Danger (Mafia Ties #2) (5 page)

I looked to Salvatore, who was contemplating me. “You’ll keep her safe?” he reiterated. I’d wondered if either of them would recognize my name.

“Yes sir,” I responded fervently. “The safety of my family will always be my number one priority.”

He nodded and stood, walking over to me and holding out his hand. I got to my feet, and we shook before he pulled me in for a hug, slapping me on the back. A little harder than necessary, in my opinion.

“Welcome to the family, Nic. Now, you’d better get my little girl down the aisle and stop living in sin.” There was a threat in his voice, and I stored that away for future use in case it took more coercion to get Anna to marry me.

Livy hugged me as well, then I invited them to join us for brunch the following Sunday. They eagerly accepted, excited to see Anna and to meet Sophia and my mother.

I
woke up the same way I had for the last week or so, to the feel of Nic’s hot breath against my skin. My legs spread wider, to give him more room as he wedged his shoulders between them.

“Morning,” I moaned, my voice cracking.

“Need a taste of this sweet pussy,” he growled.

“Oh my,” I gasped. My clit throbbed, my body tightening and warming.

“Lift up and give it to me.” His voice was pure sex, and it only made my pussy throb harder.

My hips rose off the mattress, as though they had a will of their own, my legs trembling at the touch of his tongue on my clit. He gave it a slow lick, and my fingers clenched in the sheets. Then he flicked his tongue around my clit, and my hips hiked farther up. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the sight of his dark head bent between my legs as he tortured me with his mouth. I whimpered in need and the sound spurred him on. He ate me like he couldn’t get enough of my taste, tongue-fucking me until I was hanging by a thread, so close to a huge orgasm but unable to quite get there.

“Please,” I begged, desperate to come.

He chuckled darkly before wrapping his lips around my clit, sucking hard, and thrusting two fingers inside me. Twisting his wrist as he plunged them in and out of me, it didn’t take long for me to fly over the edge. Nic took several more licks at me before he released my hips and let them drop back down onto the mattress. I was a boneless heap while he kissed up my body and nibbled at my neck. I felt his hardness, hot against my leg. I shifted my hips, fully expecting him to take advantage of our position and slide inside me. I was surprised when he pulled away and dropped a kiss onto the top of my head instead.

“But what about you?” I asked, sliding my palm up his thigh.

He wrapped his hand around my wrist, stopping my upward progress and making my eyes bug out.

“No time,” he murmured. “But you can make it up to me later by wrapping your lips around my cock and sucking me off.”

His dirty words sent a blush racing up my chest to my face. I wanted that, him in my mouth. It made me feel powerful to watch him lose control. But I wanted it to happen sooner rather than later. Blinking up at him innocently, I swiped my tongue across my bottom lip before biting it.

“Don’t make it any harder than it already is, bellissima,” he growled, making me giggle at the play on words as I glanced down at his hard-on. “Not with your parents due to arrive in thirty minutes.”

“My parents?” I shrieked. It was like a splash of cold water on my libido. I grabbed at the sheets and pulled them over my body, as though my dad could see into our bedroom and would find me sprawled naked in bed. “What? How? Why?”

“I invited them over for brunch.”

He answered so matter-of-factly, as though the words should make sense to me.

“You invited them over for brunch,” I repeated. “My parents. Whom you’ve never even met.”

“I met them last week,” he informed me.

“What do you mean you met them last week?” I cried out, utterly confused and totally frustrated with his lack of communication. “And why am I only hearing about this just now?”

“Because I wanted to do something special for you. I know how much you love your parents, and I didn’t want you to worry about them accepting us.” He pulled me off the mattress, sheets and all, and set me onto my feet in front of him. “I’ve already broken the ice and made sure they understand how much you mean to me. You have nothing to worry about.”

My heart melted, and I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my head against his chest. “You’re so good to me.”

“I promise to be especially bad to you tonight,” he murmured huskily. Then he stepped away, swatting me on my butt before pushing me towards the closet.

I heard the doorbell ringing as I was setting my brush down. I spared myself a quick glance in the mirror, pleased to see my eyes were bright and my cheeks flushed with color. Luckily, there was no need for make-up, and I headed for the stairs. I reached the bottom just in time to see Nic open the door to my parents. Sophia was peeking at them from behind him, her arms wrapped around his legs.

