by D. A. Young
Her phone buzzed, and she knew it was Holt. She contemplated ignoring it but knew he would just come knocking at her door. Since that day when he’d shut her out and hurt her feelings, Kat had been distancing herself from him. How foolish she’d been to come hauling ass back to The Row only for him to ignore her. She wasn’t one to sit around waiting for a man to pay attention to her, so she threw herself back into work and finishing upcoming collections for her jewelry line Vixen.
But she found herself curious about what he would be doing in Sweden so soon and decided to visit. After getting the address from her father’s ever-efficient secretary Magda, she’d given it to the driver, and they’d pulled up to an estate so big and lavish that it made her family home look like a clubhouse. Immediately, she’d called Magda to see if she’d made a mistake, and the older woman was adamant that she had not.
Kat was just about to instruct the driver to leave when the ornate front doors opened to reveal a group of elegantly dressed men and women that included Holton Brammer, carpenter extraordinaire. Only- he didn’t look like her Holt. Gone was the simple man of tee-shirts and jeans, shoulder-length blonde hair, and scruffy beard. In his place was a super sleek European dressed in a slim-cut charcoal gray suit, and his thick blonde hair was pulled into a sleek bun atop his head. Even his beard was different and trimmed to a point three inches below his chin. The expensive Rolex gleaming on his wrist was easily fifty thousand dollars, and he wore it with such normalcy that it scared her how easily he’d morphed into another person.
Desperate for reassurance, she’d texted him:
I miss you. How are you doing?
Kat watched as he pulled his phone out and glanced at it briefly before putting it back into his suit pocket without replying to her. Devastated, she’d instructed the driver to leave. It was only hours later that she’d received a text:
Sorry, I was out hunting with my cousins. Call me back.
Since receiving that text, she’d avoided him as much as she could, even going so far as having a child in her lap all night tonight to avoid his nearness. If he was aware of what she was doing, he gave no indication as he patiently helped her with the children. Although, she was a bit peeved that he hadn’t insisted she partake in the bouquet throwing. When he asked, she just shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve already caught one once, there’s no need to do it again.”
In the end, she was glad that she hadn’t participated in that fiasco as Casey proved how suicidal he was. With a sigh of regret, she looked at her phone and read his text.
I’d like to see you. Can I come to you?
Kat worried her bottom lip before taking a picture of the three sleeping children. She sent him the pic with a text.
Sorry, not tonight.
Then she turned her phone off and slipped into bed. Ever since she was a teenager, she’d been hyper-aware of Holt. He was just as good-looking as her brothers and Guy, but her feelings were anything but brotherly when he looked at her with his smoldering blue gaze, causing a slow heat to rise in her stomach and her throat to close up. It wasn’t until two and a half years ago that Holt had given any indication that he felt remotely the same. But after his treatment of her and what she’d seen in Sweden, they were clearly not on the same page, so it was best to keep it moving.
Chapter Eight
The next morning, Sidra opened her bleary eyes and blinked at the bright sunlight coming through the large bay windows of the suite. The balcony doors were open, and a cool breeze was coming through the bedroom. She sat up slowly, pulling the sheet with her to cover her nakedness and winced at the ache in her back and the tenderness between her legs. Casey was in beast mode and had shown no mercy last night as he took her over and over again, making her scream her love for him. But not once had he said the words back.
She yawned and swiped her matted hair from her face, gasping as she came away with a black streak. Crap, she’d gone to sleep with her makeup on. She’d been too tired to move, but he had been so worth it. There was a knock on the door, and Sidra looked to her left, but Casey was no longer in bed. A sound by the patio caught her attention, and a moment later, he appeared looking fresh, recharged and insanely handsome in a pair of cargo khakis and a blue linen shirt. She looked down at the black streak on her hand and shuddered, imagining what she looked like.
“Gaaah! Do you ever turn it off?” she growled sourly as he passed by the bed to answer the door.
“Turn what off?” he asked curiously, reaching for his wallet and staring at her matted hair and bite marks on her shoulder with primal satisfaction. Sidra looked like a woman who’d been thoroughly loved.
“Your golden-boy attractiveness,” she grumbled and he grinned smugly.
“Nope, sorry there’s no off switch. Besides, not all of us are auditioning to be the next Hamburglar like yourself. I ordered us breakfast, so you should get out of bed and make yourself… presentable.” He eyed her hair, and when he kept walking, she stuck her tongue out behind his back.
Once he disappeared from her sight, she staggered to the bathroom and gave a small cry of dismay. She had love marks on her breasts, thighs, and…yep, her ass too. Her cute hairstyle was no more, and it looked like a rat had fallen asleep on her head. What a jerk!
Sidra brushed her teeth and then took a quick shower. Her hair was a jumble of curls, but there was nothing she could do about it, so she left it that way. As she slathered on olive butter body lotion, she wondered what would happen now between her and Casey. Whatever happened next, she needed to make sure he knew all of her crazy. There was no other way to do that except to introduce him to it and let him see for himself. As Sidra made up her mind to do just that, there was a niggling sense that something was escaping her, but she just couldn’t put her finger on it…
Casey pounded on the door. “Let’s go, ‘Grumpy Cat’! Breakfast is gettin’ cold!”
