by Cora Reilly
I made love to her slowly. This wasn’t about getting off, about being consumed by desire and lust, this was something to show us everything was okay. A few days ago I’d thought I would lose her forever and now she was mine.
Between soft moans she told me she loved me. I kissed her lips. I’d never been the overly emotional type but I never got tired of her saying those words. “I love you too,” I said quietly. It still felt strange to admit it to someone.
When we lay in each other’s arms afterward, I felt a deep, all-encompassing peace I’d never felt before.
* * *
I woke at sunrise but Lily wasn’t there. I jerked upright, reaching for my gun on the nightstand, as usual expecting the worst, but Lily was there at the window, looking out. I didn’t have floor-to-ceiling windows like Luca’s penthouse, but they weren’t exactly small. But Lily had grown up as the daughter of a Consigliere. She’d had the best of everything all her life.
I swung my legs out of bed and walked toward her.
“It’s not as grand as you’re used to. Your family’s townhouse and Aria’s penthouse are much bigger than my apartment. You’re going to be the wife of a mere soldier.”
Lily jumped slightly, then she peered over her shoulder at me.
“Do you really think I care about things like that? When I lived in a huge house and had more money than I could possibly spend I was never happy, but when I’m with you, I am.”
“Still, this will be a big change for you,” I said. I wasn’t exactly poor but she wouldn’t be able to afford as much as she had done before.
Lily turned to me fully and touched my cheeks. “I want only you, Romero. I don’t care about money.” She motioned around. “And this is a gorgeous place. Most people would be happy to live here. I love it.”
That was why I knew Lily was the one.
The sun finally peeked over the surrounding skyscrapers. “Look,” I said, pointing out toward the city.
Lily turned around in my arms, her back pressed against my chest, as we watched the sunrise. I wanted to enjoy this moment of peace and quiet, because I knew there wouldn’t be many more moments like that today. The Famiglia was at war with the Outfit now.
“I’m worried about Fabi. I wished there was a way to find out if he’s alright. What if Dante and Father don’t believe his story? I could never forgive myself if something happened to him because of me.”
“I’ll figure out a way to get information, but I’m sure he’s fine. He’s your father’s only son. Even if your father is unhappy with him, Fabi won’t be punished too hard.”
“He’s married to a young woman now. He could produce a new heir,” she said bitterly.
“Let me call Luca and see if he knows anything,” I told her and untangled myself from her. Luca would probably be awake already, if he’d gone to bed at all.
Luca picked up after the second call. “Did you kill another Outfit member?” It was mostly said in a joking way, but I could hear the strain in his voice.
“No. Have you heard anything? Did Dante try to contact you?”
“He didn’t. He only sent me an email through one of his men that our alliance is terminated.”
“He didn’t even contact you himself, or at least through his Consigliere?” I asked. That was a blatant show of disrespect and showed how bad the situation really was.
“I don’t think Scuderi is very keen on talking to me right now,” Luca said wryly.
Lily came up to me, an anxious look on her face.
“I suppose not,” I said. “Listen, Luca, Lily is really worried about her brother. Do you have any way of finding out if he’s okay?”
“Aria has been trying to get in contact with Valentina but so far she hasn’t had any luck. She’ll try again later. You and Lily should come over anyway. We have a lot to discuss and the women can spend time together.”
“Alright. We’ll be there soon.” I hung up.
“And?” Lily asked hopefully. I hated having to crush her hopes.
Liliana
Romero’s expression caused a lump to rise in my throat.
“Luca doesn’t have any information about your brother yet, but he and Aria are trying to contact Valentina.”
“Do you really think Val will respond to Aria’s calls? She’s Dante’s wife and now that there’s war between New York and Chicago, she’d risk a lot by getting into contact with Aria.”
Romero touched my cheek. “We’ll find out about your brother, Lily, I promise.”
We showered quickly before we headed for Aria’s apartment. When we stepped into the penthouse, Gianna and Matteo were already there despite it being only seven in the morning. The scent of freshly made coffee greeted me and Danishes waited on the kitchen counter. My sisters were standing and talking and I steered toward them while Romero walked up to Luca and Matteo who sat on the stools at the kitchen island.
Aria put her arm around me. “How are you, Lily?”
“Okay. I didn’t sleep much but I’m just happy to be here with you and Romero.”
“Of course, you are,” Gianna said. “I’m so glad Romero got rid of that sick bastard Benito.”
An image of Benito’s blood-covered body popped into my head but I pushed it aside. I didn’t want to think of him anymore. He wasn’t part of my life anymore.
Aria handed me a cup of coffee. “Here, you look like you need it. And you should eat something.”
“Mother hen mode active,” Gianna teased but then she too fixed me with a worried look. “And? How was your first night with Romero?”
“Gianna,” Aria warned. “Lily has gone through a lot.”
“It’s okay. I loved spending the night in Romero’s arms without being afraid of getting caught. For the first time we could watch the sunrise together.”
“I’m so glad you are happy,” Aria said.
I nodded. “But I can’t stop worrying about Fabi. I want to know if he’s okay.”
