Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
“Danzatrice Ombra. Where are you? Why is it every time I open my eyes, you aren’t where you’re supposed to be?”
He sat up slowly. Every muscle in his body hurt, especially his chest. He rubbed his palm over it as he looked around. His gaze collided with Amaranthe’s. Her dark gaze stared directly into his, holding everything he could possibly want to see, robbing him of his breath before she managed to hide the yearning in her eyes.
“I’m right here, doing exactly what the doctor told me to do. Why is it the moment I move, you wake up?” she asked him.
Her expression was soft, concerned. That face of hers, the perfect oval, skin inviting his touch. Still, she was upset with him and despite that loving look, he knew he was in trouble with her. Each time he woke, there was that distance she put between them.
“When I can’t feel you against me, the nightmares start,” he admitted. “I’d like to think it’s a side effect of the poison, but more likely, I just need you next to me.” He patted the mattress beside him. “Come here, Amara.”
She sighed. “I’m still trying to come to terms with your insistence on placing your life in jeopardy. Once I can manage that, I’ll be able to be in bed with you without staring at the ceiling with my heart pounding and wanting to cry my eyes out.”
“Amaranthe.” He said her name as gently as possible because, although she tried to sound valiant, she sounded lost and alone. “Come here.”
She shook her head. “I can’t. You scared me.”
“You would have died.”
“You did die. I watched you die, Geno. Right in front of me, you died. One minute you were there and the next I was completely alone. I had no idea what that was going to feel like, without you in the world.”
She shook her head again, looking so forlorn it tore at him, his heart feeling more battered by that look than by whatever they had done to revive him, and they’d been very enthusiastic about pounding on his chest—at least it felt that way.
“I’m sorry, Amara, it was the best choice when all the choices were bad.” He kept his voice as gentle as possible when he had never explained himself or been a gentle man. For her, especially to get that desolate look off her face, he would do anything he could. Give her anything he could.
Her long lashes fluttered. “Your death isn’t the best choice for me or your family. Not for your brothers, or cousins, or the people in your territory depending on you. You have to know that, Geno.”
“You aren’t looking at this the right way, baby,” he pointed out softly. “I can see you have your mind geared in the wrong direction.”
She frowned. That little frown twisted at his heart. For a man like him, one who felt little emotion, he found he was suddenly drowning in feelings.
“I don’t understand. What other way is there to look at what happened?”
“I should be your hero, Amara.” He made it a statement. Firm. “Just pointing it out.”
Her expression registered shock. “Hero?”
“Yeah, babe. Your hero. Haven’t you ever watched Superman? Or Batman? Or any of the Marvel movies?”
Amaranthe looked more confused than ever. Very slowly she shook her head. “Comics? What in the world do comics have to do with you almost dying?”
His eyebrow shot up. “It’s no wonder you can’t see the real picture, Danzatrice Ombra.” He kept his tone soft and compelling. Loving. Tender even. “You don’t know what a real-life hero is, not even when he’s sitting in front of you. We’re going to watch all the superhero movies and then you’ll see this in an entirely different light.” He poured confidence into his voice.
“I will?”
“Yes.”
“By watching movies?”
“Exactly. You need a true perspective.”
“Through movies.” She sounded faint, but for the first time, there was a hint of amusement in her mind.
She would need her sense of humor with him. It was one of the first things about her he’d been attracted to. She laughed easily. He didn’t know how when her life had been bleak. “I feel you’ve missed out on some very important lessons you’ll need in dealing with your future husband. We can easily remedy that though. I have all the movies. We’ll spend the next couple of days watching them back-to-back until you realize how you should see me as your hero.”
“How many movies are we talking here?”
“I have an entire library of Marvel, Batman, and Superman movies. Have no worries. I have The Green Hornet and The Crow. The Punisher. All the Iron Man movies.”
“This is a side of you I didn’t know existed, Geno. Is it possible these movies influenced your behavior? When did you start watching the movies?”
“I read the comics first, before I began watching the movies. I’m a reader first. So first comics and then graphic novels and then the movies. I collect them.”