Page 26 of Sinister Savior

“Hey,” he coos, then stands and sets his gun on the bedside table. Then he climbs over me and lies behind me. His thick bicep curls around my middle, pulling me back into his chest, and I can finally breathe.

Mario says nothing while I gather myself. He’s just the calm,reassuring strength I need to pull myself together. I like that he does this for me.

He doesn’t question or pry or ask what’s wrong. He just… understands, and his presence alone is enough to make the sobs recede. In its place, a numbness settles over me. I’m emotionally spent, drained, and all I can do is remain in this position as long as possible before sanity returns and I have to make the most important decision of my life. Do I tell him about the baby and risk my future?

“Mario,” I call, my voice shaking with emotion. He didn’t have to do this. He could have let me die, let me fend for myself after the mess I’d gotten us both into, but he didn’t. He cared enough to want to protect me—and his child, if I’m honest with myself. “I?—”

Mario presses a finger to my lips and shakes his head. “Shh,cara mia,” he coos, stroking my wet cheek with his thumb. “I know.”

I look back at him over my shoulder. “You do?”

“Yes, I know.” He nods, and it’s then that I realize he probably does know. He knows everything. My life is an open book. He’s probably figured out the pregnancy by now, maybe the thoughts I have about fleeing too. “But there is time to talk about that later. Now, sleep,” he commands gently. “You need to rest, okay?”

The weight of everything lifts slightly, and I cling to him like a lifeline rope. His scent of cologne and leather invades my senses and soon lulls me into a fitful sleep where I dream of all the worst possible scenarios and wake up a few times, but he’s here, sitting in bed next to me, working on his phone. When I stir, he wraps himself around me again to comfort me, and I drift off once more.

It isn’t feasible for him to stay in bed with me all day and help me rest, but for now, I indulge. My body is worn out from anxiety and lack of sleep. We’ll deal with all of this when I wake up. If I don’t wake up to more gunfire.

20

MARIO

Aglance at my phone reveals it’s nearing four a.m. and Alice is still sleeping soundly. She’s been out for twelve hours now, totally worn out by everything. I left her side only for a short time to speak with Ervine about my concerns regarding my brother. Ervine has placed men on all sides of this church now, all of them watching the comings and goings of parishioners to ensure none of my brother’s men show up here. It’s the only reason I’ve been able to rest peacefully for the past few hours.

Now I lie awake hovering over Alice’s sleeping form, watching her chest rise and fall. She’s so beautiful. So perfect. I’ve wrestled within myself for days about how I’ve let her get to my heart, how I’ve let her in. When it was just me against the world, everyone was suspect. But Alice came into my life and changed that. I’ve always believed I had to run as fast as I could, as far as I could in the direction opposite my past to get away from it. But what if the answer is much simpler?

What if the answer isn’t about running away, but instead the answer is to stand? To look death in the face, that menacing, dark creature that chases me day and night, and resist it. This stand I’m taking against my brother, which will go down any moment now, is one that I needto take. To run is cowardly, and though I didn’t run far, the hiding I’ve been doing for years was akin to it. Cowardice is as the sin of disbelief, only it wasn’t God that I withheld my faith from.

It was me.

I stopped believing that I could make a difference. My attempts to change the flow, to stymie the tides and turn back the waves, seemed for naught. Maybe I never made a difference, or maybe over time my influence would have changed everything, shifted my brother’s thinking. Today, I have a chance to make that stand and be that change. I’ve always had this chance. But I never believed in myself the way Alice believes in me, not until I saw the way she looks at me.

Her eyes flutter, and she rolls over, tucking herself into my chest. I put an arm around her again, kissing her forehead. I never knew how it felt to care about a woman so deeply you’d lay your life down until I met her. And love at first sight has always been a fairy tale, something of myths and fictional books, but I know now that I have the capacity for love so deep it will overwhelm her and she will never leave me. But should I show her this love, she will stay, and do I really want this for her? This life, where I’m headed?

“Good morning,” she mewls against my chest, and I feel her arms wriggle beneath the covers until she’s holding me.

“Did you sleep okay?” I ask, but I know she didn’t. Not until the past few hours as I woke and watched her. She was restless, tossing and murmuring in her sleep, probably having nightmares.

“Have I ever told you how stunning you are?” My lips press kisses to her temple and her cheek. The way her eyelashes land butterfly kisses on my bare chest tickles, but I don’t back away.

“Hmm, I don’t think so.” Alice squirms and tangles her legs with mine, and I hold her more tightly. “But I like it a lot.”

“You should, because it’s true,” I say, my voice gruff with sleep and emotion as I nuzzle her hair. She smells so sweet and inviting.

“Mmm, you’re right. I should,” she agrees with a yawn, her body deflating against mine. “What time is it, anyway?”

“Four a.m. You can rest more if you’re tired.” My hand finds her bare thigh, and I rub reassuringly. This is the only peace I’ll get for the whole day until dusk, when I’ll return to this warmth again. That is if my supplier is on time and I’m not ambushed.

“No, I’m fine,” she mumbles, but her eyes have already closed. She trusted me enough to sleep in my arms. Me, of all people. But then she knows so little of my former life, how evil I really am at my core. Those thoughts have tormented me for years, but last night, they were worse than ever.

I close my eyes and memorize her scent, the warmth of her body against mine, the way her heartbeat aligns with mine. We can’t do this forever, but I want to stretch this moment out for eternity, encapsulate it in time and remember every second of it, every breath. My lips press on her forehead again, and she sighs and turns her chin up until her lips meet mine. Her lips are soft, yielding, pliant, and so damn sweet. I can’t get enough of her taste. I lose myself in her, forgetting who I am and where we are. Alice is all that matters. She’s my rock, my sanity, and my humanity in the sea of darkness that is my life.

I trail a hand down her perfect curves, memorizing every inch of her. Her nightgown slides off her body like silk, leaving her bare before me. I drink in the sight of her pale skin illuminated by the moonlight and my eyes. She’s a goddess risen from the heavens to save me from myself, an angel sent to redeem me. My hungry gaze roams over her flawless figure, from her ample breasts with their hard nipples to her slim waist and long legs. She’s a work of art, and I’m undeserving of touching her. My fingers trace along her collarbone and down between her breasts, eliciting a shudder from her.

“God, you're so beautiful,” I whisper against her ear as I nip her earlobe, and I feel myself swelling, my dick growing hard. “Alice.” Igrowl her name against her heated skin as my cock aches to be inside her sweet heat, claiming her as mine. She moans and arches into me.

“Mario,” she groans, her hands in my hair, dragging me down to her. I don’t need any more encouragement. Our mouths collide, and our tongues dance in a waltz of lust and need, exploring each other without restraint.

I kneel on the bed and pull her toward me, kissing a trail down from her jaw, along her neck, until I reach her breasts. I take one nipple into my mouth, sucking gently at first and then with more force until she moans. I tease and nibble and suckle the sensitive buds until they are hard and straining against my tongue. Her scent invades my nostrils, drugging me like nothing else. All my senses are on overdrive, every touch, every sound, every scent amplified in the quiet of the night.

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