The Moral Dilemma: Chapter 31

I CREEP my eyes open as the sun rises in the sky. Raf is still fast asleep, his arms tightly wrapped around me. Smiling like a fool, I allow a moment to take him in.

Hovering my fingers over his face, I trace his features, marveling once more at his beauty and the fact that he is all mine.

“I love you,” I whisper as I lean to lay a kiss on his cheek. He mumbles something in his sleep, but he doesn’t wake up.

Not wanting to bother him, I slip out of his arms and head to the river to clean myself. After all, we still have to resume our physical relationship, and I want to make sure I’ll be clean when that happens.

Nearly bursting with happiness, I skip around like a kid as I walk to the river. Once I get there, I take off my clothes, but leave on the bandages on my arm and wrist. When I’m fully naked, I slowly dip my toes into the water, getting used to its temperature before submerging myself whole.

The river isn’t very deep, nor is the current very fast. As I walk to the middle of the stream, the water reaches my waist. To ensure my entire body is properly cleaned, I dunk my head under, massaging my scalp and relaxing for the first time in forever.

“NOELLE!” Raf’s thunderous voice startles me as I jump out, just in time to see him sporting a crazed expression as he runs toward me.

My eyes widen, and my heart plummets in my chest. For a moment, I’m scared that he’s angry again at me, and I freeze in place as hopelessness overtakes me.

“Noelle!” he calls my name again, stopping just as he reaches the shore.

He’s breathing hard, his chest moving up and down as he bends, resting his hands on his knees.

“You scared me,” he rasps. “I woke up and you weren’t there. You scared me.”

“Raf?” I blink, forgetting all about my nakedness as I take a step toward him.

“You’re fine,” he sighs. “God, you scared me,” he repeats.

“Why?” I dare whisper.

He doesn’t have to answer, though. The look in his eyes is enough to let me know what he’d been thinking.

I shake my head at him effusively.

“That was in the past when I thought you were gone. My son had just died and I thought you were lost to me too. I didn’t have anything else to live for. Now I do. I have . I’m not going to try anything like that again, Raf. Please believe me.”

He closes his eyes, releasing a relieved breath. When he opens them again, he gives me a brilliant smile as he brings his hands to his shirt, unbuttoning it and throwing it to the ground. His pants are next, until he’s standing naked in front of me.

“Your bandage. You took it off.” I point to his chest.

He doesn’t reply, simply threading the water on his way toward me.

“I’m fine. It’s just a bruise,” he says. “Trust me. I’ve taken enough beatings to know my body.”

“And that breaks my heart even more,” I whisper.

“Don’t think about that. It’s all in the past.” He forces a smile.

“The past is still with us, Raf. You were right that I never properly coped with it. But you haven’t either.” I make the courage to approach the topic. “You’re just as scarred by your captivity as I am by what happened at the hacienda.”

He turns his head, gazing into the distance.

“Maybe you’re right,” he sighs. “Maybe I’ve been avoiding it all along because I knew how much it would affect me if I dwelled on it.”

“You know you never have to be ashamed of anything when you’re with me.”

“I know.” He nods, a faraway look in his eyes. “But I think am ashamed of myself.”

I bite my lip as I try to gauge what’s going through his mind. There’s pain reflected in his features, but there’s more too…

“We can do it together.” I smile. “One small step at a time. We’ll heal together.”

“Together,” he repeats, his lips curling up. “I like the sound of that.”

I can’t help but beam at him, purely lost in his gaze. This is what I’ve been dreaming about all along. Him, me, and the simplicity of just being together, all alone in the vastness of the world. I don’t care about comforts or luxuries as long as we can be like this, two halves of a whole touching, caressing, and finally uniting back into one.

“I think we both need to prioritize our mental health when we go back,” I suggest. “Would you be open to…” I pause, licking my lips as I study his features.

“To?”

“Couples therapy,” I blurt out, knowing it’s now or never.

His brows pull up, surprise written all over his face.

