Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 59304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
“He’s under guard. And even if he wasn’t, I don’t think I left him in any state to do a goddamn thing.”
“You messed him up pretty badly.”
He kisses the top of my head. “Did I scare you?”
“No. He scared me. You saved me.”
“I didn’t want you to see me like that.”
“If you hadn’t been like that, Veronica and I would be toast. Don’t you dare feel guilty, Dario Bianchi.”
He kisses me again, then inhales my hair.
“Why do men do that?” I say, somehow laughing, even if it’s hollow and nervous.
“Careful mentioning other men…” He offers a hollow-sounding laugh as well.
“Not with me. Actually, no one’s ever done that to me before. But I see it in movies and stuff.”
“I don’t know about other men,” he says. “But with you, I want to be closer than close. I want your scent. I want everything. I know that makes me sound like an animal.”
“You’re my animal.”
I snuggle closer to him, closing my eyes and laying my cheek against his chest. “It’s weird. I’m tired because I hardly got any sleep, but I’m wired, too.”
“I know the feeling,” he replies.
“But here…”
“And now,” he finishes.
“We can just relax. Or not even relax. Lie here unrelaxed… but together, at least.”
“I’m so proud of you,” he says. “I was proud before, but now I know what you were up against, the feeling goes even deeper. You had every reason to fail, and you rose to the challenge. First when you took over for your boss, and this morning, with Rocco. What you did takes balls.”
“I had to do something.”
“No, you didn’t. Plenty of people wouldn’t have. You did, Siena. Because you’re different. You’re special.”
“I just did my best to do the right thing.”
“That’s what makes you special.” His voice is starting to grow sleepy. “That’s what makes me want to forget this here and now thing and think about the future, Siena. Siena the Savior, Mother called you, and she was right. You didn’t just save her. You saved me, too.”
I’m relieved when he begins to breathe slowly, drifting off. I gently stroke my hand across his bare torso, being careful not to get too close to his bandage.
He wants to think about the future. Before all this insanity, I wasn’t sure about that. I’m still uncertain. Something’s changed, though. Before, the idea made me nervous.
Now, not so much.
Can we go through all this together and then just let each other go? Do I seriously think I’ve got it in me to just forget about him, about us?
I listen to the soft sound of his breathing, his heart beating steadily.
The best thing I can do is focus on being here for him today, then committing to making the vow renewal as flawless as it can possibly be tomorrow.
Then it’ll be time to go home.
Time to decide.
But no–not yet, not now.
Now, I just close my eyes and snuggle closer to him.
CHAPTER 34
DARIO
Istand at the front of the palm-tree altar with the groom’s side of the party, my gaze moving over the crowd as my mother and father say their vows. I watch the faces of the men for any signs of doubt or disrespect.
Word has spread fast.
Rocco is on his way back to the East Coast, ready to stand a mafia trial for what he did. The best he can hope for is a quick death. It’s a sad ending to a damn sad story, but when he put a gun to Siena’s head, he sealed his fate. There’s no going back from that.
“…stand together,” Father goes on, as Mother watches, her eyes glittering with tears, looking angelic in her white dress. “You have always been there for me, my love, and I promise to do the same. We are strong when we’re together, when we understand we present a unified front, when we have trust and confidence, and we don’t succumb to doubt.”
My father worded his vows purposefully to send a message to the men while honoring his love for my mother. From the way several of them flinch and swallow nervously, the message hits.
Siena is by far the most beautiful woman in the clearing. She stands at the back of the crowd, her hands intertwined, staring at my parents as if she’s waiting for something to go wrong. She looks at me and smiles when I wink.
She doesn’t fight the smile anymore. She lets it come.
It’s been a day since the standoff. I haven’t seen much of Siena. She spent all day yesterday running around, making final arrangements, checking, and double checking everything. But she came to me last night.
We made slow love, less ferocious than the first time, more like a hug that melted into sex and became a hug again after we were done. As we shifted together, I whispered in her ear, “Stay with me, Siena…”