“Rafe. Christ! Terza’s right. You need to remove that damn door,” I growled as I shook the coffee from my throbbing hand and tried to calm my racing heart.
“Shit. Sorry sweetheart. I didn’t think anyone would be up,” Rafe said as he rounded the island.
“I’m good. I just need to get my hand under the tap,” I assured him, but as I went to take a step, Dante lunged towards me, making me freeze in place.
“Don’t move. You’ll cut your feet!” he barked at me. Before I could do or say anything I was midair, Dante having grabbed me around the waist. He moved me over to the sink and set me on the counter beside it. “Let me see,” he demanded.
I looked up to Rafe and Dio, who both just shrugged, almost in sync with one another.
“I’m okay. It was just coffee. It wasn’t that hot,” I told Dante, but I was already laying my hands in his open ones. He was not an easy man to disregard.
“This hand is red. It could blister,” Dante grumbled as he held onto my right hand but let my left go. I took him in as he carefully maneuvered my hand under the cold tap and held it there. He was watching it as the water rushed over it with such diligence, as though he feared the mild burn would worsen if he took his eyes from it.
“Dante, I’m fine,” I told him after several moments of awkward silence.
“You’re not fine. You’re hurt. Why weren’t you sleeping?” he lifted his head and met my gaze, his eyes intense and his brow furrowed with concern.
“I couldn’t. That’s why I came to make some coffee.”
“You look tired, Cara. Why couldn’t you sleep? Nightmares?” Rafe asked.
“Something like that,” I agreed vaguely.
“Where’s Cal? He should be with you,” Dante cut in.
“He went to bed, Dante. He offered to stay with me but I wanted some time alone. I don’t need a babysitter. I can take care of myself.”
“You got hurt. I don’t want you getting hurt again,” Dante said sadly as he ensnared me with his dark eyes.
“I dropped my cup of coffee. I’m not hurt,” I promised him as I pulled my hand free from his grip and from the freezing water. “You don’t need to worry about me so much, okay?”
“We all worry about you,Piccola. You’ve been through enough. We want you to find some peace here with us,” Dio told me. He was leaning against the counter off to my left, and he looked sexy in his dark suit and white shirt, the collar unbuttoned slightly.He wore the rumpled look well. But then I saw it, splattered on his shirt – tiny dots of red, surrounded by a mist of even smaller red dots. Blood. I looked to Rafe again and realised he had his suit jacket buttoned up, most of his shirt hidden from me. Dante was in black, as usual, so I wouldn’t see blood on him, but I was sure it was there.
“Did you handle it?” I asked as I looked to Rafe again.
“Cara…”
“I don’t want details, but I’m not an idiot, Rafe. I know what a meeting held late at night, less than twenty four hours after people in this family were hurt, means,” I sighed tiredly.
“I want you kept out of it all,” Rafe argued, and I smiled sadly at him.
“Rafe. I’ve been back in your life for less than two weeks and I’ve already been thrown into the midst of whatever’s going on, multiple times. You can’t keep me out of it. For some reasonI’mwhat is causing whatever’s going on right now. They want me, whoever they are.”
“They won’t get you,” Dante growled.
“No they won’t. I will deal with this, Cara, and while I do I want to protect you from as much of it as I possibly can. Dio is right. You’ve been through enough,” Rafe added.
“So just tell me then,” I pushed. “Is last night handled? Is Gia safe?”
“Gia’s safe,” he nodded.
“Good. Now, you guys should all go and clean up. I’ll clear up this mess,” I told them all.
“Not with bare feet you won’t!” Dante barked again. “I’ll do it. Put your hand back under the cold water.”
“It’s fine now. It doesn’t even hurt,” I argued.
“Did you burn your feet too. They look red?” Dio asked, and I sent him a glare, but it was too late. Dante was already dropping to his knees.