“I think it would help us a lot,” I hurry to add. “We’ve been through so much, and we’ve both been hurt in various ways. I never want us to fight again, and I don’t even want to entertain the thought that there might come a time when you will resent me for what happened.”

“Noelle… Wow.” His eyes widen. “Of course I’d be open to it. In fact, I’m proud of you for suggesting that. I think it will help us navigate the painful memories.” He gives me a warm smile.

“I’m happy you think so,” I whisper, suddenly bashful.

My eyes are at the same level to his chest, and so far I’ve done a great job of avoiding to look lower, not wanting to undermine our conversation by making things sexual.

But as my eyes dip lower, and lower, I gulp down. He’s already ready for me.

It’s been so long… God, but it’s been long.

The last time we were together, I was so filled with disgust for myself that I cried myself to sleep that night.

His thumb tips my chin up as he gazes lovingly at me.

“You’re so beautiful,” he confesses, his raspy voice sending shivers down my body. “So mine.”

I nod. “Only yours, Raf.”

I cannot fathom a reality where I would not be his. Not with how much I love and desire him.

His lips skim my neck as he slowly moves up, kissing my jaw, my cheeks, my eyes and my forehead. His breath mingles with mine as he stops a razor’s edge away from my lips.

“I’ve missed you, pretty girl,” he tells me, his voice full of longing. “I’ve missed you far more than it should be normal to miss someone.”

“No.” I shake my head. “There’s no normal between you and me, Raf. There’s only us. You’re part of me, here,” I say as I take his hand and place it above my breast, right over my heart. “You’re the other half of my soul. Just like I’m yours.”

His lips pull up, watching me with a tenderness that fills my heart.

“Kiss me,” I urge him. “Come back home.”

He doesn’t need to be told twice as he fits his lips over mine in the sweetest, most heartwarming kiss. Every piece clicks into place as I find all my worries washed away by the currents of the river and his tight embrace.

Licking the seam of my lips, he deepens the kiss, bringing me closer to him—naked skin against naked skin.

A low moan escapes me as I dig my fingers into his shoulders, holding onto him and letting him consume him from the inside out.

“You were my first kiss too,” I whisper as I draw back. “I saved all my firsts for you, Raf.

of them.”

“Fuck,” he groans. “You’re not making this easy on me. I wanted to take it slow, worship your body…” he trails off, his ardent gaze zoning in on my breasts. “But I’m so fucking hard just looking at you. To hear you say that… Ah, Noelle. My pretty, pretty girl. You mess with my head so badly,” he chuckles, almost to himself.

“I don’t want slow,” I fire back. “I don’t want you to try to be anything you’re not, or do anything you don’t want to. Just feel, Raf. Let yourself go and feel. Take me as if this were our last moments on Earth. Take me as if you’re suffocating if you’re not inside me. Take me. Claim me. Own me. I’m all yours.”

He doesn’t wait to be told twice. Grabbing my ass, he hauls me up his body and I immediately wrap my legs around his waist. With an urgency I’ve long dreamed of, he takes us back to our makeshift bed, carefully laying me down before stepping back to look at me.

“You have no idea how beautiful you are to me, Noelle,” his words are full of awe as he peruses my body, his gaze caressing every little inch of skin.

My nipples tighten, sending a tingle down my spine. Cupping one breast, I spread my legs for him to see how wet I am, dipping one finger between my lips and coating it in my arousal.

“And have no idea how many times I dreamed of this even before we met,” I confess. “I would touch myself,” I say as I circle my clit, “and I’d imagine it was your touch—your big hand between my legs, your thick fingers fucking me.”

“Fuck,” he curses, his pupils expanding just as his lusts reaches a new peak. He watches me languidly all the while gripping his cock in his fist and squeezing tight. “Tell me more. What else did you imagine?”

“That you would sneak into my room at night and ravage me in my bed,” I say breathlessly, all those forbidden fantasies from before coming to the light. “I’d imagine you would steal me away and have your wicked, wicked way with me.”

