War

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A/N - FINALLY back 🥳🥳🥳

The Extras book is 1 year old today 🥹🥹hoping to get a scene out later ❤️

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Marco
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Having Isaiah Wright due to enter my home within the next two hours was something that fell greatly out of my comfort zone, yet it was crucial in determining who was behind the heinous acts that had been occurring recently.

And no, I wasn't expecting the man to admit anything to my face, nor that easily; but I'd been mastering the art of reading people based upon the most basic of tells for almost my entire twenty-eight years of life, I'd be able to see if he was lying or not.

Having Aniyah so much as in the vicinity of this meeting hadn't been on my agenda whatsoever, but of course when she'd asked- partially insisted on being the one to confront her father three days ago, I couldn't deny her.

Never could, probably never would be able to.

And now that our relationship had been progressing from something solely emotional to more physical, it was as if she consumed my heart, body as well as mind.

And I let her.

I entered our bedroom at around one o'clock, having consumed two peppermint teas and four slices of avocado toast in the space of less than an hour, going to check if my wife was ready for this meeting. Aniyah was perched on the edge of our bed, her hair sitting in a low puff, fingers covered in gold rings as she pulled on a pair of slightly ripped jeans and glanced up at me.

"You okay?", she smiled, rising to her feet and pulling them up fully, "he's not here is he?".

"No", I shook my head, closing the door behind me and leaning against it, "I was coming to ask you the same thing".

"I'm okay", she nodded and I stared at her, not believing it for a second, "okay, fine, I'm terrified".

See?

"You don't have to do this", I don't want you to do this, "I can face him alone and-,".

"That's not what I want", she shook her head, twisting one of the rings on her fingers, "I owe this to myself, you and your family, if he is behind all of this".

"You don't owe us anything", I pushed off of the door and took the two small steps towards her, lifting her chin with one hand, "you don't have to do so much as breathe the same air as him again if that's what you wish".

"I want to be there", she stood her ground to which I hummed, lowering my lips to her forehead before pulling back and meeting her gaze, "no protests?".

"You're an independent woman who can make her own decisions", I lifted a shoulder and she smiled, "and while I may not always agree with those decisions, I'm not going to halt you in your tracks".

"Thank you", she uttered, leaning against my front with a sigh, "I don't want anything to happen to any of you".

"And it won't", I assured her, my chin resting on the top of her head, "I won't let it".