Page 121 of His Dark Vendetta

My head jerked up off the pillow. “Ninety-four?”

She smiled an uncomfortable smile and nodded into her pillow. I laid my head back down and started petting Sophie along with her. I’d worked out that Marco had to be older, but to hear it out loud, so plainly…

“Honestly,” I said, “that explains a lot.”

“I know, right? The timelines never added up for me either.”

I sighed. “Is it messed up I think that’s hot?”

She chuckled. “No. It’s incredibly hot. And, for the record, you’re handling this a lot better than I did.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“Remember when I passed out after the charity gala dinner? That wasn’t from too much champagne. Marco showed me he was a blood demon, and I fainted.”

I huffed. “At least you didn’t throw up.”

She laughed. “Either way, it’s not exactly the type of news you can brush off and say, ‘Good to know! Thanks for sharing!’”

I laughed along with her. “No, it’s not.” I stopped petting Sophie and laid my hand on my belly. “Especially when you’re about to have a baby with one.”

Anna’s expression turned empathetic.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” I said.

“You don’t need to apologize. I know it was a surprise.”

“It was.” Sophie stood up, stretched, turned in circle, and lay back down. “And Luca’s reaction didn’t help.”

“I’m sure it didn’t. But you understand why he reacted the way he did, right?”

“I do.”

“And look, the news was a lot for me to wrap my brain around, and I wasn’t even pregnant. Give yourself some grace. It’s been what, a few hours? And you were sh—shot at too.” She blinked slowly and swallowed.

I put my hand atop hers, and we squeezed each other’s fingers. “Thank you. I think I needed the permission.”

“I get that. We all need permission sometimes. That’s what friends are for. I’m here for you. Whatever you need. Right now, and after you have the baby.”

“Thank you. I mean it. I’ve never had that kind of support from my family.”

“Well, you do now. You’re part of our family, Siobhán. You’re not alone.”

The knot in my stomach returned, the one Gina had tied in the bakery and the one that twisted and tightened any time I thought about moving to Ireland. But after what happened today, how could I not? Once again, I’d been caught in the crossfire. Gina was missing—taken. To what end? Only time would tell. How could I continue to put myself and my baby at risk?

We stroked Sophie’s fur in comfortable silence. Some of the remaining tension in my shoulders eased, my stomach settled, and my racing thoughts calmed enough that I could finally ask the litany of questions begging for answers.

“Were you scared?” I asked. “When you found out?”

Her eyes widened. “Terrified. I ran from him right before I fainted. I tried running from him again after I woke up, but…” She scrunched her face.

“But what?”

“I’m not sure I was running from him, really. I think—I think I was running from the unknown. I’d been living in a safe little bubble, and Marco’s world was so different from anything I’d ever known. Then to find out blood demons existed on top of all the Mafia stuff?” She raised her eyebrows and made anOout of her lips like she was whistling. I chuckled. “But looking back, I wasn’t scared of him. Not really. I’ve never felt safer than with Marco. Or more loved.”

“Really?” My face and voice twisted with skepticism. “I find it hard to believe you feel safer married to a Mafia don, Anna.”

“But I do. I have a future filled with adventure and love, and for me, that’s safety. I didn’t want to lose my life by not living it. Marco gave me the security of knowing my life wouldn’t be wasted, that I’d get to live to my full potential.”

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