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Author: Timi’s pen
last update Last Updated: 2025-05-12 21:48:09

(Amara’s POV)

The night was colder than she expected.

Amara pulled the soft cardigan tighter around her shoulders as she padded quietly down the long hallway, past the closed doors and heavy shadows of the safehouse.

She couldn’t sleep.

Not after everything.

The echo of Mrs. Holloway’s gentle words, the weight of Rafael’s quiet acts of kindness… it all pressed against her ribs, soft and suffocating.

She didn’t know what pulled her outside.

Maybe it was the need for air.

Maybe it was him.

She found him sitting alone on the worn stone steps out back, his back to the door, a cigarette burning low between his fingers.

The way he sat — shoulders heavy, head bowed — made something in her chest ache.

He looked so alone.

Not like the dangerous man everyone whispered about.

Not like the mafia king she should’ve been afraid of.

Just Rafael.

The man who left burnt toast and handwritten notes.

The man who promised her freedom… and gave her more safety than she had ever known.

Before she could sec
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  • Love Among Thorns    48

    The soft thuds and muffled cursing from the nursery were already suspicious by the time Amara padded down the hallway.She leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, hiding a smile.Inside, Rafael and Dominic stood over a half-assembled crib, tools scattered like a battlefield around them.“That piece doesn’t fit there, boss,” Dominic said, squinting at the instruction manual like it was written in ancient code.Rafael growled under his breath. “The hell it doesn’t. Give me the screwdriver.”“You’re gonna break it.”“I’m not gonna—” Craaaack.They both froze.Amara cleared her throat loudly.Two guilty heads snapped up, looking utterly caught.“Having fun?” she asked sweetly.Rafael scowled, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. “This thing is engineered to test me,” he muttered.Dominic tossed the manual onto the floor. “Boss, we kill people for a living. Why is this harder than a hit?”Amara laughed — a real, bright sound she hadn’t heard from herself enough lately — and walked car

  • Love Among Thorns    47

    Five months laterAmara stood in the garden behind their house, her hand absentmindedly resting on her rounded belly.The baby kicked — a firm, fluttery nudge — and she laughed under her breath, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. Every little movement still felt like a miracle.The house Rafael had bought for them was thriving now, filled with life — the garden had bloomed under her care, bursting with herbs, flowers, and tiny vegetables. Every morning, Rafael insisted on inspecting it like it was a fortress wall that needed guarding, muttering about “keeping his girl and his heir well-fed.”Amara smiled, feeling warmth rise in her chest.Footsteps crunched over the gravel behind her, and she didn’t even have to turn to know it was him.“You’re supposed to be resting, corazón,” Rafael’s voice rumbled gently.Amara grinned without looking back. “I’m not running marathons, Rafa. I’m watering tomatoes.”He chuckled, the sound low and adoring. A moment later, his arms wrapped caref

  • Love Among Thorns    46

    The sun was just beginning to dip low in the sky when Rafael pulled the car to a stop.Amara blinked at the scene before them — her breath catching.A narrow, winding path led into a dense grove of old trees, the leaves whispering secrets as the wind passed through them. Beyond that, she could just make out the soft glitter of water — a private lake, hidden away from the world.“Rafael…” she breathed. “Where are we?”He smiled that rare, devastating smile — the one he only seemed to reserve for her now.“A little place I found a few months ago,” he said. “Bought it. Fixed it up. For us.”Us.The word curled around her heart like sunlight.Without waiting for her to say anything else, Rafael rounded the car and opened her door, taking her hand and guiding her carefully down the path.As they walked, Amara noticed tiny details — lanterns hanging from the trees, throwing soft golden light. A small wooden dock stretching out into the water. A little boathouse tucked into the trees, rustic

  • Love Among Thorns    45

    The world outside their little sanctuary faded away — no more mafia wars, no more shadows lurking at the edges.Just Rafael and Amara.Two broken souls stitched together by love.The room was filled with the scent of her perfume, the rumpled silk of the bedsheets, and the steady sound of Rafael’s heart beating under her cheek.He hadn’t let her go.Not for a second.One of his arms was wrapped around her back, keeping her pressed to his chest. His other hand stroked lazy patterns along her spine, back and forth, soothing and slow.Amara let out a little sigh of pure contentment, snuggling closer.“I don’t want this night to end,” she whispered into the space between them.Rafael tightened his hold slightly, pressing a kiss into her hair.“It doesn’t have to,” he murmured.“Not ever. Every night… every morning… every lifetime. You’re mine.”She smiled against his skin, feeling his words settle into her bones like a promise.A heavy, warm silence stretched between them, thick with exhau

  • Love Among Thorns    44

    The garden had transformed while they shared their stolen first look.Guests waited in small rows of white chairs, the soft murmuring of voices hushed as the music began to play — a slow, tender melody that floated on the breeze like a secret between old friends.Amara stood just inside the garden archway, arm tucked through Mrs. Holloway’s — who had insisted, with tears in her eyes, on giving her away “for good luck.”Rafael was already waiting at the altar.He looked… not nervous, exactly.No — Rafael Moretti was not a man easily shaken.But there was something wild in his eyes, something feral and raw, like he was barely holding himself together.As Amara stepped into the sunlight, every sound seemed to fall away.He only saw her.The delicate ivory dress.The tiny, determined smile trembling on her lips.The way her free hand instinctively rested over her stomach — their future tucked safely inside her.Rafael felt something inside him snap and melt all at once.His hands clenched

  • Love Among Thorns    43

    Rafael woke to the sound of rain tapping softly against the windows.For one beautiful, disoriented moment, he forgot everything except the feel of her.Amara was curled against him, breathing slow and even, one hand resting protectively over the slight curve of her belly — their child sleeping safely within her.Rafael propped himself up on one elbow, just looking at her.His chest ached, almost painfully.He hadn’t known it was possible to love someone like this — so fierce, so endless, so all-consuming.He brushed a few strands of hair from her forehead, fingers trembling a little.“Mine,” he thought fiercely.“Mine to protect. Mine to love. Mine forever.”He wanted to wake her with a kiss.He wanted to keep her tucked in this bed, safe, away from the world.But today wasn’t about hiding.Today was about standing in front of everyone — enemies and allies alike — and claiming her for all the world to see.Today, Amara was going to become his wife.—The house exploded into chaos aro

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