from yourself.” She peered up at me, hesitating before she reached for me, gently stroking my jaw.
I snagged her wrist, holding her arm there. “Don’t. I didn’t stay for this.” Although my body always had other ideas whenever she was around.
Nora nodded, withdrawing her hand. I didn’t know whether to be disappointed or relieved, but I was bone weary and desperate to close my eyes and find peace.
“Goodnight, Enzo,” she whispered, turning away from me. I dragged her body back to me and fitted us together once more.
“Goodnight, Gattina.”
I tucked my face against Nora’s soft skin and closed my eyes… letting her be my anchor for the night.
“She didn’t leave.” My father wore a smug smirk as he spoke the words. “She found out what I’d done and threatened to tell you. Always so loyal,” he said.
“You’re telling me you killed my wife?” Uncle Toni trembled, anger rippling off him like a violent storm.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My father—my own fucking father was a traitor… and he’d killed my aunt, the boss’ wife. What was this nightmare?
“I’ll fucking gut you and feed you to the fish.” Uncle Toni stormed toward my father, but I ripped my pistol out of my jeans, pointed and fired the shot, blowing a hole right through the bastard’s skull.
Everyone stared at me as if I’d lost my fucking mind. And maybe I had. Maybe this was all a sick, twisted nightmare I would wake up from any second.
“You good, son?” Uncle Toni was in front of me now, trying to peel the pistol from my hands.
“Better than him,” I said, but it didn’t sound like me.
“What do you want us to do with the body?” Uncle Michele asked.
“Burn him for all I care,” I said, before spinning out of the room and stalking out of there. But as I reached the door, my father appeared, a hole right through his skull.
“You think just because I’m dead, I’m gone? I’ll haunt you for the rest of your days, SON. You can kill me, burn me, and curse me…” His body began to go up in flames. “But I’m a part of you, Lorenzo. My blood runs through your veins. And you will never—”
“Enzo, wake up. It’s just a dream… it’s just—”
Something touched me and my eyes snapped open right as my hand flew out and grabbed it.
“Enzo,” someone cried. “It’s me… it’s only me.”
“N-Nora?” I blinked, trying to figure out what the fuck was going on. My grip on her throat relaxed a little, but I didn’t release her. Slowly, the memories from last night filtered into my mind.
The warehouse…
Gino…
The blood… so much fucking blood…
Finding myself on Nora’s doorstep…
“Are you okay?”
“I think that ship has long sailed, Gattina,” I ground out.
My thumb stroked her jaw and Nora smothered a moan. She liked a rough touch, being dominated, and in the past I’d been all too willing to oblige her. But something felt different between us now.
Something I didn’t want to acknowledge.
“Did you fuck him?”
Luca. I scoffed. He looked like a pussy. Mooning after Nora with those puppy dog eyes. She didn’t need an All-American boy next door; she needed a guy who knew how to handle her.
“Enzo, I thought we weren’t going—”
“Did. You. Fuck. Him?”
Anger flashed in her eyes as she lifted her chin in defiance. Even with my hand wrapped around her throat, Nora wasn’t scared. Turned on maybe, but never scared.
Jesus, this fucking girl.
If I had the capacity to ever love someone, it would be someone exactly like Nora. She was damn near perfect.
“And if I had? You pushed me away, Enzo. You did that. You really expect me to believe you haven’t been fucking half of Verona?”
She wasn’t angry, just resigned… and it fucking stung.
Because she was right.
Well, maybe not about the fucking part. But I hadn’t been a saint. There had been other girls. Faceless girls I’d tried to lose myself in when the voices in my head got too loud.
“See… you’re not so innocent. So don’t come around here, acting like you care when we both know you don’t care enough.”
“They’re not you.” The words were out before I could stop them.
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me, Gattina.” My hand slid around the back of her neck and anchored her to me. “They’re never fucking you.”
I hated it.
Hated the idea another guy had touched her, teased and tasted her. It brought out a primal need to thump my chest and roar her name.