Page 16 of Don’t Break My Heart (Secrets of Ravens Hollow #3)

It feels like I have been pacing the same spot of carpet for hours.

Wearing a hole in it, I’m sure. There’s a sickness sitting in the pit of my stomach I have never experienced before.

Orlando has to be okay. I can’t think of a world without him in it, no matter how much he pisses me off with his possessive, domineering ways.

Reef’s hand comes to my back, gently rubbing circles as he paces with me. “Come sit down, wildcat, you must be exhausted.”

He, Romeo, and Onyx arrived at Valentine’s estate about an hour after we did.

Beat-up and smeared with blood splatters, but alive.

The car we all arrived in was smashed up all down one side but drivable.

Romeo tells me they took care of the problem back at the club, but who knows what that means.

Right now, all I can focus on is praying that Orlando will pull through.

The four of us have hung out in the living room of Valentine’s house for hours waiting for any sign of how Orlando is doing from the doctor who arrived to operate on him.

Reef’s hand clutches mine so tightly it feels like he’s cutting off the circulation. He stops me from moving forward. “He’s going to pull through, you know how strong he is.”

I nod, not able to form a sentence. He has to pull through. I need him. Reef leads me to a seat and sits beside me, his hand still clutching mine .

Onyx hands me a bottle of water. “Drink it,” he demands, his face serious. Right now, I can see he’s battling his own demons.

I take the water from him and throw it back. I don’t have the strength to argue with him today. He looks pleased when I do and settles back into a vintage-looking lounger, scrubbing a hand over his face. He looks so stressed it makes a pain form in my chest.

I glance up at Romeo. He’s staring out the window, looking out over his brother’s estate.

He’s been so quiet since they got here, and I know this is killing him just as much as it is me.

Even though he doesn’t say as much, he and his brother have been reconnecting, and I can see what it means to him.

I saw the way he tried to protect him in that fucking alleyway. He would have died for him.

Doctor Bellini, a friend of the family according to Romeo, walks into the room, with Valentine trailing closely behind, and I scramble to my feet, my heart pounding in my chest so hard I can hear it.

“He’s going to live. I was able to remove the bullet lodged in his side.

Fortunately, it missed all major organs.

He’s getting a transfusion now to replace the blood he lost. He’ll need plenty of rest and time to heal, but he should make a full recovery.

” He talks mostly to Romeo who has joined my side.

“Thank you,” I gasp, feeling like I can breathe for the first time since we pulled up at this place on that fucking bike.

Romeo pats the doctor on the back. “We appreciate your help.”

“Can I see him?” I ask almost desperately.

“Only family,” Valentine snips, like I’m the shit that he walked in on his shoes.

“I’m his wife,” I snap back, ready to fly across the room and fight him on this. He might blame me for what happened to his brother, but I wasn’t the asshole who shot him .

“Of course, Mrs. Moretti. Orlando’s conscious, but the drugs will have him a little drowsy for a while.” Doctor Bellini stands aside so I can go through.

I can feel Romeo right beside me. As I walk into the room, he laces his hand with mine.

I suck in a breath when I see my poor Orlando lying in the oversized bed looking so pale and fragile.

There are pillows stacked up behind his head, plush blankets tucked around him.

The only parts of him visible are his face and arms, and a bag of blood hooked up to the right one makes my stomach twist. There was so much blood.

The residue is still under my nails even though I tried as hard as I could to scrub it off.

The only other time I have seen blood like that was when Onyx shot him and I thought he was dead.

But somehow, he’s survived two near-death experiences.

He’s like a cat with nine lives, and thank God he is.

I take up his other hand, squeezing it firmly.

“Who did this?” I ask no one in particular. But someone has to pay, I’m going to make sure of it.

“Valentine thinks the bullet was meant for you,” Romeo mutters, staring at his brother, sadness overwhelming his features. I can see he agrees. “He reckons Dante Conti is behind it.”

He took a bullet for me, this is why his fucking brother thinks this is my fault. I take a seat to Orlando’s side, kissing the back of his hand softly.

A pained groan escapes Orlando’s lips as he rolls onto his side, facing me. His eyes slowly open. He blinks a few times and looks over both me and Romeo.

Relief washes over me, the doctor’s words settling in. He’s going to live. I squeeze his hand a little tighter.

He squeezes back even though it holds no strength. His lips try to turn up at the sides in a half smile, and I can see it’s the best he can muster. “She told me she loves me.” His voice is groggy as hell, but his words are clear enough to make out. He’s talking to Romeo.

I glance back to Romeo and then back to Orlando. What the fuck? Those are his first words when his life has just been saved. “I thought you were dying. I would have said anything to keep you alive,” I snip back, not ready to admit to anything.

His lips twitch up at the sides, and I can see even that causes him pain.

“Because you love me.” His eyes lock with mine, a warmth in them I didn’t expect in his fragile state.

But he looks at me like I’m the moon and sun and everything in between.

It’s jarring but only because I know I’m looking back at him just the same.

“Oh my God.” I roll my eyes, knowing how ridiculous this is right now. Is he trying to get one up on his brother? It sure looks like it.

Romeo shakes his head, clearly amused by his brother’s antics. “So, I need to take a bullet for you, is that all it takes, doll face?”

I smirk back at him. “You know I love you too.” I roll my eyes again and shake my head.

This is not how I imagined having this conversation with either of them.

But there is no denying it. Even if it took me thinking I would lose one of them to admit it.

They have both crawled under my skin so deeply I know there is no getting rid of them, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Fucking Romeo grins from ear to ear as soon as I say it. “Didn’t even have to take a bullet, Brother.” He laughs casually. Moving toward me, he drops a kiss on my lips. “I knew it all along, doll face. I was just waiting for you to come around and realize you loved me just as much as I did you.”

