Page 41 of Her Guardian
I look down at Sarah and brush some hair away from her eyes. Her lips twitch into a smile and she nestles against me.
I never thought I’d have beautiful moments like this. I let the bitterness sour me on the idea, entirely. But maybe it’s possible to cling to this. Massimo did. I never thought he’d run on anything but malice and poison after his wife was murdered. I’m not surprised Erica thought the Morandi family would be better off with someone else in charge. But certainly not Emilio, or her running things until her fucking kid comes of age.
That’s all over now. Massimo is back. The guy who used to come to the Broken Lily to see his best friend and bastard brother. The guy we all knew would be the leader the Morandi family needed after Salvatore finally retired.
If Lea can do that for him, then maybe Sarah can do the same for me. Give me purpose. Give me a reason to get up every damn morning—and an even better reason to go to bed. That’s what I’ve needed for a long fucking time.
I crush out my cigarette, get comfortable with my head against the pillow, and hold Sarah close.
I’m asleep in a matter of minutes.
It’s late in the evening when I wake up, and I startle myself because of the unfamiliar environment, which jostles Sarah awake too. She sits up with a blank stare, then a smile tugs the corners of her beautiful lips.
“That was the best sleep I’ve had in… ever,” she sighs.
“Slept away the entire fucking day,” I mumble, rubbing my eyes as I get my composure. “But damn, you’re right. I’ve needed that for a long time.”
“Now I need a shower,” she groans, pulling away from me. I stare at her gorgeous naked body as she stretches her arms. “I’d ask if you want to join me, but the showerhead is barely tall enough for me. We’d have to aim it straight up.”
“When you’re my size, you get good at squatting,” I sigh as I push myself out of bed.
“Your poor knees,” she winces.
“They’re fine,” I chuckle. “I was on them a long time and they’re not even sore.”
“Hah,” she giggles. “If you hadn’t been holding me so tightly, I wouldn’t have any skin left on mine with as hard as you… fuck.”
I laugh under my breath as I follow her into the bathroom. It’s not an easy fit, but I make it, and I get to put my hands all over her gorgeous body again while we bathe. I make sure her soft, pouty lips get nice and clean, too, by checking them regularly while the water cascades down our bodies.
Still, my knees are grateful when we get out and return to the main part of her hotel room.
“I’m pretty hungry,” Sarah says, taking a hit of her vape.
“Yeah, me too,” I admit, sitting down on the bed and running my hand through my damp hair. “But I really don’t feel like going anywhere.”
“I’m staying for free, and that includes the mini-bar and room service.” Sarah picks up the menu and tosses it to me. “Let’s order something.”
“I feel like I could eat the damn menu,” I say, flipping it open and looking over the familiar items. “I eat this shit all the time, so why not?”
We order enough food to feed a ravenous pride of lions, and she cuddles against me on the bed while we air dry what is left of the dampness from our shower. Once we get a call to let us know the food is on the way, I get dressed, and she slips on a robe. I make sure she’s out of sight before I open the door.
“Oh, Big Boyd!” the employee says. He’s been working at the hotel for years, so he recognizes me, but I have no idea who he is. “Didn’t realize you were staying here. I was bringing room service to a Miss…”
“Me,” I interrupt, then I yank my money clip out of my pocket and peel off a generous stack. “And as far as anyone else is concerned, you haven’t seen Big Boyd at all today. Got it?”
I shove the money in his hand, and he nods, then scurries away.
He works for the family, even if he’s just a hotel employee, so he gets the nice way of being told to keep it to himself. I’d prefer to tell Massimo myself, and while people saw us get on the elevator, that’s about as far as anyone needs to know things went until I get the chance to speak with the boss.
Then I’ll scream it from the top of the fucking Salvalagio.
“Alright, we ordered like we haven’t eaten in a month, so…” I chuckle and start removing the covers from the plates. “Dig in.”
Sarah doesn’t respond, so I look over and see she’s scrolling through her phone. Intently, with panic radiating in her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, tilting my head slightly.
“What the fuck?” Sarah says. “There was a murder in Las Vegas! Several hours ago… What? They’re saying it’s the Mafia Prince Killer! That’s impossible. Arthur Dykstra is in prison!”