“God, Noelle. Keep talking,” he rasps.

“That day,” I say as I dip one finger lower, circling my entrance before slipping it inside of me, “I was ready to give myself to you. All I wanted was to feel your hands on my body, your lips on mine. Oh, Raf! All I wanted was to feel you as close to me as humanly possible.”

He closes his eyes as he breathes hard, almost as if he were in pain.

“To think that we wasted so much time, pretty girl…”

“No.” I shake my head. “We didn’t waste it. We were just finding our way to each other. Maybe it wasn’t the smoothest road, but all of our hardships brought us here—together.”

Before he can say another word, I get to my knees, bringing my finger to his mouth and smearing my arousal on his lips.

He catches my hand, gripping it tightly as he wraps his lips around my fingers, sucking it deeply as he stares into my eyes.

“So sweet,” he speaks low in his throat. “I missed your taste on my tongue.”

I flutter my lashes at him.

“And I missed your mouth on me,” I retort saucily. But he takes my playful words as a challenge as he flips me onto my back, nestling his shoulders between my legs.

“Don’t you worry, pretty girl. I aim to make up for the lost time.” He winks at me before he gives me a thorough lick.

“Fuck,” I moan, arching my back.

“You know this is my favorite place,” he adds, licking me languidly.

“Oh, trust me, I know,” I half laugh, half whimper as he nibbles on my clit.

He’s always loved going down on me, and though I have no doubt he genuinely enjoys the taste of me, I know he gets the biggest high from making me come. If it were up to him, he’d be between my legs twenty-four seven, making me come once every minute. Alas, my body isn’t made for that—unfortunately.

“That tickles,” I giggle as he nuzzles his face on my inner thigh.

He has a few days’ worth of stubble, leaving a slight burn behind as he kisses my skin.

“Does it?” he asks mischievously. “What about this?” he asks, this time purposefully tickling me with his stubble before blowing hot air on my flesh.

“You’re not playing fair,” I laugh.

“Haven’t you heard? Nothing is fair in love or war.” He raises a brow at me.

I shake my head, still laughing.

God, I missed this—the easygoing camaraderie that we’ve always had and the way we can be entirely comfortable with each other.

“Your pussy’s glistening,” he says, his voice dripping with satisfaction. “So pretty and so wet.”

Instinctively, I clench my muscles, more moisture gushing out of me.

“You have that effect on my body, Raf. I had my first orgasm picturing it was you touching me,” I whisper. “You just have to be close to me and my body is primed for yours.”

“Let me see,” he states, spreading my legs wider. Bringing one finger between my folds, he caresses me softly, his hot breath meeting my wetness and making me shiver.

“Fuck me,” he rasps. “You have the prettiest little pussy, and it’s all mine. All fucking mine.”

My eyes widen in surprise when he wraps his lips around my clit, sucking on it. My hands go to his hair, urging him on as he masterfully brings me on the brink of orgasm. But then he stops. He fucking stops.

“Not yet.” He smiles cheekily as he slides up my body. “I want to feel you come around my cock. It’s been too long, pretty girl.”

I whimper as he drags the entire length of his cock up and down my slit, lathering himself in my arousal before positioning the head at my entrance.

His eyes are on me, his gaze intent as he searches my features. He must find what he’s looking for, because a smile pulls at his lips before he leans forward to kiss me.

“I love you pretty girl,” he whispers against my lips just as he drives himself forward until he’s seated all the way inside of me.

My mouth opens on an o as I feel him stretch me, fill me up so thoroughly, tears of fulfillment gather at the corners of my eyes.

“So beautiful,” he murmurs, watching me lovingly. “So mine.”

“I’ve never not been yours, Raf,” I say as I drag my hands down his back, raking my nails over his flesh. When I reach his ass, I fit my palms over his muscles, urging him forward. “You’re the only man who’s ever been inside me. The only one who’s ever going to be inside me.”

