Page 15 of His Mafia Sunshine

"Okay then," she says, reaching out to pat my leg through the blanket. "You know I've got your back, Ash. Both of you. Whatever you need, I'm here."

Gratitude wells in my throat, thick and sweet. "Thank you," I murmur, blinking back the sudden sting of tears. "For everything, Mia. I don't know what I'd do without you."

She grins, the expression bright and fierce. "Crash and burn, probably," she teases. "But that's what best friends are for - keeping your disaster gay ass in line."

Liam snorts, his eyes dancing with reluctant amusement. "Disaster gay, huh? I like that. Has a nice ring to it."

I elbow him in the ribs, my cheeks flaming. "Shut up. Like you're any better, Mr. Ride-or-Die."

He smirks, unrepentant. "Never claimed to be, sunshine. In case you haven't noticed, I'm kind of a hot mess."

"Yeah, but you're my hot mess," I counter, my heart swelling with so much love it feels like it might burst. "And I wouldn't have you any other way."

Something soft and wondering steals over Liam's face, his eyes going liquid and warm. He leans in, brushing a kiss over my brow, my cheekbone, the corner of my smiling mouth.

"Ride or die, huh?" he murmurs, his lips quirking. "I like the sound of that too. 'Cause that's what this is, Asher. You and me, against the fucking world. No matter what."

"No matter what," I echo, the words a vow, a promise. A pledge of forever, come hell or high water.

And I mean them, with every fiber of my battered, hopeful being. Liam is my heart, my home, the very blood in my veins. And I will fight for him, for us, until my dying breath.

Even if it means taking on the devil himself.

We spend the rest of the day in a bubble of laughter and stolen kisses, the warmth of our little family - because that's what Mia is, what she's always been - a balm to my weary soul. But as night falls and the hospital settles into quiet, I can't shake the sense of unease prickling under my skin.

The threat of Declan looms like a specter at the edge of our happiness, a malevolent shadow waiting to eclipse the light. I know Liam feels it too - I can see it in the tight clench of his jaw, the faraway look that steals into his eyes when he thinks I'm not watching.

He's planning something, my brave, beautiful warrior. Plotting and strategizing, his brilliant mind whirring behind that cool, impassive mask. I don't know the details, and part of me is afraid to ask, to delve too deep into the darkness he's trying so hard to leave behind.

But I trust him. I trust in his strength, his cunning, his unwavering devotion to keeping me - keeping us - safe. And whatever he has in store for Declan, whatever reckoning he's bringing to bear...

I know it will be terrible. And swift. And absolutely fucking necessary.

Because in this story, in our story... there can be no happy ending with a monster like Declan O'Connor waiting in the wings.

CHAPTER 7

LIAM

The city bleeds neon and shadow as I navigate the rain-slicked streets, my mind awhirl with dark thoughts and darker plans. Asher dozes in the passenger seat, his face peaceful in the fitful glow of passing headlights, and my heart clenches with a fierce, desperate love.

It's been a week since I brought him home from the hospital, his wounds slowly mending, his spirit as bright and unbreakable as ever. A week of stolen kisses and whispered endearments, of learning the dips and planes of each other's bodies in the hush of sleepless nights.

But even as I lose myself in the sweet, consuming fire of Asher's touch, his love, I can't escape the specter that looms at the edges of our fragile happiness. Declan's ultimatum hangs like a guillotine over my head, a ticking clock racing towards an inevitable, bloody end.

I know what I have to do. What I should have done years ago, before my soul was stained with so much innocent blood. I have to take Declan down, dismantle his empire brick by filthy brick. It's the only way to ensure Asher's safety, to free us both from the poisonous web of the O'Connor legacy.

But God, the thought of failing, of bringing even more danger and destruction to Asher's doorstep... it's enough to make my hands shake on the wheel, my breath come short and sharp in my lungs.

I pull up outside Asher's apartment, killing the engine with a twist of the key. Asher stirs, blinking owlishly in the sudden quiet.

"We home?" he mumbles, his voice sleep-rough and adorable.

"Yeah, sunshine." I reach over, brushing a lock of hair off his forehead. "Let's get you inside, hmm?"

He leans into my touch, a dopey smile curving his lips. "M'kay. But only if you come with me."

I chuckle, warmth blooming in my chest like a rose unfurling. "Always, baby. I'm not going anywhere."

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