I moved forward, resting my hand on the top of her hair as I bent down to whisper in her ear. “I bet if you ask my dad nicely, he’ll give you one of the caramels he’s always carrying around in his pockets.”

Her eyes lit up and she smiled radiantly at me. Her hand slipped into mine and we moved forward to greet my parents. “Mom and Dad, this is my precious Sophia.” My parents crouched down until they were eye-to-eye with her, huge smiles on their faces. “And Sophia, this is my mom and dad.”

“Hello,” Sophia said shyly.

“Hello, sweet girl. How about you give your new Grandma and Grandpa a hug?” my mom asked. When I’d called to tell them about the engagement, I should have realized my mom was as excited about Sophia as she was about me getting married.

“More grandparents?” she asked in a loud whisper, her eyes huge as she looked up at me.

“Yes, sweetie. With your daddy and I getting married, you get two new grandparents.”

“Wow!” she squealed, losing all her shyness and launching herself into their arms while jabbering a mile a minute. Her words only came more quickly when my dad took several of his favorite caramels out of his pocket. He tucked one into her hand and put the others into her pockets for later.

Nic offered my parents a tour of the house, but my mom declined, picking up a bag of groceries she’d set down and instructing me to lead her to the kitchen. My dad took him up on the offer, following after him with Sophia on his shoulders.

Allegra hadn’t made it downstairs yet, but it looked like she’d made sure the fridge was fully stocked for our brunch. We were chopping, stirring, baking, and sautéing in no time. I had always loved to cook with my mom, and it was especially nice to be doing so in my kitchen, in the home I shared with Nic.

“He’s perfect for you,” she sighed.

“B-b-but—“ I stuttered before just blurting it out. “He’s in the mafia.”

“Uhhuh,” she murmured, pulling a pan of toasted baguette slices from the broiler. She didn’t even react to my announcement as she spread a honey and ricotta mixture on the slices and topped them with a strawberry, balsamic, and mint concoction. It was one of my favorite dishes, and she’d brought the ingredients with her just so she could make it for me. It was the perfect recipe to follow brunch, but as much as I appreciated her thoughtfulness, I would prefer her to take this seriously.

“Mom,” I hissed. “Nic is a mafia boss. He’s into illegal stuff. I expected you to have some kind of reaction to this information. Shouldn’t you be telling me to find a nice boy to marry?”

She laughed lightly as she arranged the pieces on the plate until they were to her liking. Then she looked up at me and smiled, patting my cheek. “Sorry, sweetie. He made us an offer we couldn’t refuse.” My jaw dropped. “Besides which, it isn’t like we didn’t already know who he was before he came to visit us.”

My mom was making mobster jokes about my fiancé who really was the head of the mafia.

“What kind of offer?” I couldn’t imagine a single thing he could give them that would make my parents not care about his background.

“To love and care for you.”

I sighed dreamily, picturing Nic telling my parents that he loved me. There was only one problem with the vision in my head. “But neither of us have actually said the words to each other.”

“Niccolo!” Allegra called out from behind me. I swiveled around to find her standing in the doorway, muttering in Italian under her breath. I hadn’t heard her come in, but she was the furthest thing from quiet when Nic walked into the kitchen, and she lit into him. I couldn’t understand half of what she said, but Nic apparently didn’t have the same problem based on the look of dismay which crossed his face.

“Basta, Mamma.” He cut her off mid-rant and turned to me. “Of course, Gianna knows I love her.”

My eyes widened and filled with tears as I shook my head. He stalked towards me, pulling me tightly against his chest and claiming my mouth in a passionate kiss, uncaring who our audience was. By the time he let me up for air, my tears were gone and I was breathing heavily.

“Silly woman,” he murmured against my lips. “Of course I love you.”

“I love you, too,” I whispered back.

“Perfetto!” Allegra clapped.

“Indeed,” my mom sighed. “And perfectly timed, too, since brunch is ready to be served.”

And so the blending of our families began—with love, acceptance, and delicious food.