“Just like you’re the only woman I’ll ever claim,” he murmurs, withdrawing before plunging inside me again. “The only one who’s ever going to have me fully, body and heart.”

I hold onto him, our gazes connected as we experience this moment as one—we one.

There are no more secrets between us, no more lies.

There’s only his body covering mine, his warmth transferring into my skin, and his soul embracing mine.

Tears trickle down my cheeks as I bring my hands to his face, fitting my palms to his cheeks as I caress him reverently.

“We’re finally together, my love,” I whisper, overwhelmed by the preciousness of this moment.

How many times had I dreamed of this? Of having him all to myself? How many times had I woken up during the day with the realization that he might have been dead?

That thought alone had driven me to the edge of madness, making me relinquish my desire to live—all in an effort to join him and our son in the afterlife.

He moves slowly in and out of me, making love to every piece of me.

“Thank you for forgiving me,” I tell him. My throat constricts with emotion the more I stare into his eyes—the more I have to convince myself this is all real.

“How could I not forgive you when loving you comes as naturally to me as breathing?” He leans forward, kissing my forehead. “How could I not forgive you when I cannot imagine my life without you, pretty girl?” he says on a ragged breath, his lips hovering over my eyes as he peppers kiss after kiss on my skin.

His body is worshiping mine, our souls tethered by an invisible thread that becomes stronger and stronger with each thrust.

When he finally reaches my lips, he kisses me like a man starved—like this is the kiss that will set the precedent for all other kisses. I wrap my arms around him, banishing all thoughts from my mind as I simply give myself to feeling. His lips on mine. His body sliding against mine. His cock penetrating me so deep, he reaches my very essence.

I don’t know how much time passes, or how long we stay like that.

Everything fades away, but the feeling of pleasure, that shifts into an indescribable flavor of love.

My muscles tense just as he teeters on the edge, and as I reach my climax, his hot seed floods my insides, not leaving a single part of me untouched. Even as we’re both languid and sated, we don’t move.

We remain wrapped around each other, still connected.

“I…” he whispers. “It’s never been like this before,” he confesses, echoing my own feelings.

“There was something magical about it, wasn’t it?” I smile, burrowing my face into the crook of his shoulder.

“I swear I felt you in my soul, pretty girl,” he says, confusion swirling in his voice.

“Me too, Raf. Me, too.”

At some point, we get up to retrieve our clothes from the river since it gets quite chilly at night. Raf makes a small fire next to our tent and he urges me to sit down as he opens the first aid kit.

“I need to make sure you didn’t get your bandages wet. I don’t want you to get an infection,” he says, his attention focused on my wrists as he peels back the first bandage. The wound I’d gotten from the plane crash isn’t pretty, but at least it stopped bleeding.

“How is it?” I ask when I see his brows furrowing.

“Not infected, thank God,” he murmurs before disinfecting it once more and adding a clean bandage. “You need to be more careful until we get out of here. We don’t know what parasites might be in the water,” he warns lightly.

“That is exactly what I needed to hear right now, Raf. That I might have some parasite in my arm,” I add drily, the mental image of his words making me wince.

“Well, let’s hope you don’t have one. I don’t share,” he says playfully.

I can’t help but burst into laughter. Leaning down, I address my arm as I speak. “Hear that, potential parasite that might have entered my bloodstream? Raf doesn’t share.”

He chuckles.

“Damn right. I’m the only one that’s supposed to go inside you. So Mr. Parasite should be ready for a challenge if he tries to enter territory.”

“You’re so silly.” I swat him with my other hand.

“Hey, easy. We have to make sure there’s no parasite in your other hand either,” he comments.

I just shake my head at him, letting him patch me up before turning his attention to my wrist.

He slowly takes off my bandage, revealing a linear scar. The wound had been sewed up by the surgeon at the hospital, but it’s still a little red.

Raf pulls my wrist closer to the fire so he can get a better view, analyzing each angle.

“Do I pass?” I inquire, amused.

