Allegra listened carefully as Salvatore explained some of what happened after they left the zoo. Uberto was more than happy to embellish his part of the events. “I picked up what was left of the box after Big Foot stepped on it.”

She reached over and laid her hand on Valerio’s thigh, giving it a little squeeze.

“It’s the craziest ‘gift’ I’ve ever seen. And if it’s from a friend of yours, Allegra, it’s time to end that friendship.” She heard some noise on the table, the soft shift of something flat against the glass. “The glass was already broken, inside the box. The pieces were glued down to the bottom of the box so that they wouldn’t move around if someone shook it.

“There was nothing in the box that would have thrown the shards or anything like that. Bastard knew she’d reach into the box to find her present.” He shoved the box further down the table. “Did Mama bear fix up your cuts, Allegra?”

Turning toward his voice, Allegra didn’t know what to answer.

Natale helped, as always, translating the family’s inside jokes. “’Berto calls Salvatore ‘Papa Bear.’”

“Oh,” Allegra winced a little on Valerio’s behalf and then held up her right hand, “all healed up… ‘Baby Bear.’”

The room went silent for a moment before Natale started to laugh. “Nicely done, Allegra.”

Allegra reached out toward Uberto and there was a moment wait before he put his hand under hers. “Sorry.”

He gave her hand a squeeze and then pulled away. “I deserved it.” He laughed a little himself. “Partially I did it because I know he’s likely to be ready to rip something apart by now and I thought we could get in a little fun.”

“Fun?” Allegra laughed. “You wanted Valerio to beat on you?”

“On me?” Uberto nearly choked on the idea. “No. I was willing to let him get a few hits in before I kicked his furry ass, thank you very much.”

Allegra shifted a little, her concern on the man who held her in his lap. “Are you upset?”

“Upset?” he parroted. “Of course, but I want to hear the rest of what they found before deciding what I need to do.”

That got her attention. “There’s more? I thought that this was just some crazy prank.”

Salvatore spoke again. “We found a card. Likely it was on or in the box, but it was on the ground where you were standing. From what I can tell there’s nothing handwritten on it. It’s written with braille.”

A tickle of unease worked its way down her spine. She reached out and someone put the paper in her hand.

It took a minute for her to wrap her head around the idea that someone had come out of the blue to hurt her. It had been so many years of peace.

She knew everyone was waiting for her to read it, so she took in a steadying breath, laid the card on the table and touched her fingers to the edge of the paper. Reading should only have taken a few seconds. The first thing she’d learned when the world went dark was how to read. Audible books were great, but reading on her own had always been one of her greatest pleasures.

She stumbled over a few of the words, more from disbelief than lack of ability to read it clearly. When she was finished she pushed the card away toward the others, not really caring if it ended up back on the floor.

“If I didn’t know any better, I would say it’s from-” her voice died away as if saying his name would conjure him before her. Instead she focused on the message, repeating it out loud.

You should be home like a good little girl.

Where have you been sleeping?

You won’t like it when I find you.

Haven’t you been hurt enough?

When she finished the last word she felt weak, empty. If she could have summoned up the energy she would have shaken like a leaf.

Lance.

“Allegra?”

She heard someone saying her name, but in her head… it was Lance.

“Allegra? Do you remember me?”

Remember? How could she forget?

The last thing she’d ever seen was his face.

“Allegra?” Warm hands settled on her arms, burning her. She was cold. So very cold.

“Allegra? Stellina, talk to me.”

Valerio. His name came to her like a sigh, warming her heart. He was close. Very close.

“Say something, please?”

He was so gentle with her. Caring and sweet. She wanted to answer him, but what was left inside of her heart and mind was a jumble of feelings, fear wrestling the others under for control. Dread was a close second. Dread numbed her heart and slowed her heartbeat, dragging her under.

“Should- should we call her doctor?”

Allegra heard the concern in Natale’s voice and blinked back a tear.

Why wasn’t this behind her?

“Why won’t he stay away?”

Oh God, the words had tumbled out of her, nearly an octave out of her normal range. She was stunned and shocked when her body started to shake, as if it had finally remembered to catch up to the rest of the insanity.

“Hasn’t he taken enough from me?”

She was suddenly tight in the arms of her mate, his gentle hands smoothing her dress around her body. There was an odd expectant silence in the room. She wanted to say something to ease their worry, but she couldn’t speak beyond the knot in her throat. If Lance was the one who had sent the present, he could be anywhere.

“This wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“I know, my love.” Valerio nuzzled his cheek against hers and she breathed in his scent.

