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“Samara?” I asked in surprise, pulling back and looking up at her the slightest bit. When my eyes went down, I realized why she seemed like she’d packed an extra punch to my ribs. “You’re pregnant!” I said with a laugh. The bump on her belly was tiny, but when I touched it with delicate hands, it felt unusually firm compared to what I’d remembered. It had been years since I’d seen Samara, since I’d stopped going to yoga classes when I was pregnant with Axel, but she barely looked a day older. Her smile seemed brighter, her laughter when she squeezed my arms tight seemed more genuine.
“I am, and I heard you have two already!”
“I do,” I confirmed. I nodded as a woman I didn’t know stepped up. Taller and leaner, her eyes were a bright sea green as she smiled at us.
“That’s Ivory,” Samara introduced, and I nodded. “Matteo’s wife.” I blanched, darting my gaze over to Ryker where he stood like a silent sentry and watched us.
“Matteo said to tell you he’d see you at the warehouse,” Ivory said to him. A huge hulk of a man stepped out of the kitchen, and Ryker moved over to touch his shoulder and whisper to him.
“Nobody likes secrets!” Samara teased, and the man who towered over even Ryker smiled at her.
“I’ve got her,” he said to Ryker. “Sal, Dante, and Leo are on the perimeter. She’s safe.”
“I’m not worried about her being in danger,” Ryker grunted. “I’m worried about her trying to run.” When Samara and Ivory laughed, I felt like I’d entered the fucking twilight zone.
“Come on, honey. Let’s get you something to drink. You look like you need wine,” Ivory said, touching my arm with her hand and gesturing me into the kitchen.
“It’s nine in the morning,” I whispered, and she shrugged.
“So we’ll do mimosas, and I’ll feed you.” She guided me toward the kitchen, and Ryker stepped into our path. Ivory rolled her eyes, stepping aroun
d him to leave me to his mercy.
“You don’t leave Scar’s sight,” he announced, and I glanced over at the big guy who just grinned at me. Ryker’s hand lifted to bury in my hair, tugging my head back until I met his eyes. “I mean it, Calla. Do not make me chase you,” he warned.
“I’m not sure what kind of spider monkey you think I am, but I am not capable of climbing the barricades, Ryker.” I rolled my eyes at him.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can. Get to know Ivory and Samara. Enjoy the quiet until Sadie gets here to interrogate you.”
“Fine,” I sighed. I was just grateful that the legendary Matteo Bellandi wasn’t there. Wives I could handle, but a mob boss I was not ready for. “We need to have a conversation when you get your meatball ass back here,” I said through gritted teeth.
Scar roared out a laugh beside us, stepping into the kitchen and staring back at us. “Come on, Hellcat, you’re going to do just fine here,” he murmured, and Ryker glared at him over the top of my head.
“Don’t push me,” he grunted, and the other man just smiled in response.
“Is his ass a meatball because it’s so round?!” Samara yelled from the kitchen, and I giggled when Ryker’s face pinched in annoyance and he dropped his forehead on mine. It didn’t stop me from seeing the way his cheeks flushed the slightest bit pink.
“Think you can maybe behave for just a few hours?”
“Probably not,” I admitted with a shrug. “But you have fun doing whatever it is you do, Mr. Secret Pants. I’ll just be getting all the gossip to use against you.”
“Calla,” he warned with a growl. When I didn’t respond and didn’t cower in fear dramatically, he shook his head at me and then dipped his face down and touched his lips to mine briefly before pulling away. It was an even more chaste kiss than he gave me in front of my kids, as if a public display in front of his friend was something horrific.
I imagined a man like Ryker wasn’t particularly fond of showing emotion in front of others, not that there were emotions involved in what we had. Unless ownership was an emotion.
I shook my head when I realized I’d been staring after his ass when he walked away. I couldn’t afford to give anyone the impression that I wanted him.
Not if I had any hope of keeping my sanity or trying to be free of the cage he’d put us in.
With a sigh, I turned and went into the kitchen, feeling like my world had been turned on its head. I hadn’t expected to find Ivory putting muffins in the oven or Mr. Lombardi hovering at the edge of the room and bouncing a baby around in his arms. “Calla,” he said with a smile, stepping forward. “How are you?”
“Seriously?” I asked, stepping away from him. I took a seat next to Samara at the island, watching as the woman plucked raspberries off a tray and shoved them in her mouth. “How do you think I am? You lured me into a trap!”
“Don’t be mean to Don,” she mumbled around the mouthful, and I had to giggle. I’d been the same way with cookies when I’d been pregnant with Axel. She should just be grateful her craving was healthy. “He just does what Matteo and Lino ask him to.”
Giving Don one last glare, I shifted my focus to Samara. As much as I wanted to poke at the man, his expression was sympathetic. “You married Lino?” I asked as the pieces finally snapped together in my head. I remembered her vaguely mentioning that she was friends with him when we’d gone to classes together, but it hadn’t seemed important back then.
I could have never predicted I’d find myself in the Bellandi Estate.