I
shook Salvatore’s hand and kissed Livy on the cheek, earning me a bit of a glare from Gianna’s dad. After brunch, we’d all attended mass together and were departing to go our separate ways from the church. Gianna hugged her parents goodbye, and I smiled when Sophia did the same. She’d taken to Salvatore and Livy, as though they’d been part of the family all of her life. In fact, we’d blended together almost seamlessly.

I was almost struck speechless when I realized I hadn’t told Gianna I loved her. I’d thought it so many times. It hadn’t occurred to me that she would question my love for her, and I hated the idea that she had. Heat shot through me as I thought about all the ways I planned to make it up to her.

We climbed into the black town car and took the short ride home, our bodyguards in the car behind us. After we arrived, my mother announced she was going to rest and would probably be in for the night.

“Daddy?” I didn’t think I would ever stop feeling the rush from hearing her call me that.

I lifted her into my arms and kissed her nose, making her giggle. “What, preziosa?”

“Can we go to the park?”

It was on the tip of my tongue to say no, Sophia had only been home from the hospital a week, but Gianna chimed in. “Of course we can, sweetheart. As long as you promise to take it easy. No running, okay?”

Sophia’s head bobbed up and down as she squirmed, prompting me to set her on her feet. She started to run up the stairs, then stopped and threw us a quick glance. We pretended not to notice, and she continued up the stairs at a more sedate pace. I chuckled at my adorable baby girl, and Gianna held her hand over her mouth, clearly trying to stifle her laughter as well.

Grabbing her hand, I pulled her into the sitting room and backed her up against a wall. Letting go, I caged her between my arms with my palms on the wall.

“You are an amazing mother, mia dolce.” She blushed, but I wasn’t finished. “And I want you to feel free to make decisions in regards to Sophia. In this house, and in private, you may contradict me as much as you want.” Her eyebrows fell and she looked wary at the hardening of my voice. “But in public, or around those I work with, you are not to question my decisions.”

Her eyes darkened with anger and she looked away. I gripped her jaw with one hand, turning her eyes back to me. “I cannot be seen as weak, especially right now with all of the fucking trouble brewing between us and the O’Reillys. It puts you and our family in even more danger if they think I cannot protect you.”

Tears began to fill her eyes, and I softened my tone a little, hating the sight. “You are what makes me strong, mia dolce. But to the old fashioned and pigheaded men I work with, they won’t see it that way. All I’m asking is that you wait until we are alone to voice your opinions.”

“Fine,” she huffed with a nod. I kissed her lightly, satisfied to see some of the hurt leak out of her eyes.

“One more thing—” my fingers tightened a little more on her chin—“you will stay with your bodyguards at all times. Are we clear, Gianna? No giving them the slip or going anywhere they cannot follow you. If you do, I swear, your sweet little ass will be cherry red when I’m done spanking you.”

Her mossy-green eyes heated, and I swallowed a moan as I realized she was aroused by the comment. “Hmmm, seems my sweet little innocent wants to get dirty. Is that what you want, mia dolce? For me to smack your pretty little ass before I fuck you until you scream so loud they’ll hear you in Brooklyn?”

She sucked in a quick breath and her cheeks flushed, a mixture of shyness and desire. It was impossible not to kiss her, but I kept my lust at bay, mindful that Sophia would appear at any moment.

The thought must have conjured her up because she skipped into the room happily. When she saw me holding Gianna in my arms, she smiled widely and launched herself at us. “Group hug!” she squealed. I burst into laughter and held both my girls close, love spilling from my overly full heart.

After a picnic in the park, we spent the evening, just the three of us, watching a movie and snuggling on the couch. Halfway through, Sophia fell asleep curled into Gianna’s side, and I scooped her into my arms and took her to her room. Together, we changed her into pajamas and tucked her into her pink, princess bed.

I loved spending time with my daughter, but it was time to collect Gianna’s debt from the morning. Taking her hand, I led her into our bedroom and shut the door. Then I walked swiftly to the closet and rummaged around in a bag of silk and lace I’d purchased earlier in the week. Finding what I was looking for, I went back into the room and tossed it to her.

“Put this on, mia dolce.”