Page 72 of Obsession

There’s a war raging inside me. I want to see my husband pay for his scheming and I don’t want to see my family hurt. But the sight of John’s hands around his throat has my heart pounding.

I don’t want him to die.

Suddenly, my gun clatters to the floor. I wasn’t even aware my grip had loosened on it. “John,” I say urgently. “Let him go.”

“You said it yourself, Madi, he’s a liar. Worse than that, he’s a rat. And rats don’t live.”

The confirmation that my cousin wants to kill my husband makes my stomach churn, heart dropping to my feet.

I can’t let that happen.

“No.” I move forward, tugging at John in a feeble attempt to pull him off Adrian.

“Listen,” Adrian croaks.

“Let him talk!” I shout, pounding on John’s back.

Reluctantly, my cousin lets go, and Adrian sucks in a breath, his hand holding his own throat.

“I had a plan,” he admits hoarsely. “I wanted to hurt this family because you hurt me.”

“What are you talking about?” John snarls.

“My father…” Pain laces Adrian’s eyes as he looks at me. “My father was killed in prison because he worked for Big Al.”

I shudder at hearing my father’s nickname, and immediately something inside me softens. I recall the pained look on Adrian’s face when he told me his father was murdered while waiting for trial. But he didn’t tell me this. That it’s my father’s fault his is dead.

“He was a drug runner, and he got caught. Al didn’t want to take a chance that he would turn on him, so he had my father killed. He didn’t even give him a chance to have a decent attorney. If my father had a good lawyer, he could have been released. He didn’t need to d-” Adrian chokes on the word, and my heart aches for him.

I can’t imagine the anger he felt at his father’s death. That he was murdered simply for doing a job for my family. We should have protected him, and instead, at the first sign of trouble, my father had him killed.

Guilt floods my brain. Even knowing that I was a child and there was nothing I could have done doesn’t stop the anguish I feel for the boy Adrian once was.

Suddenly, everything about my husband makes sense. Why he’s a defense attorney, why he defends the men my family lets take the blame for our actions. Why he would want to hurt us.

Beside me, John lowers his gun and hisses out a curse.

“I was angry.” Adrian is looking at me, his eyes pleading. “I wanted revenge. It was all I thought about for twenty years. I never intended to hurt you, princess. At first, I only married youbecause I couldn’t stand the thought of your brother marrying you off to some prick in exchange for better shipping routes. But I didn’t expect to fall in love with you.”

My heart pounds fiercely.

In love with me.

My husband just said he’s in love with me.

“I love you, Madalena Ricci. And when Damien called me and said he was coming after you and Zoe, I couldn’t breathe at the thought that something might happen to you.” He faces John. “I was going to follow Sam. My plan was to video the two of you killing Damien so I could put you both in prison. Ending this family.” He turns back to me. “But I couldn’t let you get hurt. I don’t care about revenge anymore. I don’t care about hurting your family. All I care about isyou.”

Tears fall from my eyes when Adrian reaches out for my hand, his dark eyes still pleading with me for sympathy.

I take his hands, pulling myself into his embrace and wrapping my arms around his body.

“You love me?” I ask against his chest, tears streaming down my cheeks.

“I love you more than anything. You are the sun in my sky, and I would do anything to earn your forgiveness.” His head is tucked into the crook of my neck, and I can feel the emotion that flows from him as he breathes heavily against me.

“I forgive you,” I say softly, pulling back to look up into his eyes. “You were a kid.” I choke on the last word. “You didn’t deserve that pain.”

Tears cloud Adrian’s eyes.

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