Chapter 14 Katerina
KATERINA
I can't breathe. Can't think. Can't do anything but stand in the doorway of my cottage, staring into the darkness.
Every second without Enzo feels like drowning.
I really should go to Alessandro. As it is, he’ll likely be angry that I went to Luca. But Luca is Enzo’s father.
I check my watch. It’s nearing one in the morning. Luca told me to wait until dawn to notify Alesandro if he wasn’t back by then, but I’m getting anxious. Dawn might be too late.
The sound of footsteps breaks the silence.
A silhouette materializes from the shadows.
Tall, broad-shouldered. Luca, moving with purpose across the grounds. And in his arms…
Enzo.
Relief crashes through me. I stumble forward.
My lungs burn as I break into a run.
"Enzo!"
My son lifts his head from Luca's shoulder, his small face pale in the moonlight. "Mommy!"
I reach them. I take in all of him… his face, his arms, his body, confirming he’s okay.
He's covered in something dark that I refuse to acknowledge as blood.
“It’s not his,” Luca says as if he knows my concern.
"Are you hurt? Did they hurt you?"
Enzo shakes his head, his eyes wide and haunted. "Daddy saved me."
"Let's get you inside.” I take Enzo from Luca's arms, needing to hold him.
Once inside, I sit Enzo on the couch, kneeling before him. His small body trembles beneath my hands.
“I’ll get a cloth to wash him up,” Luca says, leaving me alone with Enzo.
"Uncle Pyotr said he was taking me somewhere safe." Enzo's voice is small, confused. "But then Dad came and—" He stops, his eyes filling with tears. "He said he’d kill me.”
I’ll kill my brother for this. What is wrong with him?
“And there was so much noise. And Uncle Pyotr fell down. There was blood everywhere."
I pull him against me, cradling his head. "I'm so sorry, baby."
"I think daddy killed Uncle Pyotr." He whispers as if he’s afraid of Luca hearing.
The idea of it is shocking even as a moment ago, I was wanting to kill my brother myself.
Luca appears with a wash cloth and I clean Enzo’s face. “You said Uncle Pyotr threatened you. Your daddy was there to protect you, bring you home to me.”
Enzo pulls back, his gaze darting between Luca and me. His little face crumples. "I'm scared."
"I know." I brush tears from his cheeks. "But you're safe now."
Luca steps forward, dropping to his knees beside us. He hesitates before gently placing his hand on Enzo's shoulder.
"I never wanted you to see that. I'm sorry, Enzo."
I’m surprised to see Luca struggle.
This is the monster they all whisper about in hushed tones.
The ruthless, impulsive Dante son.
Yet right here and now, he looks devastated by the thought of frightening his own son.
"You came for me," Enzo whispers, his tears slowing.
"I will always come for you. Always. And do whatever I have to do to keep you safe.” Luca looks at me, anguish in his eyes, and I realize then that he did kill Pyotr. The look in his eyes is a plea for forgiveness.
“Let’s get you cleaned up and into bed,” I say, picking Enzo up. Luca hangs back, although I imagine it’s difficult for him.
I tuck the blanket around Enzo, who surprisingly falls asleep quickly.
The terror fades from his face, replaced with calm.
I hope he can sleep peacefully without nightmares.
When I turn, Luca is standing in the doorway, watching us.
I shut Enzo’s door and then follow Luca back to the living room.
I study him, feeling profoundly grateful, but also guilty.
Without question, he walked into the lion’s den to save our son.
Even after I’ve been cold and distant.
Even as I tried to keep our son from him.
For the first time, I believe him when he says he cut off contact with me to protect me.
Whether from his family or mine, he sacrificed our love for my safety. And I’ve been cruel to him for it.
"Is he okay?" Luca asks.
"He's asleep. For now."
Luca nods, running a hand through his disheveled hair.
“What happened?” I ask the question even as I’m not sure I want to know. But I need to know so I can understand what Enzo went through.
“I went to the warehouse first, but they weren’t there.
I spent the rest of the evening going to every Morozova property I could think of.
Still nothing. So around eleven, I was back at the warehouse.
” He closes his eyes and shakes his head, almost like he doesn’t want to remember.
"Pyotr had at least half a dozen men with him, including Dimitri Volkov.”
Oh, God. If Luca killed him too, there could be even bigger trouble.
“They weren't expecting me,” he continues. “They thought you'd come alone."
My stomach knots. "And Enzo?"
"He was scared, but unharmed." Luca's jaw tightens. "I took out the guards silently, one by one. I was hoping to have Enzo out without anyone noticing but…”
“But what?”
Luca's eyes meet mine, unflinching. "Pyotr used Enzo as a shield. He had a gun to his head before I could stop him."
Bile rises in my throat until I think I might be sick. My brother held a weapon to my son’s head? Used Enzo to protect himself from Luca.
A sound escapes me, something between a gasp and a whimper. Luca’s expression is pained.
His hands start to reach for me but then stop, as if he worries I won’t want his support.
"He said he'd kill Enzo." Luca's voice drops lower.
I press a hand to my mouth. "And you killed him."
"I had no choice, Katerina. I’m sorry. But in a choice between Pyotr and Enzo—”
“Of course. Enzo is innocent.”
“I was terrified I’d miss, but then Enzo started squirming and ended up kicking Pyotr in the nuts. He dropped Enzo and I shot Pyotr between the eyes. I had to make sure he went down instantly, that he didn’t have a chance to shoot. Enzo saw everything."
My brother is dead.
The same brother I’d grown up with. Who protected me when we were used as part of a deal between the Bratva and the Dante Mafia.
The brother who threatened my son.
"He gave me no choice," Luca’s voice is apologetic. "I'm sorry, Katerina. I'm so sorry."
