Chapter Ten, Groundhog Months #2
He came to a stop in front of me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, forcing him closer still. I would not admit it out loud, but I loved having him close to me. He made me feel safe and all squishy inside.
“Open your mouth.” He ordered, and when I listened, he placed my pills on my tongue. “Now swallow.”
I sipped the water, swallowing my pills down with only the smallest of huffs before showing him my empty mouth.
It wasn’t like he checked whether I actually took the pills.
I just liked being told how great I was when he got to watch me swallow.
My ears were whores for compliments on all the days of the week that ended with a Y.
“Good girl.” He cocked his head, dark eyes staring down at me with far too much love for how hard I was still debating his death. “Do you think the Adderall is working? I know it’s only been a few weeks, but I want to see how you feel and make sure nothing is wrong.”
“Sometimes I feel like a god that the entire world is obsessed with. And other times I feel like I could die right now, and the world would be a better place, and nobody would care.” I moved closer and mumbled into his stomach.
“If you want to know how I feel right this second, then I feel ready for some dinner and reading.”
He kissed the top of my head, then pulled back, letting me get to my feet. “What are you reading today?”
I blushed scarlet as I snatched my e-reader he’d bought me from the kitchen counter. “Oh, you know, a good classic book. A classy bitch sort of read with feminist ideologies and lots of deep and meaningful prose. I think it won a Pulitzer Prize or something.”
He tilted the screen to check it out. “This page says the word cock multiple times.”
“They’re on a farm right now.”
He pulled the screen down more, reading further along the page as his lips pulled in a smirk.
“This looks more like a smutty romance about a girl screwing a vampire.” He read more. “Ah, and a minotaur? How delightful.”
“She fucks her adopted brother, too.” I sniggered. “And he turns into a giant lion bitch with claws. I’d totally fuck a lion shifter. Would you? I reckon they’re a pack load of fun.”
He ignored my question and kept reading. “Three men? That sounds like a lot of dick. I bet she’s tired, poor girl.”
“Actually, there’s four. But she’s not banged him yet. He’s a virgin.” I drawled. “And I do love a good virgin. I think in a past life I was a cherry whore, and in my next life I’m going to be a regular whore. But the rich kind that does old dudes who die fast and give her money.”
The e-reader went straight down onto the side as he smirked harder. “I’ll give you money if you do me. And I’m not even old yet.”
He was so easy to wind up that I couldn’t help myself from pouting further, pretending to be offended. “Are you calling me a whore?”
He almost paled, his hands tightening their grip on me. “What? No, I-”
“I’m telling Atlas.” My voice was almost a song as I ran into the lounge again so I could get comfortable. “In fact, I’m telling Atlas that you didn’t die when I killed you.”
Gio followed in a few long strides, yanking me up so he could take my spot. “Why were you killing me?”
“You ate my cupcake at breakfast.” The anger came back instantly, and I growled at him.
“No, I didn’t. I ate my cupcake.” He pulled me onto his lap, my face an inch from his. It was nice and all to be so close, but I swore I could taste the frosting on his breath, and it made me violent.
I poked him hard in the ribs. “Are you calling me a liar? If anything, I’m a truther. I tell too much of the truth.”
He kissed me on the cheek and snorted.
“You said you didn’t want the cupcake. You insisted that you were fat and going on a diet, and that you really didn’t want it.
Atlas spanked you for calling yourself fat, and we made you promise to speak about yourself in a nicer way.
Because you’re not fat, and even if you were, it isn’t something to be ashamed about.
It’s just a thing and doesn’t make you unworthy of kind words and happiness. ”
“I remember.” I huffed as I traced patterns on his body with my fingertips. “You told me I was the prettiest girl in the world and a bunch of other stuff that was obviously true.”
“And do you remember you still insisting you didn’t want the cupcake and that I could eat it, so it didn’t go to waste?”
“No,” I lied and averted my gaze, picking a spot on the couch that was far more interesting than his face. “You’re just a thief.”
