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1778 Words
His head was spinning when they got back to the Towers. Having missed his meds that morning, he was trying to hold his strained emotions together until Robert could grab them from his bag, but he could feel the darkness trying to reclaim his mentality. Groaning, he looked at Skylar’s retreating back while he leaned against the wall with his head in his hands.
Raising his head to look at the young woman, Robert gave Russell the side-eye. “She actually behaved on the trip.”
“Of course, she did. She knew what was at stake, and we were all trained not to mix business with pleasure.” Russell replied.
The main elevator doors slid open as he caught the little plastic bottle tossed his way. Taking the recommended dose, he swallowed the meds with a gulp of water. Grunting a laugh, he watched as his brother-in-law walked over to them. Another guard jogged over as soon as their stuff was unloaded.
Handing over the keys, Robert ran a hand through his dark hair. “I feel like I need two days of sleep.”
“Wanna go to Carson’s later?” Russell asked.
“Thanks for keeping my little cousin safe, guys,” Callum said with a smile. “Where’s Skylar?”
Yawning noisily, Robert stretched out his limbs to shake off the exhaustion. “She’s already gone home. It was nice to get out of the city for a while, but holy hell was that an eye-opening experience. If you thought that our lil’ red-headed she-devil was bad, the entertainment industry is even worse. What did Sky call it, Russ?”
Laughing under his breath, Russell shook his head. “She called it a cutthroat business.”
“Right, right,” Robert nodded. “I have never been more ready to try batting for my own team until I had needy, bratty, bitchy girls surrounding me all in one place. Now I get why Russ keeps saying Sky ain’t so bad.”
Snickering, Russell shook his head. “Sa-wing, batter, batter!”
“I’ll swing at your head in a minute,” his friend groused. Looking back at the other two men, Robbie asked: “Anything else you needed, Boss?”
Callum shook his head. He’d only come to find out how Russell was holding up, but he could clearly see that the guy was well on his way to being back to normal. Well, as normal as his life would allow, anyway. “Nah, you’re all good to take a rest day. Robbie, Giana has requested your presence at the Victors manor to join her for dinner.”
Intrigued by the sudden invitation, Robert’s eyes went wide with a mix of eager acceptance and apprehension. “Um, did she happen to say why she specifically asked for me?”
“Something about wanting to get to know you on a more personal level,” Callum replied.
“Oh, my. Looks like you caught the eye of an heiress. That’s some tough luck, buddy,” Russell joked as he followed his best friend up to the main level.
Falling into the joke easily, Robert shook his head, “Nah. Soon as she finds out just how street I am, she’ll turn tail and run.”
“You think so? I mean, she was sizing you up an awful lot on the trip.”
Grinning, Robert shook his head. “Take that back!”
“Nah, that’s pure blackmail material right there. It’s just what I needed: something to hold over your head for a change,” Russell shot back. Winking, he chuckled, “Besides, I overheard her telling Sky that she wanted to – ahem – lick the wrapper.”
“You jest.”
Their laughter drew in quite a few stares as they made their way to the living quarters. Getting to the apartment that Robert shared with his uncle, they could hear Ross yelling inside. A woman’s voice was arguing with him, and Russell watched while his friend paled considerably.
He didn’t know anyone who could be brassy enough to argue with Ross Drake, but it was obvious from the look on Robert’s face that it was someone he knew. Someone that made him angry enough to spit fire.
“That f*****g b***h is here. How dare she come to my home like this?” Robert hissed, switching to his usual street talk.
Nodding, Russell set his jaw. “Need backup?”
“Nah, I got this,” the other man replied. He opened the door, motioning for Russell to follow him as he walked into the apartment.
The shouts got louder as he neared the living room, his bag slung over his shoulder. Sighing, he winced as he noticed how enraged his uncle really was at the woman standing with her arms crossed over her ample chest. Her eyes locked onto him, her nostrils flaring as she breathed heavily.
“Who was that ho hanging all over you, Rob? Are you cheating on me?”
“Elanore, we broke up a while ago. Not my problem you missed the memo after I told you a few times that we were over.” He shot over his shoulder as he put his bags in his bedroom.
