Page 76 of Dishonored

Even as the woman spoke, she moved across the private dining room, and sat down opposite to Aria on the other side of the table. In full view of the windows overlooking the busy main street in front of the restaurant.

Exactly where she needed to be.

“Why would I pretend anything?” Aria asked.

Giovanna—in her tight red dress, full makeup, and perfectly coiffed black hair—seemed almost smug. And Aria wouldn’t be surprised if the woman felt like this whole day and lunch between them was some kind of battle won for her.

A lunch Raffe ordered.

Peace he wanted.

Apologies from Aria.

Giovanna’s respect intact.

It was never going to happen.

“Why would I pretend to give a shit about the woman who acts against me?” Aria asked quietly. “Or who fucks my husband, and thinks I don’t know about it?”

Giovanna’s face turned a molten red at Aria’s statement, but she was more interested in checking the time on her watch.

12:29 PM.

Almost.

Aria glanced up. “Oh, and don’t try to deny it. I really don’t care. I do wish that if he was busy fucking someone else, he would leave me the hell alone. But we don’t always get what we want, do we?”

“I—”

“Is he softer-handed to you in bed than he is to me?” Aria laughed, and tugged the scarf away from her neck that had become a permanent fixture in her life again since Raffe’s return. Giovanna’s gaze drifted to the dotting of bruises along the side of Aria’s neck—all in different shades of healing. Fingerprints imbedded into her skin where Raffe liked to grab and squeeze for any number of reasons. He was not careful. He didn’t stop when he was told to. She didn’t want him touching her at all—certainly not like this. “For your sake, I hope he was.”

Giovanna’s gaze snapped back to Aria at that remark. “Was—that implies it won’t happen again.”

It was a familiar black sedan slowing a bit down the street outside of the restaurant that caught Aria’s gaze, and her attention momentarily. Just as fast—because the show was about to start, and she couldn’t afford to make a mistake—her attention went back to Giovanna.

“Because it won’t. You’ll be dead. You should have known better. Anyone who gets in my way dies.”

Giovanna opened her mouth to speak. Aria dropped to the floor as soon as the bullets started flying. It was chaos—utter pandemonium from the glass breaking to the gunfire, and even the people screaming who were safe and secure in the main restaurant area.

They didn’t know they were safe, though.

Only one person was meant to die today.

It was a lot to take in, and Aria’s only job was really just to stay low to the floor, and keep herself safe until the bullets stopped coming.

She got to hear the bitch next to her take her last breath, though.

Nico was a damn good shot—even with an Uzi.

That made it worth it.

“Get out!”

Raffe’s roar sent the two nurses in Aria’s hospital room scattering like little mice that had been caught in the sights of a cat. It would almost be amusing if it wasn’t for the fact his attention was now on her.

In three long strides, he was in front of her. Hands on her face, and clouding her vision. She had gotten two blissful hours of being away from this man while she was transported to a hospital and then checked over by the doctor in the emergency room. And all that went to shit when Raffe walked in through the doors.

“What happened?” he asked.