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“Never.”
Dante exhaled. “I see. So the big he-man refuses to take her no as a final answer.”
“We’re connected, Dante. She means everything to me. It’s hard to explain and trust me, I have no clue what I’m doing. What I do know for certain is that if I’d left her alone, she’d be dead by now. They almost succeeded. She almost drowned. I’m never going to allow anyone to hurt her again. Never.” I sensed he was watching me, studying my reaction. I’d never been one to allow anyone to know what I was thinking but when I thought about her, I was a different man.
“You’re in love with her. That’s easy to see. I’ve never seen you so animated since I’ve known you, Diego. I’ve also never seen you so fully committed to caring about someone’s life. That should tell you everything you need to know. And trust me, I get it.”
“I’m not in love. That’s not something that works in my life.”
“Bullshit. Don’t try and fool yourself. You care about her, brother. And also, don’t give me crap about it not working. You see how happy Carina and I are.”
“You didn’t grow up being indoctrinated into this life.”
He laughed, this time the sound bitter. “You really believe I had it any easier than you did? Come on. You know better.”
The argument was growing old even to me.
I shook my head, tossing about half the glass of whiskey this time. “Fine. I care about her. I’ve never forgotten her. She filled my dreams with worry and fear she hadn’t gotten out of the horrible situation. Yet that made no sense to me. Why did a kid tattoo a memory on my brain that I was never able to erase? As I imagined her older years later, the thoughts changed.”
“Uh-huh. Maybe because thinking about her kept you grounded. The fact you saved her life meant you weren’t as evil as Xavier the bastard wanted you to believe. You’re not a bad man, Diego. But what Xavier did to you, to your entire family, was evil. My suggestion is that you don’t allow that to continue into the future. Think about the love you want to share with your children, the legacy you can offer them.”
“Children?” I almost choked on my drink. “Not a fucking chance in hell. Besides, you forget who you’re talking to. I’m a carbon copy of you.” I grinned, teasing him for a change.
He rolled his eyes, giving me another hard look. “If that’s the case then I’ll have Carina start to help plan your wedding. You had a decent life with money and possessions, all those things you told me you wanted.”
Of course he was challenging me all again.
“And you grew up with love in your household, music. You had Emmanuel looking after you,” I threw back.
His eyes flashed from what I’d said. “And I wouldn’t change it for the world. I would change the fact both you and our mother suffered because you didn’t have each other. Don’t allow time to get away from you. You need a family, brother. There is nothing better than coming home from a long day, able to share a conversation over a glass of wine in front of the fire. There’s also nothing like creating a meal together and it doesn’t matter what it is. Then the nights you curl up together, knowing that you’ll wake up in the morning and the woman you love will be the first person you see is the best feeling in the world. Holidays mean something, birthdays and every celebration. Don’t you see how happy I am?”
“Don’t you worry about the danger, the inability to protect your beautiful wife every hour of the day?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets, stepping over the broken items toward the window. He was the reflective one, the man who often hated himself for what he’d become. “That’s all I thought about for months after marrying Carina. Then she helped me realize that even if I wasn’t in this lifestyle, one or both of us could die from disease, a random home invasion, or a car accident. In other words, I can’t live every day thinking that one or both of us is going to die.”
I thought about what he was saying and hated to admit how jealous I’d been of his relationship with the woman I was supposed to marry. It was funny how things worked out, one of the reasons I hadn’t been upset that Dante had taken my place was because of Sabrina. Only I hadn’t fully embraced the reason why no woman had ever mattered to me.
Until now.
“Do I take precautions? Of course I do. I have three soldiers remaining by her side since I’m here with you. I’m worry that this vendetta, this ridiculous Death Squad is going to decide that besides myself, my wife and child are part of the assassination mission, but I can’t stop loving her because of it. I won’t send her away. We’re connected, Carina and me. Just like you and Sabrina are. It’s time to embrace and accept who you are and the woman you love.”
He turned around, daring me to lie and defy him. I couldn’t because what he’d just said was one hundred percent correct.
“How’d you get so smart, brother?” I asked, allowing a grin to cross my face. It was crazy but every inch of my skin was tingling, every synapse in my body feeling more alive than it had in years.
All because of a decision I made as a boy and the woman whose life I’d saved not once but twice.
And I would do it again, no matter the circumstances.
He shrugged. “Our mother might have had something to do with it. She’d want you happy, bro. You know that. So do I.” He placed his drink on my desk before heading toward the closed door.
I watched him walk away. There was no choice in what needed to happen. I might not like it, but I refused to allow the Death Squad to rule my life any longer. I had too much to live for, too many things I wanted to do.
With her.
With the woman I loved.
The very one I couldn’t live without.
