I glanced around and collapsed back on the pillow when I found I was in my bedroom at Archhurst. Luca lay sprawled in an armchair next to my bed with his phone resting on his lap.
I gazed at him, and so much love welled up in my heart that my vision blurred with tears. He came back for me. Everything he said on the balcony was true, but I already knew that. He loved me more than anything. We belonged together—all four of us.
He looked so beautiful sleeping like that. He must have passed out watching over me. I could kiss him for that, but he needed to sleep. He carried the weight for the whole family. He deserved a break.
How could I tell him about what Giovanni said? What if Luca and the twins didn’t believe Giovanni’s story about the Vittorios framing my dad?
Maybe I shouldn’t tell them at all… But how could I not? How could I go on letting the twins believe my dad killed their parents?
All at once, Luca jerked out of a sound sleep. He spun from side to side searching for something, and his hand flew to his head when he saw me looking at him. “Oh my God! You’re awake! I have to text the twins. They would kill me if I didn’t tell them.”
He grabbed his phone and moved over to my bedside, typing fast. He looked disheveled, and he still wore the tux shirt he was wearing at the masquerade ball. He hadn’t changed.
He finally put down his phone, looked up at me, and then kissed me with another startled gasp. “My God! We were so worried about you!”
“I’m okay. I’m just… sore.”
He kept petting my cheeks and rubbing my arms. “Don’t ever leave the house again. My nerves can’t stand it.”
I had to laugh. “I think I might have to leave now and then. I’ll need to visit my parents sometimes.”
The color drained from his face. “Listen… I’m so sorry about what happened. It’s all my fault. I still expect the twins to kick my ass for putting you in danger, but I just want you to know…”
“Luca?”
“Yeah?”
I gulped. I had to tell him. “Giovanni said… He said…”
“It’s okay,” he breathed. “Your dad has been pardoned. We know Michael was the one who killed the Lucianos and sent my father up to prison. We all know your dad is innocent.”
My jaw dropped. “Michael!”
“Yeah. He admitted it to me. He thought he was untouchable because he was a Padrino. He thought we wouldn’t be able to make him pay without starting a war.”
“So… where is he? What are you going to do?”
“Nothing. He’s dead.”
I couldn’t blink. “Dead!”
He nodded. “We got our revenge. It’s finished.”
“So… are you at war?”
“We were. It only lasted about fifteen minutes, but it’s over now. There are no more Vittorios in Boston, and the ones that were in Atlantic City are on the run. We don’t have to worry about them anymore.”
Now it was my hand that flew to my head. I couldn’t take all this in, but at that moment, the door burst open, and Dominic raced over to my bed.
He bent over and kissed me on the forehead. “Thank God you’re all right. Now I can sleep.”
I touched his face. “Thank you for coming for me. I thought I was done for.”
“Forget it!” Dante chimed in. “You think we would leave you alone with that lowlife?”
“So, is Giovanni dead too?”
“No, he just wishes he was,” Dominic snarled.