Page 26

CHAPTER 26

L ea

Massimo is insatiable.

Nothing stands between him and what he wants.

All I can do is give in.

Massimo takes me again and again throughout the night. Sleep becomes a series of naps between eruptions of lust that consume us both. I’m exhausted, spent, and almost broken when I scream his name while the sun spills the first rays of morning across the bed.

Then we’re in the shower. His lips are on my wet skin. His hands are teasing me again. I wrap my weary legs around his waist and get driven into the wall while the steam rises around us. I’ve orgasmed so many times I’ve lost count. His seed feels like a permanent thickness inside me. When he finishes again, I slump against his shoulder, my legs shaking as they return to the pool of water at our feet.

“I’m so glad there are no excursions today,” I whisper. “I’m not even sure I can walk.”

“You can rest after breakfast,” he says. “I have a few things to take care of, so I can’t spend the entire day with you like I wish I could.”

“Those things you need to take care of…” I trail off, looking down at the drain.

“Yes, Lea,” he confirms. “I don’t have much time left, and I’ve made most of the arrangements, but there are a few last-minute things to handle.”

Last-minute . That burns through me like wildfire, stirring my emotions, and putting tears in my eyes. It’s Thursday now. That means we’re one day closer to the end of my adventure—the end of Massimo’s life. And I have to let it happen.

“I promised I wouldn’t beg you to change your mind,” I say, looking up at him with tears in my eyes. “But I’m going to, because I can’t not do it. Please, Massimo. Please don’t?—”

He silences me by putting a finger on my lips and shaking his head. “Don’t say it, Lea,” he sighs. “It’s impossible and you know why.”

I pull away from his finger and take a step back. “You didn’t order the hit. Your brother did. If anyone should die, it should be him. Why do you need your father’s permission? Emilio didn’t ask for it.”

“I need to go, Lea,” he says, turning off the water. “I’ve made my decision. This is the only way. I’ll have breakfast sent up for you.”

Massimo gets out of the shower, and I stand in it, sobbing my eyes out while he dries off. He dismisses his life so casually, like it doesn’t matter at all. But it does. He matters to me. He may be the only thing that matters to me right now.

What do I have left after this? I go home to Pine Grove? I return to the sorry excuse for a normal life I was living before I came to Isola Selvaggia? I can’t. What is there to go home to? A crappy job I hate. Mindlessly wandering around my grandmother’s house, trying to come to terms with the fact it’s mine now and she’ll never come through the door again. I’ll be more directionless after I get home than I was before I left.

“Massimo, please,” I sniffle, following behind him without even bothering with a towel. “Please think about this. There has to be another way.”

“There isn’t,” he growls, shoving a leg into his pants. “Don’t you think I already considered every possible alternative?”

“Did you consider…” I whimper, swallowing hard. “Me?”

Massimo sighs. He buttons his pants and turns to face me, an expression of pain staining his face. He shakes his head and exhales sharply.

“No, Lea,” he admits. “I made my decision before I met you, and I’m sorry about that, but it doesn’t change anything. I warned you, bambina . You’re incredible and you’ve given me more than I could have ever hoped for, but we’re talking about a lot of lives here. Good men dying. My niece and nephew, forced to grow up without a father. Everything my family has built…”

I listen to him, but can’t stop the tears from returning. I get it. I really do. I understand all the pain and heartache that left Massimo feeling like this was his only option. But there has to be another option. One that doesn’t involve him giving up his life. One that doesn’t involve him passing all of his heartbreak and despair to me, because that won’t die with him. I’ll carry it for the rest of my life, instead.

Massimo walks over and hugs me. I don’t feel the same warmth or comfort in his arms. Maybe it was a mistake to give myself to him like I did. He seemed to know it wouldn’t be as easy as spreading my legs for what I was burning for. I should have listened.

“When will you be back?” I ask as he pulls away.

“It could be later tonight before I get back,” he replies. “I put your number in my phone, so I’ll text you if anything comes up.”

“Okay,” I relent, watching as he finishes getting dressed.

Massimo leaves me standing in his bedroom. I hear the door slam, and it feels like a piece of my heart goes with him. My legs are still wobbly and shaky from the intensity of our passion. I let them buckle and sink to the floor, tears running down my face.

I’m still sobbing when breakfast arrives, but the knocking forces me to stand up and slip on a robe. There’s no sign of the person who dropped it off when I finally open the door, so I wheel the cart into my room. My stomach is twisted in a knot. I don’t feel like eating, but I’m so weary, I have to try.

I sink into my chair, open the trays, and shove food in my mouth. I barely taste it and chase it with juice, so I don’t choke. I ate like this after my grandmother died. Nourishment for the sake of survival. I was finally over that, and feeling good about my directionless life, before Massimo crashed into it.

