Chapter 33
Damien
Two Days Later
I never thought to visit Italy. It just always seemed like one of those cliché destinations that men took their women to as a cop-out. Plus, Ashia never seemed interested in going on a long trip, so I never looked into a place like this. That’s a mistake I’ll never make again.
It’s beautiful here this time of year. Back home, it’s maybe in the low forties and everything around us is dead, waiting for the snow to fall.
It’s cold here, too, but not as low since we’ve arrived.
Right now, even at sundown, it’s fifty-two degrees, cloudy, and rainy—just how Ashia likes it.
The air coming in through the balcony door smells like the weather, but it’s also clean and fresh, lacking any contamination from city life.
This moment feels fictional, as if I’m staring at a movie screen and not my reality.
It’s still hard to believe that the angel standing before me is real.
Her perfect hair sways in the soft breeze, fanning over her warm, pale skin that barely shows underneath her oversized sweater.
Orange and purple dance across the sky, bathing her in a light that only emphasizes her already bright glow.
The hand that wears my rings ghosts over her big pregnant belly in the cutest, absent-minded way, and the sight is hypnotizing.
I’m stuck. I’m frozen at this moment in time, willing to reside in limbo until reality collapses.
The weight of our true purpose here isn’t hanging over me right now.
Everything else that surrounds us doesn’t exist. It’s not that I’m hiding anything from her, or that I’ve kept her in the dark, but there’s a comfortable separation.
The peace bubble we’ve created for ourselves can’t be broken anymore, and we’ve worked hard to achieve it.
I realize that even more when she turns back to me.
The moment Ashia’s eyes meet mine, and that genuine happiness sprouts a smile, my heart swells to a concerning size.
It’s been building all day. Each time she’s laughed or sighed in awe has added another butterfly to my stomach.
It wasn’t much, but fuck, was she happy.
We walked around the gardens and took an Italian cooking class provided by the hotel—and by we, I also mean my father and Zeke.
During the class, Zeke, in all of his brotherly love, purposely made Ashia laugh so hard that she had to rush off to the bathroom—after she had mentioned needing to go.
So, to retaliate, my father tripped him as we were passing around a bag of flour.
He jerked forward, causing the powder to poof out of the bag and cover his entire face and shirt.
The chef didn’t seem too impressed with our shenanigans, but Ashia’s cackling was all that mattered.
“See? Now, this is what they should’ve taught us to make today.
” She giggles and takes another bite of her second crostata as she makes her way back inside.
Ashia isn’t normally a sweets person, but I knew the moment she set her eyes on those little slices of tart, she would crave them.
I mean, it’s barely a dessert. It’s just fruit mixed with a tiny amount of sugar, piled up on ricotta cheese and a flakey crust. So, I bought all eight slices, fully expecting her to eat them all before we leave tomorrow afternoon.
I’ve been dying to see her big, round, and happy. So, if my daughter and wife demand something, they’re going to fucking get it.
“I’ll make sure we get the recipe before we check out,” I reply, attempting to keep my excitement on a lower level.
She continues to walk over to me, strutting a cute little waddle that has me melting at her feet.
These next eight weeks are going to be rough on her, considering she’s only going to get bigger.
We knew her small figure would play a big part in her comfortability, and as much as I love seeing her like this, I hate how much pain she’s going to be in.
As soon as she makes it close enough, I pull her onto my lap and latch onto her tightly. One of her arms wraps around my shoulders, as if I’d ever let her slide off, and I keep one hand pressed against her belly as my arm around her keeps her secure.
“So, what’s the plan for tonight?” Her tone is curious, but not suspicious. She knows exactly what we’re here for, and by our conversation earlier, I’d say she fully supports it.
“I’m going to walk right up to the front door and knock.” She giggles, missing that I’m completely serious. I smile back at her anyway, unable to help myself.
“Wait, you’re serious?” Her smile doesn’t fade, but her eyes crinkle in confusion.
“Damn right.”
“I’ve watched you kick doors down and raid large buildings, and now you’re just going to knock on the door?”
“Yep.” I pop the ‘p’ for emphasis, just like she loves me to do. “He won’t be willing to open the door, so he’ll try to sneak away, and that’s when I’ll get to have fun.” That makes her laugh again.
“Okay. Well, don’t have too much fun. The last thing we need is you or your dad getting arrested in Italy for murder,” she points out between chuckles. “You remember my request, don’t you?” She raises her eyebrow playfully despite the morbidity of her demand.
