by Ava Catori
Gino parked in the driveway of our house and then led me down the sand dune which stood across from our house. Taking my hand, still not speaking, he stopped to remove his shoes. He kicked them off to the side, and I did the same. Walking barefoot was the only way to make it worthy. We crept to the water and gasped as a cold wave hit our toes. Once the ocean lapped our feet a few times, we grew accustomed to the chill. Turning, we walked along the ocean's edge and left footprints in the wet sand.
I wanted to thank him, to find a way to say I appreciated his standing up for me, but the words wouldn't come. I squeezed his hand, not knowing what else to do.
Gino released my hand and wrapped his arm over my shoulder mumbling more for himself than for me, "Like a lamb sent for slaughter. I didn't know he lied to you.”
He took a big breath and held on tighter as he said, “I'm going to be honest here and admit I think I fell in love with you the moment I saw you at Domenico's funeral. I watched you holding that baby, and right there and then, I wanted you to have my kids. I needed you in my life. My part in this - wanting you near me is what started this entire thing. I wanted you so badly - but I thought, hell, I don't know what I thought. I was a greedy child and wanted the most precious gift in the store. For me, that was you. Instead-"
I stopped his rambling. "Gino, I blame my father. What's done is done."
We stopped and looked at one other, our gaze not smoldering or hungry, but there was a note of acceptance that said we were in this together. After what happened with my father, it comforted me. I'd never felt so alone, but there was Gino standing on the beach, confessing his desires.
Parting my lips, I drew a deep breath. He saw the opportunity and took it. Gino cupped my face in his hands and tenderly kissed me. I wanted to get lost in the kiss, but I wasn't there yet. I wasn't in love. I was thankful the truth had spilled out, and accepting of what I needed to be, but the kiss was nice nonetheless.
I appreciated the control he used with me. He held back from passionately pushing into my mouth, his tongue exploring. Instead, he simply kissed me.
It was me who looked for more. I pressed my tongue between his lips, tasting my husband, wondering if I would ever love him.
Drawing me in closer, he wrapped his arms around me, holding me tightly. Instead of walking farther along the beach, we headed back home. I wanted to lay with him. I wanted him to keep me safe, keep me from losing myself, keep me sane from the temporary insanity that was housed in my brain.
On returning, we picked up our shoes and brushed the sand off of our feet. Crossing the street, we went inside. Without hesitation, I led him to his room. I wasn't ready to consummate our marriage, but I very much wanted to be by his side. He pulled off his shirt, but left his pants on out of respect. As he reached for me, I stopped him and quietly slipped my shirt over my head. I flushed as he watched me like a hungry tiger. I wanted to feel his warm skin against mine. I was too shy to slip off my bra, but he reached around and helped.
My arms protectively shot up over my breasts. Gino eyes met mine. He gently moved my arms away. "Let me look at you, at least."
I wanted to be brave, but I was shy. I closed my eyes and let his gaze fall over me. His fingertips grazed my skin. I shivered at his touch; it was so tender for such a big, strong man. I whispered, almost feeling guilty. "I'm not ready."
"I know, baby, I know, but this image alone is something I need to memorize. You're absolutely gorgeous, and your curves, damn, your curves leave me aching for a taste. At least I'll have the picture of your incredible breasts in my mind. I'll look forward to completing the picture and seeing the rest of you soon." He took my hand and led me to the bed.
We curled into one another, him spooning me. Thankfully, as promised, he didn’t press me for sex. His comfort offered me reprieve from replaying the words I'd spat at my father over and over in my head.
Gino draped his arms over me. His chest was against my back, and I thought maybe, just maybe I could find a way to love him one day. The words slipped from my lips before I could stop them. "I hate this 'family' life, but I could probably learn to love you if you did anything else. I hate that I'm a mobster's wife."
I should have stopped, bitten my tongue. As soon as they came out, guilt washed over me, yet if I didn't have my truth, what else did I have left.
* * *
16
Gino
Resting with my beautiful Isabella nestled beside me, without attempting to use what I could legitimately see as my right as her husband, I realized how far we’d both come since our chance encounter at Domenico Guarneri's funeral.
My evolution had been a slow one. What was initially a case of lust at first sight, lust so strong, I would have stopped at nothing to own her, had progressively evolved into something different. Not that I didn't want to possess her every way a man could possess a woman, but there was more to it than mere physical attraction. I liked her spirit, I liked her spunk, and after watching her hold her own, there was no doubt in my mind I was in love.
Isabella had also come a long way. With minuscule steps, she slid away from the absolute disgust I’d inspired in her. Giving her space and not forcing myself upon her helped score points, but I realized the revelation about her father's betrayal would be decisive during the rest of our relationship.
Now that she was aware it wasn’t her father's life that was threatened, but only her father's station, she had to know she could leave me and still be able to look at herself in the mirror. The fact that she hadn't run yet gave me hope.
I wasn’t stupid. I didn't ignore the possibility that she could have stayed because there was no place she could run too. Regardless, I clung to my foolish hope.
I’d given her a lot of cash to furnish the place and was certain she hadn’t spent half of it. The balance rested in the small safe in my bedroom. She could use it to escape right away. Instead of doing that, she turned to me for comfort, and for the first time, decided to spend the night in my bed .... Our bed.
