CHAPTER 15
Santino
Wind slammed into us as the engine screamed beneath me, leaving a trail of dust as the manor gates vanished in the mirror. I put my hand over hers and pressed it into my abs.
“Hold tight, Volpi.”
The road curved sharply and I leaned into it, the bike dipping low as the tyres bit into wet asphalt.
Roxanne gasped but leaned with the bike instinctively, her body moving with the curve like she’d done it a hundred times.
The sound shot through the helmet and straight down my spine.
Jesus.
Her arms tightened around my waist, chest pressing harder against my back as we straightened out of the turn.
Another sharp breath of adrenaline came through the Bluetooth. I felt it everywhere.
My cock twitched inside my jeans.
Not now, dammit. I’m trying to outrun them.
Focus.
My blood roared in my ears as I cut through traffic, overtaking cars and checking the mirror every few seconds. Roxanne held on, her grip steady despite the speed.
The SUV headlights flashed in my mirror again.
Persistent bastards.
The road opened ahead and I pushed the throttle harder.
The engine snarled beneath us as the wind grew colder the faster we went.
Roxanne shifted behind me, her arms sliding tighter around my waist as the bike surged forward.
The heat of her body pressed closer against me.
And suddenly I remembered exactly why I’d never taken her on a ride before.
I shouldn’t have come back. Marcello would’ve handled the security. He always did. But that wasn’t the point.
The men chasing us tonight? That was my mess. My ring. My fight. And Roxanne was the last person who should ever be dragged into the consequences of my life.
I’d spent two years staying away for a reason. All that time telling myself distance was protection.
Watching her from the edges.
Watching her build a life with Marcello.
Watching Kyra grow up.
Watching Romano learn to walk.
Watching the family I had no right to miss.
I had to. I needed to. It was the only thing that kept me sane, and the monster satiated.
But if anything ever happened to her because of me…I wouldn’t survive that.
“Still with me?” I asked.
“Just make sure I don’t die,” she said, breath uneven in the comms.
Always dramatic. Another gasp slipped through when we cut through the next turn. My jaw clenched. Hearing every sound she made was going to kill me before any bullet could.
The city lights of Dublin flickered in the distance.
Behind us, the SUV engine roared again. They weren’t giving up and neither was I. My only priority was getting Roxanne safe and then I’d deal with their loser of a boss.
Her hand left me for a second as she tried to turn to see if we were still being chased. I grabbed it and pressed my hand over hers.
“Eyes forward, Volpi,” I said, voice turning stern.
Call me selfish, but I wanted this to last for as long as possible. Her pressed against me, holding me. Her breath in my ear.
The city lights blurred as we tore down the road, weaving through traffic that moved too slow for my liking. A sedan drifted into our lane. I leaned the bike hard, threading the gap beside it and the delivery van with barely a foot to spare.
Roxanne’s breath hitched in my ear.
“Jeez—”
The SUV pushed through traffic behind us, headlights slicing between cars like a predator’s eyes. The road ahead split into two lanes as the traffic thickened.
The light turned yellow. I didn’t slow; instead, I leaned forward and twisted the throttle. She leaned in closer to me.
“Santino.” She yelped.
“Hold on, baby.”
Then the word slipped out before I could stop it. Her arms cinched around my waist. Not pulling away. Not correcting me.Just… tighter, making my chest constricted.
The bike shot through the intersection just as the light turned red. Cars honked. We slipped between two lanes of traffic like a blade sliding through cloth. Her nails almost dug into my stomach.Good. At least I knew she wasn’t letting go.
“Are they still—”
“Yes,” I cut in.
The wind tore the rest of the sentence away. Then a sharp crack split through the air. Instinct took over before thought.I leaned the bike hard just as the side mirror of the car beside us shattered, glass exploding across the road.
Another shot rang out behind us. The sound ricocheted through traffic. My pulse went cold. Not warning shots. Not intimidation. These idiots were actually shooting.
Fuck.
Fuck.
“Keep your head down,” I barked.
Her arms locked tighter around my waist instantly.
The SUV swerved between lanes behind us, headlights jumping violently through traffic. Cars packed the lanes, brake lights glowing like a river of red.
Perfect.
I twisted the throttle again, surging forward, between a truck and a taxi. Then another gap. Then another.
Wind howled past my helmet. Behind us, the SUV fought through traffic, heavier, slower.
Roxanne made a small sound in my ear—half laugh, half disbelief. That sound shot straight to my cock and slammed into my chest at the same time. It was the best sound in the world.
Goddammit.
Priorities Santino. Priorities.
I reached back for a second, pressing my hand over her thigh, my palm sliding slowly over the fabric of her leggings.Her thighs instinctively pressed against me.
“You still with me?” I asked.
“Unfortunately,” she huffed. Dry. Breathless.
Up ahead, the highway split. Instead of following the main road, I veered off sharply toward the underpass ramp. The pavement turned rough beneath the tyres. Gravel cracked under the bike as we dropped down a narrow service slope. A low bridge appeared ahead. The bike dropped into shadow.
Concrete swallowed the sound of the city as we shot beneath the overpass.
A couple of other motorcycles were parked near the pillars, riders leaning against their bikes.
A small group stood around a burning barrel, laughter echoing off the concrete.
Two couples leaned against the concrete walls, tangled together like they’d forgotten the world existed.
