Page 61 of Never Say Never

"Daddy, Paul, you two are taking forever. The sun is going to set and then we won't get to swim."

"Right, sorry, girls," York said. He moved around me, no longer looking my way. "Let Paul get dressed." He herded both girls out of the room and closed the door behind them. "We will be on the roof."

My shoulders dropped the moment they weren't in the room anymore. I rubbed my eyes.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" I whispered to myself. I was losing it. For a second there, I was ready to give everything up to be at York's side. It wasn't feasible or even smart. The moment York learned the truth about me, he'd hate me. It was only right. At the end of the day, I was a monster in his eyes.

I blew out a breath and changed into the red trunks. Being left in York's room might have been an opportunity in the past, but I couldn't find it in me to snoop around. Knowing my boss, he probably didn’t keep anything in his home. Nothing that would put his family in danger. I slipped back out of the room, but not before looking at the family photos one more time. I wasn't the man who could give York this. The happy family. I was more than likely going to be the cause of its destruction if I kept holding on.

As much as I told myself that, it didn't stop me from thinking about keeping York.

The wind was subtle when I stepped out on the roof. It was huge, with a decent sized pool. Both girls were already in it, diving under and splashing each other. York was next to the grill, a soft smile on his face even as sweat beaded his brow.

Mine. Everything that was York Washington was meant to be mine.

Who was I kidding? I was a fucking Vitale. If there was something I wanted, I knew exactly how to take it.

I headed for the pool, jumping in to both of the girls' chants of encouragement. Warm water splashed up and around me as I sank to the bottom. I opened my eyes under the water staring up at the wavering sky before bobbing back up to the surface.

"Roar!" I grabbed the nearest twin and scooped her up.

Squeals filled the air as I pretended to be a monster capturing her.

"Paul." Nyra laughed.

I tickled her before tossing her up in the air. She screamed before hitting the water. She came back up, laughing and wiping water out of her eyes. Navy was next. She attempted to swim away from me but my feet were firmly planted on the ground, unlike theirs. They were walking on their tippy toes, bouncing around in the water.

"Again," Nyra said.

We went around playing, changing up the game one after another. Marco Polo was fun, along with sharks and minnows, each game with them was more fun than the last. The girls teamed up on most of them, reminding me how great it is to have a twin. Spending time with them was sweet, but it never failed to remind me of my brother.

A clang echoed over the roof. I turned to see what was wrong. My brain seized, but my body thankfully still moved. York was on the ground, clutching his injured arm in its sling. I hopped out of the pool. Water dripped down my body. The cool air attacked me the moment I was out of the heated water. None of it seemed to matter as I practically sprinted to York's side.

"York." I dropped down to my knees helping him up. "Are you okay?"

He winced as I went to touch his injured arm. Fuck, I should have just helped him.

"I'm fine," he growled.

"If you were fine, you wouldn't be on the fucking ground," I bit out. "Trying to do everything yourself is only going to make your injury worse."

"Who am I supposed to depend on?" York shook his head. "I'm fin?—"

I punched him in the other arm. "Me. Stop being a stubborn ass." I helped him up slowly, making sure not to hurt him any further. "You don't have to be the boss all the damn time. Depend on others sometimes."

York's gaze felt like a touch as he stared at me. I didn't stop what I was doing. Instead of having a staring competition with him or forcing him to hear my words, I checked on his sutures. The skin was a little warm and a tad red, but thankfully, nothing was ripped open.

"What?" I asked.

York looked ready to say something but both girls ran over to us.

"Is Daddy okay?"

"An idiot, but fine," I answered. I looked at both of them. "Can you girls do me a favor and get your dad to sit down?"

"What? I don't need to?—"

I glared at York. If it was up to him, he'd work himself to death. He shouldn't even have been at work after leaving the hospital. His job was important, but if he died, then who would take care of the girls? Sometimes York saw only work, it was attractive and maddening at the same time.