"Sorry you had to see me like this, but Liam—why are you even here?" When I calmed down, I realized how close we were standing. I stepped back awkwardly, putting distance between us.
"After you disappeared from the club," Liam smiled, his gentle gazenever leaving my face, "I kept looking for you. I had a pretty good idea who took you, but there was nothing I could do about it."
My nose started burning again.
"But I was still worried," Liam's voice dropped. "Especially when I heard about the boss getting married."
"Liam..."
"I didn't know if you'd be here, but I had a feeling. That you'd come. So I came too."
My brain stuttered. "So you just... waited here for me the whole time?"
"You don't have to feel pressured. This was my choice." Liam shrugged like it was the most normal thing in the world.
I stared at Liam's face, overwhelmed.
How could someone like this exist? After I rejected him, he still worried about me. Because of some hunch he wasn't even sure about, he waited at this place all morning. Just in case I showed up.
"Chloe." Liam reached up and wiped away a tear sliding down my cheek. "You don't have to tell me what happened. I already saw. The second you walked through those doors, I saw everything."
I bit my lip. I couldn't tell if it hurt more to remember it or to have someone witness my breakdown.
"Come with me." Liam held out his hand. "This time, come with me. I don't know what's between you and him, and I don't need to. But I know one thing—you can't stay with him anymore. Whatever he gave you, it's not worth turning you into this."
I stared at that outstretched hand, and for the first time, I wavered. Whether to escape this failed relationship or just because I hurt so much I needed comfort—right now, it felt so tempting.
But before I could say anything, a hand grabbed my arm from behind, yanking me back hard enough that I stumbled. My back slammed into a solid chest. A familiar cologne flooded my nose.
Enzo.
His fingers locked around my upper arm like a vise. He pulled me away from Liam.
I cried out in pain, struggling to break free.
"Let go of me," I screamed at Enzo through my tears. "Why aren't you inside kissing your bride? Get back to your altar. Don't touch me."
Enzo loosened his grip slightly, his lips moving like he wanted to say something, but Liam beat him to it.
"Let her go! You're hurting her."
Enzo immediately tightened his hold again. He pulled me behind him, then stepped forward, blocking me from Liam with his entire body.
"Little bartender, if I see you near her again, you're dead." Enzo's voice dropped low enough that I barely heard it. I'd never heard him sound like this—powerful, evil, dangerous. He wasn't joking.
But even facing this version of Enzo, Liam didn't back down. He stared right at him, something almost like contempt on his face.
"She's not your property," Liam said. "You don't have the right to treat her like this."
Enzo took another step forward. He towered over Liam by half a head, his shadow falling across him.
"She's my woman." He grabbed Liam's collar, his voice low and icy. "She's carrying my child."
I stood behind Enzo, still trying to wrench my arm free. When I heard those words, my stomach twisted violently.
He'd just put that diamond ring on Valentina's finger. And now he had the audacity to claim me in front of another man.
It was absurd beyond belief.
