Page 192 of Creep

“I haven’t heard anything about that.”

Of course he wouldn’t have. The Camorra wouldn’t want the world to know that both the head and the heir were dead, and the Tacchinis were holding onto this information until it would benefit them to expose it.

“So who do you think is going to be the big fish in this ocean now?”

“Why are you telling me this? What do you get out of this?”

“Let’s just say we have a common enemy. You’re better off working with me on this than veering off on your own, and you know that.”

“And I’m supposed to believe you’re not just using me to take down your enemies so you can take over New York? Who’s to say you’re not the bigger monster?”

Oh, he had no idea.

“Me? I’m simply a concerned citizen. I have no need to take over anything.”

He didn’t respond, obviously thinking. “You think I’m supposed to take your word on it?”

I shrugged, pulling out a card with a row of numbers written on it. I threw it to the ground by Keller’s feet, the white of the card standing out in the dark. His head bent down as he took it in.

“A way to contact me,” I said. I walked away, the red dot never disappearing, not until I turned the corner, at least. And despite what Keller said, I knew he would call. His ambition wouldn’t allow him to ignore this opportunity, and he might be wary of me, but he believed me.

I sensed that much, even if I knew he was going to walk away from this meeting and have his men confirm my words.

* * *

A week passed,and Tacchini’s “favors” kept me busy.

And with each call that got me nowhere only ticked up my anger.

It was a fucking week spent away from Lia, considering I usually left early and came home late, a time in which she had already fallen asleep. I know she tried to stay up and wait for me, but sometimes, the hours got to me, and we hadn’t talked all that much, let alone fucked.

How I missed her. Not just the feeling of being inside her, connecting with each other, but I missed just being by her side, having no expectations on us.

The elevator doors pinged open, and I walked inside the apartment, seeing she had left the lamp on for me, like every night since I had been coming home late.

This time, though, she wasn’t in bed like she was supposed to be but fast asleep on the couch, her body angled to one side and her head braced up by her hand. That couldn’t be comfortable, and I knew she would feel that come morning. Silently, I walked over to her, letting my fingers run gently up and down the side of her face before leaning down and pressing a tender kiss on her forehead. Doing what I did, there needed to be a part of me, thehumanpart, that I could turn off at will—or hell, perhaps it no longer existed. Whatever the case might be, it made things easier for me to accept. I knew Theo had a harder time with it than I did, though not too hard.

But looking at her…

She made me want to be a better man. She made me feel almost…regretfulover the fact that I couldn’t be better for her. That I wasn’t sure if my humanity was beaten out of me long ago, and I didn’t know how to get it back, or if I was gone forever, and that was all there was to it.

She deserved better. I knew that. I never claimed to be a selfless man. In fact, I was downright greedy when it came to her. So it didn’t fucking matter that she deserved better. I was never letting her go.

I picked her up in my arms.

She mumbled something in her sleep and turned her head toward my chest, seeking me out. Even when she wasn’t conscious, she still sought me out. I felt something in me soothe from the move.

I paused in my step and took her in for a moment, marveling over how, sometimes, it didn’t feel real that she was right here with me. That it wasn’t anything more than a dream.

I pulled her closer to me and walked over to our bedroom. I gently laid her down on the bed and pulled the blanket over her before quickly washing up and getting ready for bed.

When I climbed back in, I was in nothing but boxer briefs. I pulled her into my arms, feeling her on my bare chest. My heart ticked harshly inside my chest for a quick second before returning to its normal rhythm.

I felt her stir. “You’re back.”

“I’m back,” I said.

“I missed you,” she mumbled sweetly into my chest, her hot breath warming my skin.

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