“Thank you.”
I didn’t spare him a single glance, my hands roving over Rory, searching for signs of injury.
My voice came out strangled as I pulled the blankets away from Luca’s face. “Let me see him.”
Our little guy’s nose was scrunched up, preparing to let out an ear-splitting wail, but I welcomed the noise. It meant he was alive and well—something I wouldnevertake for granted.
“He’s okay.” Rory hiccupped. “We both are.”
Pressing my forehead to hers, I let out a shuddering breath. “Thank God.”
Against my lips, she murmured, “You didn’t stay away.”
“No. I couldn’t.”
With her free hand, she cupped my jaw. “I’m really glad you didn’t listen.”
Withdrawing, I stared into her glassy blue eyes. “Haven’t I proven I’ll chase you to the ends of the earth? You’re mine. Always and forever.”
A fresh set of tears crested her lashes. “Forever won’t be long enough.”
Today, we’d cheated death and were given a second chance at life.
I didn’t plan to waste it.
Chapter 27
Rory
“You’resupposedtobesleeping when he sleeps.”
Forearms resting on the crib rail, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the slumbering infant. “I’m afraid that if I leave, when I come back, he won’t be here,” I confessed.
The nurses at Windy City General were probably glad to see me go, given the number of times I’d woken up screaming. Every time I closed my eyes, the nightmare of finding Luca’s crib empty continued to haunt me.
Thanks to Enzo and his stolen plow truck, my baby boy and I were able to get the medical attention we needed. Since I was freshly postpartum, they placed us together in the maternity ward, where Luca got the phototherapy he needed for his jaundice, and I was treated for the mild case of frostbite I suffered on my feet. By the time the roads were cleared, doctors were ready to discharge us with matching clean bills of health.
Warmth radiated off Gio at my back as his arms bracketed mine. “Would it make you feel better to move him into our room?”
I sighed. “Probably.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do.” He pressed a kiss to my temple.
Turning in his arms, I found the courage to ask the question plaguing my mind in the days since Enzo rescued us from Dario and his twin terrors.
“Did you mean it?”
Gio’s forehead wrinkled. “Mean what?”
“That you love me.”
He reared back. “Did you mean it when you said the same to me?”
“Of course I did.”
“Then why would you think I didn’t?”
“I don’t know. On one hand, I want to believe you meant it. But on the other . . .” My chest heaved on a heavy exhale. “I’m acutely aware that you’re a skilled liar, and maybe it was nothing more than you offering me comfort in what we thought were my final moments.”
