Page 385 of Under Her Skin

“What is this, now? The fourth or fifth attempt on her life? That’s way too much for anylifetime.”

Enda tried not to let the tears in his eyes fall. He pinched them shut with his fingers. “Let’s hope we can still say it was only anattemptwhen this is all over. Raff won’t survive if Incadies.”

There was a heavy silence on the other end of the phone. “Enda …when we find Jackson,” Olivier hesitated, then sighed. “You know what I’m going tosay.”

“Yes,” said Enda in a hard voice. “And to answer you …yes. I want that fucker dead. I know he’s your brother,but…”

“He’s no brother of mine,” Olivier said. “Live or die …he’s dead to menow.”

Enda heard the heartbreak in Olivier’s voice and felt the weight of responsibility. His older brother had always been the peacemaker—the steadying hand. Enda hated that he was alone in San Francisco, dealing with all this. “Come to Italy,” he urged. “Be withus.”

Oliver gave a short, sad laugh. “Believe me, I’d like nothing better …but someone needs to be here. Besides, Selima’s boyfriend could still give us someinformation.”

Chase, Selima’s boyfriend of a few weeks, had been shot and critically wounded when Selima was abducted. He had been trying to defend his girlfriend and took a bullet to thechest.

“Fuck,” said Enda, “What amess.”

Olivier sighed. “Yeah …and right now, I just don’t see how it could get anyworse.”

Aweeklater and nothing had changed. Ama stared out of the window at the heavy security around their villa and felt like a prisoner. Not just here in Italy—but of Jackson’s. He hadn’t contacted her again after that first call, when he’d sounded sotriumphant.

“I told you there would be no limit to what I could do if you defied me, Amalia …now say hello to your littlesister.”

Selima’s sobs—her cries of pain—as Jackson obviously inflicted harm on her, wherever he was holding her. Ama had screamed at Jackson, but he’d merely laughed and told her to wait for his nextcall.

A week. Doing God knows what to Selima …fuck.

She went to look for Enda, who was in his office with Tommaso Winter and their respective chiefs ofsecurity.

She nodded at Tommaso. He looked desolate. Inca was in a coma, still hovering on the brink of life, and Ama knew Tommaso was trying to keep it together and support his brother as Inca fought to recover. Tommaso smiled at her, his eyes tired and heavy. Ama touched Enda’sarm.

“Baby, can I talk to you for aminute?”

Enda nodded and followed her out of the room. She led him into their bedroom and closed the door. Enda opened his arms, and she went into them. He kissed her tenderly. “Are you okay,Piccolo?”

She shook her head. “No. I just needed alone time with you. I can’t bear all this worry and sadness. I think I’m goingmad.”

Enda sighed and hugged her tightly to him. “Iknow.”

Ama tilted her head up to kiss him again. “Let’s just make the world go away for a fewminutes.”

“Yousure?”

She nodded and his fingers pulled at the belt of her wrap dress. Pushing back the fabric and letting the dress fall to the floor, he kept his hands gentle on her skin as he lay her down on the bed. He pulled her panties down and found her wet for him already. “Don’t wait,” shewhispered.

Enda stripped quickly and lay on top of her. “No matter what …I love you,” he said softly, and she nodded, tears in her eyes, as his cock pushed intoher.

They made love slowly, rocking gently as his thrusts grew more intense. They gazed at each other, as if drinking each other in, and both their orgasms were mellow, shivering things. When she came, all her suppressed emotion flooded to the surface and Ama began to cry hot, silenttears.

She cried herself out in Enda’s arms, and finally, thankfully, fellasleep.

Raffaelo strokedthe hair away from his wife’s face. “Her color is a littlebetter.”

Bo Kennedy, his brother’s partner, couldn’t see any improvement. It made her sick to see Inca so still and pale. Her usually glowing honey skin was yellow and gray, tubes stuck in her arms, and the breathing apparatus filled her throat.Jesus …how the hell had this happened? Why?Some sick psycho’s way of getting revenge on his wife was to kill herfriend?

Bo sat down heavily in the chair opposite Raffaelo and took Inca’s cold hand. She couldn’t die …could she? Not after everything she’d gone through to get to the happy life she had withRaffaelo.

“Whoever this Jackson Gallo wanker is, I’d like to kill him. What a fucking coward. Send two men to kill a defenseless woman? For what? Spite.Fucker.”