"I heard," she said quietly. "Something's wrong."
I sat beside her, took her hand. Our fingers interlaced naturally.
"Marco's running out of patience. We're running out of time."
"It means soon I'll have to choose—return you to him or openly defy the blood debt."
She turned to look at me. "And what will you choose?"
"You," I said without hesitation. "I choose you. Whatever that costs."
"Even if it costs everything?"
"Even then."
She leaned her head against my shoulder, and we sat watching the sunrise paint the city in shades of gold and pink.
No more words needed.
We both knew what was coming.
But for now, in this moment, we had each other.
And that would have to be enough.
Moments later, my phone rang.
I stepped back, seeing Domenico's name flashing across the screen. I answered, voice rough with sleep. "What?"
"Boss, we've got a problem."
I turned away from Valentina, "What kind of problem?"
"Caldwell filed a missing persons report. Claims Valentina is mentally unstable and dangerous to herself. There's a BOLO out on her."
Fuck. I ran a hand through my hair, mind racing. "When?"
"Just hit the wire. It's all over the news."
Double fuck. I glanced back at Valentina. She was watching me, wariness replacing the desire in her eyes.
"So you're taking me back now?" Her voice was steady, but I saw the fear flickering across her face.
I hung up on Domenico, pocketing my phone. "No," I said, the word surprising me even as I said it. "Not yet. I need to understand what's really happening here first."
She searched my face, looking for the truth. Looking for a lie. I gave her neither. Just met her gaze, steady and sure. After a moment, she nodded, accepting this temporary reprieve.
But as I led her back to her room, as I watched her door close behind her, as I returned to my study and poured myself a whiskey, I knew this couldn't last. Knew I couldn't keep her forever. Knew I had to make a choice—honor or love, blood debt or betrayal.
And I knew, no matter what I chose, someone would end up dead.
I was still contemplating the shitstorm awaiting us when Domenico called again. "Boss, there's more."
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I sighed. "What now?"
"Marco's holding a press conference in the morning. He's publicly disowning Valentina."
I straightened, hand tightening around the glass. "He's what?"
