Page 13 of The Bodyguard's Vow

George interrupted the flow of my words by asking, “You’re breaking up with me?”

My eyes narrowed as I gawked at him. There was no missing the relief in his voice. “Yes.”

“Okay.” He chugged the rest of his coffee and set his mug on the table between us. “You want me to grab one of those chocolate chip muffins you like so much before I go?”

This had to be the oddest breakup ever, but at least there wasn’t any drama to deal with. “No, I’m good.”

He flashed me a slight smile, got to his feet, and practically ran from the café. I followed a few minutes later, so focused on how weird that had been that I didn’t notice the guys who rushed from the alley to try to grab me. They took hold of my arms while I was still twenty feet from Domenico’s SUV, but he somehow managed to get out of the vehicle and cross the distance before they had tugged me more than a few inches. Then he made quick work of the would-be kidnappers, leaving them unconscious and bloody on the ground before he dragged me to the SUV.

“I need to get you somewhere safe while I deal with this shit,” he muttered.

“My apartment is only five minutes away, and the security system is top of the line,” I suggested.

He gripped the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles turned white. “I know. I’m the one who put it in.”

That surprised me since he could’ve ordered any of the enforcers who reported to him to do the manual labor instead. “Then I’m sure it’s the best of the best.”

“Damn straight,” he grunted.

I peeked at the odometer and squeezed my eyes shut when I realized he was going twice the speed limit. My nerves were already shot from nearly being kidnapped. I wasn’t sure that I could handle a car accident on top of that. But I didn’t complain. Not after Domenico had saved me.

We pulled up in front of my apartment building in no time at all. But things went from bad to worse as soon as we made it upstairs and could see my door…which was wide open.

“Figlio di puttana!”he hissed, pulling his Beretta from the holster on his hip. “Stay behind me but keep close.”

He cautiously entered my apartment and did a quick sweep of the living room and kitchen. Once he confirmed they were empty, he pulled a backup gun from his ankle holster and handed it to me. “You remember how to shoot?”

Normally, I’d give him a sassy retort, but I didn’t have it in me at the moment. “Yes.”

He jerked his chin toward my pantry. “Get in there and empty the magazine into anyone who comes through the door unless I’ve given you the all clear.”

“Okay.”

My pulse thumped in my ears as I crouched in the darkened space while he searched the rest of my apartment. Time moved slowly, but only a few minutes later, he called, “You’re good to come out, Gabriella.”

I scrambled to my feet and found him leaning against my counter with his cell phone to his ear. “Got bad news. Those motherfuckers tried to move against your sister. Broke into her place, and then they were waiting for her outside the café. I stopped their kidnapping attempt, but I didn’t wait around to check their identification. Getting Gabriella to safety was my priority, and I figured Marco could pull up all the security footage from that block. Tracking them down shouldn’t be hard, but it won’t keep your sister safe if he decides to send another crew after her.”

I narrowed my eyes at Domenico while my brother told him something I couldn’t hear, wondering who the heck they were talking about.

His gaze shot to me. “Are you sure you want to do that?”

Rafa must’ve said yes because Domenico moved the phone away from his ear and stabbed his finger against the screen to put it into speaker mode. “You okay,sorellina?”

“I’m confused about what’s going on and giving serious thought to shooting your best friend with his own gun, but other than that, I’m fine.”

Domenico removed temptation by taking the Glock 43 from me. Then Rafa shocked me by saying, “It’s a good thing I insisted you rent a two-bedroom unit because Domenico is moving in with you so that he can guard you twenty-four seven.”

“Is that really necessary?” I forced the question past stiff lips, uncertain if I should be upset by the idea because it meant more torture for me…or thrilled since being around me all day and night would hopefully make it harder for Domenico to resist temptation.

“It is,” Rafa confirmed before filling me in on Oswald’s threats. “So either Domenico stays with you, or you move back in with me.”

I was so furious that it was difficult to speak, but I needed to make sure Rafa and Domenico understood how angry I was over their deliberate failure to disclose any of this to me until now. “I get that there are lots of things you have to keep from me because I’m not involved in Family business, but Opal ismyfriend. Helping her wasmybusiness. Keeping me in the dark, especially when I’m the one in danger, is not okay. And I’m not moving back in with my big brother! I’m not a kid anymore, and it’s past time that both of you stop treating me like one.”

6

DOMENICO

Ithought my soul was black enough to send me to hell, but after moving in with Gabriella, I realized I was already there.

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