“You look away from me when you lie.” He traced his fingers over my cheekbone. “If you want to convince someone you’re telling the truth, you need to maintain eye contact.”
“Like this?” I glared right into his soul for a solid minute.
“That’s better. But remember to blink. Otherwise, you just look a bit strange.”
“I am strange. I live in the woods like a hermit with a cute serial killer and a hot Italian dude I kidnapped. The last time I was allowed in polite society, I got involved in two gang fights, almost ran over a gang leader, and had a threesome in a church. None of that is normal.”
He cocked his head, grinning. “You think I’m hot? Thanks, bella.”
“I’m still debating killing you.” Sighing, I leaned back, trusting him to stop me from falling. “I could easily bury you out back. No one would even know.”
“You had your nails done two days ago. There is no way you would ruin your manicure that soon.” Gio chuckled again, this time a little darker, his dark eyes locking onto mine as I checked out my pretty rainbow nails Atlas had painted for me.
“Plus, I think you’d miss me too much. Who else would annoy you as much as I do? ”
“Nobody. You annoy me the most.”
His smirk widened, and he leaned forward, the soft glow of the fireplace casting shadows across his sharp features. “You think I’m annoying, Heather? You sure about that?”
“You’re a nightmare.” We both knew it wasn’t true, not really.
Despite his constant teasing, his cocky attitude, and the way he could infuriate me with just a look, there was something about Giovanni that made everything feel less heavy.
Being around him was a distraction, a welcome break from the weight of everything else going on in our lives.
He made me feel safe, and I loved him.
I would still put a bullet in him for fun, though. Only sometimes. I had to keep our relationship exciting and stop it going stale.
The cabin groaned slightly as the wind picked up outside, the old beams creaking from the sudden gusts.
I glanced at the window, watching as the trees swayed against the fading evening light, their shadows dancing across the walls.
It was a reminder of just how isolated we were out here.
No neighbors. No noise except for nature.
And no one to hear us scream if something went wrong.
It was hot as fuck. I could live in the woods forever if I had a beach nearby or a pool to get my swim on.
Gio’s hand brushed against me, pulling me back from the edge of that thought.
I turned to him, finding his expression softer now, less smug, more curious.
“I do love you, Heather. All of you—even the parts you think are childish or stupid or wrong.” He kissed my cheek again.
“You are mine, and I always take care of what is mine. So if you really need another cake, then I will make you more.”
My heart clenched, but I ignored it. Hearts knew nothing.
They were just flesh, and flesh was dumb.
Dumb like Gio’s stupid, bitch, prick, bastard father, who I couldn’t wait to cut open like a slice of lamb when Atlas had finished stealing all his businesses and finding blackmail to stop the rest of the De Luca crew coming for us.
Except Giorgio wouldn’t be delicious with some roasted carrots and mint sauce.
He would taste nasty because he was made of dirt, and evil, and blackness from the depths of hell.
“Do you love me even when I have stupid thoughts about stupid things?” I wondered. “Or maybe even if I turned into a worm? A really slimy worm that ate rotten food all day.”
“Yes. I would still love you, and I don’t think any of your thoughts are foolish.” Giovanni kissed me again. “Tell me what you’re thinking right now.”
“That I want you to cook some lamb, pretty please.” I blurted as I yanked on the hem of my borrowed shirt.
“Think roast dinner vibes. Like it’s Thanksgiving.
With carrots and stuffing and lots of gravy.
And something called Yorkshire puddings.
I saw them on the cooking channel the other week, and I wanna try some.
The English lady who made them said they were ‘bloody lovely’.
And I feel like I want to eat something like that.
It might help me stop feeling stir-crazy. ”
He nodded. “I can do that—I already bought some lamb for a curry, but I can easily change it up. You know I’m a master in the kitchen.”
