Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
“Where are you going?” He held me tighter.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered as new tears formed. I couldn’t even look him in the eye. “I shouldn’t be here. You shouldn’t comfort me after what my father did to you.”
I tried to get up again, but he was too strong. He tipped my chin up. His eyes softened when I looked at him. “I want you with me.”
I’d never wanted to kiss him as badly as I did then. My eyes fell to his lips, and his fell to mine, but instead of kissing me, he pulled my head into his chest again and whispered that it would be okay. My mind raced to my mother, and the pain in my chest returned. What would happen to her if he found out she helped me? Would he kill her, as well? I set the thought aside and sat up again. This time, I looked around. We were in the den, where there were two couches, a television, and the armchair we were on.
Dean and a man I’d never met occupied the sofa in front of us. He was older, very handsome, and had Rocco’s blue eyes, so I figured it was Michael.
“I’m sorry,” I said to him, swallowing past the lump in my chest.
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Michael smiled kindly. He didn’t seem surprised to see me on his brother’s lap, which made me wonder if he’d told him about us.
Dean’s expression was amused and confused, like he couldn’t wrap his mind around Rocco and me. I could practically see his brain working to figure out when and how it started. I sat back against Rocco’s chest and felt the sobs building again as I thought about Dominic and Gabriel. My poor brothers. They didn’t deserve this. My lip quivered again, and Rocco pulled away slightly to look at my face. He softly pressed his finger against my lips to keep them from moving. When he was sure I wouldn’t cry again, he moved his hand to my cheek and his thumb softly against it. His deep blue eyes held mine, and beneath the turmoil and pain, I saw a flash of something else. It filled me with enough comfort to calm down. I took more deep, shaky breaths as he held my gaze. Only then did he look away, but even as he did it, he pulled me against him. I wasn’t sure if he knew he was doing it, but his mouth was pressed against my hair as he spoke to his brother and Dean. What would Dominic think if he walked down here and caught us like this? I wanted to get out of his lap just in case, but Rocco didn’t seem worried, so I pressed my face to his hard chest and closed my eyes as I breathed him in.
28
ROCCO
I was still holding Lenora in my arms when I heard Dominic and Rosie’s footsteps coming down the stairs. Dean and Michael shot me a look, warning me to set her on the other couch. I didn’t. I couldn’t. I couldn’t let go right now. Not when she’d discovered how much of a monster her father was. Not when she felt completely alone and was taking comfort in my touch. I was a bastard for it and certainly didn’t deserve it, but having her in my arms was the only thing keeping me from losing my mind. Even if I hadn’t felt Dominic’s presence behind me, the pointed way Russo looked at me would have notified me. He was holding Rosie’s hand and pulled her to the empty couch. She brought her feet up and folded herself to his side. She saw us first. Her brows pinched, her eyes widened, and then she just settled for a deer-in-the-headlights look, because she knew as well as I did what this meant.
Dominic got comfortable before his eyes snapped in my direction. He looked at his sister in my arms and met my eyes again. I saw the confusion, the question, and the anger unfold in his eyes all at once. I felt it. Rosie must have also moved from underneath his protective arm and set her hand over his. His jaw tensed as his eyes narrowed on mine, but he said nothing. I knew I had Rosie to thank for this. I also knew that in a few minutes, I was going to be a dead man.
Dean cleared his throat. “So far, four men that match the description of Giuseppe’s crew have been going from hotel to hotel with a picture of Lenora.”
At the sound of her name, her head snapped up. She sat up a little, letting her legs hang crossways over mine, and looked around. As soon as her breath hitched, I knew her eyes had met Dominic's, and she tried to scramble. I put a hand on her leg and held it. If I was going to die anyway, I might as well enjoy this moment a little longer. This was the problem with doing shit behind your oldest best friend’s back. You could only hide for so long before you were caught. I knew it was only a matter of time before Dom exploded. I was shocked he’d lasted this long. I could feel his eyes on my hands, my face, and Lenora. He was still giving me the benefit of the doubt, or maybe trying to figure out when this could have started. He knew as well as I did that I didn’t just let women sit on my lap. Even if I did, Lenora looked too comfortable in my arms for it not to be obvious. Dominic’s glare turned feral.