Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56365 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 282(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56365 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 282(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
“I can see it, and I dare say, I can see it in you, too. I know you’re troubled by everything that happened. I know you’re scared, but you can’t honestly sit there and tell me nothing is real between you and my son.”
“Let’s say there is,” I snap. “Let’s say that flirting with and sassing him makes me feel more alive than the idea of dating anybody else ever could. Let’s say I think he’s the most handsome, most interesting, most intense man I’ve ever met. Let’s say I have been thinking about being with him for real. Even then, it can’t end well.”
“Why not?” Maria asks.
“Is that a serious question?”
“I wouldn’t have asked it otherwise.”
“Fine. Okay. For one, Salvatore. Then there’s the whole thing about quitting my one passion in life. Then there’s the violence and the fact I’ll never be safe. Oh, and let’s not forget that Aunt Rosa is completely against me even interacting with any of you. Or shall we go with the final option? That every time I close my eyes, I see a version of your son that makes me so scared, I can’t even breathe?”
“You’re scared of Dario?” she says.
“No,” I snap reflexively, driven by a deep instinct I don’t understand.
“What, then?” she asks.
“It’s this world,” I groan. “I just don’t belong here.”
“Do you feel you belong with my son?” she asks.
“What does that even mean?”
She leans forward, looking at me woman-to-woman. “Don’t act naïve. You know exactly what I mean. When I met Salvatore, I knew. Even before we fell in love, there was this certainty.”
I swallow. I could lie, but after we’ve shared so much truth, that feels wrong. “There’s something real. I never expected it. But with everything stacked against us, I don’t see what good it can do.”
“Perhaps we don’t have to decide everything today,” she murmurs. “That we’re talking is a victory in itself. Why don’t you take a shower and leave this depressing room? We can spend the day together.”
“And do what?”
“Forget,” she says, reminding me of three days ago when I threw myself at son like a wild woman. “Just for a little while. How does that sound?”
I feel closer to Maria than I did before—than I thought possible. Nodding, I say, “Okay, but don’t give me hope. The clock’s ticking.”
“Maybe it is. Or maybe love will find a way.”
“Love,” I repeat.
“The word doesn’t fit?”
I look out the window, letting the sun blind me, ignoring her question.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
DARIO
“Keep looking for Vincenzo,” I snap at the phone as I drive through the city, returning to the townhouse after a long day of work.
“We are,” Paolo replies. “The little rat might’ve fled the city.”
“Maybe, or he’s regrouping and getting ready for another stunt. Any news about the aunt’s place?”
“We’ve got around-the-clock security. Our men say the aunt isn’t too pleased about it. She has a real distaste for us Mafia types.”
Like aunt, like niece. “As long as she’s safe.”
When I get home, I wonder if it’s worth checking in on Elena again. She hasn’t even replied whenever I’ve knocked on her door these past three days. I wonder if it’s what she saw me do to that kidnapping lowlife. Perhaps it’s how eager I was to indulge in her body or a mixture of both. It might be everything else that’s constantly weighing down on us.
I walk through the house to her bedroom. The door’s open. That’s different. As I poke my head inside, panic grips me when I don’t see her. Where the hell is she?
“Elena,” I snap, rushing to the en-suite bathroom. “Elena!”
She’s not here, either. I raise my voice, my throat tight, devastation slamming into me. There’s no damn way I’m going to get lucky twice. We could only save her because we found that farmhouse. He won’t make the same mistake again. He’s going to hurt her.
Then I hear it through the open window—Elena’s laughter.
I rush to the glass and stare down in awe at my mother and Elena sitting on the back porch. My mother says something, and Elena laughs again. It’s a quiet laugh, though not carefree. It’s still sweeter than any sound I expected to hear from her after the chaos she’s experienced.
Heading downstairs, I join them on the porch. Elena has showered and changed into a loose-fitting dress, her hair wavy around her shoulders. Her smile falters when she sees me, but she doesn’t look away. Her eyes still hold some confusion and fear, but maybe not as much. Or perhaps that’s just my hope talking.
“I thought something had happened to you,” I whisper.
“I’m okay,” she murmurs. “Maria persuaded me to get some sun. I think it helped.”
“Yeah. You look better.”
Her lip twitches, eyes gleaming briefly. I almost think she’s going to sass me like she did before the kidnapping. But the experience has taken something from her, at least for now. “Maria told me how you used to play soldier and how seriously you took it.”