Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
And Matteo… he looked at me less like a brother and more like a rival standing in his way.
Guilia and Gabriel shared a soul connection, a bond that no one could ever understand.
But this baby, my son, was different.
He was my blood. My legacy. My family.
“I have to handle some business,” I said, reluctantly withdrawing my hand from her belly. “I’ll be gone for two days, but I’ll be back soon.”
Her smile faltered slightly. “Is everything okay?”
I nodded to reassure her. “Yes, just typical family business I have to take care of. Nothing to worry about.”
I gestured around the apartment, a safe house I’d secured for her months ago, far from the prying eyes of my family and anyone who targeted me. “The apartment is secure. and I’ve made sure the kitchen is fully stocked. You have everything you need here.”
I leaned down, placing my lips near her pregnant bump. “Be good,” I whispered to my boy. “I’ll be back soon.”
As I stood to leave, Elizabeth’s hand caught mine. I turned to find her eyes soft with vulnerability, a hint of sadness in their depths.
“You will never love me, will you?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
The quiet question hung in the air between us.
My chest constricted.
I had been honest with her from the beginning about what I could offer…protection, security, a future for our child.
But not love. Never love.
That was something I simply didn’t have to give.
Elizabeth deserved more than I could give her. But she chose to stay by my side.
“Beth...” I started, but she shook her head, releasing my hand.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked that.” She smiled weakly and a single tear escaped, trailing down her cheek. “You’ve told me already, I don’t know why...”
“You know I care about you,” I said, the words feeling hollow even to my own ears. “But I am incapable of loving you the way you need. I don’t think I am even capable of such feelings, of such love.”
She nodded, wiping the tear away with the back of her hand.
“But I will always protect you,” I added. “I promise you that.”
The promise felt like the only truth I could offer her.
Whatever I lacked in emotional capacity, I would make up for it in loyalty and protection. Elizabeth and my son would want for nothing.
I jerked awake, my heart hammering against my ribs, sweat beading across my forehead and chest. For a moment, I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think—only feel.
The darkness of my bedroom enveloped me, but my mind was still trapped in that apartment, with her soft voice asking if I would ever love her.
The dream felt so real I could still feel the weight of her hand in mine, the gentle curve of her pregnant belly beneath my palm.
No, not a dream.
A nightmare.
A haunting memory.
I squeezed my eyes shut, but I couldn’t stop the image flashing behind my close lids.
Elizabeth’s face, so full of hope, so trusting. My hand on her swollen belly, feeling my son kick beneath my palm. The promise I had made to protect them both.
A promise I had failed to keep.
I hadn’t been worthy.
To have them. To protect them.
I wasn’t worthy.
Fuck, I couldn’t breathe.
I sat up, running my hands through my sweat-soaked hair, gripping the strands until pain shot through my scalp. The darkness of my bedroom pressed in around me, suffocating.
“Goddamn it,” I growled, the sound tearing from my throat.
I slammed my fist into the mattress beside me, once, twice, the impact doing nothing to dull the pain that had become my constant companion.
The agony of their memory hit me like a physical blow, sharp and brutal, radiating from my chest outward.
It was the same pain I’d carried for years, a gaping wound that refused to heal no matter how much blood I spilled or how many bodies I buried.
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, planting my feet on the cold floor. The anger came next, a familiar companion that had kept me alive when grief threatened to consume me entirely. It burned through my veins, hot and corrosive, making my muscles tense.
I still… couldn’t fucking…breathe.
My jaw clenched so hard I could hear the grinding of my teeth.
Fury rose in me like a tide, dark and consuming. Violent and almost impossible to contain.
I had promised to protect them. I had sworn that Elizabeth and my son would want for nothing. And yet they were gone, their lives extinguished and their blood spilled while I wasn’t there to protect them.
The darkness that lived inside me stirred, hungry for vengeance that I still hadn’t claimed. I had hunted down those responsible, made them suffer in ways that would haunt even the most hardened men, but it hadn’t been enough.
The void remained, growing larger with each passing day.
I stood, pacing the length of my bedroom, my fists clenching and unclenching at my sides.