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“Gia,” the voice said, but it seemed so far away, like it was miles above me.
I found the strength to open my eyes. Everything looked blurry, like I was looking through a pair of my daddy’s glasses. I blinked heavily until my vision became my own again.
I was in my bedroom, and everything looked exactly how I’d left it. I turned my head and saw Enzo sitting beside me. He smiled at me, and I swore I saw gloss in his eyes as he dropped his gaze. His face was fucked. Bruises marked every inch of it, and one eye was still swollen and puffy. A bruise rose from beneath his blood-stained sleeveless shirt.
“Enzo,” I whispered.
“I’m right here,” he said as he pulled me into him, as gently as he could.
“What happened?”
“You got shot. I brought you to the doc who fixed up Atheist.”
I sat up and rubbed my hand along the bandage. Everything came back to me—the Irish, the shootout, and rescuing Enzo. I remembered being in the backseat with him, but everything else was just...gone. “You brought me to a veterinarian?” I groaned as I tried to scoot back to rest against the headboard.
“Areallygood veterinarian,” he said with a smirk.
“Why aren’t we back at your place?” I looked around the room, wondering why he would stay within my father’s home.
“Because if I went home, I’d have killed my brother, and I needed to talk to you about it first.”
“Why me?” A cough slipped through my dry throat, and Enzo grabbed a glass of water waiting on the bedside table.
“Because you’re better at this than I am,” he said as he brushed back my hair.
The cool water filled my mouth and spilled from the corners of my lips, soothing everything it touched. I handed him the empty glass. “What the hell did they give me?”
He shrugged. “Some kind of animal tranquilizer.”
“Perfect,” I said with sarcasm.
“That was so fucking stupid, Gia.” Enzo cupped my cheek. “So fucking stupid. You could have died. If I die, that’s one thing, but you can’t die in a war that wasn’t yours to fight.”
I swallowed hard, my throat still feeling like sandpaper. “It may not be my war, but I’m your ally. I’ll always go to battle for you.”
“Fuck, I love you,” he said as he tugged me into him. The sudden movement rocked my arm, and I winced.
I rubbed the bandage on my shoulder. “You know I love you. And my father knows it, too, or he wouldn’t have helped us.”
“Yeah, I still have doubts about him giving any type of blessing, Gia.”
“He will.” My words bubbled with confidence, but I really had no clue. I wanted to believe my father could let go of all that he hated about Enzo so I could be happy. I deserved to be happy. And it was the first time I ever felt that way.
Enzo leaned in to kiss me, but I pushed him away with my free hand. I didn’t know how long I’d been out, but I knew I needed to brush my teeth. “Bathroom,” I said as I climbed out of bed on legs that seemed disconnected from my body. Everything felt disconnected, like I was made of sand instead of blood and tissue. Animal tranquilizers would have been almost enjoyable if I hadn’t had a hole in my goddamn shoulder.
I walked into my bathroom, closed the door, and looked at my reflection. My shirt had been ripped off, presumably to fix me up. Someone had put me in a dingy band tee with the name of the band too worn away to read. I splashed water on my face, flinching with every movement that used my right shoulder, which was most of them. I clumsily brushed my teeth with my left hand.
I returned to the bedroom on wobbly legs and sat on the bed. Before I could even get comfortable, Enzo’s mouth was on mine. He kissed me hard. It felt like a thank you, even if he thought my actions had been incredibly stupid. He pulled away from me, wiped his chin, and covered his erection with his arm. He didn’t need to cover it. I liked to see it, even if I couldn’t do anything with it right then.
“What were you saying about your brother?” I asked.
“Oh, that fucker. I think he set it all up.”
“Wha—how?”
“Remember the man Atheist mauled? The one who met with my brother?”
“Yes...”
