The growl of the motorcycle was louder now, coming down the seaside road to my driveway. I didn’t know what King had done exactly, but I knew he’d called in reinforcements.
Knowing this, I said, “Fine, but you should know that I have company coming over for dinner. They should be here soon.”
Immediately, three heads turned to look at me.
“Company?” William and my mother said at the same time.
“Do they like Jeopardy?” my dad asked, because priorities.
“Yes, company. No, dad, I’m absolutely certain that they do not like Jeopardy.”
We were all silent as the sound of tires pulling down the driveway became distinguishable.
My mum turned to me with an expression of horror, her hand at her heart. “Please tell me that isn’t the horrible biker William told us you’re dating?”
As if on cue, there was loud rap at the door before it pushed open to reveal Zeus and, to my utter confusion, a fully dressed King. My mouth dropped open at the sight of them but my jaw completely unhinged when an absolutely stunning, streaky blonde teenager followed in behind them and I got my first look at the youngest Garro.
As one, my family blinked at King’s.
I opened my mouth to say something, though I didn’t know if my acting skills were up to playing whatever part they expected me to play, when King stalked forward to stand beside me. As he did, the blonde girl moved to my other side, throwing me a little wink as she jumped up on the counter and snagged an apple from the crate King had left out.
“Hey, babe,” Zeus rumbled in a voice very similar to the sound of his revving motorcycle. “Who the fuck are the old folks?” Before I could answer, he turned to William. “And why the fuck are you in my woman’s house, Willie boy? Thought I warned you to stay away.”
“We, I’m, you…” my mother stuttered as her brain overloaded with fear.
“Mother,” I beamed at her as Zeus joined our united front. “This is Zeus Garro and his two children, King and Harleigh Rose.”
“Sup?” Harleigh Rose nodded at my mum and spoke through the apple she was noisily masticating.
King just crossed his arms and glared at them. Unconsciously, I moved closer so I could press my shoulder against him.
“Cressida,” William started, his face set as he took a step forward to show the biker family suddenly inhabiting my kitchen that they didn’t intimidate him. “Your parents and I came all the way up to this podunk town to spend the day with you. As I told you before, your mother is literally sick with worry. The least you can do is respect us enough to send these…” he struggled for a word, “people away so we can spend time healing.”
“Healing?” King repeated incredulously. “Your wife left you and you cut her off from your joint accounts and from her fuckin’ parents. While you were married, you made her feel like a whore and a neglected housewife. Have you seen her, buddy? She’s a fuckin’ knockout and you ignore her? I think it’s you who needs some goddamn healing in the head.”
“Preach,” Harleigh Rose said, lifting her hands in the air.
I felt like I’d been dropped into an episode of Family Feud.
There was a long standoff where I was seriously unsure if a fight was going to break out (this vibe emanated from the Garro family) or if the police were going to be called (my family).
It occurred to me then that I was the pinnacle of the situation and hiding behind the Garro family was cowardly. I wanted to do it anyway, I’d been playing dead for years, following the path of least resistance and always doing what I was told. Because I was a dork, I’d always wished vampires were real but now more than ever, I wished I could die and be reborn as a Garro, someone wicked in ways both smart and cruel, selfish just enough to get ahead and take what you wanted, and beautiful in strange ways that echoed both inside and out.
So, I stepped away from the biker family at my back and into the middle of the silent war so that I could die that metaphorical death. Appropriately or not, I couldn’t decide, Sympathy For The Devil played over the speakers as I took my stand.
“William, I want you to leave. I’m sorry that you can’t understand why I don’t want to be with you but I feel that I’ve done my best since the beginning to tell you why that was and you seem to be incapable of empathizing with me. I want a divorce. I will say it again and again until my dying breath. Even if you refuse to sign the papers, I will never come back to you or the life we had. My life is here in Entrance now and, honestly, I don’t think I’m the kind of person you’d like anymore.”