Chapter 23
Enzo
While I prepare the pulled pork and make coleslaw, so they’re ready once Rosie is up, worry gnaws at me until it feels like I’m being backed into a corner.
I didn’t expect that reaction from Rosie.
Not once did it cross my mind she wouldn’t want to be with me. I didn’t arrogantly expect her to fall into my arms, but she’s made it very clear she loves me.
What the fuck am I missing?
By the time everything we’ll need for lunch is in the fridge, there’s a weird urgency in me to get to the bottom of what’s keeping Rosie from accepting my love.
You need to be fucking patient, dumbass.
Rosie’s been through hell. She can’t deal with my shit on top of the horrors she’s suffered.
We haven’t even talked about her time in Russia.
Slow down. Right now, she needs her friend, not a brand-new relationship.
I wipe down the counter, and hearing soft footsteps, I glance at the entrance to the kitchen.
When Rosie walks in, looking even paler than before I put her to bed, I feel like an asshole for dumping a love proposal on her.
“You didn’t nap?” I ask, my tone strained.
She shakes her head. Coming right at me, I’m surprised when she wraps her arms around my waist and presses her face to my chest.
But then her shoulders jerk, and I engulf her in a tight embrace.
“I’m so sorry,” I apologize again.
Rosie shakes her head, and her voice is muffled and raw as she cries, “I’m overwhelmed, and as I was about to doze off, I remembered everything that happened, and then I couldn’t stop thinking about the prison and the hackers and the dead and the shit I saw on the monitors, and now I’m just spiraling and need you. ”
Fucking hell, she’s just skimmed over the tip of the iceberg that’s her trauma, and it hurts like a bitch. I know it’s going to break me once she tells me everything.
“I’m here,” I assure her. “In whatever way you need me.”
Her cries turn into something I’ve never heard before, sounding wounded and filled with despair.
Rosie has never been one to cry easily, so seeing her this fucking distressed rips my heart clear out of my chest.
Bending, I pick her up before rushing to the living room. I sit down and cradle her on my lap, holding her as tight as I can while rocking her.
“I’m here, bella mia,” I murmur gently. “Take all the time you need.”
Rosie’s fingers curl into my shirt, and by the time she starts regaining control over her emotions, she looks fucking exhausted.
Just like during the trip home, her eyes flutter shut and her breaths even out.
She might not be ready to hear I love her, but the fact that she can’t sleep unless I’m nearby tells me a lot.
I gently wipe the tears from her cheeks before I adjust our position so we’re lying down together on the couch.
Rosie snuggles closer and presses her face against my neck, then lets out a relieved sigh.
“I’ve got you,” I whisper while brushing my hand over her hair. “Sleep, bella mia.”
Her body relaxes against mine, but I notice she’s still gripping my shirt tightly in her fist. The moment I place my hand over hers, her grip eases and her fingers curl around mine.
Only then do I notice her nails have been bitten, which is something Rosie never did before.
I brush my thumb over the marks left on her wrists from where I’m guessing they restrained her.
Don’t lose your shit, Enzo. You can do that when you’re torturing those fuckers. Right now, focus on Rosie.
Pressing a kiss to her hair, I close my eyes, taking a moment to relish the fact that I have Rosie living with me.
Even if this is all I get, I’ll be happy as long as she’s with me.
I take a breath of her, and when she smells like me, it eases some of the tension in my chest.
Unfortunately, she only naps for thirty minutes or so before I feel her breathing change. Even though I feel her lashes flutter against my throat, I continue to hold her, adamant that she has to be the first to pull away.
More minutes pass, then she whispers, “I pressed the button when Kirill grabbed hold of me because I couldn’t risk any of you being compromised or in danger. As the bomb began to detonate, he forced me into a modified SUV, so I think they knew about the bombs.”
Her breath fans over my skin, and she pulls her hand from beneath mine before placing her arm around my side and holding me as tight as she can.
“Did you get hurt during the blasts?” I ask, my tone as soft as I can make it.
Rosie shakes her head, then rests her cheek against my chest.
“But watching my life’s work crumble like that was… it hurt so much.”
I press a kiss to her hair and rub my hand up and down her back. “Once you’re ready, and it’s what you want, we’ll build you a new server room.” Wanting her to stay on track and not derail and think of work, I ask, “What happened then?”
“Kirill chloroformed the hell out of me. I don’t remember anything after that until I woke up in the cell.”
Just hearing she was kept in a cage like some fucking animal makes the urge to kill Danil and Yegor rocket through me.
I force my thirst for vengeance down and focus on Rosie.