The warm spice of his skin soothed her nerves, heated her skin, cleared some of her head.

“I’m taking her to bed.” Valerio’s statement garnered no argument and moments later the door clicked closed behind them and he moved for the bed.

“Wait. Stop.”

He did what she asked, stopping just a second after she asked and waited, listening to her.

“I’d like to take a shower, pl-”

* * *

He didn’t wait for her to finish asking, taking her straight through their bedroom into the bathroom.

Setting her down on the mat, he stepped into the shower and turned on the water, setting her temperatures in the panel.

Once the water was on, falling in a constant shower from the panel above the tile, he turned back to his mate and felt his heart stutter in his chest.

She stood there breathing as if her life depended on the conscious action. In and out, filling her lungs.

“Allegra.” His voice broke with his heart when a single tear slid down her cheek.

“I’m… I’m going to fall apart in a little bit,” she swallowed and then dragged in a breath. “I’ve done this before,” she managed a little ghost of a smile, “I’ll pull myself together afterward. I just... I just need a little help with my zipper.”

He moved around her, feeling the push of his bear. The usually insufferable creature wasn’t interested in arguing with him, they both wanted the same thing.

To be there for her.

He took hold of the zipper pull and felt a rush of relief when she didn’t pull away. There was just a whisper of sound as he opened the back of her dress.

“I’d like to help you.”

He watched her tense and then she reached down, took his hand, and drew it up to her face. She cradled his hand against her face, breathing in his scent. The lines of tension tightening her back eased and loosened as he waited.

“Reading his words,” she told him, her voice soft, quavering, “I feel like he’s touching me.”

His bear wanted blood. He wanted to sink claw into flesh and tear with fang until the man looked nothing like his natural shape. He wanted to scream his rage to the heavens.

But most of all, he wanted to soothe his mate.

“Take off my clothes, Valerio.” Her tone hovered between plea and demand, but he would have answered her with either.

His hands took hold of both sides of her open zipper and slowly pushed the cloth over her shoulders, down her arms, and then dropped it at her feet. His hands reached for the clasp at the back of her bra and flicked that open. He pulled it off and followed it down, hooking his fingers into the waistband of her panties and laid them both at her feet.

She stepped forward, walking toward the sound of the shower. Her steps were stilted but sure. He followed behind her just to make sure she didn’t slip or bump into anything. She’d learned the layout of their rooms so quickly, but she was upset and didn’t need any more hurt than she was already suffering through.

As she stepped under the gentle shower, he watched the sheets of water fall over her amazing body and fought off the wave of hunger that tried to drive him to his knees.

He stood at the edge of the shower and watched her tilt her face up into the gentle rainfall, letting it wash over her.

“You’re so beautiful.”

Valerio hadn’t intended to say a word, but he meant it from the depths of his soul.

“I’m not.”

Her words weren’t meant as a game, asking him to refute her claim. Her words came from the darkness inside of her. A darkness that he knew well. Too well.

“You’re brave, Allegra. You’re so strong.” His shuddered with emotion. “And the way you’ve survived and stepped into the spotlight, only proves how courageous you are.”

“He didn’t want me in the spotlight.” She left her mouth open and caught some of the drops in her mouth, swallowing a moment later. “We performed with each other at Julliard. He played the piano and we were paired together again and again.

“We spent so much time together, it just seemed natural to be… together.”

“You shared your love for music.”

She nodded and then lifted hand to sweep her hair from her face. “A few months before we finished, I was called into my advisor’s office, Lance came with me, we were inseparable at the time.”

Allegra didn’t lower her hand back to her side. Instead, she held it out to him.

He couldn’t deny her. Not then. Not ever.

Stripping off his clothes, Valerio moved under the steady fall of water until he took her hand and pressed it over his wildly beating heart.

“They told me they had been contacted with an opportunity to play in France. Paris, to be exact. Now,” she managed the hint of a smile, “if you had asked me before that day, I would have said Italy would be my choice of perfect destinations.”

His bear nearly purred at the thought of taking her home to Italy, rolling about inside of him like a cat full of milk.

“But the chance to play concerts in Paris?” He heard the dreamy quality in her voice and smiled. “I couldn’t wait.”

He felt the shift in the room, as if the water had suddenly turned cold.

“Lance was thrilled, he was already talking about what sights we would see before our concerts, when they told him that the invitation was for me. Just me.

“He laughed it off. Gave me a hug. Took me back to the apartment. When he took me into the bedroom,” she blushed, her cheeks turning a ruddy red, “I thought we were going to celebrate.

