“All of us have to go?” I thought I was done with the bastards until Christmas.
“Invite says Sin, you, and me.”
“He knows.” Vinemont shook his head, his brows pinched.
“Knows what?” I scanned the invitation, the stark lines of a New Orleans address and a time with an oak tree watermark.
“He knows my Acquisition has changed hands. He knows or he never would have invited Lucius.” Vinemont’s violence had reopened the wounds in his knuckles. Blood dripped to the floor, but he didn’t notice. A vein thrummed in his neck as he stared murder at Lucius.
“Hey, I didn’t tell him. But what does it matter?” Lucius put his hand around my waist. “It’s true.”
Bad move. Vinemont was already on a hair trigger. He lunged for Lucius, grabbing him by the neck as they fell in a heap on the floor. I stumbled backward and sat down hard.
With a guttural roar, Vinemont flexed his bloodied knuckles as he choked his brother.
Lucius gripped Vinemont’s hands and ripped one free before leaning up and head-butting him. Vinemont groaned at the impact and slammed Lucius back down, pressing harder with the one hand still at his brother’s throat. Lucius reared back with his right hand and aimed a fist at Vinemont’s jaw, the blow sending him crashing to the floor. Lucius jumped on top of his brother, both men slugging away.
I should have been happy. My plan was working. This was what I’d wanted—them tearing each other apart so that I could stand over their shredded remains. But as they fought, I wanted nothing more than for it to stop. The sickening thuds of fists on flesh, the blood, the grunts and anger.
I covered my ears. “Stop!” I didn’t realize I was capable of the scream that tore from my lungs.
Lucius held his fist ready to strike before pushing himself off Vinemont, landing with a heavy clunk that made the chandelier overhead rattle. Both men stayed put, breathing heavily and eyeing each other as if waiting for it to start again.
I heard footsteps on the staircase behind me, and then Teddy’s voice. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Don’t worry about it.” Lucius grinned and put his hand in the air, giving Teddy a thumbs up, though he didn’t take his eyes from Vinemont. “Everything’s fine, Teddy.”
“Fine.” Vinemont agreed and sat up.
“Sure. Right.” Teddy offered me his hand. “Nothing in this house is fine. Come on, Stella.”
I took it and he pulled me to my feet. I could feel two sets of eyes on my back the whole way up the staircase until I turned the corner toward my room.
“Are you okay? What was that about?” Teddy asked.
We hurried down the hallway and into my bedroom. I dropped down on my bed before digging the heels of my palms into my eyes. Teddy sat next to me and put his hand on my back, rubbing it gently.
“I’m okay. Thanks, Teddy. And that was about me. Well, actually, I think it was about me and Cal Oakman.”
Teddy blanched. “I hate that guy. Always have.”
“You and me both.”
He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me over so my head rested on his shoulder.
“Are we going to make it through all this, Stella?” He sounded tired, far beyond his years.
“Honestly? I don’t know. But I think your chances are a smidge better than mine.” I smiled weakly. “So there’s that.”
He rested his chin on top of my head. “I would have taken that whipping for you. If I’d known about it. Which I didn’t.”
His unexpected kindness was like a balm, though tears stung my eyes and I swallowed hard. “I wish you didn’t know about that. And I don’t think that’s how it works, anyway. But I appreciate the sentiment.”
He took a deep breath. “I wish a lot of things. I wish there was no Acquisition. I wish we weren’t here. I wish Laura and I could be together. I wish…”
“I know. I have my fair share of wishes, too.” A flash of images sparked through my mind—Mom, Dad, and the spider who haunted my waking moments along with my dreams. Wishes for each of them. Some good. Some bad.
We sat silently for long enough to hear Vinemont and Lucius go to their respective corners, and to hear Farns start cleaning up downstairs.
When Teddy left, I realized all three Vinemont men had made inroads into my heart.
And I cursed them for it.
Chapter Seven
Stella
Renee flitted about, bobby pins hanging from her mouth and test smudges of eye shadow along the back of her hand. She had been working on me for over an hour, but it was obvious that getting ready for a fancy party was a bit out of her skill set. Still, she gave it her best—rolling my hair, curling my lashes, doing my makeup. I’d argued at first, told her I could do it myself. With a raised eyebrow and a shake of her head, she’d whisked me off to my room.