Page 82 of Bitter Heat

His worry was easy to read, and she felt like shit. When she would have gone to him, Roth leaned down and nuzzled her temple and reminded her quietly, “United front.”

“When did this happen?” Lyle asked.

“In Colorado and it’s been going on ever since,” Roth said bluntly.

She wanted to stomp on his foot. Did he have to tell him everything? God!

“Is that true, Minnie?” Lyle asked.

The hand on her nape felt like a noose. “Yeah.”

Lyle ran a hand through his hair. “When’s the wedding?”

“We—” she began, but Roth interrupted her.

“Within a couple of weeks.”

She jerked, but he covered the movement by bringing her against his body.

“We don’t want to wait, do we, princess?” he asked.

She opened and closed her mouth and uttered not one word. Wedding?

“We hope Colette will be recovered by then, so you can all attend,” Roth said smoothly. “We want to include the family this time, and make it right.”

What the fuck was he doing? Her family wasn’t a part of the deal. They didn’t have a wedding the first time—they had a judge—so why would it be any different this time around?

“Min, do your sisters know?” Lyle asked.

She shook her head.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I… I knew it was gonna stir up the past, and I wanted to keep it under wraps as long as possible but…”

“But we’re not hiding like last time,” Roth finished.

Lyle sighed. “Are you sure about this?”

He couldn’t hide his skepticism, and she couldn’t blame him. She was in way over her head.

“Yes,” she said with a confidence she didn’t feel.

Lyle jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “You better tell your sisters. I need to talk to Roth.”

“Lyle.”

“This is man talk, Min.”

When Roth released her, she walked toward him. Even though he stood like a soldier ready for battle, she wrapped her arms around him.

“I didn’t want to hurt you,” she said quietly.

His arms came around her. “You haven’t. I just wish it was anyone else.”

Me too, she thought. She walked out of the waiting room. She paused in the hallway and looked at them through the glass. They were both watching her, but Roth commanded her attention. He didn’t care that Lyle was about to rake him over the coals. No matter what he was up against, he always stood tall, and he never wavered. Once upon a time, she had admired him for that trait, but now, it made her stomach churn. He would never stop, never give in. This was the only way to protect her family from him. He would spend his lifetime punishing her family for trying to protect one of their own. One year and all of this would be over.

When she entered Colette’s room, she found her sisters cooing over Polara who was sound asleep in her mother’s arms. She stopped at the foot of the bed and struggled to find the right words.

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