Physically, Giovanna is a fucking mess, but she’s alive. Her watery eyes lift from my neck and she looks up at me. Shifting my hand from the back of her head, I cup her cheek. Using my thumb, I wipe the wetness from her face. Her big, dark blue eyes look so goddamn sad that it makes my heart ache.

“I love you, Giovanna,” I state. She shakes her head and opens her mouth to speak, but I don’t let her. I’m sure she’ll have something fucked up to say and right now, I don’t want to fucking hear it. “I love you. You’re mine, not only because I bought you, but because you just are. You’re coming home with me, to my family. You’re mine.”

“Aidan,” she whimpers. “I can’t, not like this.”

Lowering my head, I press my forehead against hers, closing my eyes, I inhale deeply. She doesn’t smell like my Giovanna right now, but she feels like it. “You can, and you will. The girls know something happened, nobody needs details. You can recover in my bed where you belong.”

“Aid—”

I press my lips against hers roughly, shutting her up. “You won’t argue with me, A rùnsearc, not about this.”

“That house,” she says, ignoring my demand.

My brows knit together. “What about it?”

“It’s awful, Caro. I’m sorry, but it’s too much. Everything inside is just too much. I don’t think I could be comfortable there.”

I blink slowly. Her body is bruised, battered, and probably has been through a hell I couldn’t even imagine and she’s talking to me about my house, and its décor. I’m unable to stop myself, I burst out laughing, shifting my hand to the back of her head again, I shove her face into my neck while I continue chuckling.

Resting my lips against her ear, I mutter, “Gut it completely if you want, we can sell it if you want. I don’t give a fuck about that house. All I care about are my children and you.”

“Really?” her muffled voice questions against my neck.

I gently tug her head back, looking into her eyes again. This woman, I truly love her. All of her. I don’t know how it happened, but it doesn’t matter. I’m completely in love with her. I’ll protect her and keep her safe until my dying breath. After, of course, I avenge her and beat the absolute fuck out of Blackburn before I kill him.

“Really. Can you take a bath or a shower without help?” I ask, searching her face.

“Here?” she asks, wrinkling her nose.

I chuckle. “Or maybe change into your clothes?”

I don’t mind her naked body pressed against my own, but there is a room full of men just on the other side of the door, and they don’t need to see her. Ever. A knock sounds just as she opens her mouth to answer.

“It’s me,” a female voice calls out.

Giovanna’s brows tug together, and she looks at the door before she looks back at me. “C’mon in,” I call out.

The door opens just a crack, and then the woman walks in. “Carmella,” Giovanna cries.

Carmella’s eyes soften as she takes in my woman. I shift her to sit on the bed, gingerly placing her down before I stand. I have shit to take care of out in the living area. Walking up to Carmella, I wrap my hand around her forearm and give it a squeeze.

“Take care of her, get her dressed, and when I’m done here, she’s going home,” I mumble to the woman.

She looks up at me with a smirk. “Yes, Mr. O’Neil.”

Leaving the women alone, I slip out of the door, closing it behind me, and swiftly walk the short distance to the living room. There I find Blackburn sitting on the sofa with Timofei and Rossi in front of him. Their heads lift to me, and their eyes both catch mine as I close the distance between us.

“Giovanna?” Timofei asks.

Lifting my chin, I let out a growl. “She’s alive, but damaged.” I don’t miss the flinch that comes from Rossi, however, I don’t really give much of a fuck about him either.

“You can’t touch me,” Blackburn shouts.

I tip my head to the side at the same time Timofei hums. Rossi lets out a low chuckle, and Blackburn looks scared shitless, which he should. “You think you’re the only one who can ply higher-up political men with pussy and dope?” Timofei asks.

Blackburn grunts, lifting his nose in the air, clearly thinking just that.

Timofei looks over at me. “You get first go at him.”

Blackburn’s eyes widen and his mouth drops open before he cries out, “Wait, what about negotiations? I’m the mayor, you can’t hurt me.”

Timofei chuckles, but I decide to stay silent. “Your videos have already been leaked to the press. This is your fuckpad, right? Some angry pimp came after you, it’s a goddamn shame really. That’s what happens when you fuck with a man’s money, his livelihood,” he shrugs. “Now, Aidan. Have fun.”

