Page 139 of Ruin

She shakes her head, a shadow falling over her face. “I know you and your brothers can handle him, and I trust you to protect me, but you need time, and Aurelio will killmy parents if he can’t take it out on us. My mother—” She chokes back a sob, her voice cracking darkly. “She’s suffered enough.”

I grip her shoulders, forcing her to face me. “I didn’t come here to fuck you and send you off to marry another man, Giovanna. The mission is to get you out of here, right now, this minute. Vin is out there with his crew. How do you think I got in here? Aurelio’s got men crawling all over this place, but I had someone hack the cameras. We immobilized the obstacles. We’re ready. You just have to come with me.”

She shoves at my chest, frantic. “I don’t want to start a war today! I can wait. I’ll marry Antonio. I’ll be whatever they want me to be, as long as I know you love me. I can survive anything for you. Even being away from you.”

The words gut me. I step back like she’s stabbed me. I can’t fucking believe what I’m hearing. After all this time, all these years apart, she’s still going to keep up this charade with Antonio?

“That’s not happening, Giovanna.” My voice is raw, desperate. “I can’t be away from you for another fucking minute. You think I can sleep without you? I can’t. I need you in my bed, in my arms. I need to be inside you every night. You might be strong enough to handle being apart, but I’m not. I can’t handle having you live with another man, sleeping next to him every night—not for anything.”

Her hands tremble as she cups my face, staring at me like I’m breaking her in two. “Baby,” she whispers, tears spilling down her cheeks. Then nods slowly. “I can’t do it if you’re not okay. I won’t. But let me tell Antonio. He has to disappear too, or Aurelio will kill him. He doesn’t deserve to die forthis.”

I bare my teeth and snarl. “Why the fuck do you care about him?”

She closes her eyes and shakes her head. “I don’t, Tommy. I’m in love with you. I’m going with you. He’s an asshole, but he doesn’t deserve to die because we’re too selfish to be apart any longer.”

My chest heaves. I want to drag her out of here right now and kill that fucker myself. “We don’t have time, Gi. We’re taking too long as it is. We were supposed to be out of here long before the ceremony, and it’s scheduled to start in—” I glance at my watch. “—20 minutes.”

“Remember years ago, when you told me to text him, cancel our date?” she says softly, stepping away from me and picking up her phone. “I’m doing it now. I’m texting him to come here so I can tell him I can’t marry him.”

She shows me the screen as she types out the text and sends it. Antonio’s reply comes immediately:On my way.

My phone goes off. It’s a text from Vin. Apparently, I missed a dozen or more texts from him since I’ve been with Gi.

Where tf are you, bro?

This place is filling up.

We need to be out of here NOW.

God damn it, Tommy. Answer.

Fuck her on your own time.

Let’s fucking GOOOOOOO!!!!

Dude, you need to be out here right now.

Aurelio knows something is up.

GET HERE.

He drops a pin so I know where to find him, and I look up at Giovanna, who is reading over my shoulder.

She nods. “Go. I’ll be fine, baby. You going out there will calm Aurelio down. Just let me do this, and I’ll text you when I’m done.”

Every instinct in me screams ‘no.’ But the way she’s looking at me reminds me of the first night I fucked her. Fear, vulnerability, and waiting for me to tell her what to do.

I grab her face in my hands and kiss her hard. “Hurry,” I whisper against her mouth. “Text me when you’re done, then meet your father as planned when Antonio leaves, and walk down the aisle. I’ll meet you at the altar.”

Her eyes widen. “But Aurelio, his guards—”

“We’ve got that covered.”

“But Tommy, I’m a mess!”

“Come with me right now then.”

“You’re crazy!” She laughs, bending to catch sight of herself in the mirror and touching her wild hair with a sigh. “Fuck it, I love you,” she breathes, and I kiss her one more time before I reluctantly let her go.