Chapter 14

No one will tellme anything.

After the visit from Christine, all of my siblings have been keeping to themselves. I asked, and all I could come up with was they were staying underground until the threat to the family was taken care of. If someone was brave enough to come after me, that meant they wouldn"t bat an eye to go after one of my other siblings.

Of course, I knew they were right, but it only meant I needed to get on my feet a lot sooner than anyone would have suggested. The doctors tried to make me stay a few more days, but I wasn"t sure if that was because of my sister"s doing or because it was better for my health.

I can"t lay in the bed any longer. Not when I know Rosie is out there on her own. I haven"t heard from Romeo or anyone else, so I"m assuming there"s been no word that she was killed. It"s the only bit of hope I can cling to right now.

Doing my best to ignore the pain I"m in, I rush over to Rosie"s home. I could knock, but there"s every chance she won"t let me in. She was pissed the last time I saw her. Now I"m going to have to tell her that her life is in danger too. She"s not going to be happy about it.

My muscles ache as I walk up the few steps to her house. I don"t see any lights on, but based on the last copy I saw of her schedule, I know that she"s supposed to be home today. It doesn"t take much strength for me to break into her place. Just a slight push on the lock, and it pops open. I"m going to have to get that changed or, better yet, get her into a different place until all this blows over. Not that she"ll make it easy for me.

Taking one look around the small house, I know something is off. I put a hand to my waist, but I"m not carrying. The result of racing here straight from the hospital. There are clothes and papers all over the place, dishes in the sink, and half-eaten food on the table. It"s not like her to keep a dirty house.

My girl is depressed, and I"m pretty sure I"m the cause of it. I don"t hear her moving around the bedroom, and when I push open the door, I see why. She"s still in bed. Now I know something is really wrong. It"s nearly midday. She never sleeps this late.

Softly, I reach forward and shake her shoulder to get her to wake up. She mumbles and turns her head before she jumps out of bed like a jack-in-the-box. She screams loud. I"m so stunned by her reaction that I jump back myself, my hands where she can see them so she knows I"m not here to harm her. She"s never had that reaction to me before. Of course, she probably wasn"t expecting me to break into her house.

"Oh god. Gian." She covers her hands with her face, sinks to the floor, and sobs as if she"s afraid for her life.

"Rosie, it"s me. Don"t cry. Please don"t cry." I may put on a show that I"m tough for everyone else, but when it comes to Rosie, her tears are my kryptonite.

"You"re here. You"re here." She pushes up off the floor, not moving her hands from her face, and rushes into my arms. Definitely not the reaction I was expecting. Her entire body trembles as she continues to cry against my chest.

"Rosie, what is it? Talk to me." I try to push her away, but she"s got a death grip on me.

"I"m so scared." She whispers against my chest. A frog lodges in my throat, and panic begins to creep into my mind. Is it possible I"m too late?

"Rosie, let me see you. Please, let me fucking see." I push her away again; this time she lets me. I clamp my mouth shut to stop the vomit from pushing up out of my throat. Her face is bruised, her neck, her hands... It looks like she was fighting for her life. My beautiful girl is broken.

"Who the fuck did this? Tell me now!" I yell at her, which only makes her cry harder. Her knees go weak, and I have to catch her before she crumbles to the floor.

Picking her up, I lay her on the bed and instantly move her clothes, looking for more injuries. Her side is bruised; it looks bad enough for a couple of ribs to be broken.

"Gian, stop, please stop." She tries to reach for my hands, but it"s not until I feel her body go limp that I look up into her eyes. I"m losing her; she"s retreating into herself.

"No, no, don"t do that. I"m here. Okay, I"ll stop." I pick her up and cuddle her against my chest, where she turns her head and continues to cry against me. I want to make sure she"s okay, but that"s not what she needs right now. She just needs me to be with her. I can do that. All my questions will have to wait.

* * *

We stay like that for what feels like hours, her crying against me and my mind trying to figure out what happened without any answers from her. Finally, she calms down, and I let her take a step back.

