by Lacey Thorn
“How did you know he was lying?”
“Did you think I couldn’t see the signs? Did you think I was that clueless? I was looking for you the day you disappeared. I knew he was lying through his teeth. But by the time I found out where you’d gone, you had already left. I confronted Stephano about it but he blew me off, like usual.”
Gianna sighed. “I should have known you’d figure things out. I always thought you’d end up working in the police department.”
“Went to nursing school. I volunteer at Planned Parenthood every other weekend. It’s the least I can do.”
Gianna felt the tears pool in her eyes. “I’ve really missed you, Jessie.”
“I know you have. There can’t be anyone like me in the circles you’ve been running in since you left here. Good thing for you, I have a big heart and I love you. So you’re forgiven. You can make it up by making time for me while you’re here. And not forgetting me when you leave again. Deal?”
“Deal.” Gianna hugged her friend close. Ten years, and Jessie had kept her secret. “Are you okay?”
“Me? Please, I stopped fawning after your brother years ago. He only had to show me his disinterest for so many years before I got the clue.” Jessie laughed. “Honestly I don’t think your brother ever got the clue I fancied myself in love with him.”
“His loss.”
“Damn straight.” Jessie grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hall. “The family left a few hours ago along with the police officers who were waiting to hear if he made it through the surgery. He did, with flying colors. Next seventy-two hours are critical, but it’s Stephano. If I’d had a number for you, I would have called to tell you the coast was clear.”
“I’ll make sure you have it before I leave the hospital.”
“Hell yeah you will.” She stopped outside a door. “He’s in this private room. Family is limited to a few minutes at a time, but since no one knows you’re here but me…” She shrugged. “Well, I have paperwork to do and a few other patients to check on. So I’ll be a while. I’ll check in on you later.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s almost five. I’m betting the rest of your clan will start showing up in another hour.”
“I can’t—”
“I know, Gianna. But you’re going to have to see them sometime. At least here they can’t yell. Now go talk to Stephano.”
Gianna watched her friend walk down the hall. She should have come back sooner. Should have called Jessie at some point. Invited her to come visit. Should have, could have. It was a game she couldn’t play. Pushing the door open, she stepped into the room and felt her heart catch, stopping her ability to breath for a moment. That couldn’t be Stephano. Not her larger-than-life brother.
The person in the bed had tubes running everywhere. He was still and lifeless. Stephano was a whirlwind of activity. He couldn’t sit still if he wanted to. She walked closer to the bed and let the tears fall down her cheeks. Stephano. That was her brother’s face surrounded by the Marquetti black locks. Everyone had them but Gianna.
He looked so fragile. So un-Stephano-like. Where was his engaging grin, his belly laugh that made everyone join in? Where were those twinkling blue eyes filled with mischief?
“Oh, Stephano,” she whispered his name as she took one still hand in both of hers. “What have you gotten yourself into?”
She reached one hand up to brush the hair off his forehead. “I’ve missed you so much. A thousand times I’ve wanted to pick up the phone and call you. A thousand more I’ve wanted to come home and see you. But not like this. I never dreamed I’d get a call that one of you was injured. Feared it. But nothing can stop a Marquetti. Right?”
“That’s right, girl.” The voice in the corner startled her. She shouldn’t have been surprised though. There was no way her father would leave while Stephano was still fighting.
He stood up and walked toward her. He was still larger than life to her but she could see how much he’d aged in the last ten years. Her heart ached. She’d missed him so much.
“Come here, girl. It’s been long enough.” He held his arms open to her and she couldn’t resist the comfort she knew she’d find there. His arms closed around her and ten years worth of hurt and emotions washed down her cheeks in a torrent of tears. “You should have come home sooner, Gianna.”
“I couldn’t,” she whispered the words against his chest.