I can’t deny that there’s a part of me that wants to scream at Luca, to blame him for taking my brother from me.
But that’s only because I can't believe the truth.
But I remember how he was earlier when he came to see me.
The text he sent after getting Enzo from school.
"Pyotr hasn't been himself for months," I say. "The errands, the secrecy. At first, I thought it was drugs again. I knew something was wrong, but I never imagined…"
Luca moves closer but still doesn't touch me. "I think he might be behind some of the problems the Dantes have been having. Maybe even that ambush and stolen guns from the other night."
“I should have known.” Isn’t that part of my job, to make sure both sides are operating within the terms of the treaty they’d set up years ago?
"He was your brother. You trusted him."
"He used to sneak me extra desserts when we first came to live with the Dantes," I say, wondering what happened to the brother I knew and loved. "When I realized I was pregnant, he was prepared to take care of me. He protected me my whole life until…"
“We can’t know why he changed. Maybe he saw an opportunity with my father’s death. Maybe Alessandro disrespected him. Maybe Morozova offered him something he couldn’t refuse.”
Up close, when I look at him, I see a man with regret. Not that he had to kill my brother, but that it hurt me. I also notice a tear in his shirt with dried blood around it.
“You’re hurt.”
Luca looks down. “Huh? I thought it missed me. It’s just a flesh wound.”
“Let me clean it.” Without thinking, I push his shirt off to check the wound. It’s long but not deep.
“It’s okay, Katerina—”
“Let me get the first aid kit.” I grab the kit from the hall linen closet and return to him. “Sit.”
He complies, sitting on the couch.
I clean the wound and put on a bandage, realizing that if the bullet had been a few inches to the right, he’d be dead.
I spent years hating him.
He knows that.
And yet he still killed his way through the Russian Mob to save our child.
Not for power or revenge, but out of love.
“There will be backlash.”
“So? What other option did we have?”
We could have told Alessandro, but he’d have wanted to negotiate, in which case I’d still be sitting here worried about my son.
Or I’d have gone to the meeting empty handed and they’d have killed me and Enzo.
Or I could have tried to get the file and then been killed by Alessandro.
Luca is right.
This was the best option.
The grief for my brother will come, but at this moment, all I can feel is gratitude for the father of my child.
I raise my eyes to Luca's face, truly seeing him perhaps for the first time since his return.
The hard lines of the ruthless mafioso are there. But there's something else too.
It’s something I’ve been trying to avoid acknowledging.
I see the man who’s been fighting for a place in our lives since the moment he returned.
The emotions I’ve been holding back break loose.
I throw my arms around his neck, my body colliding with his as I pull him close.
He stiffens in surprise before his arms encircle me.
"Thank you," I choke out. "Thank you for bringing him home."
"I will always bring him home. I will always bring you both home."
I pull back just enough to meet his gaze, my hands framing his face.
The face that haunted my dreams for seven years.
"I believe you.”
“Do you believe I never stopped loving you? Not for a single day."
Looking deep into his gray eyes, I have no choice but to believe him.
All the emotion is there.
It’s always been there, but I’d been too afraid to look.
I surge forward, pressing my lips to his.
The kiss ignites instantly.
Years of longing and separation fueling a fire that courses through my veins.
His mouth moves against mine with fierce possession.
My fingers tangle in his hair as his arms tighten around me.
He stands suddenly, lifting me as though I weigh nothing.
My legs wrap instinctively around his waist, and he carries me down the hall, his mouth never leaving mine.
The bedroom door closes behind us with a soft click.
"Are you sure?" he breathes against my lips, even as his body communicates how desperately he wants this.
In answer, my fingers undo the buttons of his pants. "I'm sure. I want this. I want you."
We quickly undress and he lowers me to the bed with tenderness, his eyes never leaving mine.
He kisses me again, his hands caress my body, and it feels like healing.
As if there was a broken part of him that is mending. It’s the same for me.
Opening up to him after so much time of trying to keep him out.
His lips trail down my neck and lower.
His hand cups my breast as he brings it to his mouth, gently suckling.
Erotic sensations rush to my center, wet and needy.
I arch into him, holding him to me.
“I so fucking missed this…” He kisses me lower and lower, settling his shoulders between my thighs. He inhales my scent and then laps his tongue through my folds.
I gasp, my hand gripping his head, holding him to me as delicious sparks of pleasure crackle through me.
“Mmm.” He hums against me, and it’s electric.
I moan, my body rocking with need as his lips and tongue work their magic on me. “Luca.”
“Come for me, Katerina. I want to taste you.” His tongue flicks inside me as his fingers caress my clit.
Immediately, I feel like I’ve been shot from a cannon.
I soar in pleasure.
He laps at my juices like a man dying of thirst.
It draws out my pleasure until I’m spent.
Slowly, he kisses his way back up my body and kisses me again. He’s hard against my belly, and it reawakens my need.
I push at him until he rolls back.
At first, his expression is concerned and I imagine he thinks I’m about to put the breaks on. Instead, I straddle him.
“I want a turn.”
His hands slide up my thighs. “Whatever you want, baby. You take it. I’m all yours.”
I hold his gaze as I slide down, feeling him inside me, filling me. I close my eyes, savoring the sensation of it.
“That’s it. Feel me inside you. Use me to feel good,” he commands softly.
I rise and lower over him, riding him. At first, I go slow, but soon the pressure builds and I’m panting as I reach for pleasure.
“Fuck… Oh… I’m coming!” His hips buck up, and warmth fills me. The friction is exquisite as he pulses inside me, and I fly again with him.
I’m not naive enough to believe that all our problems are fixed.
After all, he’s still going to leave.
And I’m still owned by two families that are likely about to go to war.
But in this moment, I push that all away and pretend that Luca and I have the dream we once held.
A love too strong to break.