My use of his given name for the first time sees him looking down upon me with his eyebrows drawn. “I won’t abide the insult?—”
I press a little harder. “You’ve already lost so much of yourfamiglia…I can’t be the reason you lose anyone else.” My eyes flick to Antonio, narrowing in blatant dislike. “Even when he’s a fuckingstronzo.”
Rafe palms my cheek with his free hand, twisting my face around to his. His eyes pierce mine unrelentingly as he brushes the pad of his thumb over my cheekbone, gently wiping away my residual tears.
“You’re right,Stellina. I have lost many…”
He trails off, the obsidian of his eyes darkening, making my whole body liquify beneath the fervor laid out before me. And when he speaks again, his voice is low, raw with an unchecked emotion that sets my soul aflame.
“But I’d burn the world and everyone in it if the choice was between you and anyone else.” Fresh tears fill my eyes as his forehead creases. His tone is guttural when he whispers, “Youare my world now.”
The whole moment feels utterly surreal as his eyes move back and forth between mine, and I can’t stop the desperation that fills my entire body before Rafe drops the arm holding his gun.
When he angles his head to face hisconsigliereand stepmother, his voice is low and nothing short of murderous.
“Let this be a warning to anyone who might consider speaking out against us, si?”
Then he shifts back to me, tucking my hair behind my ear with a soft smile as he slips his cell from his pants pocket. He holds my eyes as he hits speed dial, continuing to smooth my hair back oh-so tenderly.
“Emiliano,veni ca.”
I hear Sasquatch mumble on the other end, and Rafe rolls his eyes as he answers, “La sala della musica.” Before I can pin him with a stare for being so rude to my friend, he’s already hung up.
“Zio, wait for me in my office.”
Antonio helps Sofia to her feet, her enraged eyes fixated on Rafe as she’s led to the door, and it isn’t until they’ve both left that I can feel my shoulders relax slightly.
Rafe gathers me close to his chest, resting his chin atop my head as he mutters indistinct Italian until Sasquatch knocks at the door, and lets himself in. I can’t stop myself from snorting when I take in the sight of his sleeping attire.
He narrows his eyes at me before he yanks his eye mask off his head and rams it into his pants pocket. “I like to sleep in the dark, okay?”
His defensive tone makes both me and Rafe grin, and then I lean up on my tiptoes and press a kiss to Rafe’s bearded cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Though his eyes darken, he says nothing as I walk toward Sasquatch, and together we slip into the hall beyond. “A hot pink cupcake covered eye mask. Really?”
He side-eyes me as we reach the foot of the stairs. “It matches my bedsheets.”
His wink makes me giggle, and his own self-deprecating snort soon follows. We’re still chuckling when we reach the top of the stairs and find Sofia waiting. Wariness snakes down my spine as she holds up a quelling palm before either of us can utter a single word to her.
“This world is ruled by men who follow the old traditions. Rafael and his father both defy the core values ofCosa Nostra, and it won’t be stood for, let me assure you of that,puttana.”
My stomach lurches as goosebumps scatter across my skin at her scarcely veiled threat, but despite that, I’m outwardly in full-on Swan Mode.
“Ouch!” I press my hand to my chest, feigning hurt. “That hurtalmostas much as looking at your face.”
At Sofia’s sharp inhalation and Sasquatch’s unveiled snort of laughter, I regard her exaggeratedly innocent eyes despite the nervousness flowing through me. “I’d give you a nasty look, but it appears you already have one.”
Sofia makes a sound of displeasure before shooting me one last malicious look, and then turning to stumble in the opposite direction from my suite.
“Christ almighty, she’s a bundle of joy.” I opt for humor to deflect the nerves simmering within my stomach and Sasquatch chuckles.
“She didn’t want to marry Don Giacomo, and she made that known to every Made Man in the Cosa Nostra. She’s always been a sour bitch. From the day she moved into the compound, she’s justneverbeen happy.”
My chest tightens, and suddenly, despite her venomous words and hurtful actions, I feel the barest shred of sorrow for her. “We all deserve happiness, Emiliano. Even her.”
As we reach the threshold of my door, Sasquatch stops me with a hand on my shoulder. His eyes are smiling as he regards me. “You make him happy. Happier than I’ve ever seen him, and I’ve known that moody fuck my whole entire life.”
My throat fills with emotion, and before I can stop myself, I close the gap to wrap my arms around him. “Thank you.For everything.”
