18. Theo
Chapter 18
Theo
I charged at the guy in front of me, and he sprayed me with bullets.
My body pulsed several times as the bullets struck the vest. The impact would leave bullet-sized bruises behind. “You missed, asshole.” I slammed my gun into his face and knocked him out like a light.
The broken gate had collapsed on the ground, and the path to the house was clear. Octavio and my men continued to fight Bolton’s security along the fence. They were outnumbered and unprepared. I knew I would lose some guys, but Bolton would lose all his guys.
Axel trailed behind me. “You alright?”
“That was the easy part. Now comes the hard part.”
Axel changed out the rounds on his rifle then caught up to me. “I’ll cover you. ”
“I know.” I didn’t waste my time trying to open the front door. I aimed my rifle at the lock and the hinges and fired until the door became unlevel. When it was loose, I kicked my foot into it several times before it fell in.
Axel aimed his rifle, ready for whatever trick Bolton had up his sleeve.
I stepped into the house and did a quick scan of the foyer. The lights were off. There was a table with a vase of lilies, the walls had paintings of flowers in watercolors, and two curved staircases were on either side of the entry that led upstairs.
I went through the grand opening that led to the rest of the house. “Astrid?” Bolton would know where I was, so there was no use in hiding it. I moved through the kitchen and used it for cover as I checked the living room and the hallway.
Axel was quiet behind me, my second pair of eyes, constantly scanning.
I moved to the hallway. “Astrid,” I called her name and prayed I would hear her say mine back.
But the house was quiet.
“The only way he could have gotten out of here is by chopper,” Axel said. “And we both know that didn’t happen. Must be a safe room.”
“Let’s clear the house before we search.” I moved into the hallway, my gun held at the ready because that asshole could jump out at any moment. When I turned the corner, I spotted a mass on the floor down the hall, so I dodged back behind the corner for cover.
Axel moved to the opposite wall and readied his gun, prepared to shoot if someone came around.
I poked my head and looked again.
Two bodies were lying there.
And one of them was Astrid. “Astrid.” I came around the corner and moved over the thick rug that muffled my footsteps. Axel must have found the switch on the wall because he flicked it on and revealed the horror show.
A huge pool of blood was soaking into the rug…and it came from Bolton.
He’d been shot in the face. His nose and right eye were missing. The gun was there, in a puddle of blood.
I rushed to Astrid next. “Astrid.” I grabbed her and immediately searched for a pulse in her neck. Checked that she was breathing because it seemed like she wasn’t. She had no wound that I could see, but she seemed dead.
I turned her over and pressed my thumb into her neck. “She has a pulse. It’s strong.”
Axel continued to examine Bolton. “What the fuck happened?”
“Sweetheart.” I tried to wake her gently by giving her a shake, by turning her face toward me. “Sweetheart, I need you to wake up.” I checked her pulse again, slow because she was asleep, but still strong.
“Did he poison her?”
I saw the vomit that had been next to her. It was hard to know exactly what had happened, but I had a guess. “She shot him and passed out.”
Axel rolled Bolton over and checked for a pulse. “Unless he killed himself…and she still passed out.”
“He wouldn’t shoot himself in the face.” I scooped my arms underneath her and lifted her to my chest. “You’re sure he’s dead?”
“Yeah, he’s fucking dead.”
“Bring him too.”
“What’s your plan? Oil drum?”
“We’ll figure it out later.” I cradled her to my chest and walked out with her. By the time I left through the front door, the gunshots had stopped. Bolton’s men who had survived seemed to have surrendered.
I looked down at her, dead asleep like she was in my bed beside me every night, almost peaceful. Whatever happened had obviously scarred her, but I couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride.
I didn’t have to kill him, because she already had.
We got on the plane.
I’d only lost a handful of guys, and Octavio and the others made sure their bodies were loaded on to the plane. They deserved an honorable resting place, not to be left behind in a different country.
Bolton’s body was kept separate from the rest of them.