“I’ve left two voicemails on Val’s phone. I really hope she’ll call me back.”
“Even if she does,” Matteo said. “We don’t know her motives. She might be doing it on Dante’s orders and be looking for information.”
“Val wouldn’t do that,” Aria said uncertainly.
“She’s the wife of the Capo and the Outfit is where her loyalties lie. You are part of the Famiglia and that makes you the enemy,” Luca said.
I glanced at Romero. All this because I loved a man I wasn’t supposed to love, and because I wanted to be with him. Was I a selfish bitch? Romero met my gaze. I wished I could say I wouldn’t do it again but looking at him now, I knew I’d stab Benito again to save myself from a horrible marriage and be with the guy I was supposed to spend my life with.
“Hey,” Aria said gently. “Don’t look so sad.”
I turned back to her. “You and Val got along so well. I know you talked on the phone often and now you can’t because of the mess I caused.”
“You are my sister, Lily, and seeing you happy and having you in New York with us is more important than my friendship with Val. And maybe Luca can negotiate another truce with Dante. Dante is a pragmatic man.”
“Not as long as your father is Consigliere. It would be like a slap in the face for your father if Dante didn’t seek revenge,” Romero said.
“I hate this revenge crap,” Gianna muttered. Matteo stood from his stool, went over to her and pulled her against him with a grin. “I know you do, but it’s how things are.”
Gianna rolled her eyes but let Matteo kiss her. In the past that would have sent a stab of envy through me, but now I walked over to Romero and leaned against him. His arm came around my shoulders and he kissed my temple. “We’ve been at war with the Outfit before. We’ll handle this.”
“I don’t want people to die because of me.”
“Romero is right. We will get through this. And I don’t think Dante will kill one of ours. The Russian threat is still too strong. He can’t risk his soldiers’ live
s in a war with us.”
“Nor can we,” added Matteo.
A phone rang, making us all jump. Aria snatched her phone off the counter and peered down at the screen, then she raised her head with wide eyes. “It’s Val.”
Luca got up. “Don’t let anything slip that Fabi helped us and be careful.”
Aria nodded, then she lifted her phone to her ear. “Hello?” She paused. “I’m so glad you called. Can you talk?” Aria listened for a few seconds, her expression dropping. “I know. I only wanted to ask about Fabi. He got shot when he tried to stop us and I’m just so worried about him. He’s so young. He shouldn’t have been involved in this. Can you tell me how he’s doing?”
Aria released a breath. “So he’s okay? He’ll be able to use his arm like he used to?”
I slumped against Romero in relief, but at Aria’s next words I tensed again. “Is he in huge trouble because he wasn’t able to stop us?” Aria nodded, then gave us a thumbs-up. She was silent for a long time after that, listening to Val.
“Okay, I will tell him. Thank you so much, Val. I won’t forget it. I hope our men figure something out soon. I’ll miss talking to you. Bye.”
“So?” I asked, the moment she had hung up.
“Father and Dante seem to believe Fabi’s story. Nobody blames him for letting us get away. He didn’t have enough experience for the job. Only because of Father’s insistence did he get it in the first place.”
Luca looked like a bloodhound on a trail. “Did she say anything else? About Dante’s plans and his mood?”
“He’s furious,” Aria said with a shrug. “But he wanted Val to give you a message,” she told Luca, her eyes flitting to me.
Romero became still beside me. I had a feeling I knew what kind of message.
“If we send Lily back today, they might consider not retaliating.”
Romero pushed himself off the stool. “She won’t go back.”
Luca narrowed his eyes but then he took a deep breath. “Of course not. Dante knows we won’t agree to that offer. That’s why he made it.”
Romero rubbed my arm lightly and brought his mouth down to my ear. “Nobody will take you away from me. I’ll fight a million wars if it means I can keep you.”
* * *
Two days had passed but they might as well have been a lifetime. Romero had been busy and I’d spent most of my time with my sisters. But tonight Romero wanted us to have dinner together alone in his, no, our apartment. He’d ordered food at his favorite Italian place and spread it all out on the dining table in his huge kitchen.
A few minutes into the dinner, Romero set down his fork. “Luca made me Captain.”
“Really? That’s wonderful!” I could see how much this meant to him. I’d never gotten the feeling that he was unhappy as Aria’s bodyguard but of course it was a big deal if you got promoted, especially because the mob was a place where people usually took over their father’s position. “What business are you going to get?”
“I’ll be taking over a few clubs in Harlem. The old Captain has cancer and needs to retire, but he’s got only daughters so Luca decided to give me his businesses. I’ll be making more money for us.”
I smiled. “You know I don’t care about that. I’m just happy for you because you deserve it.”
Romero grimaced. “Some people don’t think so after I caused war with the Outfit.”
“I thought the majority was eager to stop cooperating with Chicago?”
“Those think I deserve to be Captain,” he said in amusement.
“So who will be guarding Aria?”
“That’s a bit of a problem. Sandro will guard Aria and Gianna for now. But that won’t be enough especially when you’re with them often. He can’t protect all three of you, but we’ll figure something out.”
