedding.”

Now Ofelia was outright laughing. “I love how diabolical you are.” She threw her arms around him.

Sully held her tight, meeting Angelique’s approving stare over her shoulder. “I love you,” he replied, rubbing his hands up and down her back. “Now, let’s get out of here.”

“Where are we going to go?” Ofelia was honestly curious when she pulled back.