I watch as Timofei turns around, walking out of the apartment. I know he won’t go far, he’ll probably just be hanging out in the hallway until all of this is finished. I feel Mannix at my back, he nudges me with his shoulder, and I turn my head just in time to see Giovanna slowly walking out of the bedroom. Her eyes meet mine and she gives me a shaky smile.

I can tell just in the way she’s holding her body that she’s in extreme pain. Carmella helps her with each step, but when she’s close to me, Vanna reaches out and wraps her arm around my waist and curls into my side.

“I was just getting ready to take care of Blackburn here. Maybe you’d like the honors?” I ask, looking down at her. It’s an empty offer, one that have I zero intention of allowing her to complete.

Her mouth drops open slightly before it curves into a smile. “Actually, now that you mention it? Does anybody have a pair of scissors?”

“Scissors?” Shaughan asks.

Giovanna smirks. “I really only probably need nail clippers. But I’d like to do the honors of cutting his dick off.”

Shaughan chokes before he bursts out in laughter. We all start to laugh as well. Mine is more silent, my shoulders shaking with it, rather than boisterous. “A rùnsearc, you want to go out and wait with Timofei?” I ask.

She doesn’t look up at me, in fact, her eyes are completely focused on Blackburn. “No, I don’t think I will. I would like to watch. Also, I want to know what his plans were for me and the senator tomorrow,” she states.

Blackburn shouts as he stands up, but Rossi is the one who pulls his gun out and trains it on Blackburn’s head. “Senator?” he asks.

“Mannix, go get Timofei,” I order, never taking my gaze off of Blackburn.

Less than thirty seconds later, Timofei is through the door. I can feel his presence in a way where I can almost taste his anger as it fills the room. “Do tell, mayor, what on earth would you be using a woman that you have no right to use with a senator?” he asks.

“It has nothing to do with any of you. It was politics, nothing more,” he bustles.

Giovanna snorts. “I think it very much has to do with all three of them. I know it was something about budgets, but if it didn’t have anything to do with them, you wouldn’t have taken me when you did and demand a meet with the senator the way you did.”

Rossi chuckles. “You are my kid,” he states.

“No, I’m not yours. I’m nobody’s child,” she quips.

I stiffen beside her, watching as Rossi’s head turns to slowly face her. Without a word, he turns his gun, the butt facing her. There is something unspoken happening between them and the rest of us are just onlookers, watching and waiting to see what happens.

Giovanna reaches for the weapon. Without a word, she points it at Blackburn and just stares at him. She doesn’t look like herself, she looks fierce, badass, and unbreakable. I know she’s in pain, but she’s hiding it all from this sick fuck.

My cock hardens at the sight. My woman, so goddamn strong, and it’s beautiful—fucking breathtaking.

“What were your plans with the senator?” she asks, her voice full of ice.

Blackburn gulps. Then a cruel smile twists on his lips. “I’ll never tell you, cumdumpster. Maybe if you get down here and lick my shoes again I’ll give you a hint,” he smirks.

The gun goes off. The sound deafening in the small space. Giovanna didn’t hesitate and she sure as fuck didn’t miss. Her aim was true, and her bullet lodged directly in the fuck’s forehead.

“He can lick my ass if he thinks I’m doing a damn thing for him again,” she announces.

I wrap my arm around her waist and tug her in a bit closer. “Take her home,” Rossi mutters.

Giovanna hands him the gun and he slips it from her fingers. “You did good, G,” he rasps.

Without another word, she begins to limp away from the scene. I don’t let her take even two steps before I scoop her up in my arms. I hold her behind her back and knees, carrying her out of the apartment complex. There’s a car waiting, and I look behind me, then back at it.

Mannix jogs up behind me. “I called to have someone come and pick us up. Take her home, the girls are probably worried sick,” he murmurs.

Lifting my chin, I do as he says, I gently set Giovanna down in the back seat, slam the door, then jog over to the other side. I tell the driver my address and in silence, we drive. I spend the ride processing everything that just happened—or at least I try to.

I killed Lucian Blackburn.

