Stolen to Remember - Alexa Riley Page 0,3
know I do,” he answers begrudgingly.
“Have you ever seen me like this?” I wait as he shakes his head. “Have I ever acted impulsively about anything?”
“No.”
“Have I ever taken a woman to the island?”
He shakes his head and I wait until he says, “No.”
“That was the deal we made, X. No women, only wives.”
When I was twenty-two our mother died of cancer, and our father followed her a month later. I was left in charge of my two younger brothers, Xander and Vaughn, and a fortune beyond our wildest dreams. It was up to me to make sure they finished college and our family real estate business didn’t go under, and the weight of that on my shoulders almost crushed me. But ten years later the three of us have kept the Warsaw legacy going and I know now that we would have made our parents proud.
A few years ago I heard about a private island in the Pacific that was being foreclosed on, and I brought it to my brothers. We flew out to see it, and we agreed that same day that it would be our home. That no matter what happened, this would always be the place we could return to and someday we’d bring our families here. No women, only wives. We wanted the island to be a place for our children to enjoy and to spend our lives in paradise. We made that pact on the white sandy beach and we’ve never broken that promise.
Every few months we come to the island and leave our phones at the door to reconnect as brothers and cement the vow. After losing our parents we understood how important our bond is and that we need to cherish it. Xander knows that what I’m doing right now is a big decision not only for me, but for us as a family. I can see it in his eyes that he’s worried I’ve broken our laws but I can’t let that stop me.
“I’ve seen you almost every single day for most of my life, so when you show up and tell me you’re married and your wife is in the hospital, what the hell am I supposed to do?”
“Buy me a wedding gift and shut your fucking mouth,” I say through gritted teeth before I polish off the last of my drink.
He narrows his eyes as he leans forward in his seat and I tense, ready for the fight. I’ve been in a ball of knots the past few days and using my fists right now might be the only thing that makes me feel better.
“Stop fighting,” Vaughn mumbles from beside us, breaking the tense moment.
“Go back to sleep, baby brother. This doesn’t concern you,” I say, setting my glass down.
“I was dreaming about a Care Bear giving me a blowjob,” he groans as he rolls over and scratches his crotch. “And you guys ruined it.”
As much as I hate it, a snort of laughter escapes my lips.
“She was so pink and fluffy.” His eyes are still closed but he’s grinning like an idiot.
“How would that even work?” Xander’s eyebrows pull together in concentration as if he’s really considering it. “Their hands are so small.”
For the first time in days a smile tugs at my lips and when I look at X, an understanding passes between us. He may not like what I’m doing, but at least he’s on my side.
“I guess I’ll never know,” Vaughn grumbles as he rolls back over on his side and immediately starts snoring.
It’s still a long flight until we arrive but at least there’s peace between us. For now.
Chapter 3
Collins
“Where to now, Tarzan?” I sigh into Kade’s neck as his scent and the smell of the ocean fills my lungs. He stills at my words and I lift my head to look at him. “Have I called you that before?” I get excited that I remembered something. I try and search my mind for where I got the nickname from but nothing comes. It came out of my mouth so easily that it felt right.
“Yes, you’ve called me that a few times.” He smiles at me as he descends the stairs of the plane.
The sun is setting but I can’t pull my eyes away from my husband. I smile back at him before resting my head on his shoulder once again. I don’t know why I’m still so sleepy. It’s all I’ve been doing but the lure of sleep keeps trying to take me