Chapter 22
KATERINA
In an effort to give Enzo some semblance of normalcy, he’s in the kitchen with several of the women staff who’ve taken him under their wing.
Right now, he’s making cookies with Agnes, the most grandmotherly of the group.
With Enzo occupied, I search for Luca. He’s been busy looking for the mole, but even he needs a break every now and then.
I don’t find him in his normal spots on the lower floor, so I head upstairs to his room. I knock on his door, hesitating when I hear something crash inside. No answer comes, so I push the door open slowly.
"Luca?"
He stands by the bathroom doorway, shirt unbuttoned, knuckles raw and bleeding. A shattered glass lies in pieces by the wall.
"You shouldn't be here." His voice is rough with emotion.
I close the door behind me. "Enzo's downstairs making cookies with Maria. He'll be occupied for at least an hour." I step closer, noticing dark stains on his shirt that I know are blood. I hope it’s not his. "What happened?"
He turns away, fingers working at his remaining buttons. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with."
"Luca." I catch his wrist, forcing him to look at me. "Something's wrong. Tell me."
His eyes meet mine, stormy with anger and pain. "I had to kill Victorio today."
I can’t hide my shock. Victorio and Luca had been close practically since childhood. Victorio was the only one who’d welcomed Luca home.
“Why?”
"He was working with Pyotr. He planted the bomb in my father's car. Poisoned the wine meant for Alessandro."
"Oh, my God." My hand flies to my mouth. "I can’t believe it. He was your best friend."
"Apparently not." His laugh is bitter. He pulls away, stepping toward the bathroom. "I need to shower. Need to wash it all off."
I watch him, this man who's killed for our son, who's faced suspicion from his family, betrayal from those he trusted.
My heart goes out to him.
"Let me help.” I follow him into the bathroom.
He looks broken in a way I've never seen before.
I reach up, finishing the work of unbuttoning his shirt, peeling it gently from his shoulders.
There's blood there too, thankfully not his.
"It doesn't wash off," he says, so quietly I almost miss it. "No matter how hot the water gets."
I press my lips to his shoulder, tasting salt and metal. "Let me stay with you while you try."
His eyes close briefly, vulnerability flickering across his face before he nods once.
I help him undress, then myself, and step with him under the scalding spray. We don't speak as I wash his back, his hair, his hands.
The water cascades over us, steam rising between our bodies. Luca's muscles remain taut beneath my fingertips, his breathing uneven. I press my forehead against his spine, letting my hands slide around his waist.
"I know what it's like," I murmur against his skin. "Thinking you understand someone completely, only to discover they're someone else entirely."
He turns in my arms, his eyes searching mine.
"Pyotr was my brother." My voice catches. "I knew he could be wily, but I trusted him with everything. My life, my son's life. I never imagined he could betray me. At least Victorio wasn't family."
"Wasn't he? We grew up together. He knew all my secrets. When everyone else turned their backs on me, he was there for me. I believed he was loyal."
The pain in his voice mirrors what I've been carrying since Enzo's kidnapping. I reach up, brushing wet hair from his forehead.
"It's not your fault," I tell him. "Some people are just good at wearing masks." Didn’t he tell me something similar about Pyotr?
"I should have seen through it. That's what I do. I read people, find their weaknesses." His jaw tightens. "But I missed what was right in front of me."
"We all did." I cup his face between my palms. "Alessandro and Adriano didn’t see it, did they? And they’ve been around him more the last seven years than you have.”
His eyes soften as they hold mine. Without words, he leans down, pressing his lips against mine.
It's not passionate or demanding like his usual kisses. It's tender, almost reverent.
Almost as if he’s grateful for my understanding.
Luca's hands circle my waist as water continues to cascade around us. The heat has fogged the glass, creating our own private world.
"The hardest part," he says, voice low against my ear, "is knowing you and Enzo might be in danger."
I pull back slightly, searching his face. "From whom?"
"Everyone." His thumb traces my cheekbone. "Tensions are exploding on both sides. The Russians want my head for killing Pyotr, and the Dantes are questioning everyone's loyalty."
The implication rattles me.
I'm still Russian, the sister of the man who betrayed them.
"You think your family suspects me?" Suddenly, I feel cold even with the hot water spraying over me and Luca’s arms around me.
"I trust you." His eyes hold mine. "But Alessandro isn't convinced."
"So I'm guilty by association."
"You're vulnerable by association," Luca corrects, pulling me close. "And that makes Enzo vulnerable too."
My stomach twists at the mention of my son. Our son. "Is Alessandro going to do something?"
"Not directly. But the security detail watches your cottage. They're not just protecting you."
My breath catches at the reality of my situation.
I had noticed extra men, but I thought that was Luca protecting us. In truth, it’s men watching me.
Protecting the Dantes from me. "They're monitoring me."
"It's complicated. You're the sister of a traitor but the mother of a Dante heir." He grips me tighter when I try to step away. "I've made it clear where I stand, but they’ve got their own concerns about me."
I think of Enzo, innocent in all this, making cookies downstairs while forces gather around us. "What do we do?"
"We stay together," Luca says simply. "I won't let anything happen to either of you."
I take hold of his words like a life preserver. I know what Luca Dante will do to protect what's his.
I want to ask him what will happen if he’s forced to choose between me and Enzo and his family, but I’m afraid of the answer.
Instead, I lean into him. "I should be terrified. I'm caught between two warring families, neither fully trusting me. My brother is dead. My son has witnessed things no child should see."
Luca kisses my temple.
"But when I'm with you like this," I continue, "I feel safe. How is that possible?"
His hand slides up my arm. "Because you know what I'm capable of. What I’ll do to protect you and Enzo."
But for how long? I wonder but again, I’m too afraid to ask.
I rise on my tiptoes, pressing my lips to his.
His arms lift me effortlessly as I wrap my legs around his waist.
The tiles press cool against my back as he pins me against the shower wall.
His lips trail down my neck as warm water cascades over us.
I close my eyes, surrendering to the gentleness of hands that earlier today killed a man Luca loved.
My life feels like a tempest, being blown around, my emotions swaying violently. And there’s no calm on the horizon. But right now, in Luca’s arms, I let all that go. If my life is going to go sideways, then I want to savor moments like this where I feel safe and cherished.
“I need you,” I practically beg.
He lets out a growl as he shifts and then impales himself into my body.
I cry out as pleasure radiates out from where he pulses inside me.
“So fucking good…” He murmurers against my lips as he captures my mouth for a searing kiss.
My fingers dig into his shoulders as he moves within me, each thrust forceful and deep. “Yes… yes…” I chant as we climb together toward release.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring?
I don’t think about the danger or how this will likely be over one way or another very soon.
Right here, right now, I have the man I love, the man I’ll always love.