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“Ripples?” I echoed from my place on the bed, my voice wavering despite my best efforts to keep it steady. The word sounded so harmless, but the implication was anything but. Our actions were shaking up the mafia world in ways we hadn’t intended or foreseen.
“Normally, the Rossis would have left you alone as soon as you left Boston, but you’re heir apparent and mafia princess respectively, and Nicolas Rossi is chomping at the bit to take his father’s place and expand his territory. So far, the Rossis have respected our mutual agreement not to interfere in each other’s territory and affairs. But your union…might push him to break it. And the fact that you two ran away means you’re both fair game.”
“We were being chased,” I said. “With guns. We had to run.”
“You could’ve run to either of our parents and you would’ve been more protected than here,” Kieran said, sweeping his hand around dramatically. “What the fuck is in Delaware, anyway?”
“You don’t understand,” Tristan said. “There are complications.”
“So help me understand. Tell me what’s going on. Let me help. Silvio is furious you took away his little girl and Malachy…I don’t think I’ve ever seen Dad this angry.”
Tristan flashed me a look. My mouth dried.
“Just tell him, Tristan,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. Something in me shattered at the sight of Tristan’s face–torn between loyalty to his family and his need to protect me. He looked at me for a moment longer before turning back to Kieran.
“Adriana is pregnant,” he announced, his voice steady even as his shoulders sagged under the weight of the revelation.
Kieran blinked, momentarily taken aback. “Pregnant?” he echoed, glancing quickly between the two of us before letting out a low whistle. “Shit,” he muttered, running a hand through his unruly hair.
“Yes, shit,” Tristan agreed dryly.
The room fell into a tense silence as Kieran processed this new information.
“So…you’re going to be a dad?” Kieran said after a beat.
“Yeah,” Tristan said. “Right.”
“And Adriana…” Kieran’s gaze shifted to me, full of a new understanding. “You’re going to be a mom.”
“And you’re going to be an uncle, genius,” Tristan muttered. “You’ve really cracked the code on familial relationships, huh?”
Even with Tristan still kidding around, the room felt suddenly too small, as if the walls were closing in on me. But I held my ground, returning Kieran’s gaze steadily. I was tired of running, hiding, and pretending that everything was fine when it wasn’t. Whatever was coming our way, we would face it head-on.
“But why run?” Kieran said after a moment of silence, looking from Tristan to me and back again. “Why didn’t you guys go to either of our families? I mean, they would’ve supported you. You two were supposed to get married. So really, it would have been beautiful timing.”
Tristan let out a hollow laugh. “Beautiful timing?” he repeated, incredulously. “Kieran, this wasn’t part of a grand plan. There was no timing involved. It just... happened. And we didn’t go to them because...”
He avoided my gaze, staring blankly at the carpet. I knew what he was thinking. The same reason that kept us up at night, the fear that gnawed at our hearts every waking moment.
“Because they wouldn’t understand,” I finished for him, my voice barely above a whisper. “They’d see it as an alliance. A strategic move to unite the families. But this…this isn’t about them. It’s about us. I didn’t want to force Adriana to do anything after I had already walked away from our deal. It was so shitty in the first place, you know, doing that to her.”
“Not your best move,” Kieran agreed. “But you can fix it now. You can go home, marry her, and the Rossis become a footnote.”
“There’s more to it,” Tristan argued, his voice strained and tired. “The Rossis won’t just vanish off the scene because we decided to get hitched, Kieran.”
Kieran sighed heavily, scratching his stubbled chin as he thought. “Maybe not, but they’d be less of a threat, especially with both our families standing by your side. You’re not just Adriana Orsini and Tristan Callahan anymore. You’re going to be parents. You’re next in line for both thrones. A child…I mean, that changes everything.”
Tristan scoffed, a bitter and humorless sound. “Oh, is that all? Just whisk her away to Boston, parade her in front of the family, put a ring on her finger, and everything will be sunshine and roses?”
Kieran shrugged, “It’s better than running, Tristan. At least back in Boston we have resources. We can protect you two and the baby.”
Tristan’s eyebrows knitted together at that. He ran a hand over his face, clearly wrestling with his thoughts. I watched as two conflicting emotions seemed to war within him–the desire to protect us versus the need to keep us hidden from the world we were born into.
“Ade,” Tristan said, turning to look at him. “What do you want?”
“I just want our baby to be okay,” I said, my hand instinctively on my stomach. “I don’t want a life where we’re constantly a target.”
“As long as you’re on the run, you’re going to be a target,” Kieran said. “Come home.”
