Page 38 of His to Possess

I look up and he’s studying me closely. “What?”

“You have a weird look on your face.” He scoots his chair closer then pulls me right onto his lap, grasping my chin and tilting itup, forcing me to look into his deep, brown eyes. “We’re in this together, Blake. Okay?”

“Okay,” I whisper. But my mind is going a mile a minute, trying to come up with a plan, a way to get Angelo out of this mess.

Angelo captures my mouth in a kiss, distracting me from my thoughts, and I sag against him. I’ve never responded like this to anyone before and it’s as if he’s wielding some sort of magical spell over me. When we finally come up for air, he gives me a lazy, very sultry, smile.

“You taste like cannoli,” he whispers and licks my lower lip.

My pulse rate spikes. I know exactly where this is going and, before I can comment, he swoops me up into his arms and is carrying me upstairs to the master bedroom. We end up spending the rest of the night in bed, giving each other so much pleasure that we exhaust one another out. I’ve never slept well in my life. At least, not until I met Angelo. Falling asleep in his arms is the easiest thing I’ve ever done and nothing has ever felt so right.

At some point during the middle of the night, I hear a sound and jump awake. Cocking my head, I listen closely, wondering if maybe I just imagined it. Or, more than likely, it’s just residual echoes from a dream.

But, no. There it is again. Bolting up into a sitting position, my blood runs cold when I identify the sound—footsteps outside in the hallway. Angelo is still sleeping soundly and I quickly and carefully untangle myself from his embrace. My Glock is in the nightstand drawer and I don’t waste time getting dressed. There’s not a moment to spare, so I just hurry around the bed, grabbing a blanket and securing it beneath my arms.

I open the nightstand drawer, reach inside and freeze. Empty. My fingers brush against nothing but the wooden bottom of the drawer. Where the hell is my gun? I yank the drawer out, desperately searching for my pistol when the bedroom door creaks open.

My head snaps up and I see a large shadow in the doorway. A big man steps into the bedroom and moonlight glints off the steel gun he’s lifting and aiming. But not at me. It’s like he doesn’t even see me. He’s pointing the barrel straight at Angelo.

“No!” I scream.

But it’s too late. The gun fires and the bullet hits Angelo. Shock pours through me, freezing me in place, and I cry out. But, I can’t move. It’s like my feet are stuck in place, glued to the floor. The gun keeps firing and the white sheets are now covered in blood. Drenched in Angelo’s blood. The man won’t stop pulling the trigger and I scream.

“Angelo!” Bullets keep peppering the bed, an impossible amount. More ammunition than one gun could possibly hold. I don’t know what to do, how to stop it, and just stand there and scream until my throat is raw. Finally the shooting ends and all I can hear is my own heavy breathing. And I’m crying so hard, tears streaming down my face.

“No…” I sob and drop to the floor.

Jumping up in bed, sweating profusely, I look down at Angelo and see his chest rising and falling evenly. There are no bullet wounds, no blood, no shadowy intruder.

“Thank God,” I whisper, slumping forward. It was just a nightmare. But, it felt so real and I can feel my heart still thundering in my chest. Lifting a hand, I touch my cheek andrealize it’s wet. The tears I was crying in my dream came through in my reality.

I don’t think I’ve ever had such a realistic dream and I’m completely freaked out now. How much danger have I put Angelo and his family in? Oh, God, if anything happens to any of them, I will never forgive myself. Hurting the man who has been nothing but kind to me is the last thing I want to do.

Images flash across my mind of the shadow, the bloody sheets, the popping of the gun. The longer I stay here, the more I’m endangering the man I care about.

Care about?my inner voice scoffs.Really? That’s it?Who am I kidding? I’m falling so hard and fast for Angelo Rossi that my head is spinning and my heart is a goner.

It’s up to me to keep him safe and out of harm’s way. And I can only see one way to make that happen. I need to leave. Everyone is after us—because I fucked up—and I refuse to drag Angelo down any further into this shitstorm than I already have managed to do.

I figure the only way to fix this mess is to make a bargain. My life for Angelo’s. It’s a risky plan and I don’t intend to die, but I am willing to sacrifice myself to save him. It’s the least I can do. He has people who love him and far too much to live for.

Looking down at him, my heart clenches. He’s going to be so mad when he wakes up and realizes that I’m gone. But I know it’s for the best. I don’t want him to worry, though, so I’ll have to leave him a note.

Shit, shit, shit.I wish things were different and that we had more time. But Miceli’s phone call earlier tells me that our time is running out fast. Like the sands in an hourglass. Pretty soonwe’re going to find ourselves without any options or time left. And I need to fix things before that can happen.

Silently slipping out of the bed, I quickly get dressed and don’t allow myself to think with my emotions. Just my head. I have a job to do. Even so, after I grab my Glock from the nightstand, I pause and watch Angelo sleep for a moment longer than I should. He looks so peaceful and I’m so tempted to crawl back into bed with him, wake him up with a kiss and then let him make love to me.

But, I can’t. I’m going to save his life and get him off the Kill List and Carmine Gallo’s radar.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, resisting the urge to reach out and touch him. Instead, I clench my hands into fists, bite my cheek, then turn and walk out, and leave the best thing that has ever happened to me.

Downstairs, I find a scrap of paper and a pen. After quickly writing a note to him, I leave it on the island countertop where I know he’ll see it. Tears blur my vision as I snag his car keys and sneak out the front door.

Luckily, he has an SUV that he keeps parked in the barn at the rear of the property that also serves as a garage and storage area. He told me he likes to fly up here in the helicopter, so that’s why he has a car which allows him to drive into town for groceries and supplies.

After getting situated in the driver’s seat, I start the car up then hesitate. Am I making a huge mistake by leaving? I hate sneaking out, but if I wake him up, there’s no way he’s going to let me leave and track down Carmine Gallo. And I can’t risk bringing Angelo with me. It’s far too dangerous.

Dammit.I don’t have a choice if I want to keep him safe.

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