Her Mafia Brothers

Shopping

What was through that door? Why was the left wing out of bounds only to me, when all my brothers were allowed in there? What secret were they hiding from me? I took a quick look around, making sure nobody was watching, and then I tried the handle on the door to the forbidden wing. Damn. It was locked. I'd expected it would be, but I couldn't resist trying, just in case. I gave the knob a jiggle, but it held fast. There was no way that little weak me was going to be able to break through that deadbolt. My only hope of getting in there would be if one of my brothers accidentally left it unlocked. I'd have to keep checking.

Admitting defeat this time, I turned around and headed back towards the kitchen to satisfy my rumbling tummy, tossing up in my head what I wanted to eat.

As Damon had said he would be, Logan was downstairs waiting for me, sitting at the same high stool at the breakfast bar that we had sat on yesterday when we shared the platter of food Damon had arranged. He put his phone down when he heard me enter and gave me a grin. I smiled back and instantly relaxed. He'd made me feel so safe last night, and I appreciated it.

"What do you want for breakfast?" he asked me and I shrugged.

"What are my choices?"

"Whatever you want."

I just looked at him. How was I meant to make such a big decision when the options were unlimited?

Logan must have been able to sense my overwhelm because he didn't get frustrated with me as I'd expected him to.

"Do you want something light or do you want something that will stick to your ribs? Something hot or cold? You're going shopping with Nick, right? You'll want to get lunch at the food court in the mall, so maybe don't have anything too heavy for breakfast, you don't want to ruin your appetite for lunch."

I smiled at him gratefully. He made good sense. I wasn't a big eater. Maybe I could build up to bacon and eggs, but this morning some fruit and yogurt sounded perfect.

Logan ordered it for me through some intercom thing that he didn't show me how to work and when my breakfast arrived, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. I'd thought dinner last night was good, but this was even better. Soft, juicy berries, sliced banana, chunks of pineapple and sweet mandarin segments were buried in the thick Greek yogurt, and the whole thing was sprinkled with granola and drizzled with honey. It was the most delicious thing I'd ever eaten. Who knew that such a simple breakfast could taste so good?

While I ate, Logan poured me a tall glass of orange juice to swallow my antibiotics with and engaged me in conversation about random topics. He was sensitive to my traumatic past and didn't ask me any personal questions but instead he regaled me with funny stories about his own life: tales from school, things our brothers had done, and things he could remember from before I was taken away. Like me, he remembered Damon taking us to the circus where he bought us ringside seats. The clowns and acrobats had almost been close enough to touch. Then a sadness flickered into his eyes and he changed the subject.

"So," he said. "Have you got your shopping list sorted? Nick will buy you literally whatever you want, so make sure you get everything. Don't feel like it's too much or too expensive - we want to spoil you and Nick can afford it."

The reminder of how much money my brothers had, when I'd grown up in poverty, made me mildly uncomfortable, but I knew Logan hadn't meant anything by it. He just wanted me to feel confident choosing everything I wanted. So I just smiled at him and nodded.

Just then, heavy footsteps came up behind us and I turned to see who it was. So many years of living in fear meant I couldn't ignore footsteps behind me, it meant that I was no longer alone and therefore no longer safe.