Finally, late into the evening, the cops set us free. I’ve given them all I can. My body is exhausted, and despite being back in Leo's arms, having a brush with death is no laughing matter.

I feel spent and not in a good way.

"Can we just go home so I can take a shower?" I ask him.

"Of course, baby."

He takes me back up to the penthouse and has extra security stand outside the doors just to make me feel safe. The threat is over, we know, but until the cops have investigated all the angles it makes me feel more at ease knowing they are armed guards just outside the door.

I immediately pull my clothes off and trash them. I never want to see that outfit again. I walk naked through the penthouse into the shower. Once inside, I curl up into a little ball on the floor and let the shower rain over me.

The water slides down my back, and in here, within this privacy, I let the tears fall freely for all I almost lost.

I cradle myself in my own arms and the warm water provides some assurance, like life is saying, You haven't lost yet, baby. You still have more to live.

The shower helps to wash the wretchedness of William off my body. The idea of my last moments on Earth being been spent with him makes me want to fall apart. I hope he's rotting in jail and that he never gets out.

Eventually, the water turns cool and it's only then that I rinse off and re-emerge back into the world of the living. The world I’m still a part of thanks to Leo.

Leo’s knocking gently on the door. "Sienna are you okay? You've been in there awhile."

"I'm okay," I say in all honesty. "I just needed some time...alone."

"All right, well come out soon. Your brother's here to see you."

My brother? What the hell is he doing here?

I wouldn't have thought he'd care if I lived or died the way he’s been acting lately. He's probably just happy not to have to make the ransom for me.

I brush my hair and pull on a pair of Leo's oversized sweats. I want to be warm and cozy, not cute.

I come out of the bathroom, swimming in his black sweat suit. Jax is there, and the two of them seem to be like old friends pouring shots at Leo's kitchen island.

"What am I missing?" I say, unhappy that Jax is here.

I might as well apologize for my part in the debacle. After all, none of it would've happened without me insisting on being an escort.

"Jax, I owe you an apology. You warned me to stay away from this business and I just didn't listen."

I'm too tired to argue if he won't accept my apology.

To my surprise, he says, "It's fine, Sienna. In fact, it really wasn't your fault. I'd heard about some disgruntled employee a while back, but I didn't take it seriously. I should've been more on guard."

"So," I rib him as only a sister can do. "You're saying it's actually all your fault?"

He smiles. "Yes, for the sake of avoiding an argument, or hell, an all-out war, let's just say that."

"Fine by me."

"Here, baby." Leo hands me a shot of whiskey.

"So it's going to be that kind of night?" I ask, ready for some levity.

"Let's hope so," he says with a gleam in his eye.

Instead of yelling at us and going crazy, Jax seems surprisingly fine about Leo and me flirting.

"Have you finally accepted it, brother? That I'm in love with your friend?"

"Love? Do you hear that, Leo? She loves you."

He sidles up next to me and plants a soft kiss on my cheek. It's a small act, but filled with promise. Leo never would have been so free with that type of affection before.

"It's a good thing, too," Leo says. "Because, Sienna, I think it's safe to say that I've loved you forever...since we were kids. After you and I were together that first time, Jax forced me to stay away from you. Right Jax?"

My brother looks up from his whiskey, his expression somber. "I admit it. I'm sorry, Sienna. I threatened him at the time and used all my influence to chase him out of town. That's why it appeared like he abandoned you. I just didn't want you to get hurt. Can you try to see it from my perspective?"

All those lonely nights of crying myself to sleep come flashing across my mind.

"I thought...I thought you just didn't like me, Leo. You'd had your fill. I was a conquest or something." I’d been devastated.

He looks at me and his eyes reflect genuine regret. "I never should've left. No matter what Jax did or what he threatened, I should never have left you like that. I've loved you since I first set eyes on you Sienna. I loved you then, and I've loved you every day since."

Tears of regret come up for all those times I spent ruminating over what I could've done wrong to make Leo leave so abruptly.

Now I realize it was all Jax.

How my brother could've remained tight-lipped for all that time I spent grieving Leo, I'll never understand. He saw how badly I was hurting for years afterward and yet he never revealed the truth.

"Jax, how could you?"

I am so tired of crying. I want this day to end with me by Leo's side, never looking back.

"I'm sorry, Sienna, truly I am. I thought he was going to hurt you. I really did. I thought he was just out to prove that he could get you. I had no idea he actually loved you. Now I see that his love is real. It's been him all along, and I'm so sorry for being so overprotective. I never should've overstepped my bounds like that."

I nod, taking a steadying breath. I want to be angry at him. I want to rail and rage that he caused me to lose ten years with the man I love. But if I’ve learned anything through this experience tonight, it’s that life’s too short to hold grudges.

Relationships are too important when they can just be taken away from you in a heartbeat.

"It's okay," I say, and this time I mean it. "I'm ready to put the past behind us for good now and never look back."

"Deal," Jax says. "I see now that Leo’s never going to break your heart. That's all I ever wanted for you, Sienna."

"Thanks, Jax."

He gets up and kisses me on the cheek. "I'm glad you're okay. You should've seen this guy in action.” He nods toward Leo. “He wasn’t going to stop until he'd torn through the entire casino making sure you were found. You've got a good guy here."

"Thanks man," Leo says. "But I couldn't have done it without you."

"Now I better take my leave and give you guys some privacy."

Leo walks him out, and I'm left in pure astonishment mulling over the fact that Leo never wanted to leave me. He was sent away by Jax.

If only I’d known, I would've followed him anywhere. I could've told him Jax was way too protective and that he threatened every boyfriend I ever had. Normally, I just ignored him back then, but poor Leo. Jax must've threatened him big time.

Leo walks back in and embraces me.

"We're finally alone," he says.

"Leo, I have one question. What could Jax possibly have said to make you leave?"

He looks away as though he's ashamed.

"What is it? Tell me."

Finally, he admits, "He used my Achilles Heel. He knew that I never felt good enough for you. I came from nothing and you came from everything. Jax said he'd use the family name to exert influence over me. He threatened to smear my reputation so that I'd never get into school and I'd never find a job. I believed he could do it, Sienna. That's why I left. I felt like you deserved someone better, someone with more to give."

The more I find out, the more it's all clicking into place. Leo didn't feel worthy.

"Is that why you created this empire?" I ask.

"Yes. I figured that if I ever saw you again in the future that I'd be ready. I did all of this for you. Though over time I became so jilted that the memory of you lay deeper in my heart as I covered it with booze, sex, and adrenaline. I've spent the last ten years trying to forget about you."

I hug his neck and kiss his lips tenderly. "But Leo, I never forgot about you. Not for one day. And you were always worth it. I never cared about that kind of thing. Money or no money, I always loved you too."

His eyes light up. He should've known me better than to think I could ever love anyone besides him. Or that where he came from mattered in the slightest.

His arms come around my waist and then he's pulling softly on my hair so that my chin lifts up and he has full access to my mouth.

"Now," he says authoritatively, "I can do what I want to you and no one will stop me."

Anticipation pumps through my veins as I imagine all the ways he'll make me his. After so much time lost, I see that Leo will need to know wholeheartedly that I’m his forever.

He kisses me with reckless abandon, with his commanding, dominating way that tells me it's going to be a long, unforgettable night...