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She’s quiet. I glance down at her and see she’s deep in thought. I let her be, not wanting to disturb her. I’m more than content in holding her and just being. There’s so much shit going down right now. Between losing Emiliano and not knowing which of the men are after my wife, it’s a fucking crazy time to be hiding out. But I have to. In a time when I should be showing a united front with my brothers and leading the men in Indiana, I can’t, and as much as it fucking sucks, I have to be here. Nothing is more important than Teagan right now.
The door opens, and I glance over my shoulder to see Lorenzo walking in. He’s got a slight gait to his walk from being shot, but he’s doing good. He’s taken over as my right hand since Emiliano, and has taken on everything I can’t.
“Boss,” he says as he steps out onto the balcony. Teagan tenses beside me, her body pressing closer to me. “Is there anything else you need?” he asks as he hands me a box from the bakery.
“Meet with Dario and he’ll let you know what I need from you.”
He nods, understanding that I can’t say anything in front of Teagan. Tonight, there’s a meeting and I have to be in attendance. Jade and Portia will be with Teagan.
I hand the box of sticky buns to my wife, who grins up at me. She sits up and opens the box. I chuckle when I hear the little moan she releases as she eats one.
I’m fucking kicking myself. Being with her is easy. It’s so fucking natural. I’ve spent too long pushing her away and fighting every instinct I was feeling.
The silence that’s between us isn’t awkward. It’s peaceful, and the content smile on Teagan’s face tells me she’s feeling the same.
Once she’s finished, she settles back into me and turns out to watch the sunrise. “Have you ever stopped to watch the sunrise?” she asks.
“No.” I rarely have time to sleep, let alone take in the damn sunrise.
“I’m glad you’re doing this. It’s good to just take a breather and feel the peaceful times. Seeing beauty is sometimes the only thing we can do.”
The sun starts to rise, and the red light shines across the city, beaming like a beacon. I can understand why she finds it soothing. I glance down at her and see that she’s transfixed by it all.
Once daylight hits, we stay seated for a while. I don’t want to pull her away from her favorite thing, but she has an appointment with the doctor, and no doubt Portia will be blowing up my cell whenever she wakes and realizes Teagan’s gone.
“Mia amata,” I say, but she doesn’t stir. Glancing down, I see she’s asleep. I leave her be, knowing she didn’t get much sleep last night as she had nightmares.
I reach for my cell and send a message to Jade, letting her know where we are and that we’ll be back to the house later.
Jade: Who knew you were so sweet?
I roll my eyes and ignore the message. I’m not going to respond to that shit. I’m not sweet. I’m doing what I need to do to help my wife.
Teagan is my priority. I know that the Famiglia should be, but it’s not. I think it’s why I rebelled against getting close to her for so long. I knew she meant something to me. I was just too chickenshit to admit it.
Now I’m doing whatever it takes to put her first and let her know she’s not alone.
TWENTY-FOUR
ELIO
“You good?” Rocco asks as I drive toward the meeting place. It’s a meeting for all our closest men.
I nod tersely. I hate that I’m going to be away from Teagan for so long. As the miles pass us by, the knot that’s in my stomach tightens.
“She’s strong,” he says. “She’s been through Hell and made it out of the other side. Your wife is fucking strong, Elio. The sooner you realize that, the better you’ll be.”
“I know that,” I say through clenched teeth. He has no fucking idea just how strong she is. I admire how she’s fought, how she’s clawing her way back from the depths of despair.
“Do you think she’s okay to be at home?” Dario questions. “I mean with what happened, should she be left alone?”
“Dario,” Rocco hisses.
“What?” he says, acting as though he’s just said something that’s normal. “I mean, she’s a danger to herself, right?”
“No,” I snarl. “She’s not. Fucking hell, Dario. What the hell is the matter with you?”
He holds up his hands. “Tell me you’re not worried, Elio? That you’re not scared you’re going to walk into the house and find her dead?”
