Page 59 of Mine Again (Mafia Bride #2)

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Luca

“ C lassy.” Isa rolls her eyes so hard I’m honestly impressed she doesn’t sprain something.

God, I missed that tone. Dry, sharp, just this side of unimpressed.

She turns away and heads for the targets. I let my eyes wander.

It’s a magnificent view. Even better when she bends slightly to pull arrows from the foam. One by one, she yanks them free, most sliding out with little resistance.

Until she gets to my last arrow, the one dead center.

When it doesn’t budge, she wraps both hands around the shaft, plants her feet, and gives it a solid tug.

Nothing.

I grin. That one was buried deep. Like I ache to be… inside her.

My cock twitches in agreement. Not the time, though.

It’s way too cold to expose any bare skin. And more importantly, all the balls—pun very much intended—are in Isa’s court.

She wants to be closer to me; I sensed it when we hugged. Her body remembers. Her mind just needs to catch up.

I keep watching, amused, as she struggles with the stubborn arrow. She tries again and again, jaw tight, teeth gritted. Still stuck .

“You good over there?” I call out.

“It’s wedged in tight,” she snaps. “Clearly compensating for something.”

I don’t even try to hide my laugh.

That’s when I move in, close enough to feel the heat radiating off her back.

“Need help?” I murmur in her ear. “I’m good with my hands.”

She goes still for a beat. That perfect pause where I know I’ve scrambled her a little.

God, I love that.

She doubles down and puts her whole body into it.

And just as I reach for the arrow—

Pop.

It dislodges like a champagne cork.

Her elbow slams straight into my stomach. Hard.

The breath leaves my lungs like I’ve been punched by a damn bull.

I let out a sound that’s… not my finest. I drop like a stone, arms wrapping around my torso as I hit the grass.

“Oh my God.” She whirls around, panic in her face.

She drops to her knees beside me, hands flying over my body like she’s checking for damage.

“Are you okay?”

I can’t answer, too busy groaning. And not entirely for effect.

Isa looks mortified. But then she starts laughing.

At first, it’s a shocked giggle, but it quickly turns into full-body laughter. She’s doubling over beside me, which might be insulting if it weren’t Isa. And her laugh is impossibly contagious.

“I’m so sorry,” she gasps, grabbing my arm. “I didn’t mean to… I swear. But the sound you made—”

She collapses beside me, laughter bubbling out of her.

I crack one eye open and groan again. “You took out my spleen.”

“You’ll live,” she wheezes, rolling in the grass, clutching her stomach. “But you might never moan the same way again.”

That does it. I laugh too. The kind of laugh that makes it worse. My stomach tightens, the pain sharper immediately.

Now I’m groaning and laughing, and she’s useless beside me, completely wrecked, gasping, and clutching her ribs.

Neither of us can breathe. Still flat on my back, I pant in pain.

“I have a six-pack,” I manage between breaths, “and I think you shattered all six.”

We exchange a look. And that’s all it takes for both of us to explode into another fit of laughter.

Howling like idiots, we’re rolling in the grass. Isa’s gripping her stomach, tears streaming down her cheeks, her whole body shaking with it.

I haven’t laughed like this in years.

Not since before the silence. Before everything went sideways.

It’s like coming up for air.

A warm rush spreads through my chest. Not just from the laughter, but from her. From this . The easy rhythm, the banter… that thread that always pulls us back, no matter how far we’d been apart.

This is what we were, what we had.

When the laughter finally fades, Isa turns toward me with the first genuine smile I’ve seen from her in a damn long time.

It graces me like sunlight, and a tingle works its way up my body. Her eyes sparkle, crinkling at the corners, and her cheeks bloom with a soft blush.

“Thank you,” she murmurs. “I needed that.”

And I believe her.

Not only the words, but the way she says them. Quiet. Raw.

That laugh wasn’t only release. It was us, finding our way back.

“Are you okay?” I ask, brushing a few blades of grass from my shirt. I lean in and press a gentle kiss to her forehead.

Isa sighs, eyes fixed on the sky.

“I’m not sure,” she says. “This is one hell of a roller coaster. One minute I’m in the pits of despair, then I’m suddenly climbing again, feeling lighter. But…”

She turns her head toward me, eyes clouded with doubt .

“But Luca, I’m afraid of the next drop. I’m not sure how much more I can take. My whole life seems like a web of deceit and manipulation. I still don’t know what’s real anymore.”

I slide my arm beneath her neck and ease her closer until her head rests against my shoulder.

We lie like that in silence, watching the clouds in the sky wander past in the breeze.

“I’ll be right there with you through every turn and fall,” I say quietly. “You won’t have to face any of it alone.”

I mean every word. But even I know it sounds like a promise I shouldn’t make.

We’ve been here before. But I’m determined never to let history repeat itself.

Isa relaxes against me, not in surrender, but something close to trust.

We keep our eyes on the sky, but I can tell her mind isn’t resting.

Her fingers twitch against my ribs, her body tensing up again.

The silence stretches. When she speaks next, there’s a slight tremble in her voice.

“When were you actually coming back for me?”