Page 31 of Sovereign Oaths

But he was the dragon.

Plus, I knew the difference between what I felt for Alessio––freedom, excitement, and novelty––over what I felt for the guys––trust, security, and peace.

But I couldn’t have them either.

No matter what, in the end, I would end up miserable. And alone.

If this mission taught me anything, my world and my life could be so much more.

I hadn’t been happy before, and I hadn’t realized how bad it was until I’d gotten away.

How could I go home to living with my parents, training with Coach every day, and getting a few quick missions a week to fill my time? It was impossible.

I needed to find another option, something I couldn’t see yet.

A way out.

“Maybe this weekend we could go see a new exhibit––”

I barely caught Alessio’s words before a loud curse from a nearby couch interrupted him.

Suddenly, a dozen or so men stood, yelling and pointing. A few looked at Alessio. He pulled out his phone and paled at whatever he read on the screen before shoving it into his pocket.

He looked past me and barked at the closest man. “Go.”

It was a single word that held immense power. I fell back against him as the men rushed past us to the door that led to the club’s exit, still screaming at each other, noting who was yelling directions and who was shooting glares in our direction.

Explosion.

Weapons.

Attack.

Warehouse.

Storage.

Fire.

Italians.

Dead.

I only caught single words as they hurried past and used the distraction to look back to Derek. He gave a tiny dip of his chin as his mouth barely moved, listing off the men that left as planned.

Success.

“What’s going on?” I turned to him and put a hand on his leg, which trembled.

I thought I’d seen him mad before. The times he had men killed for touching or even looking at me. The night at his mom’s.

This was something else.

We cost him. Whatever was in that warehouse was enough to truly piss him off. Maybe even hurt his business irrevocably.

“Babe?” I leaned in and kissed his cheek, close to his lips. “Talk to me.”

He closed his eyes and ducked his head against mine. “Just got some bad news. Give me a second.”

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