A faint shade of pink tinged her cheeks. I loved it when she blushed. It reminded me how innocent and good she was. It also reminded me how much I didn’t deserve a woman like her. She was my exact opposite. Beautiful—inside and out, and utterly worthy of being loved.
She placed her hand against my cheek, the softness of her touch melting the last bit of ice I had left in my veins. She changed me. Her love made me want to be a better man.Herman.
“I love you, Dante. More than words can say.”
I placed my hand over hers, nestling my cheek deeper into her palm. To me, it felt like I had waited for her my whole life, and now that I finally had her, one lifetime didn’t feel long enough. It was moments like these I prayed to God and hoped like hell there was such a thing as eternal life because I planned on spending eternity with this woman.
Little did I know back then my time with Layla would be limited. Eternity wasn’t meant to be for us. It was unfortunate that I had to learn the hard way, losing my heart in the process.
Lucio sat up in the passenger seat. “Check out the SUV.”
I looked out and saw a black SUV parking in front of Kate’s house. In silence—and anticipation—I waited to see who was in the car.
First, a man dressed in a suit got out from the passenger side. He looked left and right, up and down the road twice before opening the back door to the SUV.
True as fuck, there she was, getting out of the car.
“That her?”
I nodded. “Lucio Valenti, meet Layla Moore.”
She wore a dark brown coat to ward off the early autumn cold. Big, round, dark sunglasses covered most of her upper face as if she was trying to hide.
Within a few short strides, Layla was up the stairs and knocking at her sister’s door with a man standing behind her. Three men stayed behind, one guarding the vehicle, the other two standing at the bottom of the stairs.
“Why all the muscle?” Lucio shifted in his seat.
“He’s protecting her.”
“From what?”
“Me.”
I continued to watch as Kate opened the door, two sisters hugging each other so tightly, one would think it was a fucking reunion.
Layla slipped inside the house, and I cursed. “Fuck. I need to be inside that goddamn house.”
Lucio unbuckled. “Well, then, let’s go.”
He was out of the car before I had the chance to stop him.
I jumped out and called after him. “Lucio, what the fuck are you doing?”
“I’ll tell you what I’m not doing.” He fastened his suit jacket. “I’m not sitting around and waiting for shit to go down.”
Fuck, I love this man.
We crossed the road, and the men standing by the end of the stairs turned their attention to us immediately.
“Gentlemen,” Lucio started, “do you know if a certain Kate Moore lives here?”
One guy glanced at the other before turning his focus back to us. “I suggest you two move along.”
Lucio skipped onto the pavement. “It’s really urgent that I get hold of Miss Moore. Is she here?”
“I said move along.”
“So, I’ll take that as a yes, then.” Lucio moved closer, both men straightening, their warning glares fully focused on us.