I see myself through her eyes. Head to foot in blood. Hands dripping. Holding the detached head of the man who took her.
She hasn’t moved. Hasn’t screamed. Hasn’t run.
She’s just staring at me.
Behind her is Lorenzo, apologetic, gun at the back of a kneeling guard.
“Found her, boss. She wouldn’t wait.”
I open my left hand.
The head drops. Rolls across the marble. Stops against the leg of the bathtub.
I don’t look at it.
She moves toward me. Slow—her legs aren’t entirely working. She walks across the marble, eyes on me the whole time. The look on her face isn’t fear or horror. It’s the look of a woman who spent six hours not knowing if the man she loves was alive and is now confirming that he is.
Before she can get too far, I go to her. My knife clatters to the floor, and I wrap my bloody arms around her. She doesn’t flinch. God, I don’t deserve her.
“Bea—”
She tips her head up and kisses me. I taste blood. I don’t know whose, but it doesn’t matter right now. There’s only her lips. This kiss.
The love of my life.
Then Lorenzo clears his throat. “Uh, boss?—”
Our kiss fades, and I glare at him over Bea’s matted hair.
“The head. Strictly necessary?”
“Yes.”
“Fair enough. Also—this guy.”
“Kill him.”
“Don’t,” Bea pleads, staring up at me. “He helped me. The text came from his phone.”
Never have I spared someone’s life just because someone else asked me to. But Bea isn’t just someone. She’s my everything and more.
“He lives,” I nod. “He works for me now. Salary double Victor’s rate. Terms in the morning.” I meet his eyes. “You move without my say-so in the next five minutes, Lorenzo ends you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Get him out.”
Lorenzo smiles. “My pleasure.”
He turns, and the door shuts behind him.
“No. The pleasure is all mine.” I stroke the dried blood off Bea’s lip and stare deep into those beautiful, perfect eyes. “I missed you, my love.”
The strength in her gaze falters. Tears well up.
“They… they told me you were dead…”
“You think I’d leave you so easily?” I lean down and plant a gentle kiss on her forehead, wiping away her tears with my thumb. “Not a chance, baby girl. Not a fucking chance. You’re mine. And I’m yours. When we go, we go together. Understand?”
