Page 154 of Savior

I open my mouth to say no, but Sloane pats my hand. “We’d love to.”

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

SLOANE

Brynne and Ardesia work together in the kitchen, making pasta and red sauce for the four of us, along with a salad and a side of bread. The house smells delicious as I sip my wine and listen to the music Brynne plays in the living room.

I’m still reeling from the news about Myra, but I’m glad to have all the pieces connected. I’m angry and feel so betrayed by her I can’t bear to think about it for too long because I’ll likely find her and drag her back here for theGrim Reaper of New Yorktie-up and torture, and I’m not that kind of person.

Something deep down in my marrow wants me to be, though.

I’ve had so many people shit on me in my life that I just want to get back at them for once.

“You alright?” Luca asks, lowering his hand to move my hair over my shoulder as he looks down at me from beside the chair.

I look up into his deep, dark eyes and smile, feeling contentment expand and spread through my chest.

“As good as expected. My best friend tried to sell me to save herself. My entire life has been me trying to survive against all the odds stacked against me. And then she goes and does that? I have half a mind to?—”

He shakes his head, his lips shifting into a thin grimace. “Don’t let vengeance take up in your heart, Sloane. It’ll root itself there like a weed until its putrid vines have infiltrated your soul so deep that it’s all you can think about.”

I bite my cheek. “Is this Father Russo telling me, or…”

“This is the man who loves you telling you,” he says, crouching down and gingerly laying his hand on my knee.

It feels as if it weighs a thousand pounds, though.

“Father Russo is no more,” he adds.

I’m still stuck on his words, and my heart races wildly.

“I know, and I’m still sad about that. I ruined a disciple of the lord,” I mutter, feeling the weight of guilt like a hammer through my chest.

“You didn’t ruin me, Sloane. My purpose shifted. I thought I lived one life whenHehad other ideas for me. None of this would’ve happened if it wasn’t meant to.”

I smile at the thought, rubbing my thumb over his cheek as I cup his face. “That’s a nice thought.”

He leans into my touch, his answering grin filled with contented satisfaction.

“It’ll be hard to speak to her again, but I know I must. She has to know that I know,” I finally say, breaking our bubble of comfortable silence.

He nods. “It’ll help you move on, and you need to move on. No matter how hard it’s going to be.”

“I love you,” I tell him, nearly whispering, the words heavy with ardent importance.

“I love you, too. More than words or actions could ever express.”

We sit together for what seems like forever, staring into one another’s eyes, drinking in the moment.

“Dinner,” Ardesia says, making me jump.

Luca helps me to my feet and leads me into the dining room, where we have a good time with friends, eating, talking, and laughing as the hours pass and the night drawls on.

When we’re leaving, Ardesia slips something into Luca’s pocket, telling him to look at it when he’s ready, and my curiosity is peaked.

When we’re securely in the car and headed home, Luca digs it out and scoffs.

“What? What is it?” I ask, reaching for the card.

---