"Did you go to the hospital?" I ask, needing to make sure nothing more serious than the superficial bruises was going on with her.

"Yes, right after I woke up." She nods and wipes some of the wetness from under her eyes.

"Who did this?" I ask again. She closes her eyes and shakes her head.

"I don"t know. He had a mask on. I didn"t get a look at him."

I grip the sheets on the bed hard, searching for somewhere to release my fury. It"s not her fault, but I can"t make her feel like it is.

"He said you were going to burn." Her voice is soft as she continues to talk, and all my attention is focused on her words.

"He said if I didn"t leave you alone, I would go down with you. What"s going on, Gian? Why is this happening?"

I have no answers for her. As much as I want to guarantee that I"ll find the bastard that did this to her, I can"t. I don"t even know who I"m looking for.

"I don"t know Rosie. I"ll make you safe again. I promise I will."

"But how," she whimpers and holds me closer. I shake my head, completely speechless. I don"t have an answer for her. There"s nothing I can do. Nothing but the one thing I don"t want to do. All of this seems to be happening to her because I can"t let her go. Maybe it"ll stop if I do. If I let Rosie live her life without me in it, there"s a chance that whoever is after me will leave her in peace. I thought we"d be able to get through anything, but I can"t stand to see her hurt like this. Shivering and cowering in her corner, just waiting for someone to come to hurt her. To make matters worse, I can"t even guarantee I"ll be there to save her. It"s not fair to her. It"s not the life I want to give her.

"Maybe..." My voice cracks as I start talking, and she pulls back to look in my face. "Maybe I should leave." I finish, and her face drops.

"Now? You want to leave me now?" More hurt. More disappointment I"m putting on her face.

"Rosie, I have to make this stop. It"s the only way I can think of. I don"t know what else to do."

"Gian, we"ve been together for most of our lives. We both know how his family works and the people who come after this family. When do they just give up? For that matter, when do you?"

My hands tighten around her waist, and I pull her back against my chest. I know she"s right; the chance of them just forgetting about her is slim at best.

"Stay with me," Rosie requests, she pulls back a little and pushes her hands up my chest until they are wrapped around my neck. "Stay with me tonight. I don"t want to be alone anymore."

I know I should say no. I"ve got so many people waiting for me to screw up. Waiting for me to give them a reason to say I"m weak. All of which revolve around Rosie. Staying here would prove all of them right. I don"t care.

"I"m going to make it so you never have to be alone again, Rosie. You"re my life." I stare into her eyes, and she smiles as one tear trails down her face, joining the others that have already fallen.

"You"re my everything."

The power of her words nearly knocks me out. There"s no more words left for me to say.

I lean forward and press my lips to hers, making sure to take care of the bruise on her face. She deepens the kiss and pulls me back with her as she finds the edge of her bed with the back of her legs.

I didn"t come here for this, but I think we both need a little comfort after what"s been going on. Rosie has always been able to make me feel complete, like nothing in the world could destroy me. I need that strength right now. I know there"s a war on the horizon, and doing it without her by my side in some fashion just isn"t going to work.

"You can turn the lights off," she pulls away from me, her voice soft.

"Why?" I ask, confused as to when she became ashamed of her body. I love every inch, every stretch mark, and age spot on the woman"s body. I"d take her in the middle of the street if I knew no one else would look at her. I"m not ashamed of her in the least.

"All the bruises, you shouldn"t have to see me like that." She looks away, and I grab her chin to raise her head so she can look at me once again.

"Rosie, you"re the most beautiful woman I"ve ever seen in my life. Bruises or not, nothing about you could turn me off." I drop my hand to the hem of her shirt and slowly lift it up and off her. She keeps her eyes locked on mine and smiles when I let out an appreciative growl.

"Such a beautiful girl."

Pulling me down, Rosie runs her hands over my body before working to get my shirt off as well. We kiss and touch everywhere. Our shattered souls repairing with every swipe and touch of skin. This is what my father could never understand; Rosie was never a weakness but the source of my power. My body is still beaten up from the explosion, but with every swipe of her finger, it feels like the wounds are gone. Like I could run a fucking marathon with an elephant on my back.