They barely looked up when we pulled in. Just another bike. Just another night.
I killed the engine. Roxanne pulled off her helmet and slid off the bike.
She turned to me, eyes blazing. “What the hell was that?”
She gestured toward the road.
“Nothing that concerns you.”
Her laugh was sharp. “It concerns me when they try to grab me as compensation and try to shoot at us.”
I ran a hand over my face. “I’ll handle it.”
“And why do you owe them money?” she said, crossing her arms.
“I don’t.” I snapped back.
“Then why were they—”
“I said I’ll handle it.”
“That’s not the fucking answer.”
I held her gaze for a moment.
“Fine. I’ll explain.” I looked toward the road. “Just not here.”
I shrugged off my jacket and handed it to her.
“Here.”
She frowned. “I’m not cold.”
“Humour me.”
She rolled her eyes but pulled it on anyway, the leather reaching her thighs.
The scent of her perfume mixed with the engine oil and cold night air.
For a second we just stood there. Seeing her wearing my jacket sent a dangerous thought to my head—imagining her only in my jacket.
The monster was trying to push through again.
Then—
An engine roared somewhere above the underpass. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward one of the concrete pillars.
“What are you—”
Before she could finish the sentence, I backed her against the pillar. Her back hit the concrete with a thud. I placed a hand beside her head and settled the other at her waist. From a distance we probably looked like every other couple hiding under the bridge.
She blinked up at me.
“Santino—what the hell—”
“Play along.”
Up close she smelled like leather and heat and something dangerously familiar—a perfect mix of her perfume and my jacket. Her mouth opened to protest. Her chest rose and fell quickly. Then she exhaled slowly, body relaxing against mine.
The SUV rolled slowly across the underpass entrance, headlights sweeping past slowly.
Roxanne suddenly grabbed my shirt tighter, pulling me closer. My grip on her waist tightened right back. For a moment, the world narrowed to the space between us. The warmth of her lingered against my jaw, fingers twisting in my shirt.
I stepped closer, my leg sliding between hers. Her throat worked once. For a second, she went completely still. Then she glanced down briefly where my leg was wedged between hers.
Then she muttered under her breath.
“Rough much?”
My jaw tightened.
Did she really have to say that right now? When I’m standing so close? That she can feel every twitch in my goddamn cock.
Her eyes dropped for a second, then snapped back to mine. She fucking felt it. A faint flush spread across her cheeks.
I leaned down slightly, lowering my voice.
“Relax.”
She scoffed. “You’re the one pinning me against a pillar.”
“Trust me, Volpi,” I murmured. “You’d know if I was actually pinning you.”
Her lips parted. Then pressed together again.
The SUV engine faded into the distance. But neither of us stepped away.
A strand of her hair had fallen across her cheek. I tucked it slowly behind her ear, fingers lingering a second longer than necessary. Her eyes flicked up to mine. Then back to the road again. Her teeth caught her lower lip.
Fuck. My. Life.
I dragged my thumb across it and pulled it free.
“Don’t do that,” I said.
My voice came out rougher than I intended it to, because the last thing I needed right now was another reason to kiss her and forget why we were hiding.
Her gaze snapped back to me. Then it dropped to my mouth. She licked her lips slowly. The small movement sent a sharp jolt through me.
Bedda Matri.
My restraint pulled tight like a wire. I leaned down without thinking. For one dangerous second, everything slowed. And suddenly the space between us disappeared.
For a second I forgot why we were even here. Forgot the men chasing us. Forgot the SUV. All I could see was her.
Firelight flickered behind us. Her breath warmed my jaw, fingers gripping my shirt like it was the only thing keeping her upright. The heat of her body against mine.
I had spent all this time pretending I didn’t want this.
Pretending I could exist in the same space as her and not lose my mind.
But standing like this—
Pressed against her—
I realised how badly I’d been lying to myself.
I dipped my head an inch closer. Her lips were close. So close. I could smell her strawberry lip gloss and minty breath.
One taste. Just one taste.
The monster whispered.
She cleared her throat abruptly. “They’re gone.”
I blinked once. The moment shattered, reality snapping back.
Pity.
I stepped away immediately, forcing air back into my lungs, running a hand through my hair.
“Good.”
I grabbed the helmets and handed hers to her. We climbed back onto the bike. This time when she wrapped her arms around my waist it felt… different. As though she too was thinking about the moment.
The engine roared back to life and we pulled out of the underpass and back onto the road. A minute passed in silence. Then her voice crackled through the comm.
“You almost killed us.”
I snorted. “And you screamed in my ear. I’m not complaining.”
“I did not!”
“You absolutely did.”
“Santino!”
I laughed. “See? Just like that.”
“That was because you nearly turned us into roadkill riding like a madman.”
“Since when have you become a rule follower?”
“Since I didn’t want death hanging over my head.” She snapped back.
“Relax,” I said. “We’re alive.”
She huffed. I shrugged slightly.
“You’re welcome.” I mocked.
She smacked my arm.
“Asshole.”
I grinned inside my helmet. Worth it.
But even as the road stretched ahead of us, my mind kept drifting back to the underpass. To the way she’d looked at me. To how close I’d come to kissing her.
And the dangerous realisation settling somewhere deep in my chest. Two years away hadn’t changed a damn thing.
If anything—
It had made it worse.