Page 28 of Angelo's Vengeance

“Hmm.” The response was noncommittal, and she returned to staring out the window.

I didn’t mention that I’d already arranged for Bacco to have her assistant, Vivienne, in Florence, send all her things. Well, I’d arranged for a plane to pick them up. She might be angry, but I knew she would want to work, and she wasn’t going back. I had a crew working overtime this week at my house, knocking out a wall and building her a studio where she could work from home for the next few months while she recuperated. I may have also had her apartment packed up — another reason for her to be mad. But … this ocean between us was over. It was clear she wasn’t safe on her own.

We were going to have to get married. Engaged to start.

I kept seeing her collapse onto that damn floor, blood staining her dress. I’d never known fear like that, and I’d known a lot of fear. "We’ll get him," I said, more to myself than anyone else.

Theo stirred. "You already said that."

"Doesn’t make it less true."

Her fingers fluttered in her lap, and her hand reached for mine, but she changed her mind at the last moment and withdrew it. I placed my hand over hers, squeezed gently, and then released it, allowing her to pull it back to cradle her arm.

“Do you need a pain pill?” I asked, looking at her carefully. The last thing I wanted was for her to be hurting. I may have been out hunting Renzetti’s goons the last few days, but I had stayed informed about her medical progress. The doctors had called for her to keep up on her pain management.

“Not yet. Soon. Maybe on the plane.” Her head moved in an infinitesimal shake.

I nodded but made a note to remind her. I’d planned to have her lie down anyway. When we arrived, the private jet was fueled and waiting for us. Ilias’s crew had done the prep work for us, and a small contingent of Anthakos and Santelli men remained stationed nearby, keeping watch in case Renzetti attempted anything foolish.

Ilias and I pored over digital maps and communication logs inside the plane. At the same time, Theo rested in one of the plush recliners, declining to lie down until we’dtaken off, mainly because she was stubborn more than anything else.

“I’ll get sick if I’m lying flat when the plane takes off.” Her bottom lip pushed out, making me think about kissing her and sliding my mouth over hers.

Ilias had the nicest plane of all of us, although I’d already complained to him about his flight attendants. I suspected they were all hired by Vaso because they all seemed to think flirting was welcome. I’d already had to tell one of them to keep her hands off me. The girl was like an octopus.

After the plane leveled off, I looked over at Theo. She seemed tired, her mouth pinched in pain. “Piccola, let’s get you settled in the back, okay? Come on, I’ll help you up. Give me your good hand. Slow and steady.”

“I can help her,” Ilias made a move to get to his feet, his eyes shifting from his sister to me as if he might object.

“I’ve got it,fratello.”

She must be in pain because she didn’t even bother to argue; she just reached out her good hand for me to help her up. Trying to keep myself steady so I wouldn’t pull her forward or jerk her from her chair, I made sureto give her upward momentum so she wouldn’t have to do any work. I was worried she would overwork her shoulder muscles that she had to keep still, but I wasn’t sure if I was doing it right.

Moving her towards the suite in the back of the plane, I turned down the bed for her and arranged some pillows in the middle.

“What are you doing?” she asked suspiciously as she sat on the edge of the bed. “This is weird.” She wrinkled her nose, and her brows furrowed.

I busied myself with my task. “Getting some pillows for your arm, of course.” It was a no-brainer. She’d had them at the hospital. I’d just figured she’d need them here, too. The way she was looking at me suggested that I was insane. “What’s weird?” I asked, ignoring the fact that I knew exactly what she meant.

She bit her lip uncertainly. “You taking care of me. It’s strange.”

“Let’s not worry about that right now. I’m going to get you your pain pill and some water.”

When I returned, she was still in the same spot, her head bowed, waiting for me. The bedlooked too big for her, her feet dangling over the edge.

She cupped the pill in her palm and swallowed the water, gazing up at me through those dark lashes framing her expressive eyes. Dark shadows lingered beneath them, and I realized she hadn’t been sleeping well. I thought about asking her if she’d been having any nightmares about the abduction, but I wasn’t sure now was a good time to get into it. She looked so tired. Instead, I said, “Let’s get you lying down.”

I was sweating bullets at the thought of touching her. “Let me know if I hurt you.” The wound was near her collarbone on the left side, but the bullet had caused significant damage to the bone, vascular structures, and tissue. The surgeon said that there wouldn’t be an issue afterwards, but after his horrifying description of the damage, I wasn’t sure I believed him. “I’ll help as you move back.” Sliding one arm under her thighs and one around her waist, I ignored her squeak as I shifted her over as gently as possible.

“I can do it, Angelo.” The protest sounded weak even to me.

“Can’t have you hurting yourself,piccola. Need to heal up.”

My hand slid slowly out from beneath her, watching her every second and feeling the heat of her skin through the thin material of the pajama pants she was wearing. And if she thought I didn’t see the blush in her pretty cheeks, she was mistaken. “If you weren’t hurt,” I let the thought trail off as I leaned a little closer to her mouth. She smelled like flowers and bubblegum — temptation. That’s what I associated her with now.

“But I am. Get off.” Her breath came a little quicker, the pulse fluttering in her throat. The words were entirely unconvincing.

“In a minute.” I made a show of examining her, ignoring the flash of those hazel eyes. Then I added, “I think you owe me a kiss after I took such good care of you.”

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