“Yes, little wolf. I remember.” I think back to that conversation this morning and feel all giddy another time. There was a point in our relationship where something as grotesque as what she asked for would’ve repulsed her, but look at my queen now, all adorable and violent.
“Perfect.” She smiles wide and eats the last piece of her tart, leaving a small bit of ricotta on the corner of her lip. I dart my tongue out and lick it away, making her laugh and squirm in my lap again. “Is it good?”
I swirl the flavors on my tongue, savoring it and picking out the taste of her skin instead of the cheese—but I go along with it, anyway.
“It is really good. We should definitely make that once we get home.”
“Definitely.” Her face morphs into a smaller grin and she leans her head against mine. “So, what’s after this? What do we do once you’ve killed Saconne?”
I shrug.
“I’m not sure, honestly. I know we need to stop Avery and get his corrupt ass out of office, but I don’t know how we’ll do that if we don’t turn up with some evidence.”
“Well, maybe his phone will help. If he and DeLuca have that much security and require each other to access the contents, there has to be something on there.”
“Yeah, but there’s no telling if it has to do with Avery, and…” I hesitate, and she tilts her to look at me.
“And what?”
“I don’t want to press anymore buttons. We’re happy and mostly safe.
Do we really need to pursue someone that has the power to ruin that again?
” I expect her to look disappointed, and a part of me thinks she’ll jump on the ‘quit while we’re ahead’ train, but I should’ve known better.
My wife has always been stronger than I am, and she never misses a chance to prove it.
Her curiosity fades almost instantly, and instead, a warm, loving look takes its place.
“You know, Carter and I had a really similar conversation a few weeks ago,” she reveals.
“And it really made me think. I wanted to protect you from anything that could ever hurt you again, but then I realized that asking you not to do this job would’ve hurt you more.
” Her nails start to scratch my scalp, instantly lulling me into a relaxed state.
“You’ve done this job long before me, and it’s not just me you think about.
Doing all of the work you do keeps people safe, whether they know it or not.
If it were just for us, I’d say we could ignore it for a little while longer.
Like, tonight? You going after Saconne? That’s for us.
He’s broke, alone, and on the run from the entire world.
He’s not a threat to humanity, but he is to us.
Avery? He’s the real threat here. He has, and will continue, to hurt as many people as he needs to get on top. My Damien wouldn’t let that happen.”
There goes my chest, swelling once again and threatening to explode.
“Okay, then. We’ll start with Saconne and DeLuca’s devices, and we’ll go from there.”
“We’ll go from there,” she repeats and kisses my forehead.
“Hey, D? Are you about ready? You guys have a two-hour drive to Vernazza, and your dad might blow a gasket,” Zeke blurts out from the other side of our suite door.
“I told you not to bother them!”
“Yeah, whatever, old man!” Zeke yells back at my dad, and I just roll my eyes before focusing on Ashia once again.
“My dad might hurt your brother,” I tease. She puckers her lips and bounces her head side to side in feigned contemplation.
“At this point, he’s earned it.” A shit-eating grin forms on her beautiful mouth.
I stand carefully and keep her in my arms so I can carry her to bed.
I’m still shocked by how light she feels, even as pregnant as she is, but thankfully, she had gained five pounds at the last appointment, and that’s some major improvement compared to how it was.
I set her down on the bed and adjust her pillow, then place a bottle of water and another tart on the bedside table.
“I think I’m going to gain another five pounds on this trip,” she jokes.
“Good.” I wink at her. “You and Zeke are going to stay right here, right?”
“Yep. I won’t even leave the room, I promise. I’ll probably end up falling asleep while we watch a movie or something. That walk today wore me out.”
That makes me smile even more.
“Perfect.” I kiss her softly, melting into it as our lips move together, then force myself away and kiss her stomach.
Our daughter doesn’t hide any protest, kicking and hitting her mom’s skin like she’ll tear through at any moment.
“Be nice to your mommy. Daddy will be back soon.” My gaze moves back to Ashia. “I love you, baby.”
“I love you, too. Be careful.”
Before I can even make it to the door, Zeke busts in with Daisy right on his tail.
She jumps into the bed beside Ashia and rolls on her back instantly, already getting comfortable and preparing for sleep.
Zeke isn’t far behind, practically skipping over to the other side of the large bed and flopping down on it.
“You two have a great time. We’re fine here.” He chuckles and laces his fingers behind his head, getting much too comfortable. Ashia just giggles and reaches behind her to slap him as I sulk my way out.