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“Did she, now?”
I placed a hand on his chest, but he remained locked in his firm stance. “If I leave Dublin—this all goes away, doesn’t it?”
His shoulder blades shifted forward a little as if the weight of what he was going to say was too much. “Whether you stay or not, you won’t be safe. Donovan has already said as much.” His eyes flashed to mine. “Christ, Anna. Don’t ya get it? I’d do anything to protect you.”
The pain in his voice was deep—cutting straight to my heart. “If only I hadn’t answered Leslie’s ad for a roommate, maybe none of this would be happening,” I said weakly after a minute. “Maybe you’d be flying around in your chopper in Rome on the weekends, instead of fighting for that horrible criminal.”
His eyes narrowed on me. “You think so?”
I nodded. “I do.”
“Well, I thought about that, too.” When he unfurled his arms and dropped them to his sides, I took a step back and removed my hand from his chest. “I swear to God I don’t want anything to happen to you—obviously—but I don’t think I could trade the moments we had together for anything. Feck, I’d do it all over again if I had the choice. And that makes me a selfish arsehole because I’d willingly put you at risk—”
“Stop,” I said, stepping closer to him. “Just stop,” I cried, my eyes welling with tears.
God, I’d missed him.
He gently seized my arms and pulled me into him, hugging me while stroking my back. His chin rested on the top of my head as he held me, and I planted my hands firmly on his back, hanging on for dear life.
“Please don’t blame yourself,” he whispered into my ear. He ran his hand through my hair. “Donovan would’ve found a way to get me back into the ring no matter what. He was just waiting for a chance like this. So, please—don’t blame yourself.”
I slipped my hands up to his chest and pushed away. I swiped at my fallen tears.
My throat constricted, and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to breathe. “You don’t need to fight. I supported your decision to help your friend, but if I can stop this by leaving . . .”
He cocked his head to the side and studied me with hooded eyes. “I’m no saint, Anna. If you go, I’ll still fight.”
“But why?”
When he didn’t answer, I asked, “The fight is next weekend, right? First weekend in November?”
He nodded.
“And what if this Donovan guy wants you to keep fighting, afterward? What if he continues to threaten you?”
He took a step back and turned away from me, heading back toward the mat. “He won’t have to.”
“Why?”
“Because he doesn’t need to make threats anymore.” Anger flashed in his eyes. Although I didn’t think he was angry with me. Himself, maybe.
He was giving up.
I raced up behind him and grabbed hold of his arm, using the leverage to maneuver in front of him. I touched the inside of his forearm, brushing my fingers over the tattoo. “Choose family, Adam. Please.” My teeth sank into my bottom lip as I looked up at him, my eyes pleading. “Choose me.”
His eyes were a brooding whirl of darkness. He and I were hanging on the edge of something, something dangerous, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to back away. If Adam was there, I wanted to be there, too.
“Anna.” He closed his eyes. The pain in his voice was thick, deep, cutting. My insides burned with the need to be his.
“Fuck me.”
His eyes flashed open, and my body heated at the powerful sight of him.
“What?” His brows pinched together.
“You said that when you’re with me you get the same kind of high you do from fighting. Maybe an even better high?” I reached around to my back and began to unzip the blue and white farm-girl dress. It fell to the floor, and I stood there in a lace bra and panties.
His breath hitched, and he took a large step back as if he were afraid of me. “No, Anna. I can’t just fuck you. I won’t use you like that. Is that all you think you are to me?” He shook his head. “It wasn’t just about us screwing—it was about you. You made me feel . . .” His voice trailed off as he lowered his eyes to the blue mat.
