After spending the most incredible night of my life with Luca and sleeping in his arms, I’m bummed when he leaves for work.
I go to the closet to unpack the rest of my belongings. It keeps me busy for a couple of hours, but once I’m done and staring at my clothes hanging opposite Luca’s, the worry starts to gnaw at my heart.
As mindblowing as the sex was, it doesn’t mean Luca’s falling in love with me.
After I got to experience him in such an intimate way, I now fear the annulment. I’m just going to continue to fall more and more in love with him, and when it all ends, the heartache will be unbearable.
What if he can’t return my feelings?
What if when the six months are up, he decides it was fun, but it’s over?
Dear God, how will I survive the blow?
Panic seizes my chest, and it has me grabbing my purse and rushing out of the bedroom, where I gave too much of myself to Luca.
Hurrying down the stairs, I pull my phone out and send Luca a message that I’m going to visit my parents.
I leave the apartment as if hellhounds are nipping at my heels. The moment I step into the basement, Ivan and Lev climb out of the SUV.
“We’re going to my parents’ house,” I tell them.
“Okay,” Ivan replies, opening the door to the back seat for me.
I climb inside and type out a text to Violet.
Can we meet for lunch sometime this week?
Ivan slides behind the steering wheel while Lev gets into the front passenger seat.
Violet replies as Ivan steers the SUV out of the basement.
Sure. I’m free Thursday at twelve.
Thank God. I really need some girl time with my friend.
We’re hit from the side, metal crushes, the force slamming me across the backseat and into the door. Glass shatters, and dazed, I hear Ivan shout, “Blyadʹ!”
The SUV flips, and I go airborne before slamming into the roof. We keep rolling, and I’m wildly tossed around until every part of my body aches, and I black out.
Coming to, I hear metal creaking. A copper taste fills my mouth, and I groan as I test my arms and legs.
Disorientated, I groan, “Ivan? Lev?”
They don’t respond, and it has me pushing myself up. I glance to the front of the mangled SUV. There’s no sign of Lev, and Ivan is lying at an awkward angle, his eyes frozen in a dead stare.
No.
Jesus.
Shit.
My body aches as I push myself onto my hands and knees. I whimper from a sharp pain in my chest as I crawl out of the broken side window.
Once outside the wrecked SUV, I use the side of the vehicle to lean on as I climb to my feet.
The sight meeting me steals the breath from my lungs.
NoNoNoNoNo.
Lev’s lying by the front of the overturned car, and men I’ve never seen before move in on me.
This was an organized hit.
Shit. Fuck.
Standing with my back to the car, I use the diamond of my wedding ring to write, hoping to God it will be legible.
When two men get dangerously close to me, I kick off my high heels and assume a fighting stance because there’s no way I’m going down without a fight, even if I am outnumbered.
Dad thought me to always fight until the very end. There’s no giving up.
Here goes nothing, Daddy.
Doing my best to ignore the pain from the car accident, I lunge forward, throwing the first punch. The diamond of my wedding ring slashes across the fucker’s face as I spin to the side, grab hold of his shoulder and pull myself up until I can wrap my legs around his neck. Using all my strength, I flip, taking his ass down.
I land with a hard thud, roll away and struggle to my feet as my head starts to spin.
No. Don’t you dare pass out. Focus.
I bounce back and threaten, “Do you know who my father and husband are? Do you have any fucking idea who my brother is?” I suck in a desperate breath, increasing the searing pain in my chest. “You’re dead.”
The one starts laughing, stepping closer to me. “Koha për të vdekur, kurvë.”
I have no idea what that means, but it can’t be anything good.
I bring up my arms as the men all attack at once. Wounded and weak, I know I don’t stand a chance, but I give it my all. I manage to drop two men to their asses and headbutt another who tries to grab me from behind.
My heart’s hammering in my chest, my breaths exploding over my parched lips. My fists ache. My chest is on fire. My strength dwindles until one of the fuckers gets in a punch. The force of the blow scatters my senses and sends me sprawling over the road.
One of them kicks me so hard, I hear the snap of bone a split second before debilitating pain engulfs my entire torso.
Air wheezes from me, and my eyes focus on the mansion across the road. I recognize it, realizing I’m only minutes away from my parents’ home.
I force myself to my feet but stumble before falling to my knees.
I suck in a wheezing breath and close my eyes.
I tried, Daddy.
My chin drops to my chest then I slump to the side. When darkness engulfs me, my last thought is of Luca.
I hope he knows how much I love him. I hope he saw it in my eyes when we made love.
