Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
He shakes his head before glancing out over the waves rolling to shore.
“Leo.” I keep my tone soft as I take a risk, slowly reaching out to him until I’m able to place my hand on his fist that’s resting on his thigh. I cautiously scoot closer, and when I’m able to wrap my other arm around his neck, I say, “Shhh…I’m here. I’ve got you.”
His body jerks, and he grabs me to him, burying his face in the crook of my neck.
I see Edoardo running toward us, and I quickly raise my free arm to indicate for him to stop. “It’s okay. Leave us!”
He stops but hesitates and only walks back as far as the veranda from where he watches us from.
I brush my hand over Leo’s hair and hold him until his breaths return to normal.
“Better?” I ask, but when I try to pull back so I can see his face, his hold on me tightens until it becomes painful.
“I’m so fucking sorry for what I’ve done to you.” It sounds like the words are being dragged from the depths of hell. “Because of me, your family was killed, and you were kidnapped.” He gasps, and the guilt he feels is palpable in the air. “The moment you crossed paths with me again, I forced you to marry me. I’m destroying you.”
“You’re not.” I strain against his hold and manage to pull back a little. Placing my hands on the sides of his jaw, I lift his face so he’ll look at me. “You were a teenager when we were attacked. I don’t know why it happened, but you were just a boy, Leo.”
“The attack happened the night my father was assassinated. If I had stayed home…if I hadn’t gone to your house…”
His breaths start speeding up again, and I have to use force to keep him from turning his head away from me.
“No! Don’t blame yourself for something that happened because your father was the head of the mafia.”
There’s so much pain in his eyes, it has tears escaping and rolling over my cheeks.
My voice quivers as I say, “Yes, you forced me to marry you, and there’s nothing we can do to change that, but you’ve also tried so hard to make it up to me the past two weeks.” I brush my thumbs over his stubble on his jaw. “And you can continue making it up to me for the rest of our lives.”
He stares at me, his expression constantly changing from guilt to awe to rage to disbelief.
His lips part, and he sounds broken as he asks, “How will you ever forgive me?”
“There’s nothing to forgive where the attack is concerned, and as for the forced marriage, time heals all.” I try to make light of the situation by joking, “I’m already a quarter of the way to forgiving you.”
Leo closes his eyes, his features tightening with heartache. “How do I live with what I’ve done to you?”
“Look at me.” I lift myself up so I can press my forehead to his. When his eyes open, I whisper, “We’ll deal with everything one step at a time. You and me. Okay?”
A tear rolls down his cheek, and it breaks my heart even more. “Stellina mia.”
I nod as I wrap my arms around him, pressing his head beneath my chin. “Yes. I’m your little star.”
He kisses the point where my collarbones meet then presses another to my throat.
When he climbs to his feet, I try to move back, but his arm locks around me while his other hand grips my butt. I have no choice but to wrap my legs around his waist.
His features are set in a grim expression as he walks back to the house. He doesn’t even look at Edoardo as we pass him on the veranda. I give our guard a thumbs up so he won’t worry.
Leo heads for one of the couches, and when he sits down, he grips the sides of my thighs and forces me to straddle him.
I try to pull his shirt back into place, but then he leans into me and shrugs it off. He also removes the gun from behind his back and drops it on the couch beside us.
My gaze lands on the tattoo over his heart.
Once upon a time, I was so important to him, he marked his skin permanently and placed my stuffed toy in a glass box on a pedestal.
Earlier, when I asked about the owner of the unicorn, he said he loved me and he always would, until the day he dies.
When I tilt my head and brush my fingers over the tattoo, Leo’s eyes lift to my face.
What if he can’t be romantic with me anymore?
Fear bleeds through me, making my heart beat heavy in my chest.
God, I’ve already fallen in love with him.