Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 110824 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110824 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Okay, there are a lot of times that I do feel weak, but I don’t want Victor to see me like that. If he does, whatever relationship we might have would be ruined from the beginning.
“You already know I think you’re one of the strongest women around. That’s not the issue. I don’t want to cause you more pain.”
“Then, don’t do this.”
“Sweetheart, you told me out of your own lips that you wished you were strong enough to get vengeance.”
“Damn it, Victor—”
“I’m doing this, Gia. It’s happening with or without your support, but I can’t lie. I would like you to support me in this. I need to do it. I just need to.”
“I could help,” Sam speaks up.
“The fuck you are. Man, I don’t even know you. What I do know is I don’t like you.”
“I can’t tell you how much I don’t care,” he replies to Victor.
I let out a yell of annoyance. “Will you two stop! Doesn’t what I want matter here? I mean, it does involve me,” I huff.
“No,” they say in unison.
“You’re not working with me,” Victor tells Sam. “Gia is my woman. This is my responsibility.”
“She’s my family. That makes her my responsibility, and I will do whatever I need to do to make her happy,” Sam counters.
At this point, I’m ready to scream. “I’m not anyone’s responsibility. I’m my own person, Having you two talk about me like I’m not pisses me off. Stop it!”
“Whoever hurt you is going to pay, sweetheart. You can fight me, but I’m going to do this,” Victor argues.
“Even if I don’t want you to?”
“Don’t ask me to give this up, Gia,” he says, squeezing my hand. “I love you. This is important to me.”
“Victor, I never saw anyone. There were no witnesses. I wasn’t found until days later. I don’t see how you can find out anything.”
“I might not be able to,” he finally confesses. “I still have to try.”
“If you find something out, we have to discuss it before you do anything,” I finally respond. He grimaces, not looking happy. Victor doesn’t argue, however. “What time are you leaving?”
He rubs the back of his neck. “I have to meet up with the rest of my team in a little bit. I just wanted to come and talk to you beforehand.”
“Darn. And here I was going to invite you to dinner with Angie and me. Hate that you’re going to miss it,” Sam says, holding a wet cloth to his nose which seems to have stopped bleeding. I have no idea when he did that. The world kind of faded away while Victor and I were talking.
“Gia, if he keeps it up, I’m going to kill him.”
“You two are going to have to learn to get along, because I want you both in my life.”
“If he’s so important, where has he been?”
“In Russia,” I explain.
“Well not for the last year. It’s just there’s been some trouble in the family, and I didn’t want to bring my troubles to your doors.”
“Family?”
“Nothing to concern yourself with Vincent,” Sam snipes.
“Victorio,” he growls back. “Although, I’d rather you didn’t bother calling me anything at all and just leave.”
“I just bet, but that’s not going to happen. I’m here for Angie.”
“She’s more than taken care of,” Victor counters.
“Didn’t look like it when I got here.”
“Okay, can we stop this? Victor, you need to leave. Sam, you and I have a lot to catch up on,” I interject, wanting to stop this overgrown pissing match before it gets started.
“Melina is wanting to visit with you. I told Antonio I’d have Sloan bring you over. She’ll be here soon.”
“Who’s Sloan?”
“A new member of my team. You’ll like her. She’s happily married and tougher than any of the men who have watched you before.”
“Victor?”
“Yeah, Kitten?”
“Did you have Zane fired?”
“No,” he laughs. “He’s going on this mission with me. I have to pick who I want to work with when I start my new position. If I’m going to work with Zane, I need to see how he is when shit goes down.”
“And is it?” I ask, suddenly very worried.
“Is what?”
“Shit going down?”
He frowns. “Helena has herself in some trouble. So probably. We’ll get it taken care of though. Sloan is flying in. She’ll be here in a couple hours.”
“Victor, I don’t need or want a bodyguard.”
“I don’t care. I can’t rest if I don’t know you’re okay.”
“Then, you don’t need to worry because I’m here. I can take care of her.” Sam delivers that news with a cocky grin, indicating he knows exactly how much Victor is going to hate that.
“You have got to be shitting me. I don’t even know you. I’m sure not going to trust you with the most important person in my life. Besides, I want someone trained to watch over her.” Victor is back to looking pissed. There’s not much I can do about it. “Sloan can take care of things.”