Just as I was about to say something—some quip about how his confidence bordered on arrogance—the lights flickered. Once. Twice. Then, without warning, the entire cabin plunged into complete darkness aside from the fire.
My heart skipped a beat, my muscles tensing. “What the hell?”
Giovanni shot up to his feet, gently placing me behind him, his posture immediately alert. “It’s just a power cut,” he muttered, his tone dropping an octave. His hand brushed over the gun tucked into the back of his shorts, fingers hovering near it, but not quite reaching.
I channelled my hitwoman again, but this time with a proper weapon, as I pulled my cute switchblade from my bra and flicked it open.
“Did we forget to pay the bills? I know I’m poor, but I figured you and Atlas paid the electric bill…
has my trophy wife-ness made me not see how broke you guys were, too?
” I asked, though I knew damn well this wasn’t about an overdue electric bill.
Especially on a cabin the Montana family paid for.
There was a heaviness in the air now, the kind of eerie quiet that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. But I enjoyed having fun, and it was better to pretend than to live in the real world. Even if other people thought it was immature.
“No,” Gio said, eyes narrowing as he peered through the darkness out the window. “This doesn’t feel right.”
I bit my lip, a chill creeping down my spine. Without the comforting hum of electricity, the place felt entirely different—suddenly vulnerable, exposed, like something was watching us from just outside the thin walls.
Then, as if on cue, I heard it. The slow, deliberate creak of the front porch floorboards.
My breath hitched, and I watched Gio look straight at the front door, his body tense, muscles coiled like a predator ready to pounce.
“You heard that, right?” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “You reckon it’s just Bigfoot coming for tea?” It helped my fear that Malivore was still sleeping in the bedroom. If there had been an actual monster, she would have come to save me.
I was sure of it…
“Yeah,” Gio murmured, his hand now firmly gripping the handle of the gun. “Probably just a monster, amore mio. You don’t need to worry.”
Another creak. Then another. Each step was deliberate, sending an icy shiver down my spine.
My mind raced, already mapping out escape routes that Atlas had drilled into my brain, potential weapons he’d left around for if we were attacked.
But we were in the middle of nowhere—no backup, no help. Just us.
I cursed under my breath, my heart hammering in my chest. “Do you think it’s Daddy De Luca? Should I grab a gun and run?”
“Could be,” Gio whispered back, his voice tight. “Stay close. You run if I tell you to, okay?”
“Okay,” I whispered.
The front doorknob rattled suddenly, and I froze, every muscle in my body locking up. It wasn’t the wind. No way. Someone was out there. Someone thoroughly dark and twisted and monstrous.
Gio’s hand was steady on the gun, his gaze never leaving the door.
I swallowed hard, scanning the room for anything else we could use.
The fireplace poker? A bigger knife from the kitchen?
My mind scrambled, running through every possible option, but my body stayed rooted in place, heart pounding louder with each passing second.
The door rattled again, then stilled.
A sudden surge of light flickered across the room as the power briefly came back on. In that moment, I saw it—just for a split second—a shadowy figure standing outside the front window. My breath caught in my throat as the door creaked open wide, nothing but shadows waiting for us.
Then the lights cut out again. There was a sharp breeze on my back from the window behind me opening suddenly. Before I could so much as think of spinning around, the fire was doused, plunging us into complete darkness.
I opened my mouth to say something, maybe even to scream, but before I could, a hand wrapped around my throat from behind and a low, distorted voice crackled through the silence.
“Run.” The command was clear.
The fear bubbling up inside me twisted, morphing into something else entirely as realization dawned. A slow, wry smile crept across my lips, my pulse still racing but for an entirely different reason now.
“Atlas,” I whispered, shaking my head.
“I said run, malyshka. Before it’s too late and I devour you whole.” Atlas let go of my throat as Gio grabbed my hand, pulling me out of the door with a mild huff about idiot wraiths who could have got themselves shot by a jumpy gangster.
And me.
I would have shot him, too. I was a hitwoman now, after all.