Page 73 of Dangerous Intent

“Because whoever did this was sending a message.” Marchello glanced at me. “They didn’t want to kill you.”

“Why would they botch this on purpose?” I asked.

“They wanted me to know they could get to you if they wanted.”

“And they showed us in the most brutal way,” Milo said. “That was a ballsy fucking move.”

“It was a stupid move,” Marchello snapped. “Bring Angelo to me. I have a message of my own to send.”

I inched closer to my husband’s side and took his hand in mine as an undeniable truth invaded my thoughts. Once that message was sent, our lives would never be the same.

SEVENTEEN

Marchello

Suppressingmy murderous intentions long enough to tend to Lissia’s scrapes and cuts wasn’t easy, but taking care of her was just as much my duty as it was to run this empire.

Work-life balance.

“This isn’t necessary.” Lissia dangled her feet off the kitchen island. “It’s a couple scratches.”

“Do you want them to get infected?” I dabbed the cuts on her cheeks with an antiseptic. “Or scar?”

“Shit! Do you think they’ll scar?”

“Language.” I stroked her neck. “They’re not that deep. The gravel in the driveway probably pegged you in the face. That happened to me when my mother… You’ll be fine. You were lucky.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.” I gently kissed her lips, pushing back the thought of the reality I could be facing if she had been in that car when the explosion went off.

“Marchello, the thing you feared the most almost happened today. I think we should talk about it.”

“The thing Ifearthe most didn’t almost happen today, but someone did use a weakness against me.” I lifted her chin and checked to make sure I hadn’t missed any cuts. “That infuriates me.”

“Because I’m your weakness?”

She wasn’t a weakness, but my enemies didn’t see it that way. I had to show strength by making an example of Angelo.

“I thought by marrying you, I was keeping you safe. I didn’t think anyone would come for you because you’re an Accetti.” I grossly miscalculated. “I made you a target.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“Then you’re not paying attention.”

“Someone came after us today,” she said. “But I’m still standing.”

“That’s what they wanted.” I slammed my hand on the counter. “You don’t need to worry about this. I’m going to handle it. I don’t want you to be afraid about getting in a car either. I’ll have guards on your car at all times, and they’ll do regular sweeps.”

“I’m not afraid.”

She meant that, and she was more fearless than most men I knew. But that tough attitude could be a detriment in the wrong situation.

“There is something I need to tell you.” She took my hands in hers. “I don’t know if it’s useful information or another bluff, but you should know.”

“Is this about what you wanted to tell me about Angelo?”

“He wasn’t happy when he showed up here and my father’s things weren’t in his study.”