Blood Ties, Love Binds
Page 22
When she pulled away, she could have sworn his eyes shone a little too brightly. “Prego,” Vittorio said, then waved her off.
Cassandra stepped out of the car and when she looked back, his shades were on, his face a blank expression. On an awkward wave, she took off running for the emergency room.
♥∞♥
Everything hurt, especially his head.
Damon opened his eyes and inspected his surroundings, only to see walls passing by quickly. He got the impression he was being moved somewhere, but where? Something was over his mouth, stopping him from saying words he wished he would have voiced earlier.
He tried to search for Cassandra, but didn’t see her. Is she safe?
Steady beeps surrounded him, and words spoken in Italian. Where the hell am I? A man in a white mask grabbed his hand and shot a syringe filled with liquid in his vein.
Damon winced at the bite of the needle and tried to struggle, but instead he fell into a blissful sleep.
♥∞♥
After a painstaking conversation with the nurse on duty, Cassandra was told to wait in the reception area. Damon was in surgery, but she was promised the doctor would come and see her as soon as he was done.
She slumped in a corner chair, curling into herself and resting her head on her knees. Fighting the bad guys seemed like a piece of cake when compared to the long wait ahead. The fact she had no control over what would happen was enough to drive her insane, and her anxiety spiked up a notch.
On a whim, she called Renzo. He picked up despite the time zone difference. “Ciao, bella,” he mumbled, and after a quick calculation she figured it was past two in the morning in Canada.
“Bet you say that to all the girls,” Cassandra teased back – or tried to, but choked on the last word.
Renzo caught on to it, and his voice grew serious. “What’s wrong?”
“In a minute,” Cassandra said. “Can you translate something for me?”
“Sure.”
She fumbled around the words Vittorio spoke, repeating them semi-well. Renzo was quiet for a moment, then said, “It means, blood ties, but love binds better.”
Cassandra stared into nothingness for a few seconds, lost in thought.
“Cass? You still there? What’s going on?”
“Yeah, I…” Cassandra cleared her throat. “I’m good. My mom used to say that…”
Then, culmination of everything, she burst into tears and told Renzo everything.
♥∞♥
“Cass, he’ll be all right.” Renzo moved towards Cassandra, touching her shoulder in a wordless gesture of comfort.
After her original breakdown over the phone, he’d taken a red eye flight and arrived in Italy within hours. He’d been by her side when the doctor announced the original surgery had succeeded, and had stayed vigil over Damon for the two days they’d kept him under observation at the hospital.
Renzo had also supported Cassandra when she’d fought with the hospital, convincing them to release Damon in her care after his vitals had checked out. He didn’t seem to be waking up, and she had a feeling he needed to be in more comfortable quarters – and away from the sterile environment.
They’d set up in the untouched wing of Villa Manzoni, but still Damon hadn’t woken up. Cassandra had been by his side day and night, and a nurse came to check on him periodically. His condition was improved, and even his bullet wounds healed as the days passed by.
The nurse and doctor said the hits to his head contributed to the semi-coma, while his brain swelling reduced. According to them, Cassandra could do nothing but wait.
Despite their assurance it would be a while before Damon awoke, Cassandra refused to move. She’d allowed Renzo to bully her into showering and eating – twice. But she needed to be next to Damon, to make sure he was alive every second of every day until he opened his eyes.
“Cass….” Renzo's tone was concerned. “You should get sleep. No offense, but you look like crap. And you need food. It’s been days since you had anything else but coffee.”
She shrugged, offering a grimace of a smile. “I’ll make you a deal. I’ll eat and sleep when Damon wakes up, okay?”
Renzo shook his head, then muttered something about getting food and walked out of the room. Cassandra reached for Damon’s hand once more, squeezing it in hers. In the large king-sized bed, after days of only intravenous fluids, he seemed pale and thinner.
Tears welled in her eyes, and Cassandra blinked them away. She stood and walked to the window, her gaze getting lost in the expanse of the horizon.
“Cass…”
She whirled around, almost not believing her eyes. “Damon! You’re awake!”
He blinked a few times, then narrowed his eyes as if remembering something. “You threw yourself at me.”
Cassandra waved him off, kneeling by the bed. “Forget that. How are you feeling?”
True to his nature, Damon scowled. “Forget that. You left me behind in a different country, only so you could get yourself nearly killed? Then went and tried to save me, to top it off?”
“Damon…”
“You’re awake!” Renzo walked in with good, unaware of what he’d stumbled into. He grinned, setting his platter on the coffee table and nearing the bed. “Man, it was about damn time!”
Damon tore his gaze from Cassandra and a corner of his mouth lifted in a smile towards the younger man. “Few bullets won’t kill me anytime soon. When did you get here?”
