Page 122 of His Dark Vendetta

“You’re so brave.”

She snorted. “Am I? Or am I just more scared of losing Marco than I am of anything else?”

“Fair.”

“I wasn’t about to give Marco up just because his job puts him in physical danger. A lot of jobs do that. And I wasn’t about to give him up because he’s different than me. Being a blood demon is part of what makes Marco, Marco. I love that part of him. It’s exciting.”

I smiled. “Every time I learn something new about Luca, it makes me love him even more.”

“He loves you too, you know, based on what Gina’s told me.”

Butterflies attacked my stomach. “I know.”

“You’re lucky.I’mlucky. Not everyone gets that in life. Before I met Marco, I thought I’d never experience being in love. It’s like a new world opened up. And”—Anna’s face turned bright red—“and the sex is out of this world amazing.” She covered her eyes, and I couldn’t help but laugh. Little goose.

“You bonded—I think that’s what Luca called it—with Marco?”

“Yes,” she said with red cheeks and a wide smile.

“Which means you drank”—I winced—“his blood?”

“I did. I mean, I do. I drink from him, and he drinks from me. As humans, we have to drink their blood if we want to be with them for life. They’re immortal.”

“Luca said the baby needs his blood. He said that’s how his mother died—she wouldn’t drink.”

Anna’s smile turned sad. “It’s true. Lucia died, because she refused to drink. Marco said that happens with some humans. They can’t handle the truth.”

“But you did.”

“I did. And I’m glad I did. I love drinking from Marco. Sharing each other in that way… It’s so intimate. It makes me feel alive. Not to mention the taste.” I scrunched my nose. “You’re making that face, but that’s not the face you’ll make after you try it.” She raised her eyebrows and fake fanned herself. I chuckled.

“But more than the sex, it’s those quiet moments at night, sitting on the couch with him and Sophie, looking out at the Commons…” Anna’s expression grew wistful. “I wouldn’t give those moments up for anything.”

“Hm.”

She yawned, and it made me yawn too. We continued stroking Sophie’s fur, and soon, Anna’s eyes fluttered closed, and her hand stopped moving.

That day at the bakery, Gina said that she’d rather live in Marco’s world than lose her family. But would she still feel that way after today?

Anna certainly did. Then again, I always told her Marco was a unicorn. He was devoted to her. He’d never betray her or leave her side. Luca loved me, but he’d broken my heart before. Could I count on him to be there for me and our baby? I closed my eyes.

Images from the afternoon flashed across my mind like movie stills. Shattered glass. The “Closed” sign, dented and lying on the floor. Luca diving in front of me.

What if he hadn’t been there? What if I’d been hit? Worse, what if our baby had been hit? I placed my hand on my stomach.

Stills from a much older movie replaced the ones from that afternoon. A car slowly driving by. A hand extended out a window holding a gun. The bloody mess of my stomach spilling onto the chop shop floor.

I was the strong one. Always. But I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to risk my safety or our baby for a chance at love.

ChapterThirty-Eight

Luca

“What do we know?” Gio asked.

Marco dragged on his cigar. He’d been sucking them down like they were his only source of oxygen for hours. I couldn’t blame him. They had Mamma Gina, whoever they were.

It was sometime after dinner, maybe seven or eight. Marco had closed the upstairs of Vesuvio for the night so we could strategize about what came next. Vito and Gina had been kidnapped, and we didn’t know why. No ransom message had been sent, and there was no trace of the unmarked silver Elantra. While I was getting the bullet extracted from my shoulder, Marco and Vinnie made calls to their capi and contacts all over the city. Hours later, we sat around one of the poker tables with cigars and drinks.

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