Page 97 of Intolerable Bishop

“It’s the one the school let me keep. It was still in rough shape, so Theo, Blake, and Liam have been helping me finish it for you.”

“For me?”

“Yeah, this is your birthday gift. She is completely restored, and I even ordered this custom ice blue color for you. There are a few hidden snowflakes worked into the paint and interior.” I smiled wide.

Myles’s mouth fell open, looking from me to the car. Suddenly, his eyes filled with tears, and he turned away.

“I’ll give you two some time to talk,” Theo said and walked out of the shop.

“Myles, what’s wrong? If you don’t like it….” He reached out for me as he wiped tears away. “What’s going on? I thought you’d be happy. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

“Come with me. We need to talk.”

My heart hammered with trepidation as he linked our fingers and led me outside. Lip was playing catch with Blake out front, but Myles guided me toward the picnic table behind the cabin.

“You’re scaring me, Myles,” I said, the fear of whatever he was going to say making me antsy.

“I’m sorry, Snowflake. Sit for a minute.”

I slowly sat down and watched him pace. Myles walked toward me, and his eyes were pools of worry. Cupping my face, he dropped his lips to mine, and I melted into him. I’d missed him so much and hated that he wouldn’t let me stay with him and Lip for a few nights.

He stopped kissing me but kept his lips against mine as if he didn’t want to lose contact. “No one has given me a birthday gift since my ma passed away,” he said, and my heart constricted. “I love the car, I love you, I…shite.” He closed his eyes.

“I’m sorry that your father is such a prick. I hate that you’ve gone through so much. Just when I think you’ve told me all the terrible things he’s done or could do, you tell me more.”

Myles snorted. “I don’t tell anyone everything, not even you, Snowflake. The things he’s made me do or has done to me would haunt ya, and our time is precious. I dinnie want any of his taint coating what we have.”

I laid my hands on his and wanted to cry. God bless his mother, who’d protected him as much as she could. There was no telling what he would’ve become without her.

“I understand. I don’t like it, and I will pester you for answers, but I get why you don’t want to say. If you love the car, then what’s wrong?” He closed his eyes, and I could feel him shaking.

“I know I’ve said this before, but I can’t lose ya, Snowflake. I just can’t.”

I kissed him. “You’re not going to.”

“Ya may change your mind after my birthday.” He pulled back and stood in front of me. I’d never seen him so conflicted before. “I’ve been avoiding this conversation. Part of me was hoping that if I ignored it, then it wouldn’t happen.”

“What are you talking about?”

He ran his hands through his hair and swore. Sucking in a deep breath, we locked eyes. “When we turn eighteen, we go through an initiation to take our role within the family officially. Nash already had his, and I’m next.”

Ice-cold fear rippled down my back. “What kind of initiation?”

“I won’t know until that day, but Lawrence makes it a whole thing. Think of a cult on crack ceremony, from what Nash told us. We weren’t allowed to attend his, and he doesn’t say much about it, but it was bad.”

Standing from the bench—I couldn’t sit any longer—I paced as my mind ran. All I could think of was the night Owen had almost beaten him to death.

“Myles…are they going to beat you again?”

He bit his lip. “I don’t know. They might, or it could be worse.”

“Worse? Worse than almost being beaten to death? What is worse?”

“They could ask me to do things that I’ll be forced to refuse, and they’ll kill me for it,” he said matter-of-factly, and my mouth fell open.

“Like what?”

He looked away and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Hunt people through a forest like an animal and kill them after I rape them,” he said. I stumbled back and almost fell on my ass.