Renzo shared a look with Cassandra. “A few days ago. You’ve been out of it for a while.” When he noticed the tension between them, he started backing away. “Tell you what. I haven’t slept much, so I’m going to go out and find me a nice spot in the shade and pass out. Meantime, you guys can, you know, sort yourselves out.”
“Renzo, wait!” Cassandra’s call went unanswered, as Renzo exited the room and closed the door behind him.
“Cassandra.”
She turned to Damon, biting her lip. For days now, she’d waited for him to wake up – but she hadn’t once considered how things would go, especially given his overprotective side. “I had to get you out of the way, Damon. When that guy had his gun on you… I couldn’t think of another way.”
Rather than yell at her again, Damon only looked her over. With each passing second of silence, Cassandra’s throat felt tighter, and tears threatened.
“Why do you look so tired? And…” His eyes raked her up and down as his frown deepened. “Shit, Cass, when the hell was the last time you ate?”
At the genuine concern in his voice, the tears spilled and Cassandra started sobbing. Damon ripped the needles off him and stood, coming to her. One shoulder was in a sling while the bullet wounds healed, and his entire stomach was bandaged. None of that stopped him from wrapping his free arm around her.
“Hush, love.” Pulling her tighter against him, Damon inhaled the sweet smell of her hair. “I’m sorry, I was so worried for you… It came out wrong. I should be thanking you for saving my life.”
“Damon, I’m sorry,” Cassandra whispered in his chest. “For this entire mess. I love you, and I never meant to put you in da—”
He stopped her from apologizing by pressing his lips to hers. Cassandra sighed at the feel of his mouth on hers, as if a part of her had finally been set right. She gave in to the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck.
When Damon pulled away, he still didn’t let go, instead burying his head in the side of her neck. “This is what’s been missing, for so fucking long it feels like forever.”
His grip tightened enough to cut off her air supply, and Cassandra choked out a laugh. “Need to breathe!” Damon didn’t let go, instead started walking backwards until they both fell on the bed.
Since he still held onto her waist, he pulled Cassandra half on top of him, then forced her head to lie down on his chest. “I don’t care what excuse you pull, you’ve obviously not been sleeping or eating right. So now that I’m awake, I’m going to remedy that. Sleep.�
��
When Cassandra gave in and snuggled closer, she was rewarded by a kiss on her forehead. Between her exhausted body and Damon’s steady heartbeat under her ear, Cassandra’s eyelids grew heavy within seconds.
As she gave in to sleep, her last thought was, He’s safe. He’s alive. And he’s mine.
♥ Epilogue ♥
Two weeks later…
Damon glanced at the wide expanse of ocean, and wiggled his toes in the creamy sand. As inviting as the water was, the girl by his side made it impossibly hard to leave.
He shifted on the beach towel and moved on his stomach, crawling to the shade where Cassandra was lying down napping. Dressed in nothing but a red bikini, her skin a healthy golden, she was as alluring as Venus herself.
He ran a hand down her back, smiling when she mumbled something in her sleep. Thanks to a good regimen of food and the type of exercise that didn’t require a gym, Cassandra had recovered her vigour – as had he.
Barely days after waking from his coma, Damon had met the man whose resort they were currently using – Vittorio. The mobster had offered them some time away from reality, and after a call to Derek to ensure his business would be in good hands, Damon hadn’t hesitated.
Where life would take them, he didn’t know. But he planned to spend it by Cassandra’s side, enjoying each moment as they came.
Unable to resist the temptation further, Damon bent his head and started kissing down her back. Cassandra moved under him, shifting from a deep sleep to a semi-awake slumber. Her whimpers turned into soft sounds of desire, and he chuckled against her skin.
The girl was his, and he’d spend eternity making her happy.
She’s safe. She’s alive. And she’s mine.
Dear reader,
Thank you for reading my novel, Blood Ties, Love Binds. This baby was a few years in the making. I originally started it off when I was still in high school, and the story took a backseat for a while to other books. When I finally got back into it, I’d learned that I’d changed as a person. And, because Cass has a lot of my traits, this meant she had to, as well.
I hope you found some comfort in her strength. What I really wanted to communicate was that a woman can take care of herself without a man to come save her. But at the same time, there’s something to be said for the compromise we get into when we fall in love
If you enjoyed this story, please leave a review at your favourite retailer.
Cheers,
Alexa
About the author
Alexa Whitewolf was born in Dracula’s country, Romania, a fact which added onto her already creative imagination. These days, she can be found in a Starbucks or with a Starbucks coffee, typing away or writing by hand her next novel.
When not at the local Starbucks, Alexa is hard at work trying to get her two furry canines, Achilles and Zeus, to stop digging holes in her backyard, while enjoying nature with her husband
Follow her blog and read more at www.alexawhitewolf.com
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