Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
JASON
Strolling down Main Street in Valle Perdido felt like walking through a fishbowl. Every face in every window seemed to be watching us. Thomas felt it too. I could tell by the way his hand kept drifting toward his jacket.
The fireworks a week ago hadn’t helped with the tension.
Once I left the tailor’s, I’d be meeting Cora and Anna at the bakery for cake tasting.
Of course, Ari was with them at the house, which was the only reason I felt comfortable leaving my sister and Cora alone.
From what Anna told me, he really could take down an army if Colter decided to make any surprise visits, especially since he had a scheduled visitation with Elias this evening.
“Mr. Georgiou and Vasil?” an elderly Hispanic man asked as we entered his shop.
“That would be us.”
Anna had arranged the appointment. She’d argued that it didn’t matter that I had tuxedos in Chicago. This was my wedding, and I needed a freshly tailored one for it.
Plus, if Thomas was my best man, he’d need one too. He’d looked about as excited as I felt.
Although, I at least got something out of the entire ordeal.
Watching Cora walk down the aisle. I didn’t know why I was excited by that thought.
It wasn’t like it would be real or last, but she’d be walking towards me.
We’d be saying vows. In the back of my mind, a small voice reminded me that I wanted those vows to be real and true and genuine.
He came from around the counter and met us. “I take it you’ve been measured for a tuxedo before?”
“I have.”
“Black, I presume.”
“You presume correctly.”
This fake wedding was taking on a very real feeling now that I was standing in this store surrounded by bolts of fabric and suits hanging from racks along the back wall.
I shut down the annoying voice that continued to whisper hope and other inconvenient things.
“If you’ll stand here, I’ll begin.” The man motioned to a spot in front of three full-length mirrors positioned on a small platform.
Thomas settled into one of the leather chairs near the window while I followed the tailor deeper into the cramped but organized space.
I stepped up, the wood creaking slightly under my feet, catching my reflection. In two weeks, I’d be standing in front of a minister, promising to love and cherish a woman I was already halfway gone for. The irony wasn’t lost on me.
The man called his daughter over from behind a small desk draped with measuring tape and instructed her to take down measurements.
“When is the wedding?” he asked as he started.
“Weekend after next.”
The man paused, tape measure in hand. “That’s fast.”
Here we go. I’d practiced this story. “I’ve known her for more than a year, and we’ve been dating a while. I was going to ask her to marry me in the coming months anyway. When she said she wanted a spring wedding, I figured, why wait?”
“Ahh… I see.” His tone suggested he was buying it. “Well, I can certainly put a rush on this.”
His daughter looked up from her tablet. “It will cost extra.”
The man glared at her. “Maria.”
“She’s right,” I said. “Rush jobs cost more. I’m not worried about the cost.”
Because I wasn’t. Money was the least of my problems. What worried me was standing at that altar and meaning every word of the vows that were supposed to be pretend. Again, I shut down the persistent small voice. It needed to stop.
“See? I told you he’d understand,” Maria said.
Thomas chuckled from his chair. “In Chicago, rush charges are automatic.”
“My father was a tailor for years before he opened this shop. Fourth generation,” Maria said proudly.
I nodded, but my mind was elsewhere.
The doorbell chimed.
The man’s daughter set her tablet on one of the chairs. “I’ll be right back.”
Thomas was on his feet the moment the new arrival spoke, hand hovering near his shoulder holster.
I turned and found Colter with two of his brothers filling the front of the shop.
Maria returned. “Uh, you have someone who would like to speak to you a moment.” She looked at her father.
Her father turned, his eyes widened, and he motioned for her to come to him. He didn’t even hesitate. “We’ll be back in a moment.”
Yep, this was a small town, and the Grave Sons were in charge.
“I heard a rumor that you’re getting married. I thought I’d come by and offer congratulations… for the just friends.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “My relationship status was none of your business. It still isn’t.”
“My son is my business and those hanging around him are my business as well.” He took a step forward.
Thomas’s hand dove into his coat.
The brothers with Colter went for their weapons. He held up his hand. “No. This is a friendly talk.”
Thomas looked at me.
I held up my hand to stop him.
“And what did you want to talk about?”
“Elias is mine. He’s my blood.”
I slowly exhaled. “Weren’t you offering to sell him to Cora?”
His eyes narrowed. “That was a misunderstanding. I’m going to fight for my son.
In fact, I can’t wait to see him this evening.
This is me giving you a warning. Grave Sons run this town, and I run it.
You’re going to waste a lot of time, money, and energy trying to fight me, only to lose. Beau has already filed an appeal.”
Now I knew why he’d shown up. He wanted to act like he was actually fighting for Elias. The shop owner and his daughter could be used as witnesses. “I think I’ll take my chances.”
“I’m just trying to save your woman some heartache. You’re going to get her hopes up, only to leave town without my son.”
I dropped my hands to my sides and stepped off the wooden platform.
“Your threats might work for the people in this town, but they don’t work on me.
I’ll turn the Grave Sons into a memory before I let you anywhere near Elias.
He belongs to Cora. Maya wanted her to have him, and that’s who he’s going to stay with. ”
His men started forward.
Thomas drew his gun, and I went for the one tucked in the back of my waistband.
His hand went out to hold his men back. “Not today.”
I’d taken a bat to a wasp’s nest. I meant what I said, too. His threats weren’t going to change my mind or our plans.
Colter pointed his finger at me. “Just remember. I tried to be nice. Now, we’ll get ugly.”
“You say that like you aren’t already there.”
“Come on,” he growled. He turned and plowed through the front door with his brothers following behind.
Thomas kept his gaze trained on the door. “That war you didn’t want…” He holstered his weapon.
“Yeah, I know.” I returned to the platform. “I don’t want Cora to know about this. It’ll just scare her. Tell Ari. Anna and Cora don’t go anywhere without an escort.”
Thomas nodded. “You got it.”
If Colter wasn’t planning something before our exchange, he was now.
The tailor and his daughter returned, both trying to pretend nothing had happened. We finished the fitting in relative silence, punctuated only by the rustle of fabric and the scratch of pencil on paper.
When we finally left the shop, I knew we were being watched.
Thomas fell into step beside me. “You know he’s not going to stop with threats.”
“No,” I said. “The more desperate he gets, the more mistakes he’ll make.”
What I didn’t say was that desperation made men like Colter exponentially more dangerous. And I’d break every rule to make sure I protected what was mine.