- LUCIANO -
If only Rory and I could stay in this bedroom forever, ordering food in and hiding from everything else—all the dangers and responsibilities. But unfortunately it doesn’t work that way.
Rather than grabbing my phone to see whose calls I missed, I turn on my side to face her again. Maybe we can prolong this ti together just a little bit more before we erge and face the rest of what awaits us today. The only thing that seems important right now is here, right in front of .
Rory smiles back at . She’s always beautiful, but right now she’s absolutely breathtaking. There’s a gentle glow to her skin. Her dark blue eyes are shining. And I get to be the recipient of all of it.
"What are you thinking about?" She asks, gaze sweeping over .
"How beautiful you are."
She shakes her head with a soft smile.
"Can I ask you sothing?" My hand rises to trace the line of her jaw and then drops. Maybe it would be a mistake to ask her the question that I’ve had on my mind. I don’t want to ruin this mont.
"What?" Her voice is almost a whisper.
When there are no other sounds but our breath, whispers are all that are needed. It feels like a secret—the two of us here. But I want everyone to know. I’m so proud of this woman in front of , I can’t wait to have her on my arm, a constant companion by my side.
But after what we just shared and the fear that gripped her before she was able to move on, I want to know what happened in her past—what traumatized her. I’m not certain whether she trusts enough or feels comfortable enough to talk about it, though. So it’s a risk bringing it up. Maybe it’s not the right ti.
"What is it, Luci?" She asks again.
"I was wondering," I sigh, grabbing one of her hands and squeezing it, "how were you hurt, tesoro? Can you tell ?"
"Why?" Her brows thread together.
"So I can help," I say gently. "So I know when to go slow and what not to do."
And so I can hunt the fucker down who hurt her and kill him slowly and painfully.
Rory’s breaths beco shallow as she searches the space between us, contemplating whether or not she’s going to let in on this delicate information.
"It’s hard to talk about," she says finally.
"I understand."
I don’t press her on it, just wait patiently—praying to God that no one decides to call right now and interrupt in case she does want to tell .
"I was fourteen. I was ho alone," she says quietly, avoiding my eyes. "Raya was at a friend’s house. Nana had an appointnt or sothing."
She wets her lips, struggling with putting herself back in that mory. I don’t want her to, but this is how we move past it. This is how we heal.
"There was a neighbor boy. He was older. Raya and I thought he was so cool. He was cute, you know." She grimaces. "He knocked on the door, asked if he could co in. He wasn’t exactly a stranger, so I didn’t think it was a big deal, plus... he wanted to talk to . I thought that ant I was pretty special."
She lets out a shaky breath and glances up. The child in her eyes stares back at so helpless and embarrassed by this mistake she made so many years ago, clearly believing that the whole thing was her fault for letting him inside, for trusting what she thought she knew of him. And I have to work to keep a gentle expression when the fire in my chest burns furiously, wanting to slip back into that mory with her and help.
"Our living room with the television and everything was downstairs, so we ended up down there. He started talking about things that made uncomfortable, but I was just kind of laughing about it. That’s what I would do when I was nervous. In the mont, you don’t understand the reality of it. It’s like it’s not really happening. I’ve thought about it so many tis, what I could have done differently. But when he advanced on , bent over the couch, I just... froze."
Her expression darkens as the reel in her mind advances, and my teeth clench and lock—biting down on the emotions that want to spill out. It doesn’t matter how I feel, because this isn’t about . But god, do I want to fucking punish soone for this.
"It’s the sa old story, you know? It’s happened to so many people. So many kids. I’m not special," she says, shrugging it off. "But he said he would kill my sister if I told anyone, so I didn’t. Raya doesn’t know that part." Her eyes flare with the secret, urging not to tell.
"I hid it for awhile. Until it beca too much. And by that ti, there was no way to prove it. I thought I had mostly moved past it, but then the whole Lawson thing happened."
"You are so brave, tesoro," I tell her, cupping her face in my hand, bending to kiss her, pressing my forehead to hers. "Thank you for trusting with this."
"Thank you for being soone I can trust with this," she whispers, reaching up to place her hand over mine. "I don’t want to be trapped in that mory anymore."
"I’m here for whatever you need. To talk. To hurt in your place. To make wild, passionate love to," I chuckle, and she joins , her eyes shining again.
"I wanted to go hiking here," she says with a smile. "I thought if I could go out where there was no one else around, then maybe I could finally let it all out. Scream. Cry. Yell at the top of my lungs. Whatever."
"We can do that, too." I run my hand down her side, drawing her closer.
"Really?" Her brows shoot up. "You would want to do that?"
"Why are you surprised? If you want to, I’m in."
"What about... your n?" She frowns, gaze dropping to my lips. So I kiss her, pinching her chin when I pull away.
"I’m sure we can figure out sothing."
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