Astrid was still asleep. I laid her on one of the couches and tucked her in with a blanket. Even when the plane took off, she didn’t wake up, didn’t notice the way her body lurched forward and rolled back.
I kept her in place.
Axel called Scarlett. “It’s over, baby. I’m on my way home.”
I’d seen Bolton’s dead body with my own eyes, but I still couldn’t believe it was over. I never got my brother’s remains, but a feeling of peace came over me anyway. I’d never been able to save Killian, but I’d been able to save Astrid—and I did.
Axel listened to Scarlett over the phone. “Yeah, he’s dead. Yes, I’m sure.” He listened to her again. “A hundred percent. Astrid shot him in the face.” He listened again. “She seems okay. She’s been unconscious this whole time. We think she shot Bolton then passed out when she realized what she’d done.”
I knew that was exactly what had happened. Because Bolton wasn’t the kind of man to go down without a fight. He’d probably had a plan up his sleeve, but Astrid had stopped that plan from coming to fruition.
“I love you too,” he said. “I’ll see you when I get home.” He hung up and released the heaviest sigh I’d ever heard. He tucked his phone in his pocket then relaxed in the chair across from me.
“You alright?”
“So glad this shit is over. I can go back to fucking my wife and raising my kids in peace.”
Guilt returned in fresh waves. “I appreciate everything you’ve done, Axel.”
“I know,” he said. “And I would do it again.”
“I sincerely hope that never happens.”
He looked out the window for a while. “It might happen again…if you stay in the game.” His eyes shifted back to me. “The Skull King has at least five targets on his back at all times. You know Astrid will never be safe.”
I held his gaze, but I wanted to look away. I’d accomplished what I set out to do, and now that it was over, I had to think about other shit I didn’t want to think about. I had to make decisions, decisions that would change the rest of my life.
“Something you should think about.”
“This is my life. I don’t know how to live it any differently.”
“It’s been different ever since Astrid came into the picture. And it’ll continue to be different as long as she stays. My advice? Embrace the change…one day at a time.”
The plane arrived in Florence two hours later, and it was a rough landing. The bounce of the wheels on the tarmac was felt throughout the entire cabin. It was enough to make Astrid wake up.
I was on the same couch, her feet in my lap, my arm draped over her legs in case there was unexpected turbulence.
She opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling of the cabin for a couple of seconds, slowly blinking as she processed her surroundings as if she was in a dream. She looked down at her feet then her gaze made its way up my body until our eyes met.
The plane had slowed down as it made its way to the hangar, but the engines were still loud and the guys were gathering their things. When Axel realized she was awake, he left his seat and moved elsewhere.
She continued to stare at me. She blinked every few seconds. Then her breaths increased as reality set in, that she hadn’t left one dream and stepped into another like she paced an endless hallway.
She dropped her legs to the floor and sat up, the blanket sliding off. She continued to look at me with a guarded expression, like seeing my eyes in the light of day still wasn’t enough confirmation.
But something seemed to click in her head because she suddenly moved into me, hooked her arms around me, and crawled into my lap. She gave a quiet gasp as she held on to me.
I pulled her close and squeezed her, my lips against her hairline, feeling her breathe hard against me, feeling her cry.
The door opened, and Axel and the guys stepped down the stairs and left the plane.
She stayed in my lap and seemed to have no intention of leaving.
The pilots left and then the flight attendants.
It was my plane, so I could sit there as long as I wanted. As long as she needed.
“I—I shot him.” She whispered it to me, like she didn’t want the world to know what she’d done. “It happened so fast.”
“It’s okay, sweetheart.”
“I meant to shoot him. It’s just…that’s not how I meant to do it.”
“I know.”
She stayed burrowed into my chest and started to cry. “I can’t get the image out of my mind. ”
She’d been around this world for a long time, but she’d never seen anything firsthand. Never watched a bullet leave a gun. Knew people were killed but never witnessed it herself. She wasn’t a killer. She wasn’t like me and Bolton. “Don’t feel bad, sweetheart. He gave you no other choice. You may have killed him, but you’re still the victim in all this.” I kissed her hairline before I brushed her hair out of her face.
