Page 9 of A Very Grumpy Green Beret

“Wow,” she whispers, staring up at me with wide eyes. “Special forces.”

“Yeah.”

“And you just got out?”

“I was injured. Medically discharged.”

“Oh, Luca,” she says softly, her eyes sad. “I’m so sorry.”

“I was ready to get out,” I assure her.

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Me too.”

She smiles up at me.

I clear my throat.

“What about you? What brings you to Wolf Valley?”

I want to ask her who was in the car that spooked her, but I hope she’ll open up more if I don’t interrogate her.

“I needed a change too,” she says stiffly.

I wait for her to continue when she pauses.

“I… My parents are kind of mob… adjacent.”

I already knew that, but I lift an eyebrow, pretending to be surprised. “What does that mean?”

“They worked for the Don,” she says, suddenly sounding exhausted.

“Did you… like that life?” I ask carefully.

She shakes her head, looking angry. “No. I hated it. It was a lifestyle of paranoia and trust issues. I want a normal life. That’s part of why I left and moved here.”

“And what’s the other part of why you moved?”

She stares at me for a beat. I hold her gaze, willing her to trust me and open up.

Give me all of your problems, baby. I want to solve them all.

“Bryan Marchessi,” she finally whispers.

I clench my hands into fists. I’ll kill him.

“He was with the family. A lieutenant. He took a liking to me, but I refused to be with him. He was getting… insistent. His ego couldn’t take the rejection. So I left.”

I grit my teeth, swallowing my rage. I hate that she had to leave her home and family because of that asshole. Although it doesn’t sound like she would’ve stayed there. She doesn’t seem to miss the place or the people—even her parents.

“He’s looking for me. I think that was his car in town,” she says in a rush. Now that the dam has cracked, it’s all spilling out. “I don’t know what to do, Luca. I’m so scared and I have nowhere to go and I can’t afford an apartment or a new tire or breakfast. I can’t find a job. No one is hiring. I can’t keep myself safe. I can’t⁠—”

“Leave it to me.”

She blinks at my words, or maybe it was my harsh tone.

I clear my throat, determined to be gentle for her. “Nothing bad will happen to you,” I promise. “Not on my watch. Those assholes looking for you will have to go through me to get close to you, and that’s not fucking happening.”