Not right now.
I can take care of us both.
I can take care of every scared woman and child in this estate while our men surround us in a fortified wall of protection.
I lost my sanctuary.
I lost my home.
Iam notlosing myself.
And I damn sure won't become another burden Maverick has to carry.
“There she is,” Stefano says softly.
I blink. “What?”
A slow smile spreads across his face.
“I don’t know what just went through your head,” he says. “But I watched it happen.”
“Watched what happen?”
“You just transformed.”
I frown. “Into what?”
He looks at me for a long second.
Then his smile turns proud.
“You went from a sanctuary owner tola regina del Donin the span of a single minute.” He shakes his head. “My brother is going to be very irritated that he missed it.”
“La what?” I ask.
“La regina del Don.”
“What does that mean?”
“The queen of the Don.”
My breath catches.
“I’m not a –”
“It’s not a small thing,” he interrupts, his voice gentler now. “To love a man like my brother, you can’t only love the soft pieces he gives you in private. You must understand the weight he carries in public.”
“I’m trying.”
“I know.” His smile deepens. “I saw you realize that just now.”
Tears sting my eyes, but they don’t feel weak this time.
They feel different.
Like something inside me is settling.
Like I just stepped into a place I didn’t know had been waiting for me.
