Page 121 of Avenging Azalea

He touched our foreheads together.

“That’s because you weren’t. Your wings had been clipped, and you’d forgotten what it was to fly until you came here. The rest you’ve done all on your own.”

“I can never repay you for all that you’ve done,” I said.

“That’s the thing, Little Bird, you already have.”

My breath shook as I breathed in. “Okay…get me a pad of paper and a pen. I’ll tell you.”

Chapter

Thirty-Nine

TITUS

The shrill whistle made me drop my pen as my head jerked up. Nathaniel stood in my office doorway with his fingers between his lips.

“Fuck, brother, are you trying to give me a heart attack?” I rolled my shoulders as my heart rate began to slow.

“If you don’t want to be startled, then don’t daydream at work,” Nathaniel teased as he walked in and sat down across from me. “Besides, I was standing there for five whole minutes trying to get your attention. Hell, I even knocked.”

“Sorry.” I looked down at the contracts I’d been trying to concentrate on and closed them, knowing it was a futile effort at this point. “Why are you here anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be on your honeymoon after that very exciting reception?”

Nathaniel laughed. “I didn’t know Ronan had it in him. He may be redeemable after all.”

“Told you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, we decided to go away for the whole month of December and right into the new year. We’re heading to Italy, and you should know that I’m laying the groundwork for a future deal with Mr. Genovese to move some of the business there.”

“Wow, you really are going for our father’s throat.”

“Well…you did ask me not to hit Mikhailov Industries directly.”

“True, I did ask that. Mom is going to be devastated that she won’t see guys over the holidays.”

Nathaniel sighed and looked down.

“She needs to leave him. I constantly beg her to, now more than ever, but…she says it will cause more drama than she’s ready for. The thing is, I can’t sit through a Christmas dinner across from him. Watching him say a prayer and talk about the unity of family while he would stab us all in the back if it suited him.”

“Tell me about it.”

“What’s going on,” Nathaniel asked.

I tapped my fingers on the desk as I stared into my brother’s eyes.

“Do you really want to hear about how right you are?”

Nathaniel’s eyes darkened. “No, I probably don’t. But if he has you up in your head this much, then spill. What did the POS do now?”

“POS?”

He lifted his shoulder and let it drop casually. “Piece of shit. I found it to be a rather fitting acronym for him.”

Smirking in agreement, I stood and walked over to the coffee maker in the corner.

“Want one,” I asked, pointing to the fancy machine.

“Sure.”