“Yes, sir, drill sergeant,” she called back to him and quickly threw on her silk robe before opening the door. She walked out onto the patio, and Casey stood up and pulled her chair out, making sure she was situated before sitting down again. It killed Sidra to think that little things like that she’d taken for granted. Sidra looked at the table and saw he’d ordered her favorites: avocado egg toast, a bowl of fresh fruit, granola, and yogurt. For himself, Casey ordered bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, and French toast.
“Hungry much?” she teased, picking up a slice of toast and taking a bite. He gave her a roguish wink before digging in.
“Starvin’ after the night I had,” Casey countered, enjoying the way she flushed and lowered her eyes with embarrassment. “You ready to talk because I’m ready to listen, and it’s a one-time offer.”
Sidra slowly chewed her food as she looked out at the ocean. “My mother Lena was a receptionist at the firm Nero first worked for in D.C. According to my mother, it was love at first sight for him. He took one look at her and was smitten, but he was already married to his boss’s daughter Cecelia. His father-in-law Mauricio, an aristocratic Spaniard, disliked him for not only daring to court his daughter but because he was also a ‘lowly’ Dominican. My mother, who soon became his personal secretary, was always adamant that Mauricio was an elitist and talked crap behind his son-in-law’s back. She felt bad for Nero because she could see how hard he was trying to win Mauricio’s approval but to no avail. Soon, Lena was consoling him; one thing led to another, and they started sleeping together. My mother claims she tried to break it off because she needed her job, but Nero always managed to change her mind.
He said that he would leave his wife when he made it on his own. That Mauricio would destroy him if he left Cecelia right now. The year that he won his ‘infamous’ case, Cecelia became pregnant so he ‘had to’ stay with her. My mother left the firm and moved back to New York. She got another receptionist job and struggled until she ‘accidentally’,” Sidra’s voice turned bitter as she used air quotations and continued, “ran into Nero again at a lawyer’s convention.”
“At the time, Lena Barton didn’t do anything that she would not benefit from or be inconvenienced by,” Sidra said harshly. “Plus, one of my cousins spitefully spilled the beans at a holiday gathering.”
She was nine, and it had been another bad start to the holiday as Lena wailed and argued with Nero about leaving her. She’d yelled at Sidra the whole way to Granny’s house about being cuter and more engaging so “Daddy” would want to stay longer. As usual, when they entered the house, Lena went to repair her makeup. The adults exchanged knowing looks and then came the whispers. Sidra squared her shoulders and marched right into the crowd and started tap dancing to divert their attention. Then she told joke after joke until Lena reappeared cool, calm, and collected. Her cousins rolled their eyes at her as the adults praised her. It was later in the kitchen that they ganged up on her with Tanya leading the way.
“You always comin’ over here and showin’ your behind, Sidra! My mama says your mama is nothing but a skeezin’ ho, and that’s how she got your daddy,” Tanya sneered.
Sidra saw red as she jumped on her older cousin and took her along with the table that held their Thanksgiving dinner to the floor. Tanya got her ass whupped twice. Once by Sidra and then by their granny Evie. Sidra also got the switch from Evie and a blistering lecture from Lena for “embarrassing” her.
“Anyways, they ran into each other and yadda, yadda, yadda. He’s back in her bed, and nine months later, I entered the world. Nero had set her up in our brownstone and was paying all the bills. I never lacked for anything, and Lena stayed ready for Nero’s bi-weekly visits. By then, she was starting to get attention from other men, and she threatened Nero’s hand with them. She wanted him to leave Cecelia and Nina for us, but he kept putting her off. She got really mental with each visit until she offered him an ultimatum, and he chose his family. So, she cut him off and didn’t allow him to see me for a couple of years.”
“So, what did Nero do then?” Casey asked harshly. If he had a child, nothing and no one in the world would keep him out of their life, fuck a crazy baby mama. Judging from what he hadn’t seen at the Santos home, Nero didn’t feel the same way
“What he always does,” Sidra replied tiredly. “He did HIM. Nero loves no one more than Nero, and he couldn’t stand Lena’s rejection of him. So, he chased her around and she played keep away. What was he going to do? Take her to court and fight for custody?? NO ONE KNEW ABOUT ME. Do you know how I found out I had a sister???”
Casey shook his head wordlessly, and Sidra laughed a hard ugly laugh that chilled him to the bone. He hated to see and feel her pain like this but knew she had to keep going.
“I was twelve the first time Lena sent me to visit him in Virginia for two weeks….”
Nero had met her on the tarmac with balloons and a small pink rose bouquet. Standing next to him was an older Hispanic woman in a simple black shirtdress. The woman’s features were severe looking, from her beady eyes to her pointy chin, but when she smiled, her face radiated warmth.
“There’s my princess!” Nero shouted with a big grin, and Sidra nodded at him while keeping her eyes on the woman. “How’s Daddy’s little girl? I missed you so much, mija!
Give me a hug!”