After she cried a while longer, she sat back and looked at me, eyes red and puffy. “He was about to hurt me when you arrived. Was angry that I’d been crying over you. If you’d waited just an hour…” She never finished the sentence.
And I didn’t want her to. “It’s over now. You’re free. We’re free.”
She gave a slow nod before she sniffed. “I didn’t think you were going to come.” Her eyes remained down, like she didn’t want my explanation.
“I wasn’t going to…until Axel talked me into it.”
She lifted her gaze and looked at me.
“I couldn’t risk Axel’s family. But he said you were family too.”
She’d just stopped crying, but now her eyes watered once more. “I love him.”
“He and Scarlett love you too. ”
She sniffled again before she wiped her tears with her forearms. Dawn had arrived an hour ago, and the sun shone directly in her face, making her eyes sparkle like a flowing river in the light. With red eyes and puffy skin, she was an emotional mess, but she was vulnerable and real…and beautiful.
“As do I.”
Her eyes had been on the window as I spoke, but she flicked them to me at hearing my words. Her body went still. Even her breathing stopped. Time seemed to stand still as she absorbed the echo of my words.
“I love you, sweetheart.”
I hadn’t touched her things in my bedroom or removed her belongings from down the hall. I’d left it exactly as it was because it was less painful to endure it than to remove it. The vanity in the bathroom still had her cleansers and creams, along with her makeup bag. I’d had my butler put a vase of flowers on her bedside every night like she was still there.
When she walked inside, she stilled noticeably, like she expected a whole new place. She stared at the bed for a long time before she crossed her arms over her chest. She was still frazzled, as she’d been on the plane, and she needed more time to decompress. She moved to the armchair near one of my dressers and sat down, arms still crossed over her chest.
I wasn’t sure if I should give her space and leave the room. Or if she wanted to get something off her chest. I tried not to wonder if she’d slept with Bolton because I understood she didn’t have a choice in the matter. I’d prefer it if she did choose to sleep with him…versus the other scenario.
I’d rather not think about or discuss it at all.
“I didn’t sleep with him.” Her eyes were down as she said it. “He tried, but I always got out of it.”
I hid my reaction as best I could, but the relief was like the fizz that released out of a just-opened soda can.
“I made efforts in other ways and was able to delay the worst. But it wouldn’t have lasted much longer.”
I was glad I’d listened to Axel. If I’d refused another day, it would have been much worse.
She looked at me like she expected me to say something.
I stared back and waited for a question.
But she didn’t ask it.
All I wanted was to shower and throw her on the bed.
But she seemed in a different headspace. “You—you were sleeping with someone.” She didn’t phrase it as a question but as a concrete accusation.
“There was no one else, Astrid. ”
She blinked a couple times. “Bolton said you were seeing someone named Laura?—”
“And you believed him?” I asked incredulously. “He wanted you to think that so you’d forget about me. There was no one else, sweetheart. I slept alone every night. The only woman I thought of was you.”
Her chin dropped again as her eyes remained full of sadness, as if I hadn’t just corrected her horrible assumption. “I should have known what he was doing. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize.” I wasn’t offended she’d accepted his lies as fact. Not when he was out of our lives forever. Not when we finally had the fresh start we deserved.
She looked at me again before she stood up. But she didn’t crawl into my chest like she had on the plane. She just looked at me instead. “Now that he’s gone, I can claim his assets and get my own place. I should throw away all of his money, but after the shit he put me through, I feel entitled to it. Can I stay here for a couple days while I figure that out?”
It was such a stupid question that I didn’t know what to say. I just stared at her.
When she grew uncomfortable from my stare, she looked away.
“I told you I love you.”
Her eyes lifted to look at mine .