I sigh heavily, feeling overwhelmed. Because I can’t deal with all the emotions or the way Romeo is looking at me, I hop up and move around to the other side of the bed Orlando is lying in and slip in beside him. “Doctor Bellini said you need to rest,” I say in my best mothering voice.

He pulls me in closer to his good side, and I kiss his forehead before snuggling right in. Thank fuck he’s alive.

“I’ll leave you two alone to get some sleep. Me and the boys have a little work to do anyway.” The twins share a look, one I don’t like, and then Romeo is gone, closing the door behind him with a click.

“Get some sleep, Orlando,” I mutter when I can feel him staring at me.

“I could have died today, treasure.” The weight of his words sits heavily on my shoulders, and I know exactly how he feels, I thought we lost him out front of his brother’s place. There was so much blood. As much as I prayed, I couldn’t see how he would survive.

“But you didn’t,” I tell him because I can’t delve into the depths of what that would have meant. I don’t ever want to imagine a world without him in it.

He places a soft kiss on my lips, and I know he has so much more to say, but I won’t let him, not now.

He knows how I feel. I close my eyes and try to rest beside him.

Eventually his soft breathing becomes more even, and I know he’s out to it.

But there is no way I can sleep, doesn’t matter how tired I am.

My mind races from who wants me dead now, to how the hell am I going to get out of here?

To how on earth did I fall in love with four men at the same time?

What is wrong with me? And why are they all okay with it?

It’s like a tennis match up there, questions bouncing around everywhere.

After some time, I hear someone come into the room when the door creaks open.

I don’t bother to see who it is; I don’t really care.

But when their phone’s ringtone pierces through the silence, and I pop open my eyes to see Valentine sneaking from the room, I carefully roll out of bed and tiptoe over to the door that he left ajar and listen .

He’s moved down the hallway, and even though he’s talking quietly, his voice is harsh like he’s furious. “Can you not follow simple instructions?” is the first thing I make out. “Orlando nearly died out there last night.”

The hair on the backs of my arms stands up. What the fuck does he mean simple instructions?

Silence, and I assume the other person is talking, so I wait.

“I said make sure no one gets hurt but the girl.” It’s then I see fucking red. This asshole was the one who tried to have me killed tonight. He knew where we would be and roughly what time we would leave the club. It makes perfect sense.

Without thinking, I shove open the door and stalk out into the hallway.

I wait till I’m right up in his face before I open my mouth.

“I don’t know what your fucking problem is with me, Valentine, but let me get one thing straight,” I seethe bitterly, keeping my voice low.

The last thing I want is the other boys to hear this conversation.

This asshole thinks he has me pegged, the gold digger after daddy’s cash. Fuck him.

Valentine disconnects his call, giving me his full attention. His dark eyes bore through me in a way that should send me running. But I’m not scared of this motherfucker.

“I don’t want your papa’s fortune, or his businesses.

I want one thing and one thing only and that is to get the fuck out of this country and go back home.

But your papa dragged me here, and now he’s dead, and I’m stuck here until we get this legal mess sorted out.

” My body shakes as anger vibrates off me.

He stares at me, the vein in his forehead looking like it’s about to pop.

It’s then I realize why I disliked this fucker the moment I met him.

He reminds me of Alex Moretti. I guess the Moretti genetics are strong.

“The little girl thinks she can have a voice. That’s my problem with you.

You changed him.” He motions to the door.

“You fucking changed Romeo too. You make them weak, when I need them strong. I saw you on my video surveillance, a fucking little slut, opening up your legs for them both, manipulating them into giving you everything you want.”

My eyes narrow. Is he fucking kidding me?

I should have known he would have surveillance, I wasn’t thinking straight.

“They’re stronger than you will ever be, you misogynistic piece of shit.

” I pull my gun and aim it at his head. He flinches back, and I know it was the last thing he expected me to do.

He’s never dealt with a chick like me before.

I could shoot him right now, take another enemy off my list. But in truth, I know if I ever want to get out of this place, we need him.

I stare dead into his eyes. “We all have a fucking job to do, to make sure this transition is smooth. Your brothers may not have told you this yet, but if you play your cards right, it will all be yours. We don’t want it.

You pull a stunt like this again, I will make sure it’s my bullet that ends up in your head, and I’ll come up with another solution to my problem of who will run the family business.

I’m not sure how you raise your women here, but I was raised by a gang of bikers, and they taught me to believe I could be anyone, not just the arm candy for some rich cunt wannabe mafia don. ”

His eyes run down my face with a fresh wave of curiosity. “I wanted you dead. Yeah, I’ll admit it, but that was until I saw how you were with my brother when you thought he was dying. You actually care about him.”

I consider him for a second. His anger toward me is simmering down, but it could all be some ploy.

I don’t believe for a second he would back down because he thinks I love his brother.

A cold emotionless motherfucker like him wouldn’t understand what we have.

“I hold the life you want in my hands, asshole. Are you going to back down and treat me with some fucking respect or do you want to die today?”

“We are family, Ava. For the peace of the family and the smooth transition of our dear papa’s passing, we can put the past behind us.

I will respect you for your very short stay in my country, as long as you stay the fuck away from my wife and this conversation never leaves this hallway. If Romeo or Orlando ever found out…”

“I wouldn’t need to kill you,” I say it for him. I lower my gun and take a step back from him. “Smart man. Now tell me, how do I get my husband home to our villa? I have had enough of this place.”

“I will arrange that for you this morning.”

“Thank you, dear brother-in-law.” I turn away from him, very aware of the fact he would be armed as well, but I know he won’t shoot me, not while his brothers are around to witness it.

For some reason, he wants their approval.

Not only that, but we really do hold his future in our hands. If he shoots me, he will lose it all.