Page 128 of King of Obsession

We swam, stealing kisses and long, sensual strokes underwater.

When goosebumps prickled our skin, we clambered and dried off with the towels we’d brought.

‘What’s on the agenda today?’ I asked as I tugged on my outfit. ‘Gardening or perimeter check?’

Alessio’s expression sobered. ‘We’d better inspect the property lines first. Can’t be too careful, with the Contis still out for blood.’ A shadow crossed his handsome face, but he shook it off. ‘Your prize tomatoes can wait a tad.’

I nodded, a frisson of unease creeping up my spine at the reminder of the danger lurking outside our refuge.

Sensing my inner tension, Alessio squeezed my hand in reassurance. ‘Don’t worry, mia sola. I won’t let anythinghappen to you or this place. I promise.’

‘I know,’ I murmured, lacing my fingers through his.

Hand in hand, we set off to walk the perimeter, eyes peeled for any signs of trouble. Despite the looming threat, I couldn’t help treasuring these moments. The solidness of his presence beside me, the whisper of the wind through the trees, the crystal-bright clarity of the morning light.

A thought struck me as we reached one corner of the property.

I turned to Alessio, searching his face. ‘Why are we waiting for them to hit us?’ I asked, puzzled. ‘Why not take the fight to them, catch them off guard?’

Alessio’s jaw tightened, a muscle ticking in his cheek. He was silent for a beat, staring out over the rolling hills. When he spoke, his voice was flat and hard.

‘So I have the best excuse for un-aliving him,’ he growled with a brutal edge. ‘Going to him is murder and could land me in jail. He coming here is self-defense on my part.’

I sucked in a sharp breath, stunned by the icy logic of his words. Of course, I knew Alessio was more than capable of violence - I’d seen it firsthand.

To hear him speak so calm and collected of killing, even in defense of my home and our lives, however, sent a chill through me.

And yet, beneath the shock, I understood. Alessio’s ruthlessness had been forged in the crucible of an unforgiving life.

He’d learned that sometimes, the only way to protect what you loved was to be harder, more ruthless than those who would destroy it.

I swallowed hard, my heart aching for the boy he had been,for all the choices that had been ripped away from him.

Wordlessly, I stretched to cup his face, my thumb brushing the proud jut of his cheekbone.

‘I hate that it has to be this way,’ I murmured. ‘I loathe that you have to carry this burden, Alessio.’

His eyes gleamed. ‘I detest that you, too, had to endure so much because of him.’

He leaned into my touch, his eyes drifting closed for a brief moment.

Tears pricked at my eyes, and I reached for his hand, twining our fingers together. ‘I know you will,’ I whispered. ‘I trust you, Alessio. With my life, with my love, with everything I am.’

He lifted our joined hands to his lips, pressing a fervent kiss to my knuckles. ‘Ti amo, amore mio,’ he murmured. ‘Always and forever.’

When he opened them again, they were softer, warmer. He turned his head to press his lips once more on my palm.

He straightened, squaring his shoulders as if shrugging off a heavy weight. ‘Come on, let’s finish the rounds, and I’ll do some work securing the place. Afterward, I’ll make you dinner.’

I nodded, mustering a smile. ‘Sounds perfect.’

Over the next few hours, Alessio threw himself into fortifying the farm.

After raising my barn and sheds for material, he loaded up his Defender and headed for the gate and perimeter fence leading off it.

I stood by him, handing him tools and nails as he strung tripwires along the perimeter and camouflaged snares in the underbrush.

He even rigged up some nasty surprises involving rusty spikes and well-placed boards.

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