“I’ve sat back long enough and let this foolish thing go on between you and your mother. I expected one of you to see sense. But no more. Life is too short for family to be at odds.” He sighed and placed a kiss on top of her head. “I’ll see that there’s a room ready for you at the house.”
“No.” She shook her head and pulled back.
“Enough, Gianna. We will end this feud between you and your mamma once and for all.”
She nodded. “But I’m not coming home this visit. I’ll stay at the hotel. Besides I’m not so sure Mamma will want me there.”
“Your mamma will do as she’s told.”
Gianna snorted and then laughed. “Getting senile, old man?”
Salvatore smiled and shook his head. “Wishful thinking maybe. But, trust me, Gianna. Your mother has been hurt just as deeply by this feud as I imagine you have. I don’t know what happened. I know what that Michael tried to spread but he shut his mouth quick. Had his nose broken twice in one week. That shut him up.”
“Twice?”
“Seems your brother Cristiano got to him a few days after your friend Jessie broke it the first time.”
Gianna smiled. “I’ve missed you, Pops.”
Her father smiled and cleared his throat. “I’ve kept tabs on you. Seen all your photos and even watched that show on the entertainment channel that showed you on that beach shoot. Very proud of you, Gianna.”
“I’m sorry, Pops. I just couldn’t come back. I…” She trailed off as her father just hugged her close again.
“I know, girl. I’ve been telling your mamma that there’s a purpose for everything that happens in life. Maybe the reason our Stephano is lying there is so that you would finally find your way back home to us. Maybe it’s to open your mother’s eyes and wake her up to what she is risking by shutting you out. Hell, maybe it’s just to remind us all that life is damn precious. Doesn’t matter. It happened and all we can do is watch and wait for your brother to open his eyes.”
“Did they get the guy who shot him?”
He nodded. “He was drunk or high. Probably both. Didn’t remember anything when they showed up to arrest him.” Gianna felt him trembling with the emotions going through him. “Just rolled up the window and drove off, leaving my boy bleeding on the street. Thank the Good Lord one of the other state boys was close by and drove by to check. Otherwise…” His voice trailed off. She didn’t need to hear her father say how close Stephano had come to dying.
“Gianna.” Jessie’s voice was a whisper as she entered the room. She looked up and met her friend’s eyes.
“Oh, Mr. Marquetti, I didn’t realize you were still here.”
“Jessie Markle, is that you lurking in the shadows over there?”
“Yes, sir, Mr. Marquetti. I was just stopping by to let Gianna know that I heard Cris and Dante in the waiting room. I, uh, figured she’d want to know.”
“Expected she’d want to run, you mean.”
Gianna felt her face flush as she watched Jessie’s do the same. Suddenly she felt like a teenager all over again. Back in the days when she and Jessie were always getting scolded for the things they’d done.
“Well, that was a possibility,” Jessie admitted. Her friend had always been too brave for her own good.
Salvatore just smiled. “I’ve missed you, Jessie. You should stop by the house. It’s been too long since we’ve seen your face.”
“Ten years.”
Gianna was startled. Had her friend avoided her family since she’d been gone? Why would Jessie do that?
“I remember you sniffing around Stephano
when you were younger. Still got a thing for my boy?”
Gianna watched her friend blush again but Jessie answered, “No, sir. The heart can only take so much rejection. Besides, hard to respect a man who lets family walk away without pushing to know why.”
The dig was deep and Gianna caught her breath. She couldn’t believe that even Jessie would have the balls to say something like that.
Salvatore just nodded. “I like you. You’ve got gumption, Jessie Markle. Is it still Markle?”
“Yes.”
“Any of my remaining three sons would be lucky to find a woman like you.”
“Yes, they would.”
Salvatore chuckled and giving Gianna another kiss on her head, he pushed her from his arms toward the door. “Go see your brothers, Gianna. No more running.”
Gianna nodded. Maybe she’d been wrong about things. Maybe it wouldn’t be as bad as she feared. She took the hand Jessie held out to her and stepped outside the door.
