“You’re wrong!” I shout, shoving his chest and letting my anger get the better of me.
He’s caught by his brothers before he can fall back, and when he lunges for me they keep a tight hold on him.
“Let me go!” he shouts, his face reddening. I can see he wants to tear me apart, but I’m ready if he gets his hands on me.
“You’re not willing to admit that you lost it all because you were too fucking stubborn to ask for help. I could have bailed you out and saved what you built, but your pride was all you cared about.”
“I didn’t need you to save me,” he says through clenched teeth.
“I wasn’t trying to. I was trying to be a friend,” I spit back at him, and the look on his face tells me he never saw it that way.
“You can say what you want now, but the damage is done. I lost it all because of you.”
I take a step back and throw my hands up. “You’re determined to see me as the enemy and I’m done trying to convince you otherwise.” I reach for Gia and she comes to my side as I put my arm around her. “I loved your sister before I knew she was related to you. But I won’t stop loving her because your decisions put you in this position.” I glance to the brothers on either side of him that are holding him back. “Get him out of here.”
“We’re not done here,” Jason says, tugging against their hold.
“For now we are,” I say and hold Gia tighter. “If you want to do this one on one, just let me know the time and place. But me kicking your ass won’t change a thing. You’ll still have to admit that what happened wasn’t my fault.”
“Watch your back,” Jason says as he breaks free of his brothers and clenches his fists. He turns his sights on Gia as I watch him swallow. “He’s not good enough for you.”
“You would say that about anyone,” she says, placing her hand on my bare chest. “I love Marco, and I’ve made my choice. He’s it for me.”
Hearing her say the words to someone else somehow makes them more real. She can tell me she loves me in the quiet and when we’re alone and it feels so damn good, but having her admit it to a room full of people makes me feel ten feet tall and bulletproof.
“It’s your life, and your mistake,” he says and pushes past his brothers and storms out of the apartment.
“Jesus,” Caroline whispers from behind me after they shut the door before her other brothers shake their heads and go. I can’t tell whose side they fall on in all of this—probably their brother’s, even if they think he’s wrong.
“Why don’t we give you two some time to talk,” Aiden says as he takes Caroline’s hand and they go to the door with Elvis in tow.
“But I want to stay and find out what happens next,” Caroline complains, but Aiden just shakes his head and keeps on tugging her.
“Let me know if you need anything,” Aiden says to me and I nod.
“I’ll talk to you later. I want to know everything,” Caroline says to Gia over her shoulder as Aiden pulls her out of the apartment.
Silence passes for a moment as we stand there looking at one another. Finally Gia sighs and then wraps her arms around my waist.
“I didn’t know anything about his business.” She shakes her head and there’s a sad look in her eyes. “It went under?”
“It was a few years ago,” I sigh. “My firm was looking to invest and it could have put him on the map. But he wouldn’t meet the terms and we went with another option. It sent his company into bankruptcy.”
“That’s awful. I wonder if anyone else knows.”
“I doubt it. Jason was always really private and that’s how he ended up like that in the first place. But I’ve heard through the grapevine that he’s onto something again. Something that could be huge. But that’s his story to tell.”
“I love him, but I don’t want this to cause problems.”
“The only problem right now is that you’ve got too many clothes on and I’m not inside you,” I say, pressing her against the wall. “Let’s take care of that.”
“You read my mind.”
I lift her up and her legs wrap around my waist. I unbutton my pants and free my cock while she rubs her hands across my bare chest. I push into her, her wet heat surrounding me as I grunt. She’s tight and hot as I slide in and out of her and try to erase all the drama.
The only thing that matters is Gia and what her heart desires. I can put up with anything, including her asshole brothers, if it means at the end of the day she is in my bed.