“The first time he hit me, I stumbled back, knocked the lamp off my nightstand, broke my wrist on the frame of the door. He kept yelling at me. How ungrateful I was. He was the one that made our duets sound good. How I was trying to leave him behind. How I didn’t love him enough.

“I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to make him stop. I begged him to stop.”

She lifted her hand, bringing it closer to her forehead where a strand of hair and fallen forward, heavy with water. Valerio brushed the lock back from her face and took her hand in his, adding it beside the first on his chest.

“I tried to remind him that he could still go with me. His parents had already promised to send it to Europe after he’d finished his studies at Julliard.” Her voice was giddy, almost gleeful but he felt the tension in her hands and arms. “I talked about how we’d planned to see Europe together.”

The world seemed to slow down, the warm fall of rain slowing until individual drops sparkled like jewels in the air. The beauty of the moment left him cold when she spoke again.

“So, he told me that I would never get to see Europe.” She drew in a breath, slow and thready. “He took a hold of my hair. Twisted it in his fist. And he threw me into the window.”

He tried to move closer, to take her in his arms, but she held him back for a moment.

“I have a vague memory of his face, reflected in the window, the fury on his face the moment before the impact.

“Right before I felt the pain and heard the window shatter, I had one regret. That I would never see the face of my husband… or my children.” Tears rolled her down her face. “And then I felt the pain and then all I could worry about was living through the nightmare.”

“And you did.” Valerio could only feel thankful in that moment. His mate had gone through hell and had lived through it. That she’d survived all of that pain and still had the ability to love with an open heart. “Now, let me help you to live the life you deserve, my love.”

She shook her head, remaining silent for a moment. “I’ll still never see your face… or our children,” she added, before she found a smile to share with him, “but I’ll still have hugs and kisses enough for all of you.”

“All of us?” He loved hearing the joy returning to her voice. “How many is all?”

“Four?” She shrugged. “Six?” Her laughter was like a caress, stroking all over his skin, turning his hardening erection to heated steel. “Too many?”

“I told you that I would give you whatever you want, Stellina.” He took hold of her hands again, drew them down over his stomach, watching her bite into her lower lip as her fingers bumped down over his abs, tracing through the thickening trail of hair until her fingers touched his rock-hard length. “I’m ready to start when you are.”

She opened her mouth and instead of words, he saw the pink tip of her tongue sweep over her lower lip.

“It’s up to you, my love.” Valerio meant every word. If she wanted to wait for years before he touched her again, he would do what she asked. Having her in his life was enough, more than enough to make him happy. “I just want to make you happy.”

“Well, if that’s that case," she smiled and he could see a little mischievous twist at the corner of her lips, “then love me, Valerio. I want you to touch me… everywhere. Ever since I read his card, I’ve felt like he was touching me. I don’t want to feel him on me anymore. I want to feel you… all over me.”

He couldn’t find the words to tell her how she made him feel, but his bear pushed a growl up through his throat and they saw her smile.

Backing her up against the wall he felt her hands stroke his cock, one following the other from the base to the head, over and over. His hips flexed, the muscles in his backside tightening as he struggled not to thrust into her hands. Her hand swept over his head and he groaned. “I want to be inside of you, Allegra.” She wrapped one hand around the base and the other slipped below to cup him gently in her grasp. “I need to be inside you.”

“Not as much as I need you.”

He took a steadying breath but couldn’t bring himself completely under control. “I will try to be gentle.” He could hear the rough tones in his voice. His bear was just under the surface, pushing hard, demanding they fill her… give her a child… make her happy. He just didn’t want to hurt her. No one would ever hurt her again. “I will try.”

She laughed, her voice a counter-melody to the rhythm of the water falling over them. “If there’s anything I’ve learned from what happened to me, Valerio. I’m not made of glass. You don’t have to be gentle.” She sighed and leaned forward, brushing the tips of her breasts against his chest. Allegra moaned when his next breath brushed his skin against hers. “In fact, I was really hoping you wouldn’t do that at all. Hard. Fast. Until you’re so deep inside me we’ll never be apart.”

He seized her hips, his fingers biting into her flesh as he lifted her against the wall as he stepped between her thighs. Valerio watched her smile as she used a hand to guide him into her body and when she wrapped her arms around his neck he thrust into her in one hard lunge.

Valerio held still for a moment, just in case she had second thoughts. Instead, she wiggled her hips against him and smiled. “I want all of you,” she told him, “now.”

He smiled, happy that she wanted him, even after everything she’d been through, and then he did exactly what she wanted.