Page 308 of Vicious Temptation

“Come here, baby.” I open my arms, and she climbs onto my lap without a word, still staring at Thiago.

“Your Uncle Thiago looks a little banged up right now, but he’s going to heal up soon, just like Aunt Amalia.”

Zara nods solemnly before looking back at him.

Matteo comes to stand beside me and squeezes my shoulder. “It’s good to see you awake.”

Thiago inclines his head. “It’s good to be awake.”

They stare at each other until Thiago finally speaks again.

“Thank you for answering the phone.”

“I almost didn’t.”

“And I wouldn’t have blamed you.”

“You’re still a bastard for what you did to her.”

“I know.”

“But you warned us when you could’ve saved your own ass and disappeared.”

“I wasn’t leaving any of you behind.”

Matteo holds his gaze for a moment, understanding between them that neither of them needs to put into words. Thiago gives him a small nod, and Matteo returns it.

Zara looks between them with a frown. “Are you done?”

“Yeah, we’re done,” Matteo says with a laugh.

Her face brightens as she holds up the picture she’s been clutching against her chest.

“I made something for you.”

The corner of Thiago’s mouth lifts into a smile. “I think that’s exactly what I need to feel better. It’s beautiful.”

She flashes a cheeky grin. “Uncle Thiago, did you save Remi...just like me?”

His eyes find mine before returning to her. “She saved me.”

Seventy-Five

Thiago

One Year Later

“Relax. She’s going to win.”

Matteo nudges my shoulder when I don’t answer.

“I know she is.”

My attention stays on Remi’s GT-R as it rolls toward the starting grid.

“You don’t look like you know,” he mutters.

He isn’t wrong.