With a little more time, she’d probably come around to the fact that I was part of the world she’d grown up in and claimed to hate.
Putting myself in her father's shoes, I wondered what my reaction would have been if someone had given me a choice between giving away a woman of my family to a man she didn't even know and a one-way ticket out of our world.
Would I have sold out Chiara or Gia? No. I was a better man than that. Wasn't I? An office job was definitely not in the cards for me, too boring, too static. But I’d done a lot of construction work while paying my way through college. I could have gone back to that. Yeah, I could have run away with my sister and my niece and start anew, if given the choice.
Family would always come first in my book.
That was my last thought before my phone buzzed on the table. Half asleep, I resisted the temptation to ignore it when I realized it was the crack of dawn. Regretfully letting go of Isabella, I turned to see who was calling me at this ungodly hour. When I saw my sister's face flash on the screen, I knew it had to be bad news. Chiara was everything but an early morning person.
"Gino!" Her voice was choked up. "Gino, they took Sonny."
Sitting up abruptly, I snapped back, "What?"
"Five men, they broke into the house and then dragged him out of bed," she explained with a broken voice. "I ... I couldn't do anything ..."
"Where are you now?" I asked jumping out of bed and into the pants I had discarded onto the floor a few hours ago.
"I'm home, but don't worry, I'm safe," she said her voice a little calmer. "I’m in the safe room and I’m pretty sure the police have arrived."
"Stay put until I get there," I ordered her. "I won't be long."
Breathing a sigh of relief that at least my sister was safe, I dialed Gia's home.
Hunter picked up the phone. "Dad, are you okay?"
"Sorry for the scare, it's not your father, it's Gino," I said.
"What the fuck do you want?" he asked. So much
for thinking he’d warmed up to me during my renovation. Unless he was a horrible grouch in the morning, there was still no love lost between the two of us, but that didn't matter. What really mattered was that the man loved my niece and was capable of keeping her safe.
"You need to take Gia somewhere safe," I explained to him. "Sonny's been kidnapped."
"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Hunter muttered under his breath as I continued talking. "I'll be on my way there in a few minutes and I wanted to know if Isabella could stay with you for now."
"Of course!" His answer came right out without any hesitation whatsoever. "I'll watch over her while you do what you have to do."
"Thank you, I appreciate this," I answered looking at Isabella who was now fully awake, sitting up in our bed, a bed sheet tightly wrapped around her chest. "I wouldn't want anything happening to her." As the words came out of my mouth, I realized how true they were.
Through the phone, I heard Gia asking, "Who are you talking to?"
"I'll tell you in a second," he answered her quickly.
I waited, my gaze glued to Isabella in the bed sheet.
"We'll be ready when you get there," Hunter told me and then hung up.
As I turned to get a clean shirt from the dresser, Isabella jumped out of bed and dashed to her room saying, "I'll be ready in two minutes."
Watching her cross the hallway to get her clothes in the other room, I made a mental note to get back to the house and move them into our bedroom before coming back to pick her up when this mess ended.
I closed the door behind her and dug into the safe for some serious fire power. By the time I was done and ready, Isabella was already sitting in the car, a small suitcase on the back seat.
"I've got clothes for a week," she said. She didn’t ask questions, she simply made me aware she understood what was going on.
I nodded, impressed by her calm, and drove in silence to Hunter and Gia's house. Their place was down the street, adjacent to Barbara's house.
By the time we got there, the four of them were waiting for us, parked in the street, ready to go.
I walked around my car to help Isabella out while Hunter picked up her suitcase from the back seat.
"You call me as soon as you know anything," Gia called to me from the back of Hunter's truck. Poor baby must have been on the phone with her mother since I woke her up.
I ignored my niece to concentrate on my wife. Looking at Isabella, I couldn’t figure out what was going on in that beautiful head of hers.
"I'll be back as soon as I can," I told her.
She shrugged and simply said, "Be safe," as she turned in the direction of the truck to take her place in the back seat with Gia, Barbara, and the baby.
"We'll be in--" Hunter started to say.
"It's better I don't know."
He nodded gravely. He understood.
"Whatever happens, we'll take good care of her," Hunter said. "She's Barbara's family and family always comes first."
* * *
17
Isabella
His voice pulled me out of my slumber. Gino was talking, agitated, and way too serious for this early in the morning. I honed in on his words. Shit, it was bad news.
I sat upright, wrapped the sheet around me, and tried to gather my bearings. Having grown up as part of an organized crime family, there were times we'd be forced out of bed late at night and rushed into a panic room or out of the house. It didn't happen often, but it had happened. I'd been trained to respond without asking questions.
I quickly packed a bag with clothing, knowing I'd be shuttled somewhere safe. I didn't say much, but let Gino know I was ready and understood the gravity of the situation.
The panic of a tragic crisis brought me back to my childhood. Tension filled my jaw as I clenched my teeth. The first time I was quite young, but when it happened here and there over the years, I went from being scared to angry. Our lives were disrupted, and I had to pretend like it was normal.
