28. Aurora
Chapter 28
Aurora
I ’ve been awake for twenty minutes, reliving the events of yesterday as I watch Romeo. He’s asleep next to me, his features relaxed in the soft orange glow of the morning light spilling through the gap in the curtains.
I don’t know where he disappeared to after he left the bathroom, but I didn’t see him again last night. When he didn’t join me for dinner in the kitchen like he has for the past week, I ate alone before dragging myself to bed. It wasn’t until hours later that I felt the bed dip next to me and he wrapped his arms around me.
Rolling onto my back, I blankly stare up at the ceiling. It still doesn’t seem real that my mom worked here. She walked these halls, worked for this family, and knew what they were involved in. How could she have not? It’s not like anyone keeps it a secret. Jeez, Romeo told me the day we met that he is the head of the mafia.
Well, not the day we met, because apparently, we’ve known each other for years.
Did she leave to protect me? I know in some small way she must have because of the accident, but she could have come back. Is her leaving the reason my parents got divorced? My mom told me they grew apart, but was that just her trying to shield me? I wish I had someone to turn to for answers. Somebody who knew her, that she confided in. But the truth of the matter is, they all disappeared from my life the day she died.
My mind races with all the questions I don’t know I’ll ever get answers to.
Rolling to face Romeo again, I rest my head on my hands before pulling one out and reaching forward to brush away a curl that hangs over his forehead. A large, warm hand darts up and grabs my wrist before I can reach my destination. Stormy cobalt-blue eyes pop open and the air in my lungs vanishes.
We stare at each other, his eyes a mask, as usual. For a moment in the shower yesterday, I thought he cared. I thought that the feelings that have been weaving their way into my heart since he took me were reciprocated but whatever I thought I saw was quickly replaced with a cold hardness.
“Did you know?” The question tumbles from my mouth, and I bite my lip, wishing I could take it back. What difference does it make if he did know my mom used to work here or that he knew me?
For a moment, his brows tug together before smoothing out. He’s still holding onto my wrist and uses it to tug me into his arms and under his body in one swift movement. I don’t have a chance to react or protest. When he’s situated between my legs, he releases his hold on me, resting his elbows on either side of me.
His voice is low and sends a frisson of need racing down my spine before my mind can register his words. “Yes, and no. There have been things that felt familiar about you, but it wasn’t until the other day, when Massimo told me, that I knew for certain.”
I try to fight him, his words somehow feeling like a betrayal. My palms rest against his bare, solid chest, pushing at him. He doesn't budge; instead, he smooths a hand over my hair.
Hurt fills my voice as I beg, “Let me go.”
“I can’t do that, Aurora.”
He can’t or won’t? My head twists to the side, forcing his hand away, and I suck in a lungful of air, blowing it out with a grunt.
Gripping my chin almost painfully, he forces my face back to him. “It doesn’t matter if I knew, when I knew, or even that your mother worked for my family.”
My tone is sharp and my words loud when I reply, “It does.” Still, I try to fight him, turning more and more desperate with each push on his chest. “To me, it matters. That she worked for you and that she was involved in this world.”
“Why?”
The simple word holds so much confusion, but doesn’t stop my frustration from bubbling beneath the surface. How can he not understand? She was all I had. When she died, it broke me. And now I find out that she was involved with these people? That she was tangled up in the twisted darkness of their lives. Does he expect me to just accept that and not question everything I thought I knew to be true?
A certainty fills me, swirling with a venom that’s been festering inside for years. It’s been there ever since my father came clean, rooting itself in the periphery of my consciousness. “Because someone in your world ,” I spit the words out, my eyes growing hot, “took her from me .”
I’ve always known that she would never kill herself. I was a kid and accepted what I’d been told, but her death has never made sense. There were never any signs, and we were so close that I would have seen them. I know I would have .
Romeo’s eyes search mine, for what, I’m not sure. After what feels like an eternity, he rolls off me, his hand squeezing my hip. “I believe you, Aurora. And I meant what I said yesterday. I’m going to find out what happened to her but it’s going to take some time.”
I don’t know if I should believe him, but I want to. After all, if anyone can figure this out and give me the truth, it’s going to be Romeo. Nodding, I pull out of his grip and move to sit on the edge of the bed.
“I hope you meant what you said too, Aurora. This is a two-way street. If you want answers, you have to keep your end of the bargain.” To want to live .
My body stiffens. I’m not sure I can do that. Especially if I have to go through the pain again that I’ve had to live with since her death.