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I drop, and at the same moment, Marco fires.
The gunshot lands. I know because the man collapses behind me with a very gross, meaty sound. Seconds later, Marco’s hands surround me, and he’s tugging me into his chest.
“Roisin,” he breathes. “My god, fuck, are you okay?”
I make a noise around the gag.
With shaking hands, he takes the gag off of me, and I breathe. “I’m fine,” I whisper, hoarsely. “What the hell happened?”
“He took you from the inn. Must have hit you with some kind of a tranquilizer, and then took off from an airfield nearby. He blew up the inn?—”
“The inn? Oh my god, is everyone okay?”
Marco nods. “Yeah. Amazingly, no casualties, but I was outside on the phone when the bomb went off.”
“Jesus Marco,” I breathe. I go to move my hands to touch his face, but they’re still bound. “And you just what, hopped a plane?”
“Yeah,” he murmurs.
I shake my head as Marco takes his knife to the plastic on my wrists, freeing me. “How did you find me?”
“Sal,” he says softly. “Sal suspected that Dino’s father took you… and he was right.”
“Dino’s father?”
Marco nods. “Dino’s father kidnapped our mother, right after I was born. Dad raised Dino as his son, but the whole thing got really fucked up. Turns out Drakos was behind all of this.Framing you, to come for me. He wanted revenge on the De Lucas, and he decided to take it… on me.”
He helps me to my feet, and I’m about to say something, but I get wrapped into Marco’s arms instead.
He holds me.
I hold him.
And in the space between heartbeats, I feel…
Better.
“I thought I lost you,” Marco murmurs.
I make a noise.
“I thought I lost you, Roisin, and I can’t… I never…”
“I love you,” I blurt, pulling back.
Marco stares at me.
“I love you. I think we probably fucked this up, getting married like we did, but Marco… I don’t want this to end. I’m sorry for everything, I know I’m not the best… I know that I come with a ton of baggage, but I love you,” I whisper. “I’m scared as hell to tell you this, but I will anyway, because life is damn short and I…”
My torrent of words is cut off as Marco presses his lips to mine.
It’s more than just a kiss. It’s everything that we haven’t said. Everything that we want to say. Everything that I’ve been meaning to tell him for months, ever since our time together in the little cottage on the Irish coast.
When the kiss breaks, I’m panting. I stare up at Marco.
He looks down at me, his lips tilted into a smile.
“I love you, Roisin,” he murmurs.