He, on the other hand, is not amused as he purses his lips.

Raising his gaze, he meets my eyes with his.

“Don’t do this again,” he tells me in a steady voice, but the pain in his features is evident. He squeezes my fingers lightly. “Don’t you ever do this to me again, Noelle.”

I stare at him, the urge to avert my gaze too overwhelming. But I don’t. I need to face my fuck-ups head-on.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper.

“Sorry enough not to do it again?”

Slowly, I shake my head.

His lips flatten into a thin line.

“If you do this again, then I’ll be forced to do it too. Is that what you want, Noelle?”

I shake my head again. Somehow, I find it hard to verbalize it due to the shame eating at me.

“Then you won’t do it again,” he states unequivocally. He pauses a moment. Then, raising a brow, he asks again.”Will you?”

“I won’t,” I reply softly.

“Good,” he grunts, nodding to himself. “Good girl.”

My cheeks redden.

He finishes dressing up my injury before he presses a kiss above the bandage.

“You should be good now.”

“What about you? Are you sure your ribs are not hurting you?”

He shakes his head.

“I’m fine,” he says as he takes a place next to me around the fire.

In the beginning, there’s only silence. I don’t know who reaches for whom, but the clothes we’d just put on end up on the ground, cushioning our bodies. His lips smash against mine as he draws me to him. On his back, he supports my entire weight with his body, his hands roaming wildly down my ribs until he cups my ass cheeks.

If before our lovemaking had been slow and tender, this time it’s the complete opposite.

He kneads my flesh, bringing me on top of his shaft and urging me to rub against him.

Pressing my hands to his chest, I grind on top of him, coating his entire flesh in my arousal.

“Christ, pretty girl. You’re the hottest thing I’ve ever seen,” he groans, his head thrown back. “Just like that. Fuck,” he curses when I bring my thumb to the head of his cock, caressing the sensitive area, while I continue to move up and down his length.

“I want you inside of me,” I tell him in between breathy moans. But I don’t attempt to do it myself. Not when I want to give me his explicit consent.

His eyes snap open as he watches me, the sparks from the fire emphasizing that lovely color.

He knows.

In that moment, he knows exactly what I’m asking.

The memory he’d gotten of us together had been with me on top of him, while he’d had no control of his body. I hate that it’s the only thing he remembers of our time at the hacienda and I want the opportunity to rewrite it.

His expression is full of intensity as he moves his hands up my body, cupping my breasts and massaging my nipples.

“You’re in control, Raf,” I whisper as I arch my back. “You’re… always… in control… when it comes to me,” I whimper when he pinches both nipples before suddenly letting go.

I blink, immediately bereft without his touch.

He smirks at me as he trails one hand down the center of my belly before he reaches my sex.

“Keep talking, pretty girl. Tell me all the ways in which I own you,” he rasps as he cups my mound, his thumb circling my clit.

I’m soaking wet and growing even wetter as I attempt to gyrate my hips to the motion of his hand—everything to maximize this feeling of wonder he’s instilling inside of me.

“My heart,” I gasp as he inserts one finger inside me. “My body. My damned soul.”

“It’s not damned,” he states harshly. “How can it be damned when it’s the sweetest fucking thing in existence? When it’s so strong, and noble? It’s not damned, pretty girl. It’s anything damned.”

“Ah, Raf.” I smile down at him, taking his other hand and bringing it to my lips. His thumb slips inside of my mouth and I suck gently on it before I swirl my tongue around his fingers. “I assure you, it’s only you who sees me that way.”

“I’m the only one that matters,” he shoots back. “And anyone daring to tell you otherwise can count their days.”

I smile at him.

“My knight in shining armor,” I chuckle.

“I have plenty to make up for, don’t I?” He raises a brow at me.

“Hmm… And how are you going to do that?”

Before I realize what he means to do, he maneuvers me around, turning me and pressing his lips to my sex.

“Oh,” I startle, a shiver going down my spine just as he flattens his tongue over my clit.

