Chapter 30 Chapter Thirty
Luciano’s POV
I didn’t realize how tightly I’d been holding myself together until Kamari fell asleep.
Her breathing evened out slowly, her lashes resting softly against bruised skin, her fingers still wrapped around mine like she was afraid I’d disappear if she let go. I stayed exactly where I was, afraid that if I moved even an inch, she’d wake up and everything would shatter again.
The machines hummed quietly. The room smelled like antiseptic and something faintly floral—probably whatever soap the nurses used. But beneath all of that, I could still smell her. That familiar warmth. That fragile strength that shouldn’t exist in someone who’d been through what she had.
She shouldn’t want me…She shouldn’t trust me…And yet… here she was.
I brushed my thumb lightly over her knuckles, barely touching, just enough to reassure myself she was real. Alive.
I had never felt fear like this, not once in my entire life. But the thought of losing her? That nearly broke me.
Her lashes fluttered suddenly, and my chest tightened. She shifted slightly, wincing as pain pulled her back toward consciousness.
“Easy,” I murmured. “Don’t rush it.”
Her eyes opened slowly this time, hazy but focused. They found me immediately. “You’re still here,” she whispered.
I huffed a quiet breath. “You sound surprised.”
“I thought…” She swallowed. “I thought you might leave once I fell asleep.” I leaned closer, my voice dropping. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Her lips parted slightly, her gaze dropping to my mouth before flicking back to my eyes. The air between us changed—thickened, charged with something neither of us wanted to name.
“I keep thinking this is a mistake,” she said softly. “Feeling this way about you.” I tilted my head. “Feeling what way?” Did she hit her head hard against the floor or something?
She hesitated, then met my gaze head-on. “Like I want you.”
The honesty hit me like a punch.
My jaw tightened, my pulse hammering. “Kamari…”
“I shouldn’t,” she rushed on, her voice trembling. “You’re dangerous. You scare me. And I hate that my body forgets all of that when you’re close.”
I stood slowly, looming over her bed, careful not to touch her—yet. “You think you’re the only one fighting this?” I asked quietly.
Her breath hitched.
“I’ve spent days telling myself I shouldn’t look at you,” I continued. “That I shouldn’t want you. That I should walk away and pretend you don’t exist.”
I leaned closer, my hand bracing on the mattress beside her. “And every time you look at me like that,” I added, “I fail.”
Her throat bobbed as she swallowed.
“Luciano…” she whispered. I stopped inches from her face, close enough to feel her breath, close enough to feel the heat between us.
“Tell me to stop,” I said lowly. “And I will.”
She searched my face, fear and desire colliding in her eyes. “I don’t want you to,” she said.
That was all it took.
I captured her lips with mine—slow, controlled, nothing rushed. Just pressure. Just heat. Just a kiss that said I’ve wanted this longer than I should.
She gasped softly into my mouth, her fingers curling into my shirt as if instinct took over. I deepened the kiss carefully, mindful of her injuries, letting it burn instead of consume.
Her response shattered my restraint.
She kissed me back—tentative at first, then with hunger, her lips moving against mine like she was afraid this moment would vanish if she didn’t hold onto it tightly enough.
I pulled back just enough to rest my forehead against hers.
“This doesn’t change what you’ve been through,” I murmured. “And it doesn’t erase the danger.”
“I know,” she whispered. “But it does mean something,” I continued. “To me.”
Her fingers slid up my chest slowly, stopping over my heart. “I can feel it,” she said quietly. I covered her hand with mine, pressing it there firmly. “Good. Because that’s where you are now.”
The door suddenly opened.
Kamari stiffened instantly, pulling her hand back like she’d been burned. A nurse stepped in, her eyes widening briefly before she cleared her throat. “Visiting hours are over.”
I straightened immediately, stepping back. “I’ll leave.”
Kamari looked at me, something unreadable flickering across her face…disappointment, maybe… or relief.
I bent down, brushing my lips against her forehead instead. “Rest,” I murmured. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.” She nodded softly, watching me like she didn’t want me to go.
As I walked out, my phone vibrated.
A message from Jasper.
“She’s secured. Waiting for your orders.”
My jaw hardened. The softness I felt in that room vanished the moment the door closed behind me.
Kamari had survived. Now it was time to make sure no one ever hurt her again.
And Joselyn? She was going to learn what it meant to touch something that belonged to me.
I stood at the end of the corridor outside Kamari’s room long after the nurse left, my back pressed against the cold wall, my head tipped forward as I stared at the floor like it might give me answers.
I hadn’t planned that kiss.
Hell, I hadn’t planned any of this.
I’d walked into that hospital ready to burn the world down, and somehow I’d walked out shaken by the way her lips fit against mine like they’d been waiting.
That scared me more than any enemy ever had.
My phone vibrated again. Jasper: She’s asking for you.
I froze.
Asking… for me? Before I could respond, another message followed. Jasper: She won’t sleep. Keeps saying your name.
Something tight and unfamiliar wrapped around my chest.
I pushed off the wall and turned back immediately, ignoring the nurse’s earlier warning, ignoring everything except the pull dragging me back to her room.
When I slipped inside, Kamari was awake again, propped slightly against the pillows, eyes searching the door the moment it opened.
They softened when she saw me.
“You came back,” she said quietly. I didn’t answer. I just walked to her bedside and sat down again, close enough that our knees almost touched.
“You shouldn’t be awake,” I said. She shrugged faintly. “Couldn’t sleep.”
“Why?”Her gaze dropped to my hands. “Because every time I close my eyes, I remember the dungeon.” Then she looked back up at me. “And every time I open them, I want to make sure you’re real.”
That did something violent to my control.
I reached out without thinking, brushing my thumb gently along the inside of her wrist, feeling her pulse jump under my touch.
“I’m real,” I said lowly. “And I’m not leaving.”
Her breath caught. She leaned forward just a little, hesitant. “Can you stay until I fall asleep?”
I nodded once. “As long as it takes.”
She lay back slowly, watching me like she was memorizing my face. When her eyes finally drifted shut again, her fingers curled around mine—tight, possessive, like she was claiming me in her own quiet way.
I stayed.
Because somewhere between blood-stained stairs and a hospit
al bed, Kamari had become more than a responsibility.
She had become my weakness.
And God help anyone who tried to use that against me.