I’m struggling with my tears as Killian plates a pancake, cuts it up into small bites and rests it on Rona’s legs, handing her a fork. Silently he returns and pours two cups of coffee, adding three creamers and two sugars in one and handing it to me. Iwant to ask him how he knows but obviously he’s been paying attention.
“Thank you,” I whisper. And we both know I’m thanking him for more than the coffee.
He turns up the TV volume on the cartoons, picks up his black coffee and motions for me to follow him.
We settle in the alcove where the bathroom counter and sink sit. He leans against the wall and sips from his cup, his gaze locked on mine.
He’s quietly waiting for an explanation.
I tighten my robe and wrap my arms around my middle, still not sure if I should open up to him. “How did you find me?”
His eyebrow lifts, a tiny spark of amusement in his eyes.
“Right,” I sigh. “Mafia.”
The amusement dies and his jaw clenches as his gaze locks onto my ruined eye. “Time to give me the name of your devil, love.”
It’s not the threat or the promise of vengeance behind his words that makes me answer him, though that’s all there, too. It’s the tenderness. It’s the promise that I’m not facing this alone anymore. I see it now, how genuine, raw emotion presents.
With Michael, everything was an act, he mimicked human emotion like an A-list actor. But it never showed in his eyes. They were dull, dead, empty. This… this glittering fire throwing sparks into the darkness, the swirl of changing emotions as unstable as spring weather in Killian’s gaze, this is real human emotion. He cares.
“Michael Barone.” Even though I’m the one who said it, hearing his name out loud is like a fist seizing my lungs.
He nods and I notice his knuckles whitening as he grips the coffee cup with more force. “Rona is his?”
I swallow bile, force myself to take a deep breath. “Unfortunately. It wasn’t by choice.” I lift my bare ankle, the one with the scar. “He held me captive, raped me until I got pregnant. After I gave birth, he let me go back to work at the hospital but kept Rona. Used threats to her safety to control me. He threatened her life to make sure I kept my mouth shut about what I saw. I could visit her with supervision if I obeyed.”
His face is pale with shock. “His own bleedin’ daughter? Fucking monster.” And then I see another puzzle piece fall into place for him. “The thirteen months you took leave.”
He’d looked into my past? Now it was my turn to be shocked. I shouldn’t be, I guess. “Yeah.”
“He’s a doctor then?”
I hold the steaming coffee cup up to my face just to feel some warmth. A coldness has settled into my bones that has nothing to do with the room’s temperature. “He was the attending surgeon in my third-year residency. He’s a highly respected doctor, and that’s all I saw when he started basically love-bombing me. I missed the manipulative, sociopath under that fake smile. I don’t know why he took an interest in me, why he chose me to destroy, but he did. God, I was so stupid, so willing to see the good in everyone.” I scoff, filled with self-loathing. “I won’t make that mistake again.”
He takes the coffee cup from my hand and sets it on the sink. Then grabs both my hands and squeezes. “Hey, look at me, Sam.”
I lift my chin and meet the glowing ferocity in his eyes. “Men like that only see vulnerabilities they can exploit. Don’t you dare beat yourself up, and don’t let one arsehole change whoyou are. Your open heart, your compassion is a fuckin’ gift.” He holds my stare until I give him a shaky nod. “That sorted, tell me what you noticed that got you into trouble.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, wishing I could take this one thing back. The one thing that changed the course of my life. “There was a discrepancy with a patient. A homeless man. He was admitted for a cholecystectomy, gallbladder surgery. I’d seen his chart when he was admitted. But he ended up in the morgue minus some important organs.”
“Fuck. Organ harvesting? Completely disgustin’, but big money. Messin’ with that business will definitely make you fish bait.” Killian blows out a deep breath. “You know who Barone’s workin’ for?”
“I’m not sure. One of the New York mafia families, I assume. I didn’t want to know.” I glance up sharply. “Not Sandro’s family, though. His father owned the strip club I worked at, and I went to him to help escape. He sent me here to work for Sandro.”
“That’s a relief.” Killian’s thumb caresses the back of my hand before he squeezes and releases it. “But if any of the other four families are involved, this is gonna get messy.” He picks up his cup and takes another sip, thinking. Then he frowns. “How’d you manage to escape with your daughter?”
“With the help of Celia, the brave woman Michael had watching Rona.” The tears break through again. I pluck a Kleenex from the box on the sink and wipe at them. “It was seven months ago. She got out with us. I’ve had them both hidden in a safe neighborhood, but I got a text from Michael on my burner phone. He found me. I panicked and needed to see for myself that they were safe, so I drove there.” I groan. “It was so stupid. Apparently, they’d put a tracker on my car. We ran. Michael’smen found us. Celia sacrificed herself so I could run with Rona. And now she’s…” a sob sticks in my throat. I can’t even finish that thought.
Killian reaches out and pulls me into his arms. He strokes a hand down my damp hair and then gathers it in a ponytail. Tugging gently, he forces my head back so he can look into my eyes. “I’m not gonna sugar coat this, love. Havin’ a New York family involved makes it complicated. But I promise you this, your devil’s days are numbered. You don’t have to run anymore.”
I search his eyes. He means it. But he doesn’t know Michael. The man will kill anyone who gets in the way of what he wants.
He leans down and presses a gentle kiss on my lips. Then another, slipping his tongue in and kissing the fuck out of me. It feels so good to be back in his arms, I’m dizzy by the time he sighs and rests his forehead against mine. “You have a daughter.” His voice is hoarse, reverent. Then a deep chuckle rumbles in his chest.
I pull back and eye him curiously. “Care to share with the class?”
He shakes his head, his green eyes sparkling with amusement. “Just somethin’ my Da said about the best gifts in life are the ones you don’t see comin’. Definitely did not see that one fuckin’ comin’.”
