Ring.

Ring.

Ring.

 Austin pulled out his phone, stared at it, and shaking his head, he answered.

“Bo. We just saw. I’ll get—He’s busy—We will get back to you—Yes, I understand how serious this—No, don’t. Bo. Bo!” He glanced back at me, shaking his head. “He’s spooked. I wouldn’t doubt that he’s packing to run now.”

The floodgates of hell were opening up, and all I could do was laugh.

“Noah?” Amelia sounded concerned.

Shaking my head at her, I couldn’t help it. “Amelia, my father is now a wanted man with $265 million of debt over his head. Both he and Bo will be hung out to dry. Who do you think is left holding the shit? I can’t catch a fucking break. It’s always one thing after another.”

Every time I felt like I escaped Chicago, the Southbend, I was being dragged back in. If this weren’t my life, I would have thought it was one shitty movie.

“I’m worth $73 million,” Amelia whispered beside me, squeezing my hand. I looked at her, and she just brightly smiled at me. “Whatever happens, I’m not going anywhere. We’ll figure it out—with the help of our trusty manager, that is.”

We both looked to Austin. Frowning, he started to dial.

“I hate you both,” he said, walking toward the kitchen.

Sometimes God fucks up with our families and has to make it up with other people in our lives. Amelia and Austin—they are my family.

Chapter Four

Amelia

I called.

I texted.

I emailed.

I called again.

Still, I could not get in touch with Sheldon, and even if I did, I still wasn’t sure what I could say. Hey, I’m sorry sold you out to the mafia. The mafia? Since when was that still a thing? The longer I stayed with Noah, the more my eyes were forced open, and I wasn’t sure if I liked what I was seeing anymore.

“Are you scared?” Noah asked me softly as his driver and bodyguard, Daniel, drove us to my photo shoot. We were late, much to Austin’s annoyance, which forced him to leave earlier. But it really was the least of our problems.

“I’m not scared,” I finally replied.

“Just like you weren’t scared of that lion when we were kids?” he asked with a smile.

“I was not scared!” I argued like a child, and he just smiled at me. His blue-green eyes focused only on me so intensely, I stopped breathing for a moment. “Shut up,” I muttered, turning away.

Lifting my hand up, he kissed it. “Honestly, I’m afraid.”

“What?” I faced him again.

He nodded. “Growing up, the scariest man in my life was my father, and I would never forget how terrified he was of the Callahans. They’ve been getting away with their double lives for decades. When they want something, they get it,” he whispered. For the first time, I had seen him truly afraid. Even when he told me about Esther, even when he found me covered in her blood, he never once looked afraid. He was always a rock. My rock. And now, I would be his.

“I was scared of the lion,” I admitted, leaning into him.

“It was obvious.”

“Shut up,” I laughed before becoming serious. “I was scared of the lion. I’m not scared of the Callahans or your father or anything. Call me naïve or just stupid, but I honestly believe we’ll be okay. We haven’t gone through all of this just to be hunted by the mafia. Seriously, Noah—the mafia?”

“You’re crazy,” he said, despite the grin on his face.

“You made me this way—oh, wow,” I whispered as this beautiful Spanish-Colonial style mansion seated on acres upon acres of grassy hillside came into view. By the time Daniel pulled up, the gate was already open, and I was sort of annoyed by the crew and setup that covered the front entrance because they blocked most of the flowers and statues that lined the sides.

“I want this house,” I whispered to myself.

“You hate Pelican Point and Orange County,” Noah reminded me, taking off his seat belt. And it was true. Esther wanted me to buy a house here, but I couldn’t deal with a dozen other housewives just like her as neighbors and begged Oliver to help me stop her.

But damn, the house was gorgeous. “I would welcome Pelican Point and Orange County for this house.”

“Then you’ll only have $60 million, and what can I do with that?” Noah joked, winking at me before stepping out of the car.

“Ass,” I coughed.

“Did you just ‘ass’-cough me?” he said far too loudly, causing more than a few people to glance at us.

“You are not funny,” I muttered, elbowing him.

“It was a little funny.”

“Sometimes, I swear you are—”

“Amelia,” a voice said. We both turned to find Austin coming out of the house with a short, older Asian woman, her hair cut into a short bob. In her wrinkled white hands was a black camera. “I’d like you to meet—”

“Hanako Sugiyama,” I finished for him, stepping forward. “Ma’am, it’s so amazing to meet you. I love your photography.”

“’Ma’am’?” She tilted her head. “Do I look like a ‘ma’am’ to you?”

You sound like one.

“Be nice, Hanako,” Noah grinned, leaning in for a hug and kissing both of her cheeks. She made a face at him and smacked his arms.

“Don’t even get me started with you. You promised to do the Somerfall spread and backed out last minute.”

“It was three years ago, and I had the flu—”

“Don’t care, and don’t care,” she snapped at him. The fact that Noah towered over her and she was the intimidating one was just too funny. “I actually know how you can make it up to me.”

“How—”

“You’ll join the shoot—for free.”

Austin stepped up. “Hanako, this Amelia’s shoot.”

Her dark black eyes shifted over to me, and I raised my hands up. “I don’t mind.”

“Then it’s settled.” She nodded to herself happily and walked back into the house.

“Hanako!” Austin called after her before turning back to me. “Really?”

I shrugged. “What? I don’t mind—”

“Not what he’s annoyed about,” Noah replied, pulling out a cigarette. “He’s pissed I’m doing the shoot for free.”

Austin opened his mouth like he was going to argue, but then stopped, glaring at Noah before heading back into the house.

 “Who’s going to give him gray hair now?” I said, following him inside. Two double staircases sat under a large crystal chandler. My heels clicked against the marble floor as I walked to the center of the foyer. There on the ground was a cursive ‘G.’

“Still want this house?” Noah said when he walked up beside me.

“That might be a problem.”

There, coming down the stairs, had to be the most handsome man I’d ever seen, aside from Noah. He was dressed in a light gray fitted suit and a light blue shirt with no tie and the top buttons undone. His brown hair was messy, and his green eyes were identical to those of the little boy in his arms, who was equally well-dressed in a bow tie and khakis. The man walked down the stairs with a wicked smirk on his lips as he looked us over.

“You see, my wife is really attached to this house,” he said, shifting the boy up in his arms. The boy rested his head on his father’s shoulder and waved at me.

“Hi!” I waved back, leaning closer. “Your mommy has good taste.”

“Say hi, Ethan.” The man tried to get his son to show more of his face, but the boy only clung more tightly to his neck. “Excuse him. He’s shy.”

“No, he’s so cute. How old is he?”

“Three—”

“And half,” the boy cut in, holding out his fingers to explain.

His father rolled his eyes. “Excuse me—three and a half.”

“Ms. London,” a voice called. I turned away from them and toward the photography assistant who was waiting with three other people behind her. “We need to get you prepped for the shoot.”

I nodded and faced the man in front of me again. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr…”

“Liam is fine.”

“Liam,” I repeated, leaning back down to wave at his son. “It was a pleasure to meet you both. Bye, Ethan.”