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The answer and the look of determination on Riker’s face sent a surge of relief through Gia that warmed her. Because really, she didn’t want to go this alone.
“Thank you for getting me to the hospital, Riker. I feel so stupid and guilty for possibly doing harm to the baby by just being…well…dumb. I should have known something was wrong. No excuses, but like I said, it’s just been a lot to handle by myself.” Gia hesitated for a minute, but then she figured what the hell, might as well get it over with.
“You haven’t asked, but you have a right to know. I haven’t been with anyone else…I mean…” Gia stammered. “If you want a test or something. I’m okay with that…”
Awkward conversation times a million. Gia wanted to rip the IV out of her arm and head for the hills.
Riker looked at Gia for a long moment. “Nah, I’m good.”
Another awkward pause.
“So, someone explained my…uh…situation to you?”
“Yeah. It was Prosper. Like I said, I’m in.” Riker paused. “But…”
Immediate tension filled Gia and she made a tight fist under the hospital blanket. She had figured that there might be abutand she was guessing that, considering the circumstances, it could be a big one. In truth, she was ready to agree to almost anything. She would not marry Julian under any circumstances. So, if Riker’sbutcame with a condition that she just wasn’t able to provide or agree to, then that was that. She would go on and have this baby on her own and Uncle G would most certainly go through with his threat to disown her.
“The boss said something about some guy who’s in the picture. What’s the deal with that? With you and him?”
“Julian.” Gia spat out the name with distaste. “And the deal with him is… there is no deal! I’ve known him since I was a kid. His family lived in my father’s province and every summer when we went to Italy, he’d be there. Like a lot of young men, Julian saw the influence, the power and the money that the lifestyle provided.”
Gia paused for a moment, trying to find the words. “I hope you can understand this, Riker. My father died in federal prison and I am fully aware that my Uncle Gianni is the head of one of the most violent and dangerous organizations in the world. However, when I think of them, I only think of the love they gave me. I know of the evil, but I choose to see the good. There is a sort of loyalty—an integrity that La Familia lives by. Their code is their bond and, in many ways, that code is an honorable one. But there is a different side to that truth and I am not so naïve as not to recognize that. That truth exists in a world where men like Julian are necessary to the organization. Men like him feed on the violence, corruption and intimidation of the darkest side of that world. Their trademark, their value to La Familia, lies in the fact that they are masters at hiding their true nature. They can charm the skin off a seal. Julian is that kind of man.”
“The Eddie Haskell syndrome.” Riker nodded. “Only a hell of a lot darker.”
“Sorry?” Gia frowned in confusion.
“You don’t know who Eddie Haskell is?”
“No clue.”
Riker scrubbed a hand over his chin and murmured, “How do I explain this?” After a slight hesitation he began. “So, there’s this old school television series.The show is pretty cool and really dorky at the same time. It teaches a lot about traditional family values. Anyway, there’s this real asshole kid called Eddie Haskell. He’s a slime ball friend of the older brother, Wally. Eddie, the sneaky bastard, used to torment the little brother, Beaver, and Beaver’s friends. Then Eddie would ingratiate himself to Wally’s parents —sucked up to them all the time to get what he wanted or to cover up something he had already said or done. The parents, Mr and Mrs. Cleaver, didn’t buy it, but you could definitely see the genius of Eddie’s deception.”
“Yeah. That’s just like him.” Gia nodded emphatically. “That’s Julian. He’s the mobster version of Eddie Haskell. And he’s got that slimy suck- up thing down cold. So much so, that even I was sucked in at first. I was only ever with Julian in small doses over the years, which made it much easier for him to fool me. Then we got engaged and slowly but surely the curtain lifted and what was left standing there was someone I couldn’t live with. So, I broke off the engagement.”
“And your uncle would make you marry this guy now? Doesn’t seem like Gianni would be the type to force you into marrying this asshole.”
“Uncle Gianni only sees Julian for what he’s useful for. Like I said, men like him are necessary in my family’s world. Uncle Gianni knows Julian would never hurt me and I guess that’s good enough for him. And Uncle Gianni would do anything not to see me dishonored. He would think he was protecting me.”
“And this fucker would marry you? He’d take on a woman carrying a baby that ain’t his? Raise it as his own?” Riker was skeptical.
“Oh, Julian wouldn’t care about that. The position he’d be elevated to in La Familia by marrying me would more than compensate for his pride.” Gia answered without hesitation. “Julian would jump at the chance. But, he’d make my life and the baby’s life hell in all sorts of subtle ways. Marrying Julian is out of the question.”
“What about your mother, wouldn’t she interfere on your behalf?”
“My mother would not think to cross my uncle.” Gia shrugged helplessly. Then Gia looked carefully at Riker. “So that’s it for me. Your turn.”
Riker got up and paced the floor. “I’m not gonna pretend that this doesn’t knock the shit right out of me. I have no fucking clue what to think— I’m not much of a thinker. And I am definitely not much of a planner.” Then he stopped pacing the floor, looked right into Gia’s eyes and gave her an honest grin. “But, I guess not being a good planner is kind of what got us here in the first place.”
“Well, there you go, see? We already have something in common.” Gia gave him a grin back—because really, what the hell? It felt good to release some of the tension, and honestly, Gia could not believe that she was having this conversation at all. Let alone having it while sitting in a hospital room wearing a gross johnnie that, underneath the blanket, was riding up her ass. The situation could definitely use some humor.
Riker looked at her with frank admiration. “Just so you know, Gia, I think you’re one hell of a woman. Thought so before, and definitely thought so after you shared my bed. But damn, the fact that you can make jokes while you’re lying in a hospital bed with a monitor stuck to your belly and an IV in your arm—puts you in the Wonder Woman category in my book. I’m just not so sure you know what you’re getting into with me. It’s still a little hard to believe that I’m your best bet.” Here Riker hesitated again and all the warmth building up in Gia froze instantly.
Was this the point where Riker was going to give her the “you’re too good for me” speech or the dreaded “It’s not you, it’s me” line?Every woman knows that there are dozens of bullshit sayings that a man uses when he wants to be rid of a woman, but he doesn’t want to look like he’s the one bailing.
Gia steeled herself for the worst as he continued. “I want you to know that I plan on being in the baby’s life, so you don’t ever have to worry about that. I don’t have much, but what I have I’ll give, and I’ll do whatever it takes to provide for my kid. You don’t have to tie yourself to me to get that, if you want to do this any other way, I’m down. I’ll even go talk to your uncle about this asshole Julian if you want me to.”
Riker waited on pins and needles for Gia’s response. Because even though Riker knew the right thing to do was to give Gia that out, for reasons that even he didn’t fully understand, he really hoped she wouldn’t walk through the door that he had just opened.
