Page 7 of Revenge & Truth

“And you do it very well. I’ve always had a soft spot for men in uniform who wield power. It’s just such a turn-on,” I shared, giving him a wink and biting my lip before entering the room.

Once the door was closed and locked, I sat next to Liu.

“I’m not one to question your motives, Astin, but what the hell was that?” Liu questioned, with a tinge of something I’d call jealousy in his voice.

Leaning into him, I slipped something into his hand. “Just a bit of fun.” Liu looked down at his hand, eyes widening as he held the guard’s car keys. “Let’s see Mr. Big Shot try and get home tonight without those.”

“Astin…” Liu hissed. “Do you realize how dangerous it is for you to be here let alone get caught stealing something? This is exactly what the others were afraid was going to happen. All they need is one excuse to lock you up and throw away the key.”

I leaned in, kissing him slowly as I gripped his thigh. “Take a deep breath, Liu. Trust me when I tell you I’m walking out of this place on my own two feet. It’s going to take more than a dirty cop and a judge with a grudge to sink me.”

Taking back the keys, I slipped them into my pocket as the sound of the door unlocking alerted us to Luca’s arrival. My hackles rose when they shoved Luca in, causing him to almost fall with his hands and feet chained. Seeing it was my new friend who was chaining Luca to the table and chair bolted to the floor, I changed my mind about what I wanted to take from him. I quickly opened two more buttons of my blouse and knocked over my purse, spilling the contents on the floor.

“Oh shit,” I cursed, hurrying to pick things up.

“Here, let me help,” the guard offered, dropping to a knee, putting him much closer to my exposed cleavage.

Clearly distracted, I reached forward to grab my travel hair spray by his foot, bringing us close enough my breasts brushed his knee. His sharp intake of breath told me he wasn’t thinking clearly so I slipped his car keys back on his belt and unclipped the tiny key for the cuffs. Pulling back, I slipped the key and hairspray into my purse.

“Thank you so much. You’ve been my knight in shining armor,” I praised as I clutched my purse to my chest and returned to my seat.

I got a dopey grin in return, and his ears turned a little pink before he realized we weren’t alone. Clearing his throat, he stood and adjusted his uniform before glaring at the other two men at the table. “You will not hand the prisoner anything, nor will you take anything from the prisoner. Keep to your side of the table, and if you need anything, just holler or knock on the door.” His expression softened as he looked at me. “I’ll be right outside.”

Giving him a shy smile, I nodded and mouthed thank you once more.

When we were finally alone, I let out a sigh, placed my purse on the table before I met Luca’s gaze. His amber eyes bore into mine as he sat there in stony silence. It was odd to see him without his normal piercings and gauges in his ears. His hair had gotten longer, and he even had the start of a beard. I can’t say it was a good look for him, but I knew this rugged look wasn’t by choice, so I kept my thoughts to myself.

“Hey,” I greeted with a smile.

He didn’t answer but just kept looking at me, not even breaking his stare to blink. I knew he’d be upset when the guys told me he didn’t want me to come, but I didn’t think he’d be this pissed. Reaching into my purse, I grabbed the hairspray can and unscrewed the bottom, producing a scrambler that Hound procured for me a while back for a job. Turning it on, it blinked for a few seconds then gave a steady green light, telling me that whatever video or audio that might be hidden in the room was now frozen, unable to record anything. We weren’t supposed to be watched at all being a privileged conversation, but I wasn’t taking any risks.

Getting up, I walked over to Luca, removed the cuffs on his wrists, and then started to bend down to do the same for his feet. However, I was yanked forward until I sat sideways on Luca’s lap, his hold on my arm nearly bruising.

“What. Are. You. Doing. Here?” Luca growled out each word, anger flashing in his eyes.

Not at all bothered by his reaction, I slid my hand around the back of his neck and kissed him. He sat still as a statue, but the growing bulge under my ass told me he was incredibly happy to see me. Pulling back, I shifted so I straddled him, and his hand moved from my upper arm to my throat.

“I don’t want you here, Astin,” Luca stated. “Get the fuck off me and leave.”

Brushing my nose along his, I let my hand on the back of his neck slide into his hair until I had enough to fist. “Luca, if I were a lesser woman, I might believe the shit spewing out of your mouth right now. Lucky for you, I know how overprotective my sexy assassin can be, so I won’t hold it against you. Now for the love of God and my sanity, fucking kiss me.”

That did the trick because, without another thought, Luca slammed our lips together and kissed me like it was all he needed to survive. I wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him close as the worry I’d been feeling deep in my gut relaxed. He was here in my arms alive, mostly unharmed, and hadn’t changed his mind about what he told me moments before he got shoved into a police car.

Breaking our kiss but keeping me close, our foreheads rested against each other. “You really shouldn’t fucking be here but damn if I didn’t need to see you, baby girl.”

“Trust me, I know the feeling. As much as they wanted to keep me from doing this, I think they all knew I’d be easier to manage after seeing you with my own eyes,” I whispered. “Fuck, Luca, I can’t believe I let them take you. I’m so sorry, and we’re doing everything we can to get you out as soon as possible.”

“Hey, none of that,” Luca scolded with a bite in his tone. “I needed to go with them to keep you safe, and I will never regret doing that. If you resisted handing me over, they would have searched the house looking for me, and then we’d all be locked up for what they would have found in the ballroom. Baby girl, you’re what’s important here, not me,” Luca reasoned.

I shook my head, cupping his face, letting my thumbs stroke over the newly grown beard on his cheeks. “Not true. You’re important to me,” I admitted.

Taking a second to control my emotions which were a chaotic storm inside me, I sniffled. “There’s no way I could have survived losing my father, being shot, Gunner’s death, and taking over the Family on my own. I need all my lieutenants by my side, and I refuse to lose anyone else, Luca. I can’t… I can’t take that right now. It would break me.”

Admitting that last bit was like a knife to the gut, and it made me sick to even say the words, no matter how true they were. Over the past month, I’d taken hit after hit and managed to keep going, but I knew it was because of the men my father had put in place to support me. The old man had been right all along—I needed them—and I was ready to admit that. I don’t know why it took watching the cops drive away with Luca for that to sink in, but it did.

Maybe it was knowing Luca took the fall for a murder he didn’t commit just to keep me safe. Yet the moment that plays on repeat in my mind is the confidence and peace in his expression as he held my gaze from the back of that police car. He didn’t doubt his choice or the fact I’d be able to save him in return.

“Shh… baby girl,” Luca crooned as he held me tightly, resting his head on mine. “I told you before I won’t let them take me away from you. This is temporary. Soon it will all be over, and I’ll be home to help you show this city what it means to fuck with Astin Caprioni, Queen of the Caprioni Family.”