Chapter 163: You Lied To Me

"Of course. Is everything alright?"

"I hope so."

Eve left the office, Marco falling into step beside her as always.

The drive back to the penthouse took fifteen minutes.

She used her key, took the elevator up, expecting to find Dimitri in his office or maybe in the living room with Nonna.

But the penthouse was quiet.

Too quiet.

"Dimitri?" Eve called.

No answer.

She moved down the hallway toward their bedroom, heard voices....

.....Nonna’s voice, speaking Italian in that soothing tone she used when someone was in pain....

....and pushed open the door.

The scene froze her in place.

Dimitri sat shirtless on the edge of the bed, his back to the door.

Nonna stood in front of him, hands working at bandages wrapped around his shoulder and lower back.

Bandages soaked with blood.

Fresh blood.

Dimitri’s head turned at the sound of the door opening.

And Eve saw his face.

Pale. Exhausted. In pain.

And caught.

Their eyes met.

And the world stopped.

For three full seconds, Eve couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t process what she was seeing.

Dimitri. Shirtless. Bandages wrapped around his shoulder and lower back. Nonna’s hands working at gauze soaked dark red with blood.

Blood.

So much blood.

"Eve...." Dimitri started to stand.

"Don’t." The word came out sharp. Hard. "Don’t you dare move."

He froze.

Nonna looked between them, her expression unreadable, and quietly gathered the bloody bandages.

"I will give you privacy," she said, and slipped past Eve out of the room.

The door clicked shut.

And Eve finally found her voice.

"What. The fuck. Is that."

"Eve, let me explain...."

"Explain?" Her voice climbed. "Explain what? That you’re bleeding? That you’ve been walking around all day with.....with...." She gestured at the bandages, her hand shaking. "What happened?"

"There was an incident in Italy...."

"An incident." Eve laughed, and it sounded hysterical even to her own ears. "That’s what we’re calling this? An incident?"

"Eve...."

"This morning. When I came into your office. When I kissed you and you winced." Her eyes were burning. "You were already hurt. Already bleeding. And you kissed me to distract me so I wouldn’t ask questions."

Dimitri’s jaw tightened. "Yes."

"You lied to me."

"I didn’t lie. I just didn’t tell you...."

"That’s the same fucking thing!" Eve’s voice cracked. "You looked me in the face this morning, you kissed me, you told me to go to the kitchen, and the entire time you were....you were...."

The anger collapsed into something else.

Terror.

Pure, visceral terror.

"You could have died." The words came out as a whisper. "Whatever happened in Italy, whatever this is.....you could have died and I didn’t even know. I was making breakfast with Nonna while you were....."

"I’m fine," Dimitri said, his voice gentle. "I’m here. I’m alive. I’m fine."

"You’re not fine! You’re bleeding through your bandages!" Eve’s hands fisted at her sides. "Tell me what happened. All of it. Right now."

Dimitri looked at her for a long moment.

Then he sat back down on the bed, carefully, and started talking.

***

POV: DIMITRI

"We went to Italy to recruit Marcelo," Dimitri said, his voice steady. "I showed him proof that my father’s been using his wife as a test subject for illegal drug trials. He agreed to turn against Antonio, gave us intelligence on Rome operations."

Eve stood frozen by the door, listening.

"We were leaving the safe house when we were ambushed. Fifteen men. The Romano family—a Calabrian crew out of Naples. They’d been following us since we landed, waited until we were vulnerable, tried to kill me."

"Fifteen men," Eve repeated.

"All dead now. Dimitri’s voice was flat, factual. "But in the firefight, I was hit. Twice. One bullet through the shoulder, clean exit. One in my lower back, lodged near the spine."

Eve made a sound....small, wounded.

"Marco removed both bullets on the plane. We couldn’t stop in Italy....too dangerous, too many people looking for us. So he did field surgery at thirty thousand feet." Dimitri met her eyes. "When we landed, Nonna stitched me up properly. Gave me antibiotics. The wounds are healing. I’m fine."

"Stop saying you’re fine." Eve’s voice was shaking. "You were shot. Twice. You had bullets removed on an airplane. You flew home bleeding and didn’t tell me."

"I didn’t want you to worry...."

"Well I’m fucking worried now!" The words exploded out of her. "Do you have any idea....any idea at all.....what it feels like to walk in here and see you like this? To realize you’ve been lying to me all day? To know you almost died and I didn’t even....."

Her voice broke.

Dimitri stood, took a step toward her.

"Don’t," Eve said, holding up a hand. "Don’t come near me right now."

He stopped.

"I asked you," Eve said, her voice tight with fury and fear, "I asked you to treat me like a partner. To include me. To stop protecting me from the truth. And you agreed. You promised."

"I know."

"So why?" Tears were streaming down her face now. "Why did you lie? Why did you hide this from me?"

"Because I didn’t want you to carry this." Dimitri’s voice was raw. "I didn’t want you to spend every second I’m gone terrified I’m going to die. I didn’t want you to look at me and see blood and violence and near-death instead of...."

"Instead of what? The man I love?" Eve laughed bitterly. "Dimitri, I already know what you do. I already know you’re in danger every time you leave. Hiding it from me doesn’t make it less real. It just makes me trust you less."

The words landed like a physical blow.

Dimitri flinched. "You don’t trust me?"

"How can I trust you when you lie to my face?" Eve’s voice cracked. "When you kiss me to distract me from asking questions? When you hide bullet wounds and plan to....what? Just never tell me? Hope I wouldn’t notice?"