“I was shackled.” Her voice cracks. “Both my wrists were cuffed in front of me, and there was a chain between them, enough for me to move, but not enough to feel like my hands were mine anymore.” Her arm tightens around my side, and I feel her fingers grip my shirt.
“My ankles were shackled too, close enough together that I was only able to take short steps.” Rosie curls as close to me as she can get.
“They only took them off when I was in my cell.”
I clench my jaw as my anger becomes a living force, making my body shudder.
“Kirill took me down to where the hackers were and explained the team kept me busy while the Bratva slipped into New York so I wouldn’t notice.”
Christ, that’s why she was so fucking overworked from all the hacking attempts.
“Then Danil shot a man to show me what would happen if I didn’t work or tried to contact the family. I didn’t respond the way he wanted me to, and they grabbed Tim, which made me try to attack Danil. To punish me, he killed four more people.”
Knowing the kind of trauma Rosie must’ve lived through, my heart cracks wide fucking open. I close my eyes and turn deeper into her while pushing my hand into her hair.
“By the time you all came to rescue me, they had killed sixteen people and replaced them with new ones. It was like an endless mill of people being forced through the bowels of hell.”
My tone is unrecognizable with anger and pain as I say, “I’m so fucking sorry, bella mia.”
“Then they kept me locked in the cell for a whole month.” Her voice cracks, and the blow to my fucking soul is so damaging it will never heal.
“It felt like I was losing my mind, and then when they finally let me out, it was to show me the footage of my funeral, and I saw you...” A sob bursts from her, the sound raw and filled with devastation.
“I saw you, and my parents, and Gianna, and everyone, and your hands…”
Rosie loses it so badly, she struggles to get breaths past the sobs, and I quickly pull her upright. Grabbing the sides of her head, I force her to look at me, and all the trauma I see in her eyes sends a destructive surge of agony through me.
“Shh…shh… I’m here.” Not thinking, I press a kiss to the corner of her mouth, the urge to breathe for her overwhelming me. “Deeper breaths, Rosie.”
Suddenly, my phone buzzes, the specific sound telling me we have visitors.
“Fuck!” I rip the device out of my pocket, and seeing Uncle Dario and Aunt Eden on the camera, I say, “Your parents are here. Should I ask them to come back later?”
Rosie shakes her head while taking shuddering breaths. “I’ll be… fine in a m-minute. Let t-them up… while I wash m-my face.”
Christ, seeing her like this is fucking brutal.
After getting up, I grip Rosie by the back of her neck and press a kiss to her forehead. “Take your time. I’ll keep them busy.”
She nods, and as she goes upstairs, I key in the code to let her parents come up.
When the elevator doors open and Uncle Dario and Aunt Eden step into the foyer, their eyes sweep over the place, searching for Rosie.
“She just woke from a nap and went to the restroom,” I explain.
“Oh no! Did we wake her?” Aunt Eden asks while Uncle Dario carries a massive candy stash to my kitchen.
I shake my head. “No.”
“How is she?” Uncle Dario asks as he comes toward me.
“Exhausted and emotional,” I answer vaguely, not sure what Rosie would be comfortable sharing with her parents, and I’m not about to break her trust in me.
Suddenly, Uncle Dario hauls me into a hug. “Thank you for stepping up and being the man she needs.”
“I’ll do anything for her,” I reply as I pat his back. When he lets go, I mention, “Once she’s better, I’m going to offer to take over being her underboss.”
Uncle Dario’s lips part as shock ripples over his face. “And what does Christiano think about that?”
“It doesn’t matter what he thinks,” I answer honestly. “Rosie comes first before everyone and everything.”
“Christ, Enzo.” Again, I’m hauled into a hug while Aunt Eden brushes her hand up and down my arm. “Thank you for giving us the peace of mind, knowing you will be there in the future.”
“I’ll guard her with my life,” I vow.
Uncle Dario pulls back to lock eyes with me. “Your father might not like this.”
“I’ll deal with my family. Don’t worry about it.” I gesture at the living room. “Take a seat. Can I get you anything to drink?”
Aunt Eden gives me an affectionate smile. “No, thanks, but it’s so sweet of you to offer.”
Just as we reach the couches, Rosie comes down the stairs with a huge smile on her face. I actually do a double take when she says, “Be careful. I’m going to get used to all the attention.”
While I search her face, her parents hug her, and the instant her eyes touch on mine, I see the shadows.
She’s pretending to be okay so she won’t cause her parents worry.
Uncle Dario and Aunt Eden take a seat on the one couch, but Rosie waits for me before she sits down beside me. Her side presses hard into mine, and I lift my arm to place it around her shoulders.