13. Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Thirteen
Aria
W aking up in Finn’s arms doesn’t feel as weird as it should. It actually feels really nice.
And that’s the scary part.
What happened with Sal has already changed me.
I feel it deep within my core. Finn is the one who saved me from him.
I can’t just forget that fact and yet, at the same time, Finn is the reason I was in that cottage for Sal to take.
Finn is a hitman who didn’t do his job leading to Sal coming after him and finding me.
I should blame Finn for it. He deserves it after he kidnapped me and forced me to marry him.
But… I can’t seem to find it within myself to hate him.
The urge to snuggle deeper into his arms is strong. Why am I fighting so hard against Finn? He is my husband now. I could choose to be happy with him.
He’s still at war with Dante which means he’s still at war with my father. That’s the problem. If he wasn’t at war with them, then I could consider the possibility of allowing myself to be happy with him.
Finn is handsome. He’s charming in a dangerous sort of way. He makes my stomach flutter. He makes me want to live for once in my life.
A life with Finn would be exciting and exhilarating and interesting. But it would put me at war with Dante and my dad and I can’t stand for that. I don’t want to live my life on the run. I want stability. I want both my family and Finn but if I have to choose only one, I’m choosing my family.
I can feel the cuts all along my body. Sal’s mark on me is going to last a long time. I want to be there when Finn kills him so I can see the fear in his eyes. I want him to suffer like he made me suffer.
That’s the dark part of me that is drawn to Finn. That part of me that is all right with murder under certain circumstances. I meant what I said to Sal when I said that a man who abuses his wife deserves to die for it.
I look over my shoulder to Finn behind me. He looks so peaceful when he sleeps, like the weight of the world is completely gone. He has made so much trouble for himself. If he just let bygones be bygones then he could have found peace with Dante again and I wouldn’t be in this predicament.
But then I probably never would have been in a position to start to care for him.
As if he can sense me looking at him, Finn blinks open his eyes. “Hi, princess.”
I can’t keep the blush off my face. “Hi.”
“Admiring my good looks?”
“Never.” But there’s no anger in my voice. It dawns on me that part of our relationship is to tease each other. I’m flirting with a man who’s a hitman. Never saw this day coming.
“How are you feeling?”
The fact Finn even asks is what’s shocking to me. He cares enough to ask. It’s so different from the Finn I first met. He’s changed within a short time frame.
“I can still feel some of the cuts,” I admit. “But I don’t hurt as much. Sal didn’t get the chance to…” I can’t even finish that sentence. I’m grateful in some ways that Sal wanted to draw out my torture. It meant Finn could save me in time before he could do irreparable damage.
Finn’s eyes darken. “I will find him and kill him. And I will make it hurt.”
“Good,” I say honestly. “I want it to hurt. And I want to see it.”
“I knew there was a darkness in you, princess. I like it.”
“Just because I want to see the man who tortured me killed, doesn’t mean I approve of you killing innocent people. I’m not about to become a hitwoman myself.”
“Fair enough. But the fact that you want to be there to see Sal die is dark enough for me. I’m starting to corrupt you.” He trails the back of his hand down my face. It feels nice. Too nice.
I shift away from him and he drops his hand with a sigh.
“Are we really back to square one?” he asks. “After everything?”
“I didn’t think you’d even care about how I felt. You didn’t care when you kidnapped me. And I’m a proud woman, Finn. I can’t just go down without a fight. If people were to find out I started to care for my kidnapper, I’d be ruined. I’d be a laughingstock.”
“Who gives a fuck what people think?”
“That’s your problem. You don’t care enough what people think of you. It’s what keeps getting you into danger. But I was a result of your actions. I care what others think and you should too.”
“Don’t lecture me, princess.”
“Why not? You’re lonely, Finn. You pushed your brother away when you didn’t have to. You could so easily make amends with him and yet, you refuse to do so.”
“He shot me in the fucking shoulder.”
“So? You tried to kill his wife years ago. Dante told me. I think you’re both even.”
“He’ll never trust me around Elena. If he doesn’t, then we can never be brothers again.”
I sigh. “You could start with talking. Try to make amends.”
“You just want me to make amends with my brother so I’ll make amends with Dante and let you go. Is that it?”
I don’t answer because he’s not wrong.
Finn smirks and brings his hand to my hip. “You’re mine now, Aria. Do you really not want to be?”
I know Finn can tell when I’m lying. If I say I don’t want to be his, he’ll spot the lie a mile away.