“What are you doing here? Family only in these rooms.”
The cold words of her mother greeted her as she entered the hall. This is what she’d feared. This is what she’d expected. She felt her heart shrink. Her dad had given her hope that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, that maybe she and her mother could mend fences. But who was she kidding? Her mother would never forgive her for what she thought Gianna had done. And Gianna had too much of that Marquetti pride to beg her mom to listen to the truth.
“Gianna is family, Mrs. Marquetti,” Jessie spoke up at her side.
Her mother just glared at the two of them. Gianna never got the chance to hear what her mother’s reply was. Her father stuck his head out the door just then.
“Belinda, leave it be.”
Her mother opened her mouth.
“No more, Belinda. We have one child fighting for his life and you still wish to treat our daughter like this?”
Her mother turned to her father and began a torrent of rapid Italian. Obviously her emotions were getting the best of her right now.
“Enough,” her father said and this time his hand sliced through the air between them, a sure sign he was done. “We will discuss this later. Gianna, go see your brothers. I will expect to see you later this evening. Don’t make me send one of your brothers after you.”
He took her mother’s arm and pulled her into Stephano’s room, letting the door shut behind them.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad,” Jessie murmured and Gianna just looked at her friend.
“Compared to what?”
“Well, neither one of you spontaneously combusted.” Jessie made a big deal of looking Gianna up and down. “No broken bones or even a drop of spilled blood.”
“There’s that.”
“I’m off in another hour. Wait for me and we’ll grab some breakfast? Fill each other in on what’s been going on?”
“Sounds good.” Gianna smiled. “I’m really glad I ran into you.”
“We’re blood sisters. It was inevitable.” Jessie grinned. “Now go see your brothers and remember that you’re in a hospital so no yelling.”
Gianna shook her head. She was making no promises. So far she was one and one. Her father was demanding she return to the fold while her mother was still determined to think the worst of her. She knew Cris was on her side. But what about Dante and Angelo? What about Nico? And what must her little sister Isabella think of her?
She heard the voices before she got to the waiting-room doors. Taking a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and stepped into the chaos. Time to face the music.
Chapter Four
Gianna was ready to pull her hair out. She felt as if she’d gone ten rounds in the boxing ring with a champion. Her brothers had that impact on people. They’d gone from embracing her and telling her how happy they were to see her to what the hell was she thinking in two minutes flat.
They didn’t like her career choice and the fact that she’d done several ads nude, especially those for European campaigns where they tended to be more open. They were mad as hell that she’d failed to keep in contact with them. Everyone seemed to forget about their mother’s role in her absence or the fact that her phone hadn’t exactly been ringing off the hook from them either. Other than Cris, she hadn’t really spoken to them.
They were mad that she was staying in a hotel. Cris wanted her to stay with him. He had a spare room now that Phoebe had moved in with Dante. Angelo offered his spare room up, as did Nico. While Dante said she should be back home while she was in town. Isabella wasn’t there yet. Who knew what her sister would have offered, if anything. And she had missed all this demanding chaos? Hell, yes, she had.
Of course Gianna had waded right in and told them in no uncertain terms her life, her choices. She wouldn’t apologize for her career or the fact that she preferred to stay in a hotel. All of them had told her that it was time to put whatever argument she had going with Mamma behind her and come back to the family. They loved her. She knew that, had always known it.
Cris had nearly undone her when he pulled her close and whispered in her ear.
“Gianna, I can’t do this anymore. Come home. Please. I won’t ask any questions. Just come home.”
She could feel him shaking as he hugged her. This brother, who had always been there for her, just a phone call away at any time, was begging her to come home. She had to fight to hold back the tears.
Like it or not, she was going to have to confront her mother. Ten years was a long time. Her father was right. It was enough. Her mother could either listen to the truth or keep her head buried in the lies she’d been sold. But Gianna needed to have her say. She hadn’t realized just how much she needed that until she’d come home. She would never be able to really heal until she told her mother the truth of that day. And the repercussions of it.
