Page 41 of Avenging Azalea

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

Be careful what you wish for.

It was a common saying, and I was finding out firsthand how true it was. All my hopes and dreams for Fawn had materialized, and they were punching me square in the face. It was official. I was having an existential crisis. If I was the good guy like I claimed, then I should be happy for her and leave her the hell alone, but I wasn’t happy. In fact, all I wanted to do was lock her in her fucking bedroom and keep her forever.

“Well, aren’t you a sorry sight.”

Ronan was leaning against the archway when I looked up from my misery.

“What do you want? And who do I need to fire for letting you into my home,” I asked, downing the rest of my drink and staring into the flames of the fake fire across the room.

“I let myself in. You were ignoring my calls, so I figured I’d come right to the source.”

Ronan came in, helped himself to my scotch, and flopped down on the chair opposite from me.

“Well, you found me. So, what do you want? Because I have to tell you…I’m not in the mood for any of your shit, brother.

He took a sip of his drink and licked his lips.

“This is premium shit. I have to hand it to Nathaniel. He’s good. You don’t happen to know where he’s hiding his distillery, do you?”

I turned my glare on Ronan. “Even if I did, which I don’t, I wouldn’t tell you.”

“Ouch, not very brotherly of you.”

Shaking my head, I stood and walked over to the bar to refill my glass.

Fuck it.

It had been a shitty night, and Ronan’s visit wasn’t improving my outlook. I brought the whole bottle back to the couch.

“Why are you here, Ronan?”

He never randomly dropped in, at least not anymore. I poured myself some more scotch and eased back into the couch cushions to stare at my brother. We used to be close, inseparable even. But three years ago, that all changed. Now, seemingly overnight, he had become obsessed with taking over the family and proving he could be as big of an asshole as Father. I missed Ronan, but I didn’t trust him anymore, and that had put a massive strain on our relationship.

He swirled his drink. “Where is she?”

“Who?”

“The girl you took in.”

I narrowed my eyes. Why was he suddenly asking about Fawn?

“She has a name, and she’s not here. I’ll ask you one more time before I throw you out of my house. What do you want?”

“Fuck, you’re touchy.” He sighed and locked eyes with me. “Fine. You can’t marry Vera.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“You just can’t. She’s not right for you.” Ronan sipped his drink while I blinked at him. “I’m serious. She’s not like you. You were holding your shit together by the skin of your teeth in Paris. Every picture screamed, “Get me the fuck out of here.” You hate the fashion world, the models, the parties, all of it. That was one trip what the hell are you going to be like when that world becomes your entire life?”

“You’re right. I do hate it. Vera is much more your type. Do you want her now? Because if you do, then just tell Father you’ve changed your mind. I’ll happily step aside.”

“Fuck no, I’d rather fuck farm animals. But you have to get out of this arrangement.”

A disturbing image of Ronan with a sheep formed in my mind. I shook my head to try and make it go away.

“Why do you have to bring innocent animals in on your depravity? Now that’s stuck in my head,” I growled, pinching the bridge of my nose.