54. Alina
54
ALINA
T he man I love is going off to war, and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it. “I want to come,” I say, but even as the words leave my mouth, I know what Tomas’s answer is going to be.
“Dolcezza, no.” Tomas’s expression is anguished. “Please don’t ask again because I can deny you nothing. But it’s not safe for you.”
He’s right. I know he is. The only time I’ve shot a gun has been in a training range. If I go with Tomas, his focus will be split. Rather than concentrate on taking out Malinov, he’ll be worrying about me.
I want to go. God, I don’t want to let him out of my sight. But if I do, I’ll be putting him in danger.
“I’m not going to ask again.” I pull him close and press a hard kiss on his lips. “But come back to me, you hear that? You promised me sexy wrestling in your home gym, and I intend to hold you to that promise.”
“I’ll be back before you know it,” he murmurs into my mouth. He pulls back and looks into my eyes. “Don’t worry, dolcezza. If I die, it’ll be of rat poisoning under suspicious circumstances.”
A reluctant smile forms on my lips. “I already told you I’m not planning on poisoning you,” I tell him. “Not until I find out who’ll inherit your share of the gym.”
He laughs softly. “It’s you, Ali. I had Daniel draw up the papers earlier this week. You are now the sole owner of Groff’s.” A look of distaste flashes over his face. “And the moment we go back to Venice, we’re renaming the gym.” He kisses me again, a slow, lingering kiss that feels like he doesn’t want to leave. Like a promise for a long and happy future. “I love you, Alina Zuccaro.”
I’ve wanted to hear those words for so long. But he says them to me, and my heart clenches with worry. “I love you, Tomas Aguilar.” The words spill out in a rush. I didn’t say them to him earlier, when we were at La Llotja. I was going to, and then the sniper shot at us. And this isn’t the right time for grand declarations of love, but I can’t let him go without telling him how I feel. “I love you so much. I was ready to murder you when you walked into my gym, but what I didn’t know then was that that day was the best day of my life.”
His eyes soften. His gaze locks onto mine, and there’s so much emotion there that my heart begins to swell. He lifts his hand and strokes my cheek, and I turn into his touch, nuzzling into it like a kitten searching for comfort. I want to cling to him and beg him to stay, but I make myself be strong. “Be safe. Please.”
“I promise,” he says again. His fingers linger on my face for a long, infinite moment, as if he’s trying to memorize every detail of my face, and then he slowly lets go. “I love you and you love me, and that’s all that matters. This is a blip, Ali. I’m going to take care of Malinov, and then I’m going to come back, and then we’re going to live happily ever after. That’s a promise.”
And then he’s gone.