Page 113 of Reckless Desires

“Well then, I’ll just wait for you to reach out if that’s what you choose.” She places a hand on my foot, giving it a grip of affection. “Hope to see you around, Lily.”

I watch her walk out and not even spare me a glance back. As soon as the door shuts, the tension in the room clears. Wiping away tears, I sniffle. There’s a knock on the door. We all look at each other, and then Selene goes to open it. She lets the person in.

“Lily,” Alessio’s voice breaks through the stillness, a warm smile lighting up his face. “That was a scare.”

He strides over to me, his hand reaching out, enveloping mine in a comforting grasp. But as I look into his eyes, a tide of guilt crashes over me, relentless and suffocating. Alessio has shown me nothing but kindness, his heart wide open, yet I am trapped in a lie I can no longer sustain. How do I tell him that my heart belongs to another? That I cannot marry him?

“Can we have the room?” he asks my sisters, and they nod, slipping out like shadows. Alone now, the weight of the world presses down on me, nausea swirling in my stomach.

“Lily,” he begins, his voice steady yet laced with vulnerability. “You know I love you. And I know you love me, but…” he hesitates, the truth hanging heavy in the air. “You don’t love me like you love him.”

My heart races, each beat echoing the pain of what I must say. “I’m so sorry, Alessio. You deserve so much better than this.”

“I do,” he admits, his gaze unwavering. “And so do you.” He straightens, resolve etched across his features. “I spent all night thinking. If we marry, you’ll spend the rest of your life resenting me for taking you away from him. I won’t have that. I’d rather keep you as a friend than not have you in my life at all.”

I grip his hand tightly, a desperate plea in my eyes. “So, you don’t hate me?”

His smile is soft, yet it carries the weight of unspoken love. “I could never hate you. Killian, on the other hand…” A gentle laugh escapes his lips, but it’s tinged with a hint of seriousness. “If he screws up, he knows I’ll come after him.”

“Is he here?” I ask, a mix of hope and fear clawing at my insides.

“He’s tying up a few loose ends before he leaves,” Alessio replies, his tone serious. “It was part of our deal.”

“Deal?” I echo, confusion swirling within me.

“If I let him save you, he’d leave,” he confesses, each word slicing through my heart. “All his resources and territory are now mine. All of that just to spare his life for your sake.”

My heart swells at his sacrifice, gratitude flooding my veins. “Thank you, Alessio.” But then, the weight of his words sinks in. “He’s leaving?” My eyes widen in disbelief.

“He’s passing his title to Donal and rerouting everything to New York. Then he’s off back to Ireland.” Alessio pulls out two plane tickets, the finality of it all crashing over me. “I hope you come back to visit when he’s in town.”

I take the tickets, my name and Killian’s glaring back at me on a one-way flight to Ireland. “So he’s allowed back?”

Alessio smirks, a hint of mischief in his eyes. “As long as you’re with him and he treats you well. I’m keeping him on as a consultant. We’ll see where that takes us down the line.”

Overwhelmed by a surge of emotion, I lean forward and pull him into a tight embrace, my heart aching with the bittersweet weight of it all.

“Be good, Lily,” Alessio whispers as he pulls away, his lips brushing my forehead in a tender farewell. In this moment, I realize how deeply he cares for me, and the enormity of what I’m losing settles in my chest like a heavy stone. The love I have for Alessio will forever be bittersweet.

Chapter Seventy-Four

Lily

As I drift back into consciousness, the familiar sight of Killian in the chair steals my breath away. His eyes light up when they meet mine, and he rises from his seat, standing resolutely by my bedside.

“You’re here,” I whisper, a smile breaking through the haze of my exhaustion.

“Came to get my woman,” he replies, that teasing smirk playing on his lips, but I can sense the weight of something unspoken hanging in the air.

“Alessio gave his blessing,” I tell him, though my heart races at the thought of what that truly means.

He nods, but his expression darkens, and my stomach knots. “I have a daughter,” he blurts out, his voice thick with emotion. “I just found out.”

“Evie?” I breathe, a smile crossing my face.

“You know?” There’s surprise in his eyes.

I nod slowly. “Farrah told me she knew who you were, but you didn’t recognize her. She told me everything.” I reach for his hand, squeezing it tightly. “She’ll be so happy to finally have her Evie back.”