Lethal

“Rebecca, let’s dance!” Janna called out to me, but I only laughed and shook my head.

We had only been at the bar for a few hours, yet it looked like she’d already had more than enough to drink. She was more than ready to join the crowd dancing on the floor below.

“Oh, come on! Let’s have some fun! You’ve been in a bad mood all night—”

She didn’t get to finish because Nat pulled her away, winking at me. “Let Rebecca be. She’s still warming up. You dance with me first.”

I sighed and took a long sip of my piña colada, watching as one by one, everyone left our table. The place was alive with laughter and music, but I couldn’t bring myself to join in. I just wasn’t in the mood.

I glanced at my phone, my eyes lingering on the message my father sent after our dinner—before we came here to celebrate.

Daddy: Nothing will ever happen between your mother and me again. Don’t ever do this again.

From his tone alone, I knew he hadn’t liked what I had planned for tonight—for him and my mother. I grimaced just as my phone rang again. It was my older brother, Darius.

I already knew what this was about. A lecture was coming.

“Hello?” I answered.

“Where are you? Why is it so loud? Are you at a bar? Are you with Tim?”

I smiled faintly at his strict tone. Even though I’d been living on my own for years, he was still as overprotective as ever.

“I’m not with Tim. We’re at a bar. Celebrating our last show—the one you didn’t even watch.”

“I—about that, I’m sorry. Work’s been hectic.”

I smirked. “Work… or are you avoiding someone?”

My brother worked at an engineering firm in Michigan. I knew he was busy, but he used to be my biggest supporter—he never missed a single performance. 

That changed after he broke up with Nat.

The same Nathalia who had saved me earlier tonight.

They’d been together for almost two years before they suddenly broke up. 

He scoffed. “I’m busy. She has nothing to do with it. Anyway, I didn’t call to argue. I called to warn you.”

My throat tightened. “Warn me about what?”

“Don’t ever try to fix things between Dad and that woman again.”

“She’s still our mother,” I said quietly. “You could at least call her Mom—”

“I’ll call her that when she deserves it. Do you know Dad started drinking again after all these years just because he met her?”

My chest tightened. I pressed my fingers to my forehead. “He did?” I asked softly.

“Rebecca… I know you want us to reconcile with her. You want everything to be fixed before you get married. I wish I could give you that. But I can’t. The last time we tried to accept her, she ruined everything. Dad is better off without her.”

“But she said she used the money for her treatment—”

“For treatment?” he snapped. “Do you really believe that? That money she ran away with was the reason we struggled back then. Have you forgotten? That was the same year we lost Grandma.”

Guilt washed over me. “I understand,” I said quietly. “I promise I won’t do this again. I just… felt sorry for her.”

“You always do. Don’t tell me you gave her money again.”

“No. She’s financially stable now. She doesn’t need anything from me.”

“Whatever. Is Tim picking you up? Or do you want me to?”

“No, I’m fine. I’ll call Tim. Tell Dad I’m sorry.”

“Tell him yourself. Come over tomorrow. Cook dinner for us.”

“Fine. I’ll make Dad's favorite lasagna. What about Michael? He's away, right?”

“If I tell you he’s arriving early morning, will you still come?”

“Of course. I miss you all.”

“Good. See you tomorrow. Don’t drink too much. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

I ended the call and sighed deeply. I was about to message Michael, my other older brother, but changed my mind.

I’d surprise him tomorrow instead. Hopefully, he wasn’t still upset with me.

Michael was only two years older than me, and between the two of them, I was closer to him. 

He wasn’t strict—protective, yes—but easygoing. Funny. Always spoiling me.

That changed when I started dating Timothy.

Michael and Tim used to be close friends.

The distance between us grew even wider when I moved in with Tim. Now that I was getting married, I wanted to fix things between us. I wanted us to be close again.

I missed him.

But then I winced, remembering what I had done earlier.

I invited my father to dinner yesterday, telling him I wanted to spend time with him.

What I didn’t tell him was that my mother would be there too.

If Michael found out, he’d be furious. Possibly worse than Dad or Darius.

What if he didn’t attend my wedding?

The thought alone made my chest ache.

I tried calling my mother, but she didn’t answer.

She left us when I was eight years old.

I had longed for her love ever since. My grandmother filled that void, but it was never quite the same.

In my memories, she had been the perfect wife. The perfect mother.

Or maybe that was just the version I created in my head.

She came back when I was in high school. I was happy—finally, I had a mother I could be proud of.

My father had been working away from us then, doing everything he could to provide for us.

Months after she returned, Dad came home too. I thought our family was finally whole again.

I was wrong.

She took all of Dad’s savings and disappeared—again.

I hated her for it. But when we met years later, that anger softened when I learned she had been sick, that it was the reason she left and took the money.

Perhaps that was why I never stopped trying to reunite our family.

Family mattered to me.

That was also why I was so happy when Timothy finally proposed to me.

I loved him deeply. We had our struggles. We almost broke up more than once.

But we always found our way back to each other.

“What’s wrong? Why are you sulking here?” Nat asked, handing me a tequila shot. “Let’s dance, Rebecca.”

I smiled, thinking that once Tim and I got married, this might be the last time I’d ever step into a bar like this. 

I should at least enjoy it.

“Don’t tell me this is about that guy who approached you earlier.”

“What guy?”

She laughed and downed another shot. I almost stopped her—her cheeks were already flushed.

“That insanely handsome one. Janna calls him hot but says his presence alone feels… lethal.”

I shook my head, but I couldn't disagree, as I remembered that man. 

Steffano. 

There was something about him.

The way he looked. Spoke. Moved.

Unsettling. Intimidating.

Lethal.

Why would a man like that choose me to pretend to be the mother of his children?

A wave of pity washed over me—for his kids. 

I hadn’t even met them, yet I already understood what it was like to grow up without a mother.

It was lonely.

I shook my head, scolding myself. I had no right to feel that way. I didn’t even know them. And I certainly didn’t like their father.

“You’re drifting off again,” Nat said, tugging my arm. “Come on. Dance with me.”

This time, I didn’t refuse.