Page 87 of Ruthless

She deserves a life that will treat her kindly. An easy life. A comfortable one. Coffee on a wraparound porch and weekends spent at a farmer’s market. Giggles on rainy mornings and leisurely lovemaking late into the night.

I can’t give her that, and even if I could, I would never damn her in such a way. Love is a weakness, and a man too weak to protect his own is destined to see them buried. I refuse to end up like my father, and hell will freeze over before I let Sara share Dulce’s fate.

Tenderly, I claim her lips again, running my hands up her slick body, teasing her breasts and the sweet V between her legs. I can’t reveal who I am to Sara because I’m still trying to figure that part out myself. All I know is that when I’m with her,thisis the only man I want to be.

Chapter 35

Sara

Strident ringing yanks me out of a dead sleep. Once I reorient myself to my surroundings, the sudden tension in my muscles eases.

After our shower last night, Dante and I conked out in one another’s arms, too exhausted by the day’s events for much else. It’s the first time we’ve spent the night together and done nothing more than spoon.

Even so, Dante seems a little more distant. He no longer treats me like a prisoner, but he’s also not letting me in. And while I told him I loved him with no expectations, my chest still ached when he didn’t repeat the words back. Lying beside him in his bed should have provided comfort, but instead, nightmares plagued me. In my dreams, I’m tied to Dante’s chair on the fifth floor while he rips out pieces of my heart. When I sag in my chains, still begging for his affection, he just sneers in disgust and walks away.

My stark loneliness tightens my chest even now. Relieved to be saved from my own subconscious, I fall back onto Dante’s lush pillows with a groan as the phone rings again.

With a sigh, Dante kisses the top of my head before sitting up. The early morning chill replaces his body heat, and I huddle beneath the black feather-down comforter.

His query is raspy with sleep. “What?”

If I close my eyes, I can almost imagine what it would be like to wake up next to him like this every morning. Without phones blasting us out of our dreams, maybe he’d roll over and bite my neck, dragging his teeth down the valley of my breasts and past my stomach. Then he’d burrow under the sheets, part my thighs, and have me for breakfast.

I sigh mournfully. Despite the man sitting right next to me, the daydream has never felt so far away. Dante may not hate me anymore, but I’m painfully aware of the fact that I declared my love to him last night only to be met with silence.

When I flip onto my side, I can read the tension in his bare shoulders. Alarm shivers over me as I prop myself onto an elbow. Noting my concern, Dante shifts the phone so we can both hear the caller.

“…Jeremy this morning when he came into the office. It’s all over the SilverTech security feed, and our people are working overtime to wipe the footage and track down anyone who might have seen it. The building has been cleared out, but we’ll only be able to contain this for so long before someone calls the cops.”

I cover my mouth with my hand while my heart pummels my ribs. Jeremy’s in danger. This is what I’ve feared all along. Dante meets my eyes with a silent plea to remain calm as he pushes the caller for more information. “What does he want?”

The other man laughs as if he finds the question ridiculous. “You, of course. He plans on making the Council national news unless you come and talk to him. Now, Argento.”

Enzo.The man on the phone has to be referring to Enzo. We know the man’s been trailing us because he proved as much at the museum. He probably also followed us to SilverTech whenwe met Jeremy for lunch. Marco’s men are stationed outside our apartment in Brooklyn, so that only leaves the office as the point of contact.

“I’m on my way.” Dante’s already getting out of bed before he ends the call, and I follow suit, throwing on the clothes I left on the floor. There’s still blood on them from Dante’s embrace the night before, but I don’t have time to change. I jerk my jeans on and fasten them, spinning toward the door just as Dante blocks my way.

“You’re not coming.”

My mouth pops open, and I scoff. “The hell I’m not! He’s my brother!”

I attempt to shove him aside, but, of course, the big brute is immovable. I skirt him instead while my panicked thoughts scatter.

Shit, shit, shit.

This is all my fault.

If it weren’t for me, Jeremy wouldn’t be in danger right now.

I’m halfway across the room when Dante snatches me by the waist and hauls me up and over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

“Let me go!” I drive my elbow into his back once, twice, and twist my body until I’m coiled around his head like a boa constrictor. The last time I practiced the handy little maneuver he taught during our lessons, we were a little more…naked. Dante curses under his breath and nearly drops me, but I don’t let up. With a growl, I flail and bite and scratch until he finally wrestles me onto the floor and onto my stomach, my arms behind my back, my face pressed against the hardwood.

“Your training is proving effective, at least.”

Straining, I jerk my wrists, but nothing happens. I kick my legs out uselessly, and in frustration, I knock my head on theground. Dante’s free hand appears to cushion my skull from further abuse, and the slow breath I release contains the last of my patience.

“We’re wasting time.” I practically spit the reminder, but instead of letting me go, Dante merely grunts.