She shrieked, “No! I won’t let you leave me!”
“This behaviour is exactly why I left you, El. I didn’t want to deal with you being a bona fide b***h to me all the time. You undermined my job, my friends, and my family because you assumed that I would spend every waking minute catering to your ass.” Robert stated without raising his voice.
Stomping her foot, she glared at him while he just stared at her. “You’re a liar!”
Forgetting who he was with, he grabbed the woman around the throat and pinned her to the wall. Her eyes popped wide as she gasped, clawing at his hand with her nails. “I don’t have time to lie. Now, let me say this in layman’s terms. I. Am. Done. With. You. Find someone else to use as your puppet, cause it ain’t going to be me anymore.”
Letting go, he watched her sob as she fell to the floor. “But…”
“Get out, Elanore. I’m done, and you’re not welcomed here. Forget you ever knew me, because if I ever find out you’re badmouthing me, it will be the end of you. I got a nice little friend that’s all of five-foot-five with a kickass temper, and I’m not scared to call in a favour.” Robert snarled.
Now scared out of her wits, the woman sobbed as she grabbed her things and moved to leave the apartment. “Rob, a-”
“Out, Elanore.”
“Fine,” she snapped, suddenly no longer upset. “Don’t come crawling back to me when other sluts can’t do you like I can.”
Laughing, Robert waved his hand. “Buh-bye, b***h. Don’t worry. I’d rather shoot myself in the head than go crawling back to your ass.”
When everything was calm again and the apartment was cleaned, Ross smirked at his nephew. He knew that the young man he helped raise since he joined with the mafia hadn’t meant to lose his cool, so he gave him a pass on the issue. Looking over at Russell, he let his smirk turn into a grin. “A little birdie told me that you got a ring on your trip. Can I see it?”
“Little birdie is gonna get shot if this intel leaks to Sky before I cover all my bases. I got plans to have dinner with her, David, and my siblings tomorrow night. Did Declan say how the wedding went or is he back yet?” Russell replied, slipping in a question of his own as he handed over the velvet-clad box that housed the engagement ring.
Ross let out a whistle, “Robbie picked this out, didn’t he?”
“Had to,” his nephew called from the refrigerator. Closing it, he returned with three cans of beer. Handing them out, he said, “Russ kept the women busy while I went to the store for him, so only the three of us know anything about it.”
“Well, ain’t you the sweetest? Yes, your brother is home, the wedding was okay as far as I know. You’ll have to ask him for details, though. I do know that Kenni went ape-s**t on Thomas’ family. I only wish I could have been there to see it happen.” Ross said before he popped the top on his can.
An hour later, after chatting with his friend for a bit longer, Russell returned to his brother’s flat. As soon as he entered, he was knocked over by Hans and Melody. Laughing as he played with them, he realized that his patience with children exceeded what tolerance he had when other adults were around.
“Oh, good, you’re back,” Temperance laughed when she saw them on the floor of the entryway. “Lunch is just about ready if you’re hungry.”
“Tem, can I ask you something?”
“Anything at all,” she replied.
He smiled sadly, “I, um, I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but I was kind of wondering if I could steal your man for dinner tomorrow night? I’m…” lowering his voice, he whispered. “Hoping to ask Sky the question, and I wanted Dec and Amber to be there with me.”
Looking at him in shock, Temperance cooed as she hugged him. “Oh, Russell, I’m so happy for you, sweetie. I know it’s been a hard road, but you’ve come so far from where you used to be. You’ll let me know what she says, right?”
“Yeah, absolutely,” he whispered, returning the hug as a few thankful tears escaped his eyes. “Thanks, Tem.”
“What for?”
Russell smiled, “For everything, Tem. You have no idea how much Dec and I appreciate your light in our lives. I’m so glad you’re my sister-in-law.”
“Declan was a sweet man right from the start. As for you, Russ? You were family the day I found out about everything from Declan. He’s in the study if you want to go invite him out, and I am content to stay home and have a Disney movie marathon with the kids as long as you provide the snacks.” She advised before returning to the kitchen to plate up lunch.
- Writer