“You’re my dessert, pretty girl. Who needs cake when I have this?” He blows air all over my wet sex before he gives me a long lick.

My entire body turns to jelly at his ministrations, but that doesn’t mean I can’t return the favor. I wrap my hand around his cock, massaging it lightly before I lean forward to give it a kiss.

“Well, you have your cake and I have my ice cream,” I add cheekily, giving him a good lick.

“Fuck,” he moans against my clit.

“I’ve missed this,” I whisper, lowering my mouth over his shaft and humming low in my throat.

His hips buckle from the pleasure, his mouth becoming more eager on my sex.

“I missed having you in my mouth.”

“You have a mouth on you, Noelle.” He smiles, licking me once, twice. “You have a naughty little mouth, don’t you?”

“Yes,” I whimper.

“A naughty little mouth that’s getting thoroughly fucked,” he continues, thrusting into my mouth. The head of his cock reaches the back of my throat before retreating. He angles his hips perfectly to easily slide in and out, fucking my throat like it’s his own personal toy. All the while, though, he expertly devours me, making me moan around his shaft.

He licks and nibbles my clit until I’m moving wildly around him, knowing that my orgasm is imminent. And just as he inserts two fingers inside me, curling them around and finding my g-spot, I come.

My body trembles from an onslaught of pleasure. I rock my hips into his face as he keeps giving me languid licks.

“That’s my girl,” he praises softly. “That’s my fucking wife.”

I hum my approval, leaning back to swirl my tongue around the tip of his cock.

Using my fist, I squeeze his shaft as I suck just on the head.

“I’m close. So close,” he moans. But just as I know he’s about to come, I stop.

“W-what?” he mumbles, still euphoric.

I shimmy my hips around as I turn, giving him a wink and a mischievous smile.

“Not yet,” I say, repeating his words from before. “You only get to come inside me.”

His pupils are so big and dark, seemingly only growing larger as he regards me with unfulfilled lust. He doesn’t reply, waiting for me to make my move.

Caressing his shaft, I position it between the lips of my sex, moving up and down but not impaling myself on him—yet.

“Tell me what to do, Raf,” I murmur. “Order me.”

He licks his lips, his eyes moving from my face to my breasts before finally resting on my pussy.

“Take my cock in your hand, pretty girl,” he rasps heavily. I do as he says, grabbing his shaft. “Now lower yourself onto me.” He breathes hard. “Slow!” He grits out when I move too fast.

I follow his commands, bringing the tip of his cock to my entrance and slowly sinking onto him. My mouth parts on an o as I throw my head back, closing my eyes and simply enjoying the feeling of being joined with him like this.

“That’s it,” he praises. “Look how well we fit—how well your pussy takes me.”

I nod, mumbling some incoherent sounds as I lower myself until my pelvis meets his—until he’s so deep inside of me it’s like we’re no longer two, but one.

“Damn it, Noelle. You’re a fucking vision like this. All beautiful and wild and all fucking mine,” he says right as his hands come to rest on my hips. “The most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

I writhe on top of him, waiting for him to tell me to move. God, but I’m getting drunk on the feel of him—on this moment and the freedom of the wilderness.

“Go on,” he urges me. “Fuck yourself on me.”

He doesn’t need to tell me twice.

Resting my hands on his chest, I raise myself up until he almost slips out of me before I impale myself on him again. And again. Soon, I’m establishing a wild rhythm that has me crying out of pleasure.

My hair is unbound and flowing in the wind. Everything else is cold except where my skin meets his.

“Just like that, pretty girl. Take everything you need.”

The words are barely out of his mouth when I start spasming around him, arching my back and clenching my walls around his cock.

“Ah,” I moan loudly—so loud, the forest echoes with my cries.

As soon as my orgasm has run its course, Raf switches our positions, placing me on the covered ground while he drives into me with renewed force.

One hand on my stomach, the other one on my hip, he holds onto me as he plows me, every single time stronger than the next.

