Page 29 of Heart's Temptation
“Which branch?” I managed to squeak before I lost my voice completely.
“Why does it matter?”
I did my best to clear my throat. “Please.”
I didn’t know what the please meant other than it being a plea for an answer. But I already knew what he was going to say. Still when he said, “The Éannas,” my fragile control broke completely, and I felt myself falling toward the floor, only to be scooped up at the last possible second by strong arms.
“Niki!” Gio’s concerned voice penetrated through the fog in my brain.
“Marko, carry her to the clinic room.” Gaetano’s voice, and then nothing.
I blinked my eyes a few times before they finally fluttered open. Gio stood to one side, his expression tense. Marko on the other was gripping my hand stood looking concerned. “She’s awake,” he commented, letting out a shuddering breath.
Tano appeared from behind the patient curtain. “How are you feeling, Nicolette?”
I swallowed. How the hell did I end up in the private hospital of the Vitale mansion? It all came back in a rush. I attempted to sit up, but Gio placed a hand on my chest.
“Stay. I don’t want you getting dizzy.”
Gabriella appeared, standing with Tano wearing a large smile. “You’re awake. Here, have some water.”
Marko held my head and fed me water in small sips. Tano flashed a light in my eyes and told me to follow it side to side and then up and down. He checked my blood pressure and other vitals before pronouncing me stable.
“Gaby and I will go and look over the lab results. If there are any concerns, we’ll let you know.”
The pair left and then there were three. Gio’s thumb ran gentle circles over the back of my hand, while Marko smoothed back the stray tendrils of hair that had fallen over my face. I wished I could freeze this moment, but I needed to tell them once and for all about what happened.
“I have something to confess.” My gaze found Gio’s. “Please promise me you won’t do anything stupid when I tell you.”
His eyes narrowed. “First, I don’t do anything stupid, Niki, and second, I decide what actions I take, not you.”
“I won’t tell you if you don’t promise. You must promise you’ll hear what I have to say and if you feel the need to do something, you’ll consult Romeo first.” I gulped down the bile rising in my chest. I’d never asked for a promise from Gio before, and prayed he’d take it in the way it was meant— with love.
“Jesus, Niki, you're making this sound like World War Three.”
A tear leaked from the corner of my eye. “It kinda is. Do you remember Liam Kelly?”
Gio’s eyes turned black. I shifted my gaze to Marko. “Promise you won’t let him get himself killed.”
Marko smiled; his entire demeanor had shifted. “Don’t you worry little girl, I got this.” His words of assurance were what I’d needed to hear.
I more than owed them the truth, but it was hard to let go and confess.
“I’m afraid. This secret I’ve been keeping…” I gulped and took a few breaths. “Has been the hardest burden I’ve ever carried.”
“Niki,” Gio said softly, “we love you too, always have and always will. If it helps, then I promise I won’t be rash and endanger you any more than I already have.”
I could no longer hold back the waterworks. “It’s not me I’m afraid for, it’s you, Marko and the entire Vitale family. If I tell you this, it could turn into something even you can’t control, and I could never live with myself knowing I was responsible for bad things happening to the people I love.”
I dropped my eyes not wishing to see the love I felt for the two men who had stolen my heart a long time ago not reciprocated.
“We understand,” Marko soothed, “and we’re ready to hear whatever you have to say, tesorina.”
I felt like I was about to leap off a bridge and prayed that when I landed someone would be there to catch me.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Gio