Page 112 of Humility

“I’m dead,” I mumbled as I turned around.

“Close the door,” Angelo ordered, and I stepped into the half-trashed office, but Dario looked just as mad, which confused me. I didn’t think either of them would be this angry over Jasmine and me having alone time.

“Look, man, I’m sorry about the greenhouse. I didn’t think you’d be this pissed off,” I said, and Angelo turned around to look at me with a bottle of whiskey in one hand and a glass in the other. There was a fifty-fifty chance he was going to whip the glass at my head.

“I don’t give a fuck about that,” he said.

“He lies. He does. Just something else has him more pissed off than Jasmine cock blocking him,” Dario piped in and earned a glare.

“Fuck!” Angelo bellowed, and I looked between him and Dario as Angelo slammed the glass down and chugged the whiskey straight from the bottle. There was very little that bothered me, but whenever my father was stressed, he drank like this. It bothered me when he did it, and it bothered me now. The tension in the room was palpable, making me antsy.

“What the hell is going on?”

“You tell him,” Angelo said, stomping over to the window and staring outside.

I looked at Dario for the answer and felt like yelling, spit it out already. “The blood is back. It was Lucas.”

Chapter Forty-Nine

JASMINE

I didn’t know what the hell was going on, but the guys had been cagey and not around at all. It didn’t matter what time of day or night I went looking for them. They were locked in Angelo’s office in a meeting, not in their rooms or not home. If this was some new way Angelo had conjured up to get back at me for being mad at him, it worked because I was irritable and couldn’t concentrate. I finished patting the dirt into place for the newest row of seeds I’d planted and sighed as I stared out the window to the gardens that in a couple months would be covered in snow.

Pulling off my gloves, I stepped outside and walked over. I didn’t bother to tell the guards not to follow me. They wouldn’t listen, and I was past the point of caring. Two stood outside my bedroom door at all times, two more at each end of the hall, and so many outside that I could’ve thrown a stone from my bedroom and hit any of them. The sun was warm, and I soaked it in as I walked the short path to the lone bench.

The roses reminded me of my mama, and I sat beside the bright red bush and watched as a honey bee landed on one of the large flowers. I was captivated by the little insect as it worked, my mind drawing parallels to my own life. So many little pleasures surrounded us as long as we were willing to look and appreciate them. It wasn’t until my mama was in the final days of her disease that I understood what separated me from my schoolmates. The other girls made fun of me because I was different. It became so clear that they’d never been forced to appreciate the next day and simple things like walking around a garden with a loved one or laughing one more time. I’d watched my papa grieve like he was the one sick with each passing day, and it tore me apart that it didn’t matter how much money we had. No one could help her.

“May I sit?” I was startled by Angelo’s voice and looked up to see him standing a few feet away. I nodded. “You can wait by the greenhouse. We’re fine,” Angelo said to my two shadows before sitting beside me.

He laid his hand down between us, his palm open, but didn’t say anything. I knew this was his way of apologizing. Angelo wasn’t great with words. He was a man of action. Sighing, I placed my hand in his, and he scooted closer.

“It’s stunning out here, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is. I didn’t take you for being much of a garden guy,” I said. His face was bathed in sunlight, and the intense worry lines he usually carried around were smooth.

“I built it for you,” he said. He smiled as he looked at the skeptical look on my face. “Okay, not for you exactly. I built it for me, but because it reminded me of you. I’d never tell Dario or Enzo that,” he said, and my mouth tilted up in a lopsided grin.

“Does this mean you’re not upset about Enzo and me the other day? I feel like you’ve been avoiding me,” I said, and all humor was wiped from his face.

“I will never be okay with you and someone else when I’m not involved, but….” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m learning to grow as a person.” I giggled at that, and he bumped my shoulder like when we were kids. “No, I’m not angry, and I wasn’t avoiding you. I’ve had some business to work out.”

We heard a honking noise and saw six white swans flying overhead. “Wow, they’re beautiful. I’ve never seen them this close.”

“They love the pond.”

“I’ll have to go see them later,” I said, excited to see the majestic birds up close.

Angelo cleared his throat. “So, I’ve wanted to apologize for treating you like I did at dinner with Riker and Minetta. I shouldn’t have disrespected you, but in front of them, it was worse.”

“Why did you?”

Angelo looked at me, and his eyes were so blue today that they sparkled like the ocean. I could almost see the waves from back home in his eyes. It was beautiful here, but I wanted to take him home and explain everything to Papa. It was risky. Papa could hold a grudge, but I didn’t want to marry Angelo without him there to give me away. I didn’t want my wedding in hiding and in a town I hardly knew. Angleo put my hand in his lap, and the tension seemed to seep out of him as he held on like a life preserver.

“Tell me, Angelo, what’s wrong? I know something is wrong.”

“I can give you a dozen reasons, Tiger. I can tell you that it was an old habit or that I grew up this way, and it’s all I know. I can tell you that I’ve always had to prove myself, and to have anyone, not just you, defend me like that would have earned me a slap from my father, as he called me weak. I can tell you that something about Riker and how he looked at you terrified me, and when you spoke, I felt emasculated in front of him.”

Angelo turned on the bench and laid his hand on my thigh. “I could even tell you that I’ve been under a great deal of stress, and I’m not handling it or my fear for your safety very well. All of that would be true, but at the end of the day…they remain nothing but excuses.” He licked his lips and held my hand a little tighter. “I’ve never been a good person, Tiger. I’ve never been considerate or kind like you. I’ve never put other’s feelings first or cared about the consequences of my actions, but you make me want to be better. No, you make me want to be great. I just fear you’ll be fed up and gone by the time I get there.”