“Which means everything I already told you. I’m possessive. Jealous. Borderline psychotic. And you think I’m gonna let you leave? You think I’m going to let you live anywhere else but here with me?”
Her uneasiness slowly faded as a light entered her eyes, like those words meant the world to her. Like she’d only offered to move because she thought that was what I wanted. “I didn’t want to be presumptuous?—”
“I love you, so be fucking presumptuous.”
Her eyes started to water again.
“This is your home.” I walked up to her and cupped her face with my hands. “I’m your home.” Two tears fell, and I swiped them away with my thumbs, looking at the first woman who’d made me feel something in years.
Her hands gripped my forearms before she looked at me. “I love you.”
Without an ounce of hesitation in my heart, I said it back. “I love you too.” There’d been several times I’d felt it but didn’t say it. Kept it bottled up inside until it dissipated. But now, I let it out. And it felt right.
I expected her to want to take it slow for a while since she’d spent the last few weeks trapped with Bolton, but once we were out of the shower, she wanted me—and she wanted me bad .
“I want you…” She whispered it in the sexiest way, moving to her back on the bed, her head on my pillow, asking me to conquer her body with mine.
I moved on top of her, kissing her hips and moving up her stomach before I sucked each of those nipples into my mouth. I kissed her chest and neck, fisted her hair before I kissed her on the mouth and felt her moan against my lips.
I’d felt the desire of every woman I’d ever had, but Astrid’s desperation was different. Her longing was deep and full of ache. When she grabbed me, she held on like she didn’t want to let me go.
Her thighs squeezed my hips, and her ankles locked at the top of my ass as her hands explored my back. She kissed me like she needed me more than she ever had. And she continued to whisper the sexiest words I’d ever heard. “I want you.”
My desire had disappeared when she’d left. It was ironic to be accused of fucking other women when I had no libido at all. My dick hadn’t been hard once, not even when I woke up in the morning. But now that I could feel her soft flesh against mine, feel how wet her sex was, I was so fucking hard I thought I might die.
I pushed inside her, and she moaned the whole way through. There was no wince or clench of her body. She just wanted my dick, all of it, missed the hurt as much as the pleasure. “Fuck, I missed this pussy.” My memory was shit because I couldn’t remember it feeling like this, like a jar of warm honey that coated me down to the balls.
“Yes…” Her heels tugged on my ass, wanting more than she could take because it was her job to handle all of me. Every night for the rest of her life. In every hole on her body. With the same enthusiasm she showed me now.
I rocked into her slow and easy, knowing neither one of us needed much to get off. It was a privilege just to be inside her, like I’d walked through my front door and stepped into my home. All Axel could talk about was fucking Scarlett every time I saw him, and now I understood why he couldn’t think of anything else.
This was all I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
Her tight pussy took me over and over, soaking wet and squeezing me the way you squeezed a wet sponge. “Theo, I’m about to burst.”
I felt my dick try to twitch inside her, but she was so tight, it couldn’t move. My hips started to move faster, grind against her harder, ready to dump a load inside her the second the head of my dick kissed her entrance.
One of her hands cupped my face, while the other scratched my shoulder, her breath coming out uneven, her moans bleeding through. “Theo…” Her sexed-up eyes looked into mine as she started to writhe, her lips parted with her tongue against her teeth. “Yes…yes.” The second she closed her eyes, a tear ran free and streaked to her ear. Her nails scratched down my chest, and she came around me with a whimper, her thighs squeezing me hard.
I fucked her into the mattress, feeling her come all over me as I started to come inside her, dumping all my seed in my favorite pussy. I pushed myself farther in than I should, but she didn’t wince in pain because she was so high from the pleasure I gave her.
“I love you.” Her body started to soften when she finished, but she squeezed my hips with her thighs like she didn’t want me to leave. “Fuck, I love you.”
I finished, but my dick was still rock hard, still ready to please my woman. “I love you too, sweetheart.” I started to rock again, and she was already moaning like she was ready for another load as soon as she’d gotten the first.