Bea. He still called me Bea, and I knew I hadn’t imagined that tenderness in his voice. Despite whatever bullshit he was spewing, he still cared about me.
And that’s when I understood where this was coming from. I revisited every word he said on fast forward in my head, and over and over again, all I heard him saying was that he was letting me go because I wasn’t safe with him.
“Don’t you get it, you foolish, foolish man?” I cried out. “I don’t want us to end.”
The room had gone deadly silent, but I didn’t care that my brothers were there.
“You almost died in that fire because of me, Bea,” Arko said, his voice strained.
“I went into that fire by choice, and I wasn’t even hurt!” I tried to protest.
“It should never have been a choice for you to make!” He planted his hands on the table, his face inches away from mine, twisted in agony. “When it mattered most, when you were trapped in that burning building, I failed to protect you.”
I gasped, understanding what was happening here. He didn’t just think he brought danger to my life; he thought he had failed me.
“Is that what this is about? You think you failed me?” I asked incredulously, my eyebrows hitting the roof of my head.
“I know I failed you!” He sounded like he’d been gutted. “Your worst fear is fire, and you ended up in one because of me. How can I even say I’m capable of protecting you after that?”
“But nothing happened, Arko!” I inched closer, forcing him to see how I felt in the depths of my eyes. “I walked in bychoice because I thought you were in danger. You didn’t put me in that situation!
“You could have died waiting for me!” He shook his head.
“But I didn’t die! I’m right here!” I reached over to clasp a hand over his. “And I’m not leaving.”
Arko’s eyes flashed. “This isn’t up for debate, Beatrice.”
“The hell it isn’t!” I pulled back and crossed my arms, daring him to defy me.
“I’m setting you free,” he insisted, louder this time. “Giving you your life back. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
“I don’t want my old life back!” My voice rose to match his. “I want the life I have now. With you.”
He shook his head, and I could see the walls going up behind his eyes. “You’re confused. The trauma of these past few months has taken a toll on you.”
“Don’t you dare dismiss my feelings like that.” My voice shook with fury. “I knew exactly what I was doing when I went into that building, Arko. I knew the risk, and I took it anyway.”
“Why?” he demanded. “Why would you risk your life like that?”
“Because I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you!” The words exploded out of me. “Because the idea of you being trapped or hurt was worse than any fire!”
The room fell so quiet I could hear the clock ticking on the wall. Arko stared at me, his eyes wide with shock.
“Jesus Christ,” Dante’s voice broke the silence. “Will you two just admit you’re in love with each other already? The rest of us figured it out days ago.”
My head snapped around to look at my brother, who was leaning back in his chair with an amused expression on his face.
“What?” I asked, suddenly feeling self-conscious. Beside me, Arko had gone quiet, like he too was confused by this turn of events.
“Oh, come on,” Giovanni chimed in next. “It’s painfully obvious. Why do you think we’ve been playing nice these past few days? Sure, I wasn’t keen on whatever you two had developed, but honestly, we can all see you’re in love.”
I looked back at Arko, whose face had gone completely still, like he was afraid to move. I searched his eyes, looking for confirmation of what my heart already knew.
“Is it true?” I asked softly. “Do you love me?”
“Of course I do, but you deserve better than me,” he whispered.
“I don’t want better. I want you,” I said, with tears welling in my eyes.