I reach down and pull her pants off, grateful she"s not wearing any panties. So much easier for me to get to my prize. Kissing my way down her body, I stop and place extra kisses on the bruises that I can see. She moans and scratches lightly at my shoulders and back as I trail further down. There"s a small beauty mark she has just under her hip bone, one that I loved to trace and kiss when we were together. I make sure not to miss that spot as I know how it makes her laugh.

Swirling my tongue over the sensitive skin, I hear my girl giggle, and my heart expands even more in my chest. That"s the sound I should always hear from her mouth. She should always be happy. I"m hoping what I do next is enough to bring her some joy, even if it"s only for a little while.

Pushing her legs open, I settle myself between them and run the tip of my nose against her wet core. She smells like candy. The best I"ve ever had. Slowly, I let my tongue slip from my mouth and slide it between her folds. Not too deep, just enough to get a taste. My mouth explodes with her flavor.

I grip the back of her legs and pull her closer to my mouth. She"s so sweet, I don"t want to waste even one drop.

"Mmm, Gian." She mewls, and her hips sway from side to side slowly as she gets into the rhythm. Doing my best not to push her too high too fast, I pace myself, slowly flicking my tongue from the bottom to the top before I get to her clit. Soon enough, I"m no longer in control. I need all of her, and I need it now. I suck and lick her faster and faster until her back in bowing up from the bed and her entire body is shaking. She"s close. I can always tell when Rosie is about to come.

"Gian, yes! Oh fuck, yes!" She squeals and slams her hands down on the bed. Her tight cunt pulsing and contracting waiting for me to fill it up.

I should make her come again. But I can"t hold back any longer. I came here to make sure she was okay, but she"s the one healing me.

"I need you, Rosie. Need." I mutter as I kiss my way up quickly.

She nods her head and pulls me up her body faster, the same emotions I"m feeling swirling in her eyes.

I know we should be moving slow. We should be taking the time to figure out what"s going on in our worlds, taking the time to make sure that we"ll survive, but all that matters right now is that we"re together. I can"t guarantee that, and it scares me more than I want to admit.

I hold her close as I line myself up with her warm heat and press the crown of my cock against her.

She sucks in a deep breath, and with one slow thrust, I push inside of her. She sighs softly, as if she"d been waiting for me to be inside of her. As if this were exactly what would cure her. It"s exactly what I need too.

"Rosie," I mutter as I slowly begin to rock my hips back and forth. I don"t want to hurt her, but there"s no way I can stop now. Leaning up on my elbows, I look down at her perfect face and soak in everything I see.

She"s breaking me down without saying a word. Just the way she"s looking at me as if I"m her entire world. I don"t deserve someone as perfect as her, and I know logically I"m not going to be able to keep her.

This may be the last time I"m ever with her. I"m a selfish man by trait. But I know I have to give her up.

It"s silly of me to think that I"ll be able to keep Rosie safe when everyone in my world has their own ideas of who and what I should be.

Our bodies take over as both of us lose our minds to the intense emotions that we"re feeling, the flames that roils through my body singes every one of my nerve endings. I fall down on Rosie, burying my face in her neck as I inhale her scent and everything else about her. I want to remember this until the day I die. If my enemies have any say in the matter, that won"t take much time.

"Giancarlo," she whispers as her body arches up from the bed and her core clamps down tight on me.

She"s so beautiful. Even at her worst, she"s like an angel from heaven.

I take a mental photo of her face as she comes around me before my body loses the battle, and I explode right along with her. My head spins and my heart races, but a massive wave of peace falls over me as I cradle Rosie in my arms and turn us onto our sides. I don"t want to pull out from her just yet. I want to stay with her as long as I can.

She snuggles closer to me, positioning her head right below my chin, and I feel her breathing even out. My eyes are heavy as the two of us give in to our exhaustion. I know I"ve got more important things to do besides sleeping right now, but I don"t want to leave this dream I"m already in. The one where Rosie and I can be happy and safe. A dream I know will never come true.