Page 119 of Sin & Secrets

He returns it weakly. “I was thinking about exiling them.”

“Where?”

“Ohio.”

It’s my turn to laugh. “So, if my father had cooperated…”

“he’d have finally been able to see you and your mom again.” Rocco’s smile falters. “But I took that reunion away from you.”

“Rocco,” I step forward, reaching to hold his face in my hands, “I don’t blame you for Carmine’s death. I grieve the life we could have had, but that is not your fault.”

His eyes flutter closed at my touch. “I won’t stop blaming myself.”

“Try,” I whisper back before summoning all my courage and standing on my toes to kiss him.

At first, he seems entirely frozen in shock. But then his mouth parts, responding eagerly to my desperation. Our tongues clash, passionately expressing every ounce of joy and relief we both feel to be reunited once more.

When I pull away, I feel dizzy. “I don’t want to think about the past anymore. I want to focus on the future. Our future, our child.”

Rocco rests his forehead against mine as we both look down at my stomach.

“I will do everything in my power to keep him safe,” he vows.

“I know you will.”

“If there’s even the possibility of a threat against either of you, we can leave, take whatever we can and disappear for good.”

I smile, finding it impossible to imagine any kind of danger that could even touch us right now. “If that time comes, I trust that you’ll be able to protect us.”

“I love you, Cas.”

His words find the space in my heart I’d unconsciously carved out for them. It’s as if everything we went through was just a delay to this inevitable conclusion.

I want to return the sentiment, but he pulls away once more, taking my hand as he goes. “Come on, let’s go home and get you cleaned up.”

There’s no rush as we make our way downstairs.

But when we reach the foyer, red and blue lights are flashing through the windows as the cops cordon off the place where Giuliano fell.

We find Martino stubbornly arguing with an officer who is clearly trying to convince him to move his car. But with little success.

To my surprise, the cop backs away as Rocco approaches.

Rocco ignores them as he opens the car door for me, and within seconds, the three of us are driving away into the night.

“What was that all about?” I ask as I peer out the back window for one last look at the disgruntled officer.

Martino laughs. “The NYPD owes us a favor or two.”

My eyebrows raise as I turn back to Rocco.

“You might have been able to forgive me for some of my crimes,Angioletta,” he replies seriously. “But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other things that might surface that you don’t agree with.”

I weigh his words carefully. The memories of Rocco killing the Cartel men in front of me rise to the forefront of my mind.

But my hands aren’t exactly clean, either.

“Well, from now on, you should probably let me commit crimes with you, too.”

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