Page 76 of Shadows of Steel

I have to admit, this was a good idea.

“I told you.” Mattia says smugly, as if reading my mind.

Dante chuckles from where he stands at the helm. “Enjoying yourself, leonessa?”

I shrug. “Not bad.”

His lips curve slightly.

And for a moment, I let myself exist in the peace of it. I don’t think about the family I never wanted but somehow found. I don’t think about the arranged marriage that bound me to a stranger, or the ominous notes, the blood, the shadow that follows me everywhere I go.

I haven’t received any more messages from him. No cryptic notes, no warnings left in my path. But I know better than to believe he’s gone. Silence is just another game, another way to make me lower my guard.

I push the thought away for now.

I simply allow myself to be present, to enjoy this stolen moment with Mattia. And, if I’m honest, with my husband as well, though I fight every instinct that tells me to reject whatever is growing between us.

But that’s the thing about the wounded, we build walls not out of defiance, but out of survival.

Being abandoned by my father, losing my mother in every way that mattered, growing up knowing that neither of them wanted me, how does a child unlearn that? Even as an adult, it lingers, whispering that love is temporary, that people always leave.

And if I let myself love them what happens when they disappear too? When they leave, as everyone always does?

A little while later, I slip out of my sundress, letting it fall away to reveal the bikini underneath. The sun immediately kisses my bare skin, warm and indulgent.

I don’t have to look up to know Dante is watching.

I feel his gaze, heavy and unrelenting, searing into me like a brand. He has a way of looking at me as if the world around us ceases to exist, as if nothing else holds his attention but the way my body moves.

When I finally glance his way, his eyes are raking over every inch of my exposed skin, lingering at the curve of my waist, the swell of my breasts. His jaw clenches, and his fingers tighten around the wheel.

I pretend not to notice.

Mattia is already at the edge of the yacht, eager to jump in as Dante slows the vessel to a stop. We’ve drifted far from shore, settling in a secluded stretch of water, accessible for yachts. The sea stretches endlessly around us, shimmering under the sun.

With ease, Dante anchors the yacht, securing it so we won’t drift.

Mattia is poised to dive into the water, but I stop him with a call. “Come here first. You need more sunscreen.”

As expected, he groans but complies, making his way over with obvious reluctance. He stops in front of me, arms crossed, the very picture of a child bracing for an ordeal.

I arch a brow. “Would you prefer a sunburn instead?”

With an exaggerated sigh, he all but collapses onto the sunbed beside me. “If I must.”

I squeeze sunscreen into my palm and rub it over his arms and shoulders, working it into his skin as efficiently as possible before he wriggles away. “Hat on.” I remind him, placing it back on his head.

He huffs but doesn’t argue, adjusting it before running back toward the water. “Watch this!” he calls, diving in, sending a splash of seawater across the deck.

When I look up, Dante is watching me.

Intently.

Something about the way his gaze lingers is unsettling, so I turn away, stretching out beneath the sun, letting the warmth seep into my skin. The ocean air is thick with salt, the steady lapping of water against the yacht a soothing rhythm.

I close my eyes, enjoying the moment.

A sudden splash breaks through the quiet. Cold water sprays over my stomach and legs, shocking a gasp from my lips. My eyes snap open just in time to see Dante surfacing from the water, running a hand through his dark, wet hair as he smirks up at me.