Chapter 38
Evelyn
Four Weeks Later
“How is she?” Massimo asks the doctor, his eyes dark with worry.
“I feel fine,” I promise, drawn to ease his concern. “I haven’t felt so much as a twinge of pain for days.”
“That’s good,” the doctor approves before turning his attention to Massimo. “She’s made a full recovery. She can return to a normal routine.”
I clear my throat, not caring for how he’s addressing Massimo and not me.
“Like I said, I feel fine,” I reiterate coolly.
The doctor simply nods. “I’m satisfied that there won’t be any lasting damage.”
Massimo’s phone chimes. He checks the message and mutters a low curse.
“Is something wrong?” I ask, worry nipping at me.
He strokes my hair. “No, dolcezza. We’re about to have a visitor.”
Fifteen minutes later, the doctor is gone, and Carmen beams at me as she settles into the plush armchair across from the couch where we’re seated.
“It’s so good to see you, Evelyn. Massimo has been keeping you well guarded.” She shoots him an exaggerated pout. “He wouldn’t let me visit until today.”
He drapes his arm over me and tucks me close to his side. I lean into him, sighing in contentment.
“He’s been taking good care of me,” I say. “I’m all better now.”
“I’m glad to hear it,” Carmen replies with genuine warmth. “Stefano and I have been very worried with you two shut up in here. We weren’t sure if you were on your deathbed since Massimo wouldn’t let anyone in to see you.”
Another exaggeration and a slight jab. I’m sure that the doctor kept her informed on my progress; she’s his boss. She clearly isn’t pleased that Massimo has been keeping her locked out of a suite in her own home.
But she allowed us privacy, so she must’ve sensed that fighting with him would accomplish nothing except upsetting me. Carmen is shrewd as well as caring. She feels concern for me and possibly something like friendship, but she knows how to navigate tense situations with dangerous men.
“I hope you haven’t been too bored,” she drawls, another pointed remark.
“Not at all.” I defend Massimo. “He’s been teaching me Italian. Now, I’ll be ready to speak the language when we go to Naples.”
Her eyes cut to him. “Are you so keen to go soon?”
A muscle ticks in his jaw for half a second, but he manages a genial smile. “Our business is concluded. Gian and Enzo sent the payment from our end weeks ago. We can all start making money now. It’s time for me to go home and oversee the final aspects of our deal.”
Her dark brows lift. “And what about your other business here in Mexico City? I was under the impression that it was unfinished.”
I tense, not caring for the conversation about their criminal empires. Even though I’ve accepted this part of Massimo’s life, I don’t like hearing the details.
His thumb traces soothing circles on my upper arm, but he keeps his glinting gaze fixed on Carmen. “I haven’t forgotten about that. I intend to see the job through, but I need to get Evelyn safely to Naples first. I’ll come back to tie up the loose end as soon as she’s settled.”
“What? No,” I protest.
I can’t bear to be parted from him. My addiction to him should scare me, but I’m too lost in our connection to care. And the prospect of being alone in Naples with his mafia associates unnerves me.
“I want to stay with you.”
Carmen studies my panicked features. Her crimson-painted lips thin to a slash as she considers me. Then her sharp gaze cuts back to Massimo.
“Go with Evelyn. Stefano and I will handle Crawford.”
My heart skips a beat. George.
My ex-fiancé is the loose end they’re discussing. Massimo and Duarte want him dead.
Even though I know I won’t be safe as long as George is alive, having him killed disturbs me.
Will I ever become accustomed to this violent world where justice and retribution are dealt out in blood?
“I made a promise,” Massimo counters, his thumb still stroking my arm. “I intend to keep it.”
Carmen dismisses the notion with a flick of her manicured fingers. “And I’m releasing you from that promise. Besides, Stefano will prefer to handle this personally after the brazen attack on our home. Our new business venture is too important for you to linger here.”
“Evelyn won’t be safe until I end Crawford.”
I shift against him, but he keeps his attention fixed on Carmen. His arm tightens around me slightly, a reassuring embrace.
He won’t apologize for his intention to eliminate George as a threat, and I don’t expect him to. I understand him well enough now to know that he’ll do anything to protect me. I have to trust in him if we’re going to be together.
“I am more than capable of defending my own territory,” Carmen says coolly. “Crawford is a threat. I do not tolerate threats.” She tips her chin in my direction. “Take Evelyn home. I’ll call you when it’s done.”
Home. She’s talking about Italy. Naples is my home now.
I lean into him, conveying my trust and acceptance. I will never make him feel ashamed of who he is. Life has been cruel to him, and he’s done what’s necessary to survive.
I’m not a good man. The memory of his anguished words in the wake of his nightmare makes my heart squeeze. Massimo leads a dangerous life, but he isn’t evil. I’ll remind him of that every day.
“I’ll leave you two alone to make plans for your trip,” Carmen announces, the matter handled. “I can arrange an overnight flight for you tonight. Will you be ready by then?”
“Yes,” Massimo replies. “Thank you, Carmen. I owe you a debt.”
She gives an imperious wave of her hand again. “We’re friends, Massimo. You don’t owe me anything.”
She sounds like she means it. Stefano is cold and calculating, but his wife is softer, if no less formidable.
“Take care, Evelyn.” She offers me a warm smile. “Massimo will give you my number, and you can reach out to me at any time.”
“Thank you.” My throat is strangely tight.
Friends are a rarity in my life. I’ve always kept myself emotionally isolated because social situations are safer that way; I can’t be hurt by anyone’s indifference if I don’t allow myself to become attached to them.
A whole new world is opening up before me, and it’s all because of Massimo. He stormed into my life and showed me that I can be vulnerable.
Carmen says her goodbye to Massimo, too, and then she gives us privacy.
“Pick out what clothes you want to take with you,” Massimo encourages, guiding me toward the bedroom. “We can buy more when you get to Naples. I’ll take you shopping.”
“You’d go shopping with me?”
His lips curve in a wicked smirk. “I insist. I want to see you try everything on. I like buying pretty things for you.”
My cheeks heat, and I barely manage to shrug off my budding lust.
“What you’ve bought for me while we’ve been staying here in Mexico City is more than enough. I’ll just pack it all.”
His dark brows draw together in warning. “I thought we agreed that you will let me spoil you.”
“I love the beautiful clothes that you’ve bought for me, and I’m grateful for them, but I don’t need more. I’m usually very reserved in my style choices, Massimo. This isn’t me.”
“Why not?” he challenges. “Why can’t it be you? Silks and jewels suit you. My woman deserves the finer things in life. Nothing is out of reach for us.”
Us. My heart tugs toward his, as though we’re connected by an invisible tether.
I bracket his beautiful face with both hands. “Thank you.”
“There’s nothing to thank me for. I’m keeping you because I’m a selfish bastard, and I refuse to let you go. If I were a good man, I’d send you back to America. But it’s too late for that now. There’s no going back.”
He says it like it’s something ominous, but I’m not afraid.
“You’re my good man,” I purr, going up onto my toes to press a tender kiss against the grim slash of his lips. “I can’t wait to start our lives together in Naples.”
I’ve been searching for a sense of home ever since my dad walked out on me, and my simple childhood sense of security was shattered. I certainly didn’t feel at home in my stepfather’s house, and I’d only known further, more insidious torment during my years with George.
I’ve never been to Italy, and I barely know the language, but I’m sure that as long as I’m with Massimo, I’ll find a home. We’ll make one together.