Page 6 of His Deadly Devotion

“Yeah, your son won’t get out of the room,” Aurora snaps.

Mr. Valentino hasn’t taken his eyes off me. “I’m leaving,” I tell him before glaring over a shoulder. “Youneed to stay away.”

“No. You don’t mean that.” Hurt shines in Aurora’s eyes as they start to well up with tears.

Fuck. I look straight ahead because I can’t see her cry. I’ve seen it once and it broke me. I can’t let her do it again. I have to get out of here. I walk over towards the door. Her father steps out of the way, letting me pass.

“Connor, don’t do this.” Aurora’s pleas have my steps faltering. I don’t want to leave her, but I can’t stay with her either.

I don’t turn back around. I can’t. I have to keep walking. The farther she is from me, the safer she is from my family. I make it to the front door without anyone uttering another word. I walk out, barefoot and shirtless. Only to realize I have no fucking idea where I am. I have no phone, no wallet, and no damn shoes.

“You know, not many men walk away from a woman they’re willing to take a bullet for.” Mr. Valentino’s voice comes from behind me.

I turn back around to face him. “That’s because most men are selfish fuckers,” I say before tacking on, “sir,” as a little show of respect. He is her father after all.

“They are.” He nods in agreement. “Why?”

“Why are men selfish? I can’t answer that.”

“Why are you walking away from my daughter?” he asks.

“I didn’t think that would be a problem for you.”

“It’s a problem for her, which makes it a problem for me. If her heart breaks, a grenade explodes in mine,” he explains.

“She’s safer if I’m not near her. They’re not going to stop. They will keep hunting her down until they find her,” I tell him.

Mr. Valentino nods. He already knows this. “I’m sending her away.”

My heart stops.He’s sending her away.I’m never going to see her again. The realization hits me like a ton of bricks.Fuck. It’d be for the best, though. I think.

“Where?” My heart is beating twice as fast at the thought of her going off somewhere on her own. Alone. Without me.

“There’re a lot of people who would put their life on the line to protect her. Most of 'em share the same last name. But you’d do more than that, wouldn’t you, O’Malley?”

“More than risking my own life? What’s more than that?” I ask.

“You’re not afraid to tell her no. And you’re not afraid to shield her from herself. That’s what she needs. As much as I hate to admit it, she needs you.” He sighs. “There are registered aliases on the flight path. A jet is ready to leave within the hour.”

“You want me to go with her?” I cock a curious brow.

“My nephew said you were intelligent. I’m starting to doubt his own genius now.” Mr. Valentino chuckles. “She’s willing to throw everything away for you. Are you prepared to do the same for her?”

Throwing everything away for the woman I love isn’t what has me so indecisive. She killed my cousin. I’d be betraying Kenny’s memory. How do I wrestle with the fact that I’m in love with the one person responsible for that? It was an accident. I know it was. I still can’t unsee it.

Am I prepared to have her go off to God only knows where without me, though? I don’t think I am. The thought of not knowing if she’s safe, not being able to check in on her, doesn’t sit well with me.

Fuck it.It’s not like there was going to be a welcome party waiting for me at home. At this point, my father’s probably already named his next in line.

“Okay.” I nod. “I’ll go with her.”

“Good, because she was never going to go without you.” Mr. Valentino smirks, grabs the knob, and holds the door open for me. I walk back through it, my fate sealed.

4

He left. I begged him to stay. Well, I didn’t really beg. But I asked him not to leave and he did. What the hell is wrong with him?

“Can I kill him now?” Enzo asks when Papa follows Connor out of the room.