Page 248 of The Villain We Tempt

I grin and flip him off as we navigate across the inky black water, surrounded by the hazy, moonlit fog. When we’re about five minutes out from the cliffs, I kill the engine and tie two cinderblocks to Nacho’s belt loops.

There’s a dull splash as we heft him over the side. The cinderblocks plunge in next, and in seconds, Nacho’s body sinks beneath the surface and fades away.

“Hey, Ronan…”

“Just you and me, brother,” he says quietly. “And Galina, I guess. I don’t think anyone else needs to know about this one.” His face darkens as he nods his chin at the waves that just swallowed Nacho Castellano. “Not with that fucker's family.”

This isn’t going to just be forgotten about, of course. The Castellanos are one of the most powerful cartel families in the world, and there is a less than zero chance they won’t react violently when they find out their son and heir is missing.

But the cinderblocks will keep his body at the bottom long enough that even if it does float free at some point, the ocean and marine life will have erased any possible chance of knowing what actually happened to him. Plus, hedoesstill have that bottle of alcohol in his pocket, and if his body is ever discovered, that’ll paint a pretty good picture.

“Just the three of us,” I agree. “No need to involve Achilles or Drago.”

He nods, his brow furrowing as we look into the inky darkness splashing against the side of the boat.

“Hey, Loch.”

“Yeah.”

“She worth it?”

I smile as I crank the outboard motor back on. It sputters and churns to life as I turn us around and head back toward the boathouse.

“She’s wortheverything.”

Galina’snot in bed when I get back to my room. I automatically tense, my pulse spiking wildly before I hear the shower running in my ensuite bathroom.

The held air in my lungs exhales and the tension in my body releases.

She’s okay.

But when I poke my head into the bathroom to check on her, I hear soft sobs. She’s standing facing the water, her palms against the tiled wall and her shoulders shaking as she trembles.

I shed my clothes in seconds. Galina doesn’t turn when I open the glass shower stall door and step in behind her, but when I wrap my arms around her body, she unclenches a little. She drops her hands from wall and turns to look up at me with tearful eyes.

“I—Idid that,” she rasps, her face white. “I’m responsible for?—”

“No,” I growl as I reach up to cup her face, stroking my thumb over her jaw. “You’re not responsible for anything. That was yousurviving. You chose tofight, and you don’t ever have to apologize for that.”

Her brow knits, her gingery red hair plastered to her cheeks as she looks up at me with so much vulnerability in her eyes.

“Is…is he…”

“He’s gone,” I murmur quietly. “Ronan and I took care of it.”

She chews on her lip. “Is…I mean, will anyone ever?—”

“No, baby,” I tell her as I slide my hand around her waist and pull her close, smiling softly as I lift her gaze to mine. “This ended tonight, and it won’t ever be coming back. Least of all to you.”

She lets loose a breath I swear she’s been holding for an hour. Her whole body crumples against mine, her shoulder sagging, choking out a tired whimper of elation against my chest.

“Hey, Lochlan,” she says, smiling a crooked smile at me. “Could I stay here tonight? With you?”

“I don’t think you’ll ever be staying anywhere without me again, little villain,” I murmur as I pull her closer, lower my mouth, and kiss her softly.

“Can we…” Her brow knits. “I mean…” She takes a breath and then exhales, looking up into my eyes as the water streams down her cheeks. “No more masks, maybe? I don’t mean online, but?—”

“You asking if I’m ready to tell people we’re awe, little villain?” I grin. “Baby, I’m going scream it from the rooftops and tattoo it on my fucking forehead.”