Sleeping With the Enemy

Chapter Twenty One

"Mind if I join you?" I hear the glass door slide open as Steven joins me on the back deck. I've been expecting him for a while, but his voice still sends chills down my spine. It doesn't matter that he's been nothing but understanding and loving and fatherly to me my entire life. He is still a merciless mafia boss who I betrayed.

"Of course." I glance over my shoulder as I lean against the railing. The sun is starting to go down and the ocean breeze picks up, making it a little bit chilly.

"I guess congratulations are in order." He smiles warmly as if he actually meant it.

"Thank you." I blush, refusing to meet his eyes. "I hope Lorraine isn't too upset with Brandon. He's just trying to help. I'm the one she should be mad at."

"Lorraine will be fine, I think it's just a shock for her. She had a completely different idea in mind for the two of you, but she'll come around eventually."

I hold in a sharp laugh. Yeah, she isn't the only one who had a different idea in mind for us. A month ago, my only idea about Brandon was staying as far away from him as I could, and now I'm wearing his ring. It all happened so quickly that I still haven't really had time to process it myself. I'm married--a wife. It all seems so surreal, so strange and twisted that I feel like I'm sleepwalking through a dreamworld.

Steven stands next to me, content with the silence mounting between us. I, on the other hand, am suffocated by it. I'm desperate to explain myself and try to shed some kind of light on the situation. "Steven, I'm so sorry for what I did. I can't imagine what you must think of me."

"What I must think of you?" His face twists. "Sadie, I think the same thing about you that I always have. That you are one of the strongest and most passionate women I have ever met in my life, one whom I think of and love like my own daughter. What you did doesn't change that."

"But I almost sold you out to Herrera and his team." My lip quivers as I try desperately to hold my tears in. I'm so ashamed of myself, and his words almost make it worse.

"You did, but from where I am standing, you didn't have much of a choice. Herrera is hell bent on his own agenda and unfortunately, you were a pawn in that. You did what you had to do to protect yourself and to protect Adam. I can't fault you for that."

"If I'm being honest with you, I did it to protect Adam and I, but I was also so angry with you for what happened to my parents that I didn't even feel bad about it to begin with." The words leave a sour taste in my mouth. I've never actually said that out loud. Not to Adam, not to Brandon. I'd hardly let myself believe it, but it's the truth.

Steven smiles gently. "We all make mistakes, Sadie, and I understand why you did what you did. You had to grow up much faster than you should have, and I'm so proud of the way you've so fiercely protected your brother the last several years. You've just been fighting against the wrong people all this time."