I hated this life! As a kid, I’d had no choice and now, as an adult there had to be something I could do. I didn't want to be a part of it any longer. I'd find my way out, somehow, but now wasn't the time to make a fuss. I'd have plenty of time to plan my exit.
Gino was fully involved. There was no denying that. He oozed power and strength and came alive in moments where others would fade. I knew if I stayed with him, it would always be about "the family" and the chaos that went along with it.
Gino dropped me with Gia. Barbara and the baby were already there, so was Ryder. They were going to take Gia and me somewhere safe, and that was all I got to know. It didn't matter if I had questions, I knew not to ask them.
The adrenalin was ripe as we made our way to the other side of Ocean Crest. When we finally arrived, Barbara buzzed us into a secured garage. Barbara motioned to Hunter, showing him where to park.
"This is our newest construction in the city and my friend Brad owns the penthouse. Not only is the building secure, but he has his own elevators that are private as well. Nobody else has access to them in the building. They use a different bank of elevators and even though he hasn't moved in full time, no one will be surprised to see light in the windows as we still have construction going on and Brad comes for weekends arriving and leaving at the weirdest hours."
Barbara, Gia and I were shuttled in and taken to the top of the building.
When the door of the elevator opened, Brad stood in the hallway in front of another door. This place was indeed secure. Riding the box to the top was still not enough to access his place. There was still another door for protection. He reached out for Barbara, who whispered a thank you and offered a hug.
"You know I don't like this kind of stuff," he started. "It's bad news when 'they' start getting involved."
Gia held her breath. I admired her for keeping her cool. If it had been a member of my family in danger, I probably would have used very rash words to tell him this wasn’t the right time.
We dropped our bags in the hallway and followed Brad. Together, we gathered in the large living area. There were certainly worse places to settle in for a long haul. The penthouse was amazing, floor to ceiling windows, highly polished woodwork, and modern furnishings that were clean in design. The man had style, or a great interior decorator. While I generally went for cushy furniture you could sink into, the beauty of the design wasn't lost on me. Even the art on the walls had been tastefully chosen.
I wasn't sure what to say. Gia, now my ... what? Cousin? No, she was my niece by marriage since she was Gino's niece. I guess that made her a part of my family. Barbara was blood family. I still had to wrap my head around she was uncle Roberto's daughter. The three of us sat together, Barbara cooing to her son.
"Let me," Brad said, taking Aidan. "You obviously need to talk."
Barbara nodded. "Thanks, hon." She handed her son to Brad who instantly went from business mode to gooey baby mode, talking in sweet little voices. His face softened as he looked at the child in his arms.
We talked, placing all our cards out between us. The coffee table was weighted with Gia's worry over her father, Barbara's concern for the turmoil, and my admitting I wanted no part of this life any more.
"I never wanted this," I said with a heavy sigh. "It's not Gino. He's been a gentleman, and I now know he cares for me. I just can't deal with the constant stress of who gets to die and who gets to live. And when it's not life and death, it's who gets arrested, injured, kidnapped, and what else? I thought I'd find my way away from this life if I went to college."
Gia snorted. Yeah, right. I had been dreaming. She'd tried it and she was right back here where she started. I was not sure she knew I had been tricked into my marriage, but right now was not the right time to make sure she understood.
"Let's face it, I'm stuck, and unlike you, Gia, I have no life skills to sell. I'm never pulling myself out of this mess." As the word came out of my mouth I realized I was being unfair to the poor woman. She didn't need to be reminded what
this world was about. Not today.
Gia's face was drawn tightly. She sucked in her cheeks, tightened her jaw, and held her arms close to her body. I recognized her body language. She was playing head games, telling herself it would be okay, and that it wasn't real, while all along she knew it was. Coping was what we did when we couldn't do anything else but sit and wait.
Gia answered, "I guess we're more alike than we realize."
I nodded.
"Isabella, you're not trapped. There's always a way out," Barbara noted. I looked at her, wondering what she was talking about. "Now, obviously none us wants to get involved with what's going on between you and Gino, but if you ever need a job, we're growing and searching for new talent. You probably have more skills than you suspect, and if not, we could train you."
"What do you mean?" I wasn't sure I understood what she was saying.
"What she's means is you're welcome to work for our company if you want a job," Ryder said coming back into the room. "We’ll gladly empower a woman who wants to take care of herself any day of the week."
I shook my head with disbelief. Barbara was an amazing woman. She was so calm, like this was normal, and she hadn't even grown up in this mess.
As if reading my mind, she softly said, "I grew up in a different mess. We all have our demons and crosses to bear."
Gia let out a heavy sigh, then turned to Barbara. "It’s weird, our families have been at war for so long; it's odd to sit here with the two of you. It's sort of freaky we're now on the same side."
Barbara reached out for Gia's hand and so did I.
"Gia, I'm sorry about your father..." I stopped talking. What more could I possibly say?
With a sad smile on her face, Gia squeezed my hand. "I worry so much," she said. "About my father, about Gino ... there's this rivalry between them and when push comes to shove ..."
She didn't finish her sentence. I didn't press her, but felt her tension. I wondered what part of Gino's personality I had yet to discover.