Reluctantly, Sidra gave him a hug, but if he noticed her stiff demeanor, he wasn’t fazed by it as he squeezed her tightly and kissed her cheek. “Sidra, I’d like you to meet my aunt. This is your Tia Rocio. She’s come to stay with us and is going to watch you while I work.”
“But I thought you were taking time off,” Sidra said accusingly as she continued to eye Tia Rocio suspiciously. “You told Mommy that you were.”
Nero cupped her chin and looked into her eyes, “I’m sorry, but I’m working an important case. So Tia will stay with you okay? But I promise you we will have fun.”
He drove them to a small but nice home in an expensive neighborhood that had tons of big houses and told her this was his home.
“I thought your home would be bigger,” Sidra observed with a frown as she looked around, noticing the houses on either side of this one were enormous. “Why did they allow this small house to be built in this neighborhood?”
Nero laughed at her question, but Tia Rocio remained silent, and Sidra could feel the other woman’s disapproving vibes as he said with pride, “Didn’t I tell you she was smart? That’s MY daughter!”
The inside of the home was twice as big as the one Sidra shared with her mother but very simple. She walked around as Nero brought her bags in, and then he took her by the hand and showed Sidra her bedroom. “This is your room, baby! Do you like it?”
Sidra could only stare with distaste at the pink explosion that she would sleep in. It was frilly and pink on pink on pink. So over the top girly that she wondered why Nero thought she would like it. “It’s awful. Who likes this much pink?! No, thank you. I’ll sleep on the sofa in the living room.”
This seemed to make Nero incredibly happy as he shared a look with Rocio. “So, you are not an over the top girly-girl, eh?”
That night for dinner, they ate Dominican Locrio De Pollo, a savory chicken and rice dish with olives and capers, and Nero beamed with pride as Sidra had a second helping. “Yes, eat some more, mija! You should embrace your Dominican roots. For dessert, we will have tres leches cake.”
And that’s how Sidra’s visit went. She ate plenty of Dominican food, and Tia Rocio would take her to the pool, the movies, and the library. Nero would be home in time to say goodnight to her. The second week of her visit, Nero apologized for working so much and flew Sidra and Tia Rocio to Disneyworld. Sidra didn’t really mind; she actually preferred the elderly lady’s quiet demeanor to Nero’s over-attentive one, which he smothered her to death with. From Disneyworld, she was flown back home to New York. Lena grilled her incessantly about her visit, and to placate her mother and shut her up, Sidra insisted that she had an amazing time with her father. Only Noelle and Avery knew different.
The next year passed uneventfully. Nero was still busy courting her mother, trying to get back into her good graces and her bed while Lena just strung him along, holding out for divorce. Sidra visited Nero again, and they resumed the same routine from before. Except this visit, Tia Rocio seemed agitated by Sidra’s indifference to Nero. She insisted that Sidra demand more of his time. Sidra tried to explain that she preferred it when he wasn’t around, but this upset Tia Rocio greatly.
“You have to demand your due, Sidrina!” She would explain in her heavy accent. “Do not just be accepting of what is. YOU MUST ALWAYS QUESTION WHAT IS TOLD TO YOU!!! A dog hangs his head when shamed, but a snake will always look you in the eye no matter their behavior! KNOW YOUR WORTH. Do you understand me???”
“Yes, Tia,” Sidra would say automatically, eager to drop the subject. “Now can we go to the library?”
It would be only a year later that Sidra would wish she’d paid more attention to Tia Rocio’s words.
The next year, Sidra turned fourteen and Tia Rocio fell ill. Nero was freaking out because she couldn’t take Sidra out of the house, but she insisted it wasn’t a big deal. Nero insisted that she not go outside by herself because security did heavy racial profiling. Sidra promised she wouldn’t. So she cared for Tia and just enjoyed the peace and quiet. There was no fawning from Nero and “I bet this is the year he leaves Cecelia for me” from Lena.
By the next day, Sidra was bored out of her mind. Nero had already left for the day, and she’d fed Tia Rocio breakfast. After straightening the kitchen and watching three episodes of Judge Judy in a row, she was going stir crazy. She decided to check out the backyard. Quietly, Sidra let herself out and sat down at the patio table in the small yard. Suddenly, she heard
a splash from the house on the right side of her followed by a bunch of people laughing. Curiously, she walked between the huge bushes and saw a gate. On the other side of the gate were a group of older teenage girls laying out by a huge pool. On the low diving board was a tall, pretty Hispanic girl with dark hair in a minuscule bikini. She posed for her friends and laughed before calling, “Papa, you’re not watching me! Pay attention!”
“Attention whore much?” Sidra snorted to herself then froze as a man’s familiar voice replied.
“Yes, I’m watching you, Nina! Show us how it’s done!” Sidra followed the voice, and there was Nero lying on a lounge chair, wearing swim trunks as he talked on the phone and waved his cigar for “Nina” to proceed. Numbly, Sidra watched as the older girl, HER SISTER, executed a perfect dive into the water as her friends applauded her. She appeared by the end of the pool closest to Sidra who forgot to hide as Nina saw her and screamed.
“Daddy! Some nigger broke into the guest house! Call the cops!” she shrieked, causing Nero and her friends to jump up.
