A Reborn Bride Pearl Emerging from Dust by Sally Garcia

Back when he was in school, there was a time Silas had to live abroad. The food just didn't sit right with him and, with money being tight, he quickly learned how to cook for himself.

Thinking back, Silas let out a soft chuckle. "Anyway, enough about the old days. Let's eat."

"Yeah." Calliope nodded, understanding more than she let on. She knew that Silas had spent his childhood with Eamon Baker. Eamon always looked out for him, but the rest of the Baker family had their reservations.

Silas hadn't always been the intimidating force he was now someone the whole family secretly feared and respected. Back then, he'd been a lonely kid, always left to fend for himself. He wasn't born strong; he'd had to fight for every inch. The more Eamon protected him, the more the others picked on him. Silas never wanted Eamon to worry, so he just bit his tongue and dealt with it alone.

That's how he got to where he was today: powerful, unshakable, and not afraid of a single thing. But even so, Eamon had warned him. His birth father was no good, and might show up one day to cause trouble.

Calliope watched him quietly. She'd thought about it before: if that deadbeat dad ever came back and tried to mess with Silas, she'd stand by him. She wouldn't let anyone hurt him, not now, not ever. If Silas was her man, then she'd be the one to protect him, no questions asked.

They ate together, chatting about the latest drama with the Jewell family and Horatio's upcoming surgery.

I'll get Damien and the guys to stick with you," Silas said. "I might have to head out

Jewell family will try something with me while

"Those people never play fair, and Lisette's unpredictable. If Damien and the boys are with you, anyone thinking of causing trouble will have to think twice. It'll put my mind at

agreed. Lisette was always up to something, you could never

...

later, Silas was

by Damien and his crew,

Damien assured her. "Nobody's

I appreciate

sides of the corridor

hell are they doing

the meaning of this? You're not planning to mess around with