BANG! The gun went off with a blaze, pushing her lithe body with brute force and her butt collided against the hard floor. "Ow!" Lily hissed, crimps of pain appearing under her eyes. Enzo pulled her up by the armpits to help her stand on her feet. "Your hands are shaking, relax first." He placed the handgun back in Lily's hand. Lily held the gun in place, aiming at the target, but her hands were clammy and unstable against the cool metal weapon. She sucked in a deep breath, to bring her jittery nerves to calm. "Now concentrate on the target." He said against her ear as he lifted her armed hands, like balancing a house of cards. Careful and so incredibly patient. BANG!The bullet barely touched the target. "Don't give up, try again." He kept encouraging her. They were inside the indoor shooting range since this morning and she was already worn out after an hour of practice. He wanted her to get rid of her phobia of guns and gunshots and she had pretty much gotten over that fear

The curtains felt like a blessing. Now they didn't have to wake up every morning with the sun blinding them. Last night went by in a blur. Fabiano was okay and that was a relief. They had come home near midnight and she was bone-tired, so she fell asleep on Enzo's chest after changing clothes. Lily woke up feeling someone rubbing her bare back inside her shirt and to the rapid tempo of heartbeats in her right ear. She slowly blinked her eyes open, frowning. "What time is it?" She groaned."Seven." Enzo had already woken up before she did. He woke up at 4 in the morning and watched her sleep. At first, she was a bit mortified but got a hang of it eventually. He liked watching her sleep. She buried her face into his neck and felt his muscles flex. Her fingertips circled around the tattoo on his chest. An intricate picture of a skull laying on a full-bloomed lily. "What does this tattoo mean?" "Life and Death." He said as he resumed stroking her. A shiver ran up her spine when he trac

Enzo finished getting attired in his immaculate gray suit. Today, he had a meeting with the CEO of Salvadori Constructions. He had cleared all of his schedules for the past few days since he wanted to spare time for his wife. He loved every second he spent with her and wanted to bottle each and every memory and take it with him. He opened the drawer to get his silver Rolex when he spotted a small box of pills inside. He picked it up to read what it was and his blood stilled. The scent of vanilla and roses infiltrated his nose as Lily stepped out of the shower, wringing her wet hair with a towel. "Care to tell me what this is?" His voice had dropped to an uncanny calm. Lily winced, her gaze dropping to the pills in his hand. "Pills." "Pills for what, Lily?" He clipped, teeth clenched. She licked her lips, getting nervous. She stood still, fidgeting with her dripping hair. "C-contraceptive..." Frigid anger spread across his veins like frostbite. The thought of Lily not wanting to

The smell of cheese filled the kitchen. The female voice of a CNN news reporter came from the living room as Lily stirred the sauce for carbonara. Lily enjoyed cooking for Enzo. It was also one of her favorite hobbies besides gardening. Nonna taught every girl in the family how to cook and do basic house chores so they didn't have to hire servants because 'It saved money'. Nonna was a bit stingy because she had come from a humble background. Nonna had called a few times to check up on her. To see if she was okay. Lily couldn't be more okay. She was practically bubbling with happiness whenever she was with Enzo. Two months had flown by so quickly. She couldn't believe how close they had gotten. Yet, there were still some things Lily hadn't known about him. About his parents. About their family's past. Enzo was evasive whenever she touched on that topic. So Lily thought it was best if she tried to find the answers from someone else in this house. "What was Enzo's mother like?"

Anxiety began to push itself in her guts as soon as he stormed out of the bathroom. As a woman who hated confrontation, she wanted to step out of her comfort zone and be brave for once, but it turned out to be a stupid mistake. Enzo didn't want to look her in the eyes right now. She bounded off from the bathroom counter and ran after him. She hugged his waist from behind to stop him from walking away from her. "Please stop avoiding me like this." She pleaded."You must hate me or at least--" He ran a palm down his face. "--Fear me.""I admit that I was... shocked when I heard that." Anyone in her position would be. "But I don't hate you, Enzo.""I'm a man who killed my own mother." There was so much pain in the way he said that. Lily's heart bled for him. She only held him tighter against her, refusing to let him go."You didn't." She said vehemently. "You were trying to save her."He let out a self-deprecating sound. "Did I?""How old were you when this happened?""Thirteen.""You