Because the truth is that I desperately want to kiss him again. I want to feel his body on top of mine.
The one sure thing I know is that Finn will keep me safe.
He’s did it with Sal and he did it with those terrible friends he invited over that one time.
If any man wants to hurt me, I know Finn would attack and protect me.
He’s like a Pitbull. If you earn his trust, he’ll be loyal to you forever and be a great attack dog.
But can I fully trust Finn not to hurt me in the future? I don’t mean physically. I mean emotionally. If he ever kills Dante or my dad then…
“I’m not sure,” I answer honestly. “A part of me does and a part of me doesn’t.”
“Ok then. Maybe once I kill Sal, you’ll see that we can be together.”
“Why do you even want to be together so much? I thought you hated me. Hated what I stood for?”
“I never cared about any woman the way I do for you. But I’m learning to embrace it. I’m not going to fight how I feel. I want you to be mine. Fully. And I’m intent on making that happen.”
“Careful, Finn. You just might fall in love with me and then how can you judge your brother then? He fell in love too.”
“Then it’s a good thing I don’t love you. I’m just possessive. There’s a difference.”
There is a difference. And I’m not sure if Finn is truly capable of love. But I know he cares for me, even if he doesn’t want to say those exact words.
Finn’s phone rings, ruining the moment between us and drawing us apart. With a groan, Finn answers it. “What?”
“We have a problem.” It’s a man on the other end. Sounds like Viktor Smirnov.
“What problem?”
“Did you tell your brother that we lost Aria?”
Finn gives me a strange look as he answers. “I did.”
“Well, your brother decided to tell Dante that and Dante decided to attack my home. He’s pissed that you lost Aria to some crazy hitman. Since he can’t find you, I was the next best thing.”
I can hear the disapproval in Viktor’s voice.
“So… what?” Finn asks. “Did you get hurt? What happened?”
“No. I didn’t get hurt. Dante was reckless. He’s starting to lose it. He’s the one who got hurt.”
I gasp. Dante hurt? Oh god.
“Is he dead?” Finn asks.
“No. He managed to escape before I could kill him. But I know I wounded him. Bad. That’s what he gets for coming after me. Fucker. I thought you should know. He’s weakened right now, Finn. It’s the perfect time to kill him. Take him down. End this war and take power.”
Finn stares at me and I beg him with my eyes. If he kills Dante then…
“Ok, Viktor,” he says after a long moment. “I’ll find him. You should know that I got Aria back. I’m in control.”
“Good. But I still think you should return her. I don’t like you using her for your own agenda.”
“I’m not using her. She’s my wife. Now, I’ve got to go.” He hangs up and tosses his phone onto the bed and runs his hands down his face. “Fuck.”
“Do you think Dante is in a hospital?”
“He probably went to his private doctor.”
“Do you know who that is?”
He flashes me a look. “I do. If Dante was hurt bad, then that’s where he’d go.”
I grab his hand and he flinches slightly. “Finn, if you go there to kill him…”
“What? You’ll never forgive me?”
“That’s right. I’ll never forgive you for it. If you want me to truly care about you, then you won’t kill Dante.”
“But how am I supposed to gain power in this war if I don’t? Viktor wants him dead.”
“Fuck what Viktor wants.”
“No. I can’t do that, princess. Viktor has resources I need. I need him as a partner if I’m to have any power in New York. To have power, I need to kill Dante. It will weaken Erik enough so Viktor and I can take him down. Plain and simple.”
I rip my hand away from him. “But if you do that, then I’ll never be able to care for you. You’ll have to eventually kill me, Finn, because I will never stop trying to escape if you kill Dante. You’ll have to lock me up forever.”
“And?”
I blink. “You can’t be serious? You don’t want to do that. Not after what just happened with Sal. You’d seriously torture me forever?”
He looks away from me, unable to give me an answer. So, this is Finn conflicted. It’s comforting knowing that he has some sort of conscious.
“Finn,” I say more softly. “You’re full of so much anger. Why? Why are you doing this to yourself?”
“Because that’s the way I was raised,” he hisses. “I was raised by an asshole dad. I was raised to hate people.”
“But you don’t have to be that way anymore. You can spare Dante’s life. You can try to make amends with him again. If you go back to working with Dante, you’ll have power.”
He scoffs and gives me a look like I’m an idiot. “Dante will never take me back at this point. I’ve done too much that he’ll never trust me again. The only option now is to kill him.”
“If you do that, then I’ll never forgive you. Can you live with that?”
“You speak like I care how you feel.”