Page 99 of Sweet Addiction
Lilah
They get kind of amped up.
Jamie
Whatever. When does the next book come out?
Dillan
About that . . .
I look over at Rome as we get into his car, nervous energy rolling off me in heavy waves. I swear he just smiles, and it puts me at ease and gives me the strength to pull the trigger and do what I’d been thinking about doing for months.
I’m tired of being lonely.
Tired of hiding the truth from my friends and my family.
Yes, this town is nosey as hell and all sorts of up in each other’s business, but I’m not talking about spilling my secrets to the town. I’m talking about telling my family. The people I trust most in the world. And when Rome covers my hand with his and pulls out of the driveway, I think I’ve found the strength I need to do just that.
Dillan
The book isn’t coming out for at least another six months because I haven’t finish writing the third act yet.
I toss my phone in my purse, knowing it’s blowing the fuck up from the chiming notifications blaring from my cell and Rome’s, and lace my fingers through his. “It’s done. I told them.I’ll leave them a voice memo explaining everything when we get to your parents’ house.”
“I’m proud of you, Dillan.”
I lean my head back against the headrest and watch the stars in the sky fly by. “You know what? I’m proud of me too.”
ROME
Act as if it is impossible to fail.
—Rome’s favorite fortune cookie fortune
Lexie barely waits for Dillan to walk through my parents’ door before dragging her by the arm up to Lucky’s old bedroom. Guess she didn’t appreciate the drop-and-dump text message Dillan pulled, outing herself as Theia DeLaurentiis, then ignoring her phone as we drove here. Pretty sure Lucky didn’t either, considering the look on his face.
“Seriously? She wrote the book?” he asks, a look somewhere between shock, awe, and annoyance front and center. “Like all the sexy shit too?”
I shake my head and brush by him. “Don’t talk about Dillan and sexy shit in the same sentence, dickhead.”
“Dude, have you read it? It’s hot. And now finding out it’s Dillan...”
“Watch it, brother,” I warn, and the fucker smiles as Dad walks in, a beer in his hand and a grin on his face. You’d never know the power our father has in this city if you haven’t experienced it first-hand. He doesn’t flaunt it. But if you know, then you know to fear him. Everyone outside our family does.
“Go say hello to your mother and grandmother. Your sister isn’t making it, and Maddox is still out of the country, so it’s just you two and the girls tonight,” he warns with a smile, letting us know all Mom and Nonna’s attention will be focused on us and the women we’ve finally brought into the family over the past few months. We all knew the rules growing up. You didn’t bring a girl home unless she wasthegirl. Mom didn’t want to meet any twats, not that she’d ever call them that. At least not in front of us. And now that three out of her four kids are happily married, and I’ve basically announced to the world that I’m off the market, I think she has visions of way too many grandbabies running around her house dancing through her head. “You ready for this weekend, Rome?”
“I was ready a year ago. Now I’m fucking amped. You coming?” I ask Lucky and him.
“We’ll be there,” Dad confirms, looking from Lucky to me. “You know your mother can’t bring herself to watch you fight, but Lucky and I are driving up tomorrow.”
Lucky looks up the curved staircase, like he’s worried Lexie’s never letting Dillan come back down before he disappears up there after them.
“So... The bigger question seems to be will Dillan be there?” Dad asks as he lifts a beer to his lips. Fuck, I miss beer. “Since she wasn’t at the press conference.”
“She’s coming. She hates this kind of crowd and all the media attention that comes with it though. It’s why she skipped the press conference. There was no need for her to be there.” I shrug, not wanting to say anything that makes my girl sound weak butwanting her protected when I can’t be the one doing it. “I already asked Ryker if he’d keep an eye on her, but?—”
“You don’t even have to ask. I was already planning on staying by her side. I think her father and Asher are coming up too. Not sure Dillan knows that yet though.”
