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But as much as I was concerned about her health, a small, selfish part of me couldn’t wait to see her with a heavily pregnant belly, couldn’t wait to welcome the perfect child we’d created.
The jet leveled off, and the roaring engine noise settled into a soft hum.
I strained my ears to catch the conversation between Sophie and Alessio. They both leaned forward and spoke in hushed tones, and their voices were barely audible over the mechanical purr.
My stomach tightened, and I got up and stood beside Alessio.
When he looked up at me, I motioned for him to get up, and to my utter surprise, he did with only the minimum amount of eye-rolling and head shaking.
I didn’t care. Sophie was mine. I didn’t want anyone near her or talking to her but me.
I plonked down.
But apart from a quick flick with her eyes—there was no visible reaction.
Which grated on my nerves and made me want to punch something.
“Where are my bodyguards?” she finally asked after a minute of silence. Her voice was tight with concern. Her head turned to Alessandro—who’d taken the seat I had previously occupied.
He shot me a glance before answering. “We just put them to sleep and into the back alley. They’ll be fine and should be up by now.”
Sophie nodded at him, then stared back out the window.
But I couldn’t tear my gaze away from her.
Her complete disregard for my presence irritated me, but watching her—even from a distance—was like watching a rainbow, something I couldn’t resist.
“How did you find me?” Her question was directed at Alessandro again, not me.
It stung.
“Gabe went to your home in Boston,” Alessandro said, glancing at me again. “Your father beat him unconscious, nearly killed him.”
Sophie’s gaze flickered over to me, shock etched on her face. For the first time since she’d taken my hand at the coffee shop, she really looked at me. But I couldn’t decipher what was going on behind those beautiful eyes.
Fear? Concern? Pity?
“He would be dead if Vincenzo Salvini and Hawk hadn’t intervened,” Alessio continued, his voice heavy.
Her eyes rounded even more.
“Gabe spent a couple of days in an induced coma before he woke up. And then he released himself—against the doctor’s orders.” Alessio stared at me with utter incredulity.
I gave him a hard stare back. I didn’t want her to know the details, but maybe it was the only way for her to understand how far I was willing to go.
And maybe, just maybe, she’d realize that she still felt something for me, too.
Who would she choose if given the choice—her father or me?
As the conversation died down, I couldn’t help but stare at Sophie, my heart both full and empty at the same time.
The need to have her back in my arms burned a hole inside of me, but the distance between us and the silence seemed impossible to bridge.
Sophie’s eyes flicked over to me once more. Her eyebrows were drawn as she studied me as if I was a lab experiment gone awry.
I looked at her unwaveringly, then arched a single eyebrow.
And waited.
