Page 71 of Fractured Empire

“Cousin,” Leo repeats, tasting the word and humming. “Yes, I think so.”

We lapse into a comfortable quiet, eating more and talking less until Bastian asks Leon about his day.

“It was an unimportant day, figlio. There were more things left to do when I decided I wanted to leave, but Gino took care of them so I could come see you.”

“Gino funny,” Leo giggles, sputtering suddenly.

Leon chuckles, shaking his head fondly as he watches his son crack up.

“What’s so funny about Gino?” I ask, vaguely remembering meeting the man a few days ago at our wedding. He’s a stocky man with a classic Italian style. His dark eyes, and even darker hair went perfectly with his simple designer suit. His wife, on the other hand, there was nothing understated about her. Maria is beautiful by every standard.

“Gino fell on his A double S in the driveway when it was particularly icy one day, and Leo hasn’t stopped giggling about it since.”

“He breaked his butt,” Leo squeals, laughing harder.

Leon shakes his head, trying and failing to stop looking amused. “It took him a little while of struggling to remain on his feet before he fell, and Leo started laughing at him before he even hit the ground. Gino didn’t actually break anything, but he was clutching his back on and off for weeks after. We’re not as young as we once were.”

Leaning across the table, I tickle Leo’s little belly and he squirms, continuing to crack up. “Does Gino know he’s so hilarious?”

“Leo teases him every time he sees him.” Leon’s lips twitch, and his eyes seem far off as if he’s recalling a vivid memory. “Gino was one of the first people he met outside of the family, and it makes me happy that he’s comfortable enough with him to make fun of him.”

I understand what he means immediately. Gino is a big guy, and Leo came into this family in a vulnerable state. Someone like Leon’s right hand man could have frightened the once three-year-old boy. But even before he turned four and got truly settled into his new family, he felt self-assured enough to laugh at one of his father’s very dangerous friends.

“I think the way you’re laughing yourself silly it might be close to nap time, hmm?”

“Nooooo,” Leo pouts, shaking his head at his father’s inquiry.

Bastian worries his bottom lip and taps Leon’s forearm. “Will you be here when we wake up?”

“I’ll be here all day and night,” Leon assures him, putting his hand on top of Bastian’s. “I’m going to try not to have to go anywhere tomorrow either. I’m not going back to working my full hours again for as long as I can put it off, okay?”

“Okay.”

My heart swells at the soft reply, feeling the genuine trust and belief in it. He trusts his father without question, taking him at his word so easily.

And Leon, God, he makes my insides turn to mush.

The way he so obviously cares for his sons and doesn’t want to be away from them is so attractive that it almost hurts to think too much about. He’s the kind of dad who makes women want five plus children—the kind of man that causes women’s ovaries to physically ache.

“Cookies after nap?” Leo asks, batting his pale eyelashes like he knows exactly what he’s doing with his puppy dog eyes.

“I don’t know,” Leon hums, considering it. “How many have you had already?”

Turning to me with a determined look, he smiles. “Kat, how many we have?”

“You both only had one,” I remind him. They were big ones, but Leon didn’t ask about the cookies’ size. “I wanted you to save room for your lunch, remember?”

Satisfied by my answer, he turns back to his father and grins wider. “We eated lunch.”

“Yes, you did.” Leon dips his head. “Tell you what, you take a good nap and we’ll share some cookies for a snack when you wake up, okay?”

“Yes, yes. I like dis idea.”

With the children properly bribed by the promise of future cookies, Leon is able to easily whisk them up to their room. Since they’ve all clearly been missing one another, I don’t tag along and quickly put away the food, leaving only what’s left on Leon’s plate in case he isn’t done with it.

It takes just over ten minutes for Leon to come back downstairs, not that I’m counting.

“Sleeping already?” I ask, smoothing my hands down over my thighs. This is the first time I’ve worn jeans in front of the man who’s become my husband and I feel supremely underdressed given that he’s wearing a suit and tie.