“Final warning. Cover any bits you don’t wantme tosee!”
The light from the hallway pouredover Mr. Moretti’s body, Luca’sfigurecasting a large dark shadow. I couldn’t see his face as he gasped. The door closed behind him with a click.
My eyes adjusted back to the darkness of the room,and I watched as Luca approached his father. He stood next to his body, just a few feet from me, and fell to his knees. Trembling hands ghosted over the wounds on Mr. Moretti’s face, and his shoulders began to shake. Without thinking, I moved to hug him.
When my hand grazed his shoulder, Luca turned quickly, shoving me against the wall. My head slammed against it, and I whimpered. It only took a second for him to recognize me and slacken his grip on my shoulders.
“Sasha?” His eyes widened,and he cupped my cheek. Pain shot through my face,and I jerked back, only to smack my head against the wall again. “Fuck, baby, stay still.”
I nodded. “Luca, I—” The distance between us was becoming too much. I threw myself into his arms. “He was going to kill me.” His jacket muffled my words.
“Shh.” His hands gently rubbed my back. “It’s going to be okay.”
I shook my head and tried to pull away, only to have Luca hold me closer, placing kisses on top of my head as he took deep breaths. We sat wrapped together on the floor.
After a deep sigh, Luca moved back and inspected my face. “What happened?”
I rested my hands on his chest. “I got a text from you telling me to meet you, but when I got here, it was your dad. I don’t know what his plan was because when I got the chance, I made a run for it.”
Luca nodded. His gaze falling on the heel planted deeply in his dad’s eye. “I’d say you got the upper hand.” He shook his head and looked back at me. “We need to get you out of here. Do you trust me?”
It wasn’t a question. “Always.”
“Good.” He gently lifted me and guided me to the bed. “I need to get Marco up here. He will get you out of the hotel and to safety.”
I nodded, my hand holding his so tightly his fingers turned red.
“This isn’t our hotel, but we shouldn’t have any problem cleaning this up. But we need to get you to the hospital without anyone knowing what happened.”
“Probably a stupid question, but no cops?”
Luca frowned and shook his head. “No cops. No one can know you did this. There are too many balls in the air.”
“Okay.Sowhat do I tell the hospital? Or Malcolm?”
Luca stood in front of me,smoothing my hair. “You’re going to be in a car accident.”
“Come again?”
“I’m going to put you in a car,and Pete’s going to crash it. We’ll make sure one of ours comes to the scene. I’ll tell Malcolm we got into an argument, and you left. I’m guessing he won’t buy it, but he’s the least of my worries right now.”
My head was spinning at the thought of being in a car accident. “And what about him?”
Luca’s gaze fell on his dad. “I’ll take care of it.”
I stood up and pulled his face towardme.“No, I did this. I should. I should.”
“You should what?” His hands traced my waist. “This isn’t your fault,Sasha. If I had been more observant, I could’ve stopped him before you had to. I’m so sorry.” His lips gently pressed against my forehead. That kiss hurt like a motherfucker. “I’ll take care of this.”
He stepped away for a second and shot off some texts. Sliding his phone in his pocket,he knelt between my legs. “I need you to listen to me, okay?”
I nodded. Honestly, I didn’t evenknowwhat to say.
“You need to forget about tonight. You need to forget about me. This right here is proof I can’t keep you safe, and I would die if anything happened to you.”
“But—” Luca shook his head,and I swallowed my words.
“I’m going to marry Zoe Chronis.” He shook his head as my lips parted. “Our marriage will unite the families and stop the day-to-day bloodshed. It will keep you safe. I should’ve never brought you into this world.” He looked away for a moment before nailing me with his dark stare. “I will never forgive myself for this.”