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Evie's cheeks had lost some of their color, but she nodded. "Go, before you both get in any more trouble."
The sisters all hugged before Ro and Teagan headed for the stairs. Octavius stood and crossed the room to Evie. For a moment, Jason worried he was going to start in on her and he tensed, prepared to jump in if she needed him. But O just placed his hands on her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "We're glad you're safe. We all love you, Evie."
"Thank you."
O released her, and Luca stepped up to pull her into his arms. Jason couldn't hear what he said, but whatever it was had her lips lifting a small smile.
Both men disappeared up the stairs, leaving just Evie standing in the middle of the living room with Jason still seated in the armchair. When she glanced at the stairs, the smile faded from her face.
Any second now, the sounds of discipline would be clearly heard downstairs, despite the thick walls and heavy wooden doors in all of the bedrooms. They needed a distraction, and he knew just the thing.
When he stood, Evie's attention again focused on him. He could feel her eyes on him as he crossed the room to a small entertainment center and searched for the station he wanted. Seconds later, the sounds of an old country love song filled the room. Turning back to her, Jason smiled and held out a hand. "Dance with me, Evie."
Her brow furrowed with confusion, and she looked at his outstretched hand then back up at his face. "Dance with you?"
"Yeah. Dance with me. We've earned it, don't you think?"
"I've earned a dance? I assumed…" She glanced at the stairs again, then back again, her confusion clear on her face.
"Not tonight. Come dance with me."
When she didn't move, he solved the problem by walking over to her and pulling her into his arms. They moved together, swaying slightly as the man in the song crooned about the woman he loved.
"Jason?"
"Hmm?"
"This isn't dancing. It's swaying."
Chuckling, Jason pressed his lips to her hair. "Just go with it,tesoro."
She didn't argue, and he mistakenly assumed he'd won this round. Until she quietly spoke up again. "I'm not a treasure."
"You speak Italian?"
"Si.I didn't realize you did."
Well, wasn't she just full of surprises? "I picked some up on one of my tours. There was this butcher I spent some time with, and that's what he called his wife. I guess it stuck with me."
"Oh. That's very sweet."
They fell silent once more. It occurred to him this was the first time they'd really spent any time alone together, so he might as well use it to get to know her better. "What other languages do you speak?"
"French, German, Spanish, and a smattering of Mandarin."
Pulling away so he could see her face, he grinned. "A smattering, huh?"
She lifted a shoulder in a careless shrug. "I never could master it, but I know enough to get by."
"You amaze me, Evie."
Her brow crinkled in a way he found adorable for reasons he couldn't name. "Because I can speak a few languages?"
"Because you have no idea how incredible you are."
Frowning, she looked away at something over his shoulder. "I'm weak. And rather useless when it comes down to it."
He didn't realize his arms had tightened around her until she winced. Forcing himself to relax, he fixed her with a stern glare. "You are far from useless, Evelyn. I don't want to hear you say otherwise again. Understood?"