I lose track of time. I lose track of everything but the sensations he keeps racking off my body.

“Fucking love you so much,” he breathes harshly. “So fucking much,” he continues as he keeps fucking me.

I whimper and mewl under his assault, so overwhelmed by pleasure I cannot even speak out loud. My thoughts are jumbled, my body a mosaic of pain and pleasure as he grips me tighter just as he fucks me harder.

Time simply ceases to exist.

I only come to my senses—vaguely—when I hear his loud grunts and feel his hot cum spill into me.

He crashes on top of me, his body blanketing mine as he holds onto me tightly.

“I love you, Noelle. You might be the villainess in everyone’s story. But you’ll always be my heroine. My salvation. My greatest addiction.”

Tears stab at my eyes as I brush a few golden locks from his face.

“And you will always be my one goal, Raf. The only thing I’ll ever strive to deserve. I love you. Now. Before. And forever to come.”

We look into each other’s eyes, smiling like two fools—two lovesick fools. And though I’d like nothing better than to go to sleep like this, with only his body as my blanket, I cannot. It’s too chilly outside, so when we can’t bear the cold anymore, we quickly put on our clothes, put out the fire, and lay on our makeshift bed. Then, exhausted, we finally fall asleep.

But not even a few hours later, Raf shakes me awake, placing a finger on my lips.

“Listen,” he whispers.

I frown, not realizing what he means until the sound of footsteps becomes more and more pronounced somewhere in the distance. The forest is eerily quiet, and every broken twig emits an echo.

“Rescue team?”

He shakes his head.

“They wouldn’t be so stealthy about it.”

“Then…?”

His features are tense.

“Maybe our plane crash wasn’t exactly an accident,” he suggests.

My eyes widen. He’s right. With all the attempts on his life, it’s too big of a coincidence.

“But who? Michele? Damiano?”

“If a simple accident was my brother’s M.O. I would have been dead a long time ago,” he states grimly. “We need to get ready, they’re not too far.”

“How many bullets do we have left?” I ask as I scramble to my feet, being as quiet as I can.

“Four? Or less,” he sighs. “We’ll need to make every single one of them count.”

I nod, turning so I can listen to the sounds of the forest.

Holding my hand up, I count with my fingers how many people I can hear. When I need to use the other hand, too, however, my eyes widen in alarm.

Raf, though clearly concerned, keeps his calm.

“I’ll distract them. You shoot,” he says, surprising me. “You’re clearly the better shot out of the two of us, and we can’t afford to waste any bullets. Once at least a couple are down, we might be able to take their guns.”

I nod.

“They must have a car somewhere too? Or a truck. No way over half a dozen people show up in the middle of the forest on foot.”

“You’re right.” He nods. “And is going to be our way out.”

“Do we keep one of them alive?” I ask, a smile pulling at my lips. “So he can lead us to their transportation.”

“Fine. You can aim for a non vital spot.” He winks.

Arranging our makeshift tent so it seems we’re still occupying it, we step away from the clearing. Raf goes to the right, positioning himself directly within my field of view while I hide behind a tree.

In about five minutes, the troops arrive at our campsite.

Immediately, I can tell Raf was right. They are no rescue team. They are professionals.

When they spot our tent, one of them—the commander, I assume—signals the others to get into position. His hand in the air, he counts to three before they open fire on our tent where they think we are sleeping. When they are done, the commander gives them another sign and they move to check if they actually killed us.

I give Raf a nod, knowing what I need to do.

Three people come towards the tent, while another three remain behind.

Just as one of them rips the covering of our tent apart, I cock my gun and I aim, blowing his brains. The next few seconds are critical as the noise from my bullet alerts the others to our presence. Without losing my calm, I move to the other side, aiming for the other three while Raf is already tackling the two people at the tent.

I don’t need to look to know he can handle himself perfectly. If there’s anything I trust, it’s that in the time we were apart, Raf worked as hard as he could to become the best version of himself. And he did.