My hands start to shake at the realization that I pulled the trigger of a gun and killed a man. He has a family, a wife and a couple of kids. I try to feel bad, but I don’t, and that makes my stomach twist.

The driver pulls up to Aidan’s house and my stomach twists again, but for another reason. His children are here. They’re going to see me, and they’ll know something bad happened. My eyes water just thinking about them, about how they’re going to see me now.

Aidan doesn’t even take a breath before he’s out of the car and at my door. He wrenches it open and holds out his hand for me. “Can you walk into the house?” he asks, his voice gentle and sweet.

I gulp, wishing the world would stop spinning as I nod. Slowly and carefully I climb out of the car, trying not to hiss in pain with each move that I make.

“C’mon, A rùnsearc, let’s get you up to bed.”

I don’t even pretend to protest. I need painkillers and sleep, maybe a joint and some booze, too. “Do you have any…” I let the words trail off because I don’t know how he’s going to take me asking him.

“Any?”

I sigh. “Do you have any weed?” I mumble.

He laughs. His shoulders shaking, but he stops, turning me to him. His eyes are dancing as he looks down at me. “You need to relax after your day?” he asks.

His chin tips before his lips brush mine. “Everything hurts, I figured if I took painkillers, smoked a little, then drank a little it would numb everything,” I shrug.

Aidan’s eyes turn fiery, losing the pretty dance they recently held. “I wish I could bring him back to life, torture him, then kill him all over again,” he growls. I open my mouth to speak, to tell him never mind and that I’m okay, but he doesn’t let me. “I’ll get you upstairs, settled in a bath, then I’ll bring you your cocktail,” he smirks.

“You don’t… it’s okay,” I lie.

He snorts. “A rùnsearc, whatever you need you get. Fuck, we’ll smoke together. It’s been a while,” he winks.

I bite my bottom lip, shaking my head. “I shouldn’t have even mentioned that I do it. I’m messing up, Carmella would scold me,” I mumble.

Aidan’s hand lifts and wraps gently around the side of my neck, giving me a squeeze. “Vanna. There are no more rules like that for you. I just want you to be yourself. If you want to smoke a little with me after a long day, fucking bring it on. If you want to get completely fucking drunk every now and then, fuck yeah, we’ll have nasty drunk sex. I could give a fuck. I just want you to be you, all of the time.”

Lifting my hand, I wrap my fingers around his wrist and hold onto him. “Even if I’m really boring most of the time. I’m not a very good cook, at all, and I don’t know if I’ll be a good mom to your four completely wonderful children. I like pretty high heels, but I prefer jeans to dresses. I also like to wear makeup when I go out in public.”

He smiles at my confessions, lowering his head once again, and his tongue sneaks out to taste my lips before he kisses me. “Wear makeup and sexy shoes, A rùnsearc, do whatever you want. As long as you love me and the kids, I don’t give a fuck.”

Tears slip from my eyes. “I do, Aidan. I love you all,” I admit.

His kiss is searing, it’s hard, and as his tongue fills me, I let out a moan. This man is everything, he’s nothing I thought I would ever have, and every single thing I’ve ever dared to hope for in my entire life. He’s saved me, and he owns me—completely.

I bring the joint to my lips, trying not to laugh at the look Aidan is giving me. I’m sure it’s not as funny as I’ve declared it to be, but whatever. Aidan takes it from my fingers, and I watch him bring it up to his own lips.

“Will you be okay?” he asks me, his voice quiet.

I hum, thinking about his question. “I will be, Caro,” I admit.

“Yeah?”

Nodding, I thread my fingers in his and hold his hand. A simple act, and yet it fills me with extreme warmth and comfort. Leaning my head against his shoulder, I let out a sigh. “What happened, it wasn’t the worst that’s ever been done by him. It’s different this time though, which is why I feel off about it, I think.”

Aidan waits patiently for me to continue, and I’m glad that he does. He also keeps his body relaxed, and his muscles don’t bunch or go rigid beneath me. “This time, it wasn’t a job, and I wasn’t offering myself freely,” I admit.

Aidan releases my hand, only to lift his arm and run his fingers through my hair. My eyes slowly drift closed, and I’m almost asleep before I hear him whisper into the darkness. “Never again, A rùnsearc. Never fucking again.”