“What are you doing, Isabella?” Her father’s grin was replaced with a serious expression. She trained the gun directly at him. “You heard the judgment.”
“I did. Didn’t you? The retribution belongs to me alone.” She lined up her sights and pulled the trigger. Her body jolted back, but Renzo caught her. When she opened her eyes again, Klaus was taking the gun out of her hands. A crowd of onlookers circled the body.
“Justice has been served,” said one of her uncles from the Lastra family.
There would be no retaliation for what she’d just done. It was her right. She had to protect her family.
Klaus tucked the gun back in his pants and helped her into the car. The crowd was eerily quiet. She refused to make eye contact with any of her relatives. Isabella wouldn’t allow anyone to shame her or make her feel guilty for this. He’d tried to kill her. Her father had never been a good man.
As they drove home, she felt a unique sense of closure. No longer was that constant black cloud following her, the one that didn’t guarantee one day to the next. She was at peace. Her husband would be safe. And they could start a real family with lots of children.
Once they were dropped off at home, she immediately jumped in the shower, needing to wash off everything about tonight. She felt dirty after what she’d done, no matter how necessary it was. When she stepped back into their master bedroom, Klaus was sitting on the bed, his jacket and shirt off, just his suit pants remaining.
“You’re amazing, Bella.”
She smiled, but it wasn’t a happy smile.
“I would never have asked you to take his life. Even after the verdict. I’d rather die than make you kill your own father.”
“That’s why I had to do it.”
He patted his lap and she sat down on his thigh. “Why?”
“I can’t lose you, Klaus. I’ve never been happy until you married me. I want everything with you.”
Klaus cupped her cheek with one hand, staring at her with unadulterated adoration. She felt it with every fiber of her being. “I love you, Isabella Accardi. I can’t wait to see you pregnant with our child. To love you for the rest of my life.” He kissed her, slowly, deeply. A kiss with a thousand promises attached.
“I think we need a vacation,” she said. When he smiled, she added, “I’m not joking.”
“I’ll take you anywhere you want to go, bella principessa. The world is ours.”
She imagined a beach vacation, not a care in the world. Mostly, she wanted Klaus all to herself. No distractions. No thinking about tonight.
“And I’m yours.”
They kissed again, lost in their love for each other, and she didn’t care about her towel falling away. She had her man, her freedom, and they had a beautiful future ahead of them. She couldn’t wait to see what came next.
The End