He’s stronger and faster than the average soldier. But he has something none of them have—something to fight for.

While Raf is handling the two men, I take a deep breath before I start firing all three bullets in a quick succession. I manage to hit all three in critical spots before I remember I should have kept one alive.

Oh, well… Maybe Raf remembered to do that.

A few more shots resound in the air, and as I head back to our tent, I smile as I find Raf holding onto one of the men while the other is dead on the floor.

“My wife is a crackshot, isn’t that right?” He whistles proudly.

I shrug.

“Sometimes it comes handy to be born in the mob.”

“Oh, I’m not complaining. You’re so hot when you shoot.”

“Am I now?” I wiggle my eyebrows suggestively.

At the same time, the man decides to writhe in pain, and I groan out loud.

“Really? Couldn’t you see that we had a moment here?” I motion between me and Raf in a serious voice.

The man opens his mouth to say something, but it mostly comes out as gibberish.

“Did you hit him too hard?” I frown.

“I don’t think so?” Raf says, turning to the man. “Did I hit you too hard?”

More gibberish.

“I think you hit him too hard,” I sigh.

“Damn.” He shakes his head. “And here I thought I did so well.”

“You did,” I say as I stop by his side, patting him on the shoulder and giving the man a pitying gaze. “Maybe a touch too well.”

Raf turns to me and we both smile.

“That means we won’t get information,” he clarifies.

“Oh, I know.”

“You’re not mad?” He blinks.

“Why would I be? I killed one guy I was supposed to kill, and you incapacitated another. I’d say we’re pretty even.”

“Oh, ok.” He nods thoughtfully. “Why are you staring at me like that then?”

“Because you’re handsome,” I murmur, getting on the tips of my toes to lay a kiss on his lips.

He’s utterly still as he flushes a deep red. All for one tiny peck. As if we hadn’t been going at it like rabbits for the better part of the night.

I shake my head at him, before searching one of the men on the ground, I grab his gun and empty it in our incapacitated man. He drops to the ground, dead.

“Let’s go that way. I’m sure they must have left their transportation around.”

Raf nods, and taking my hand, we both arm ourselves with as much we can carry before we go on our way.

It doesn’t take us long to find the truck in which the men had arrived, nor does it surprise us to see someone waiting at the wheel. Giving Raf a quick signal, I pull the safety on my gun and I shoot, careful not to damage the windshield.

The man drops dead.

“We could have used him for information, too. Maybe see who sent him…” Raf says a moment later as we drag him out of the car.

I fold my arms over my chest as I raise a brow.

“Kidding,” he chuckles. “We can use this,” he motions towards the board of the car, all military grade.

We barely get in the vehicle when the radio goes off.

“Confirma su position,” a voice on the other end says.

My eyes widen, but Raf doesn’t seem overly concerned as he picks up the radio and speaks.

“El objetivo ha sido eliminado.”

A moment passes and I think the man on the other end won’t buy Raf’s accent. But he does, instructing us to return to base for further orders. The minute the radio transmission is over, a screen on the board lights up with the GPS mapping up a road back to the supposed base.

“Shall we?” Raf asks, his gaze serious.

I know what he’s asking, and I take some time to fully think it over.

“Yes. The hacienda is in the past. I don’t need to see it again to know it’s truly gone, just like…” I trail off, closing my eyes. “Do still want to go?”

“No.” Raf gives me a sad smile. “Why would I want to visit your place of torture?”

“Not even to make peace with the past?”

He shakes his head.

“I already made peace with the past. Yesterday. Now there’s only the future to look forward to. We’re alive. We’re together. We’re in love. The rest doesn’t matter.” He takes my hand in his, squeezing it lightly.

“You’re right. Nothing else matters. Just you and me, Raf. You and me against the world.”

“Ditto, baby. Now let’s go kick some ass and kill whoever wants us dead.” He gives me a big smooch before starting the car.

It seems this is the start of a new adventure.

And the past is finally what it was always supposed to be—the past.