After eating as much as I can stomach, I sit at the table and stare at the wall. I’m not sure what else to do. Massimo won’t change his mind. I might as well be facing the bullet myself. I’d rather take it than live in this world after he’s gone.

My despair consumes me while I sit in my bedroom, staring at a different wall. I barely remember coming in here. I look down and my phone is in my hand. Sarah’s number is on the screen. Subconsciously, I’m doing what I always do when everything falls apart.

I’m calling my best friend.

I realize a second before she picks up that it’s a video call, and then her face lights up the screen.

“Lea! Finally, I was wondering when I would hear from you—wait, are you crying?” Sarah’s face scrunches with concern. “What’s wrong? Are you okay? Did something happen with Massimo?”

“I’m not in any danger,” I sigh. “Far from it, even though I’ve spent my entire vacation… with him.”

“What?” Sarah’s eyes get wide. “Are you serious?”

I break down in tears again. I try to fight them off, but they won’t stop, and I end up sobbing incoherently.

“Lea, did he hurt you? If he did, I’ll be on the next plane!” Sarah says angrily, her tone getting more urgent by the word. “What happened, Lea?”

“I messed up, Sarah,” I cry. “I messed up bad. I… I should have stayed away from him, but I couldn’t. He’s… he’s incredible.”

“Lea. Did you… did you sleep with him?” Sarah asks frantically.

“Yes,” I sniffle. “But that’s not why I’m upset.”

Sarah and I have shared every single detail about our lives since we were children. We don’t keep secrets from each other. I know I shouldn’t talk about what happened with Massimo, but I can’t stop myself. The tears open the blabbering floodgates, and I tell her everything . About the hit. About Massimo’s brother. About our wonderful time together… even the part about falling in the water. I leave out the intimate details, but I share way more than I should.

“Oh sweet mercy, Lea. Oh sweet mercy…” Sarah mutters her favorite expression. It usually makes me laugh, but today, I just stare at the screen in a daze.

“Y-you can’t use any of this on your p-podcast,” I stammer out. “Best friend vault. It has to stay there. You could be in serious danger if you talk about any of this.”

“I won’t use any of it. I swear,” Sarah says. “But I should probably show you where I am right now.”

I blink away my tears as Sarah walks to a window. I don’t recognize the room she’s in. It isn’t her bedroom. But as soon as she tilts her screen and I see the Las Vegas skyline, my blood runs cold, and all my sorrow gets replaced with bone-chilling concern.

“Sarah, what the hell are you doing in Las Vegas?” I gasp.

“I told you I’ve been looking into the Morandi Crime Family and the Dirty Vegas Mafia,” she says hesitantly. “I’m in Las Vegas to meet with someone who might have some information I can use on my podcast.”

“You can’t, Sarah!” I say hurriedly. “I’m serious! Massimo’s family is dangerous! I just told you what his brother is going to do! If he’ll kill Massimo, what do you think he’ll do to a podcaster who talks about his family?”

“Well, I didn’t know any of that before I came to Las Vegas!” Sarah mutters, her voice cracking. “I’ll meet with Cadence and then I’ll go home.”

“And you’re not going to do a podcast about them, right? Promise me, Sarah,” I say. “I’m sorry if you wasted your time and drove all the way to Las Vegas, but this is too dangerous.”

“Yeah, I’ll forget about doing a podcast on them,” Sarah relents. “But you have to promise you’ll be careful. It can’t be any less dangerous for you, hanging around some Mafia guy who is about to get killed!”

“I won’t be there when that happens,” I sigh, looking down. “Text me when you leave Las Vegas and again when you get home. I may not be able to respond immediately, but I need to know you’re safe.”

“I will,” Sarah promises. “And you better try to reply, or else I’ll drive straight to the airport instead of going home. I’ll come get you and drag you on the boat by your ear like your grandmother used to when you really pissed her off!”

“I’ll do my best.” I swallow hard.

I feel even worse after talking to Sarah, and she always makes me feel better. I’m glad I called, but I’m worried about her now, too. I didn’t tell her to keep investigating Massimo’s family or go to Las Vegas, yet I still feel responsible. If something happens to her, I don’t know what I’ll do. She’s literally the only person I will have left after I leave this island.

“Grandma,” I whisper, my eyes glancing toward the ceiling. “You said a piece of your spirit never left this island. If that’s true… I need you. Maybe more than ever.”

I’m grasping at straws. Talking to spirits, even though I’m not sure I even believe in life after death.

Even if a part of my grandmother’s spirit is still here, she can’t help. Sarah certainly can’t. Nobody can.

I need a miracle.