Vow to Protect

I grab him by the arm before he can go. When she starts to interfere, I glare down at her, warning her off. “The other thing I asked you to take care of?”

He points at a box on the table I hadn’t even noticed. I let him slip out the door and grab the box.

She’s curious and peers around my shoulder. “What is it?”

I tug her to my front and lift her easily to sit on the edge of the glass table. “A gift for you.”

The light that enters her eyes at such a small statement clears the rest of the anger still seething inside me. Gods, no one could be angry at that look, nor the soft, warm feeling she puts inside me just with a look.

I open the box and pull out a cell phone, then turn it to face her. “It’s for you. All our numbers are programmed inside. This way, you can call for help if you need it or order stuff online. Whatever you need.”

“You…this is for me?” She blinks down at it, almost shocked.

I tuck a thatch of stray hair behind her ear, but of course, it doesn’t stay. “It’s just a phone, Angel. You’re not a prisoner here. You belong to me, yes, and right now, I don’t want you to go anywhere until we take care of Sal, but I still want you to live your life.”

Tears coat her lashes again, and I brush them away. “Don’t cry, please.”

“It’s just. I don’t want to know what to do. I mean…my whole life was spent inside that house as a punching bag for my father, then worse when Sal showed up. My only plans were the ones he made and the ones I made to try to free us. Now, I’m not sure what to do with myself. I mean, I can’t just stay here and live in your bed.”

“Our bed,” I correct her. “And if that’s what you want to do, especially when you get nice and round with our baby, then that’s what you’ll do.”

Her eyes go wide again, the same panicked look she gave me last night. She might not be keen on the idea of having a child now, but soon, she’ll be pregnant with my baby. I can’t wait to spoil them both and give them everything I didn’t get as a child.

“Can we…talk about something else?”

I nudge her thighs apart and step between them to remove the tie of her robe. “Like what?” I ask, then bend down to nuzzle the curve of her neck. She squirms against me, and I love the breathy sigh that follows.

She threads her fingers into my hair and leans back on the table. “On second thought, maybe we should talk after.”

28

Valentina

It’s been one month since we first had sex. In the real world, it’s probably not a milestone people celebrate. But to me, giving my body in that way, feeling safe in it, comfortable with it, feels like something to celebrate.

When I wake and find the bed empty, I know he’s already working, so I get dressed and hatch my plan. It starts by texting Kai. He arrives a few minutes later but refuses to enter my bedroom, so I drag him down the hallway to the room I started turning into a library.

Once inside, I close the door, and he looks ready to bolt. How can a grown man who worked as my husband’s right hand for years be so skittish when I get him alone? I know Adrian can be jealous, but I’d never touch him. They both know that by now.

He inches toward the door as I study my progress in the room. “I need your help with something. I want to make Adrian a special meal tonight to celebrate. Do you happen to know anything about his mother?”

While turning the door handle, he freezes.

I stare at him, hands on my hips, and wait for him to face me, confusion all over his face. “Why do you ask about his mother?”

“He doesn’t talk about her much, but I know they had a special relationship. Do you know if she ever cooked him anything special? Something that might bring back happy memories.”

“I’m sure he will enjoy anything you make for him.”

I’m missing something in his tone, I can tell. It’s too light, too breezy as if he doesn’t want me asking questions. But does he want me to stop questioning him or ensure I don’t ask Adrian these things?

“Why are you so spooked? It’s a simple request. I can go ask someone else if you don’t know.”

He blocks the door with his big frame. “No. That won’t be necessary. Just give me a second to think about it.”

I give him my sweetest smile. “Great. You have no idea how much I appreciate this.”