I don’t waste the opportunity.
Jerking upright, I bring my head back until I feel the satisfying crunch of a nose breaking.
Italian spews from my captor’s mouth, and I have no doubt he’s cussing as he drops my wrist to cover his nose.
But when I turn around, I can’t see his face. He’s wearing a black ski mask—all the blood saturating the fabric as he howls.
Then, like a bolt from the blue, blinding pain explodes across my temple?—
And I jolt awake, sucking in a breath like I’m surfacing after far too long underwater.
My heart races, and as the world around me comes into sharp relief, I swallow back my dinner that threatens to reappear.
17
GIO
Starting abruptly from a deep, satisfying sleep, my eyes fly open, my body tensing instinctively as Stephanie sits bolt upright beside me.
I must have drifted off shortly after she did, but now she looks wide awake, her eyes wild as her head snaps in both directions, as if searching for something.
“Hey, you okay?” I ask, sitting up and reaching for her gently.
My fingers brush her shoulder, and she jumps, spinning to look at me.
Then she bursts into tears.
“I had a horrible nightmare,” she sobs, covering her face with her hands.
“Hey, it’s okay. You’re okay,” I reassure, gathering her into my arms.
This time, my touch doesn’t startle her, and Stephanie buries her face in my chest, her shoulders jumping with each racking sob.
“Shh,” I soothe, gently stroking her hair as a fist grips my heart like a vise. “You want to talk about it?” I suggest, wishing I could do more.
Stephanie shakes her head against my chest, and I can feel her starting to calm down now that she’s more awake.
Slowly, her breathing steadies, her sobs tapering into soft sniffles as she leans into me for support.
Sighing, I scoot back to lean against the headboard as I continue to hold her, murmuring reassurances until she stops trembling in my arms.
“Sorry,” she breathes, looking up at me with tears in her eyes that she quickly dashes away.
“It’s okay,” I say, running the backs of my knuckles over her tear-stained cheek. “Do you get nightmares often?” I press gently. She never did in the past, so I wonder if they’re a side effect of what happened to her.
But Stephanie shakes her head, and the grip around my heart eases slightly. “No, this is a first. I mean, I do tend to havevividdreams, but they’re usually good ones.”
Even in the dim moonlight filtering through the window, I can see the deep blush that stains her cheeks, and instantly, I’m dying of curiosity.
“What do you normally dream about?” I ask, amusement tugging at the corners of my lips.
“Nothing,” she says too quickly, dropping her gaze to my chest.
“Mm-hmm. You’re not getting off that easy,” I press playfully. “And the fact that you don’t want to tell me means I want to know even more.”
“Get used to disappointment,” she says, making my heart skip a beat.
“No, no. That’s not the way this works,” I tease softly, glad when I can feel her cheek lift into a smile.
