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All I wanted was to cocoon her in a protective bubble so all she felt for the rest of her life was love, happiness, and acceptance. To be spoiled and know that she was the best thing in my life.

It was one thing to scare Serena, who was an adult and understood his manipulations. But to scare Harper? She was too young to understand her father’s anger or why he showed up threatening her mother.

He’d sealed his fate. Before, it was putting him in his place. With the tiny girl in my arms whom I’d come to love as my own, I was going to make him pay.

“It’s okay. Mommy and I are here.” It was a punch to the chest, realizing how much I loved this little girl. How quickly and easily it came.

I looked over Harper’s shoulder to Serena, who looked surprised and had tears in her eyes. She gave me a watery, thankful smile.

As if she needed to thank me. She and Harper were my world. She’d get the picture soon.

I picked her up and walked over to Serena, who had a brave face on. I knew it was all a facade. She was scared. Charles had a unique hold over her, rattling her when nothing else did.

That was about to change.

CHAPTER 26

Serena

Anxiety has been my constant companion lately. Sitting on the chair at the cutting table, I stared out the window, replaying every second of the past weekend.

It felt like life took a complete one-eighty. I had been living in a bubble, focused only on work and Harper.

Despite the recent events, it was chaos in the best way.

Maybe I should run screaming in the other direction. It would be smart.

Someone had hired men to find us in the middle of the ocean to attack us. I had to hold a gun. I saw a dead body.

Any one of those things would make someone second-guess their decision to stay.

Yet, it never occurred to me to leave. I would've shot someone if it meant getting back to Harper.

I just needed time to process. I needed time to work through all my emotions. The way Enzo held me, like I was fragile, made me mad in hindsight.

I’d been through a lot in my life. I wasn’t some delicate flower that would wilt when something bad happened. Martina was right when she had pointed out that this was his life. That attacks like this were par for the course in his line of work.

Could I handle it?

The scene of Harper running to him, holding him like her life depended on it, and him hugging her back just as fiercely, was embedded in my memory. It kept replaying in my head.

It was that moment I knew I had fallen head over heels in love with Lorenzo Lombardi.

Which scared me. So much, and I didn’t know how to navigate that fear.

But yes, all the scary moments were worth it for the good ones. If there was one thing I could trust, it was that Enzo would do everything he could to keep us safe. He’d proved as much.

What concerned me was Charles and his mess. I didn’t understand why he didn’t move on and let me do the same. He had gone on dates, done whatever he pleased, both when we were married and since our divorce.

I had rules set in place because I didn’t want a bevy of women running through Harper’s life, but I hadn’t considered that rule when it came to Enzo.

Being with him was so effortless. Moving into his place felt like the natural choice. He’d shown me not only that he was reliable, but he was kind. Kinder than I’d ever known.

I put down the fabric I was sewing, knowing I wasn’t focused on the task. I didn’t want to prick myself because I was zoning out and ruin the garment with blood.

Stepping out of the studio, I walked up the paved path hoping we had Dr. Pepper in the fridge. The mini fridge in my workspace—which had magically appeared the day after my migraine—was empty.

The sun glinted off the glasshouse, catching my attention. I changed direction and walked toward it. Enzo had pointed it out to during the house tour, but I’d never been inside.