Finally Jessie had stuck her head in to yell at them all about the noise. She’d read them the riot act about proper behavior while in a hospital then grabbed Gianna’s hand and pulled her out of there. Gianna had begged off breakfast and agreed to meet her friend later in the day after they’d both gotten some much-needed sleep.
Jessie dropped her off in front of the hotel and Gianna waved as her friend drove away. She stood there for a long moment. It was as if the entire world were crashing around her. Everything she’d walked away from ten years ago was washing over her and there would be no more running. The time had come to stand and fight, to take back her family. She needed to bring the truth to light and let the cards fall where they would. Her family was more than worth the fight.
But she stood rooted to the spot, unable to take that first step into the hotel. She needed rest, needed food. She needed comfort. She needed someone to lean on and wrap their arms around her for just a little bit. Just long enough for her to shore her strength back up. She could handle her mother’s feelings, knowing they were built on a lie. But what if the truth didn’t change anything?
Her breath shuddered and she bit back a sob, using her fist to block her open mouth.
A hand stroked down her back and she found herself pulled against a hard chest. Glancing up, she looked into Gabe’s green eyes.
“Let it go, Gia. Even I can see something is eating away at you. Just let it go.”
She shook her head. “Not here. Not—”
“Come with me.” He tugged her hand, pulling her into the building and straight to the elevator. He gave her fingers a squeeze and kept talking to her as the car slowly made it up to their floor. But when she would have stopped at her door, he tugged her on to his.
A slide of the keycard and she was inside. Having sex would help. Maybe she should just lose herself in his body for a while.
“Well, hello there,” Tony greeted them as Gabe pulled her all the way into the room. His eyes moved over her face and he was there beside her in an instant. “What’s wrong? Is it your brother? Is everything okay?”
How could they read her so well? She’d always been the queen of hiding her emotions.
Was she that far gone?
“Gianna, talk to me here?” Tony’s voice intruded on her thoughts.
“Stephano is still in recovery. He hasn’t changed. Just waiting to see how he does.”
“So why the sad face?”
“I just… Coming back here… I thought I could handle stuff, but I’m not so sure any more.”
“Ahhh, past demons coming out to play, are they?” As Gabe spoke he ran his fingers up and down her spine in a soothing gesture.
“Best thing to do is knock ’em in the teeth. Don’t run. Fight. Trust me on this. It’s the only way to win.”
She saw the shadows in Tony’s eyes and wondered what demons he’d fought. She knew he’d served with Dante in the Marines, that he and Gabe had stayed in even after Dante left. She’d talked to Phoebe on the phone earlier in the car and her friend had been a fountain of information about the two friends visiting Dante. According to Phoebe, Dante was encouraging both of them to put down roots and stay.
“Fight. I’m good at fighting. But I just… I don’t fall apart. I shore up the walls and keep going. I can’t do this.”
Gabe tilted her face up to his. “Everyone needs to let things go at some point. Our strength isn’t unlimited. Let us help you.”
“Are you offering sex as a stress reliever?”
“Sure,” Tony agreed with a wicked smile. Then his face softened and his eyes filled with compassion and understanding. “But I don’t think that’s what you need right now.”
“When we make love to you,” Gabe interjected, “the only things in your eyes will be passion and lust, not shadows and demons.”
“I—”
“Shhh…” Tony whispered and swept her up in his arms, carrying her across the room and sitting in a chair with her cradled in his lap. “Stop thinking. Just let it all go. I’ve got you.”
Gabe squatted down beside them. “We’ve both got you. Nothing’s getting past us. Just let all you’re holding inside out.”
“I thought I was strong. I thought I was tough.” She laughed and the edge of hysteria was obvious even to her. “Here I am in a hotel room with two men that I don’t really know a thing about.”