“I need you to protect her after I’m gone. The bikers I killed were her godfather and his men. Their friends will try to find her and kill her, and I can’t let that happen.”
Rafe puts his tumbler down, his brow furrowed. “You killed their men. They won’t stop until they get revenge.”
“Not if they learn she’s under the protection of Rafaele Messero.” Even those guys aren’t reckless enough to attack Blake while she’s on Messero turf. Their need for revenge isn’t worth their lives. Eventually, they’ll let it go, especially once I’m dead.
I wait for my old friend to give me his word, watching as he processes the situation. Rafe doesn’t agree to anything until he’s considered it from multiple angles. The only person who’s ever made him lose his cool is his wife.
Eventually, he nods. “All right.”
“Ferraro can’t touch her either.”
“As of right now, he doesn’t even know she exists.”
“Let’s try to keep it that way.”
“Then we have to go see him,” Rafaele says, standing up. “Right now. Before he gets a chance to look at footage of you and her or hear about your return from some other source.”
I get to my feet. “He’ll know you lied to protect me.”
“Obviously.”
“You wish you’d just killed me?”
Regret flashes inside his pale blue eyes. “No, Nero. But I wish you hadn’t come back. Because I can’t protect you now.”
CHAPTER 4
NERO
I get into the passenger seat of Rafe’s Aston Martin and clip in the seatbelt, feeling strangely at peace with the fact that our drive to Ferraro’s penthouse in Midtown might be the last car ride I’ll ever take.
I suppose it already feels like I’m living on borrowed time. I hadn’t expected Rafe to welcome me back like he did, but after meeting Blake, I know what it’s like to have a woman change you.
“So what’s her name?” he asks.
“Blake.”
“Does she know what you’re doing right now?”
“She knows.”
“She must be devastated.”
“Right before I came to you, she told me that she hates me.”
Rafe’s lips twitch. “If by some miracle you make it back home tonight, I’m sure she’ll come around.” He stops at a red light and turns to me. “Look at Cleo. She came around even after I forced her to marry me.”
I drag my teeth over my bottom lip. “I not only forced Blake to marry me, I also set her house on fire so that she’d move in with me.”
Rafe makes a surprised huff. “I didn’t realize this was a competition, but all right, you win.”
A wry smirk tugs on my lips. “It wouldn’t be the first time. Have you found a new boxing partner?”
“Bruno and I go once a week.”
“Bruno? Jesus. That’s not a real workout. You must wipe the floor with that guy.”
“He’s not that bad.” Rafe glances over. “You look a bit out of shape.”
