Page 92 of Claimed By the Enemy

Uncle Enzo nods, then looks at his men. “We’re leaving. Mr. Moretti, I assume you and Sophie have things to discuss.”

“We do.”

“Then we’ll give you privacy. But Domenico? If Riccardo is truly behind this, if he’s been manipulating our families for sixteen years, then he’s going to be very unhappy when he learns that we’ve made peace.”

“Let him be unhappy.”

“He won’t just be unhappy. He’ll be dangerous.”

“Then we’ll deal with that together.”

Uncle Enzo almost smiles. “Yes. Together.”

After Uncle Enzo and his men leave, Dom and I are finally alone on the yacht. The lights of the harbor twinkle around us,and the gentle motion of the water feels soothing after all the tension.

“So,” Dom says, moving closer to me. “We’re having a baby.”

“Yep.”

“I still can’t quite believe it,” he says, reaching for my hands and threading our fingers together.

“I know. It feels so surreal.”

“Some day this turned out to be.”

“I don’t know. I think it worked out perfectly.”

“Perfectly? Sophie, you could have been killed. Our baby could have been-”

“But we weren’t. We’re all safe. And Uncle Enzo finally knows the truth.”

“Part of the truth. We still have to deal with Uncle Riccardo.”

“We will. But Dom, right now, I just want to focus on us. On the fact that we’re going to have a baby.”

Dom’s hands come up to frame my face, his thumbs brushing across my cheekbones. “We’re going to have a baby.”

“Are you happy about it?”

“Happy? Sophie, I’m terrified and thrilled and completely overwhelmed.”

He’s quiet for a long moment, just looking at me in the harbor lights. When he speaks again, his voice is softer than I’ve ever heard it.

“You know, when I first found out who you really were, I told myself I was keeping you close to neutralize the threat. To figure out your plan. But…” He pauses, swallowing hard. “Somewhere along the way, you stopped being Sophie Bellini, the enemy. You became just Sophie. The woman who makes me want to be a better man.”

My breath catches. “Dom…”

“I love you.” The words come out raw, honest, like they’ve been clawing at his chest for weeks. “Not because you’re carrying mychild. Not because we’re bound by marriage or circumstance or any of the other reasons I tried to convince myself. I love you because all the times I thought I might lose you, the only thing that mattered was getting you back safely.”

Tears blur my vision. “You love me?”

“I love your stubborn streak and your terrible timing. I love the way you challenge me and refuse to be controlled. I love that you saved my life in Italy, even though I was supposed to be your enemy.” His thumbs wipe away the tears spilling down my cheeks. “I love you so completely it terrifies me, Sophie. Because for the first time in my life, I have something I can’t bear to lose.”

“You’re not going to lose me.” My voice breaks on the words. “Dom, I love you too. I think I started falling when I realized I’d rather save your life than complete my mission. In Italy, when I heard those men planning to kill you, I didn’t think about revenge anymore. I just thought about losing you. Everything I believed was a lie. But this?” I press my hand over his heart. “This is real. You’re real. And I love you more than I ever thought possible.”

Dom rests his forehead against mine, both of us breathing hard like we’ve just run a marathon.

“I love you,” he says again, like he’s testing how the words sound.