Twisted Fate (Dark Heart Duet #2) - Ella James Page 0,41
know your fate is sealed.
I break away and shove him, desperate to retreat before I lose hold of myself.
“Rosa…” His hands grip my shoulders and he turns me around to face him. His wide eyes implore mine as he squeezes gently. “Tell me what’s the matter, dolce rosa…” His brows draw together.
“YOU are!”
My unhinged shriek hits him like a slap. I see its echo on his face, as plain as any hand mark. In his shock, he loosens his grip on me.
“I have to go.” I jerk the bedroom door open, nearly striking myself in the forehead as I try to scurry out.
“Rosa, rosa… Vieni con me.” His hands catch me by the waist. He tosses me over his shoulder before shifting me back down into his arms, clutching me to his chest, whispering, “Ora vieni con me…” This can’t be real. It isn’t real.
I cover my face as he carries me into the living area. I pretend those aren’t his arms around me as my body shudders—not his warm, hard chest below my tear-stained cheek. He sits on the couch, shifting so I’m cradled against him. He keeps whispering Italian things, and now I know Italian.
His palm cups the back of my head, stroking downward with a firm but gentle pressure. Then he wraps his arms around me again. Every time he whispers near my ear, more tears fall—because it’s not supposed to be this way. I hate him.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, like a simpering fool.
I feel Luca’s mouth near my ear. “Chi dovrebbe essere imbarazzato, tu o io? La bella donna o l’uomo che era il mostro?”
“You’re not a monster,” I rasp. I squeeze my eyes shut, embarrassed by the way I’m trembling.
Luca shifts so he’s leaned back against the couch, still holding me against him. With one hand, he’s stroking my back. I feel him inhale, let the breath out. Then his face comes down near mine, and he squeezes more tightly. “I am so, so sorry, rosa. So, so very sorry… I thought you were better off without me.”
I can feel him breathing harder. For a second I think he’ll let me go, bolt before he gets emotional. Instead, he grips me so tightly it hurts.
I translate his Italian as he whispers near my ear. There are so many bad things. You were the good thing.
He breathes deeply again, shifting so his arms are still around me, but not quite so tightly. I’m more vertical, with my cheek on his shoulder. His hand’s tracing my spine. His head is leaned back against the couch, so I can see his Adam’s apple as he swallows. He breathes deeply several times, and as his shoulders shift in the dim light, I see the scar on his cheek.
I wrap an arm around his shoulders. I can feel his body pause in surprise. Then I thread my arms around his neck, bringing his cheek down so it’s rough against mine.
“I’m sorry I hit you. I wanted to apologize for years, but I was scared to.” I was scared to look him up, afraid of what might happen.
“Rosa…don’t be sorry for that.”
Another tear treks down my cheek. “I can’t believe I did that.”
His lips brush my forehead. “Like a mark…to remember you by.”
My hand cups his nape and rubs over his hard, warm shoulders. This is Luca, and I’m in his arms. It feels too amazing to describe.
“Tell me something,” I whisper. Tell me something that will make me feel like I have to go. I shut my eyes. “Tell me how you’re different than you used to be.”
He’s holding me so gently, his hand between my shoulder blades, his forehead touching mine. I see him shut his eyes and watch his lips move as he murmurs, “I am.”
I hug him—because I can’t help myself. “What happened that week? What changed?”
My hands stroke his hair, pushing it back off his forehead. He breathes deeply as he shuts his eyes. “My father was an informant. Your dad tried to warn him. The night we met, at the wedding reception, that was our dads…in the bedroom where we hid. Your dad, telling mine to stop.”
Shock slides through me, cold and heavy. “That was your dad?”
He nods.
“Did you recognize him when you saw him at my house?”
He looks at the couch, sucking his cheeks in like he’s biting them. “Your dad knew. He knew I was into shit. Told me that night if I wanted you…I had to keep my nose clean.”