When we were done with dessert, Romero got up and walked around the table toward me. I watched him in confusion. Did he look nervous?
Without warning, Romero dropped to his knees right in front of me and pulled a small satin box from his pants pocket. I froze as he held it out to me and opened it, revealing a beautiful diamond ring. Of course I’d hoped we’d marry soon. It was expected in our world but I didn’t think Romero had bought a ring already. He hadn’t wasted any time, that was for sure!
“I know you’ve been through a lot and your last wedding experience was horrible, but I hope you give it another chance. I want to be the husband you deserve. I want to make you happy and love you, if you let me. Will you marry me?”
I flung myself into his arms, my knees colliding with the hard floor but I hardly felt it. “God yes.” I kissed him fiercely.
Romero grinned when he pulled back. We didn’t get up from the floor. As long as I was in Romero’s arms I didn’t care where I was. “I understand if you want to wait a bit before you marry me. You’re probably not in the mood to plan another wedding.”
I shook my head quickly. “This is a wedding I want to plan. This time I will enjoy it. I can take Aria and Gianna wedding dress shopping with me and actually be excited about it.”
He chuckled. “But I want you to meet my family first. That way we can tell them the good news.”
“Oh, sure,” I said slowly. I was excited to meet Romero’s family but I was also worried that they wouldn’t like me, or worse despise me. I could only imagine what was being said about me and what had happened in Chicago.
* * *
The next day Romero took me to his family. His mother lived with her new husband and Romero’s three sisters in a modest apartment not too far from us. I shouldn’t have worried that they wouldn’t like me. They were kind, humble people. I knew his two oldest sisters already from my birthday party many years ago but we’d grown and his oldest sister, Tamara, had already started college. Something I’d never considered because I knew Father wouldn’t approve of it.
Dinner in my family had always been a formal affair, with my father sitting at the end of the table and with everyone on their best behavior, well, except for Gianna perhaps. But this was easygoing and fun. We talked and laughed all evening, and when Romero told them that we were going to marry, they hugged me and were actually happy. Nobody looked at me strangely because I’d married Benito less than a week ago.
I knew right then that I would be happy in this new life, not just because of Romero’s love, but because of my sisters and my new family. That wouldn’t stop me from missing Fabi but I had to trust that he would find his own happiness one day even if we’d never see each other again.
EPILOGUE
Liliana
I’d waited for this moment for a long time, had imagined it so often that it felt almost like a deja vu. A few weeks ago at my wedding to Benito, there had been only anxiety, sadness, and fear. But today I felt like I could fly. Happiness and euphoria buzzed in my body. I couldn’t wait for the party to be over so Romero could undress me and make love to me over and over again. The only thing missing for a perfect day was Fabi. I hadn’t seen him since my wedding night and I wasn’t sure if I ever would. I didn’t even know if he was alright. If he’d gotten in trouble for getting shot and letting us get away.
When the priest declared Romero and me husband and wife, Romero lifted me into his arms under the excited cheers of our guests. I couldn’t help but laugh. I’d never felt lighter, as if any moment I would soar up into the sky. I risked a glance up, wondering if Mother was watching. I’d done what she’d wanted. I’d risked happiness, and it was worth it. Romero kissed my cheek, drawing my attention back to him. Our eyes met and my heart swelled with love. I wanted to spend my life with him, and now I could.
Later at night, after the festivities, when Romero carried me toward our room in Luca’s mansion, my stomach fluttered with butterflies. This time I couldn’t wait to arrive, to be alone with my husband, to have him to myself for the night. This was how it was supposed to be. Every woman should be happy on her wedding day, should feel safe in the arms of her husband, should have the right to marry
for love and not because someone decided her match for her.
I pressed my face into the crook of his neck, smiling to myself. From the corner of my eyes, I caught sight of my sisters and their husbands. Aria beamed at me, and Gianna wiggled her eyebrows. I stifled a laugh. Romero brushed his lips across my ear. “I can’t wait to undress you and kiss every inch of your silky skin.”
Desire rushed through me. “Hurry,” I whispered.
Romero chuckled but he did actually speed up. He opened the door to our bedroom with his elbow, then kicked the door shut before crossing the room toward the bed and setting me down.
“God, you’re so damn beautiful. I can’t believe you’re finally mine.”
“I’ve always been yours.”
Romero cupped my cheek and kissed me fiercely before his hands started their work on my dress, slowly uncovering inch by inch of my body. He kissed every new spot, but not the places I wanted him to. When I lay before him in my corset and panties, his eyes traced my body with hunger and reverence. I loved that look. It made me feel like the most beautiful girl in the world. He let his fingers glide over my ankles then up my calves and thighs until he reached my panties. I lifted my hips. Romero let out a low laugh and kissed my hip bone, then licked the spot. “Romero, please.” He hooked his fingers under my panties and slid them down. When he came back up, he parted my legs and closed his mouth over my folds. I exhaled. With slow strokes of his tongue Romero drove me higher and when he slipped a finger into me, pleasure rolled over me. My toes curled and my butt lifted off the bed but Romero kept up his pleasuring until I couldn’t take it anymore and pushed his head away, laughing and gasping.