“Alessio,” I whispered.
“Yes?”
My fingers traced the chain and then the Phoenix. “You said you’d kill anyone in your path. But what about the innocent?”
Alessio tensed. “What?” he said slowly. Oh no, I knew that tone. But I continued to push. I needed to know.
My voice trembled as I spoke. “What about those who are innocent? Will they perish, too? Just because they were doomed to be an Italian—an Abandonato?”
Like me. The words were at the tip of my tongue, but I stopped them just in time.
He didn’t speak for what felt like the longest time in my life. Then he spoke. And when he did, I knew that no matter what…my ending would always be the same.
“There is no fucking innocence in that family. They are all the spawn of the devil. They are tainted with my mother’s and sister’s blood.”
Bringing a hand to my mouth, I choked back a sob. It didn’t matter that I was a victim and innocent, because at the end of the day, I was an Abandonato.
“Tell me something, Alessio,” I said hoarsely. “You said there is no innocence in that family. You hate them. But…” I paused and took a deep breath. “What would you have done if I was one of them? What if I tell you I’m an Abandonato?”
My question was met with silence. I quickly swiped my tears away and waited. And waited. And waited. Seconds passed by…and then minutes. I still waited as silence enveloped us.
Alessio suddenly shifted from under me, and then I was on my back, and he was looming over me, his gaze intense, his eyebrows furrowed in question.
“What are you talking about?” he growled.
Palming his cheeks, I whispered, “It’s just a question, Alessio. I’m just wondering.”
“Ayla, that’s a stupid question. Why would you even ask that?” He glared down at me. “Don’t say that ever again.”
He leaned down and placed a kiss on my nose. “I don’t ever want you to associate yourself with those fuckers again. Not even as a fucking joke. Do you hear me?”
My heart stuttered at his words, and before I could stop myself, I pulled him down until our lips met each other. I kissed him with everything I had. I kissed him until I was breathless. I kissed him with such fervor as if it were my last kiss.
Alessio growled into my lips and slowly pulled away, both of us breathing hard, our heart pounding, singing to each other with the same rhythm.
“You’re too innocent, sweet, and gentle to ever be an Abandonato. Your heart is pure. An angel can’t belong to the Abandonato,” he whispered against my lips.
My breath hitched, and my fingers tightened in his hair.
“Alessio…” I said softly. He gazed down at me with loving eyes. And I knew he could see the same thing in my eyes, for I had given myself to him. My heart, my body, my soul, and my love.
Even through the searing pain my chest, I smiled.
And then he did, too.
Our smiles had lightened each other’s hearts. I could see the pain fading from his eyes until they were soft.
“Enough with this now. We should sleep. It’s late,” he admonished quietly. Getting off the bed, he turned off the lights, leaving only the night lamp on before joining me in bed again.
Alessio rolled us over until he was on his back and I was half lying on top of him. I wrapped my arms around his waist and laid my head on his chest, right over his beating heart. He wrapped an arm around my hips, holding me close to him, and he pulled the comforter over us.
I closed my eyes with a sigh.
Alessio’s vengeance was weighing heavily on his shoulders. I knew he would kill Alberto soon. It was coming. His death had been signed the moment he took over.
For the first time in my life, I prayed that someone’s death would come faster. I prayed for the day that Alessio would end the life of my tormentor and release us from the chains of our pasts.
The moment Alessio refused to believe that I was an Abandonato was the very same moment I had made a decision.
It was a naïve thought. Stupid even. Maybe my naivety would get me killed me in the end.
But in that moment, I had decided that I was no longer Ayla Abandonato.
I was just Ayla.
Alessio’s Ayla.
Alessio’s Angel.
With that as my final thought, Alessio’s heartbeat lulled me into a peaceful sleep. I dreamed of us at the creek, kissing and making love as happiness radiated around us.
Chapter 23
2 months later
I groaned while looking at the mirror. Alessio had left hickeys—love bites, all over my body again. He left his mark on my neck in plain visible sight for everyone to see. So they knew who I belonged to. Those were his words.