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“The changing table came,” he says happily, leading me into the nursery, and my heart is still beating too fast as I see where he placed it, right beneath the window.
“Thanks for setting it up,” I mumble, still feeling so anxious I can barely stand it.
“Of course.” Dante kisses my temple and then begins to massage my shoulders. “Are you feeling all right? You feel so stiff?”
“Just the bad dream, I guess,” I lie, knowing that I’m not supposed to be listening in on his men. I don’t want to make him angry, but at the same time, I don’t want him to go off and get hurt. Any member of the Gallos could get off a stray bullet and... I can’t even think about it.
I turn and wrap my arms around him, leaning up to kiss him hungrily, and Dante returns the kiss, but when I make it more aggressive, sliding my tongue into his mouth, he groans and pulls away, smiling.
“I’ve got too much work to do today to be late,” he scolds me gently, and my heart begins to race again.
He’s already dressed, all ready to go out and get this done, and I don’t want him to go. I want him home safe with me. I know that it’s irrational, expecting a wiseguy to stay home safe with me all the time, but I can’t help it.
“Stay with me,” I plead. “One more day.”
“I can’t, pretty girl,” he murmurs, and hugs me tight before walking back out into the hallway. I follow him, desperate.
“Can I go with you?” I ask, and he turns to me, frowning, pausing at the top of the stairs.
“Of course not, Mia. I wouldn’t let you come even if you weren’t pregnant, but...”
I bite my lip. “Is Nico going to be with me?”
Dante shakes his head. “Marisa’s downstairs making breakfast. She’ll call if anything happens,” he says.
“I don’t feel safe,” I say suddenly, knowing that he’ll respond to that, and Dante sighs.
“I need Nico for the job, but Alberto can stay here with you, just to be safe.”
I take a deep breath, realizing that I’m not going to win this. Dante isn’t going to put off an important job just because I’m afraid that he’ll get hurt. It’s not realistic for me to expect that.
“Thank you,” I say finally, getting myself together. “You take such good care of me.”
Something flashes across Dante’s face, something I can’t quite put my finger on, and he turns his hazel eyes away from me.
“I’ll see you soon,” he mumbles, and kisses me quickly on the lips.
I stay at the top of the stairs until I hear Dante and Nico leave, and then take another a deep breath and descend the stairs.
Marisa indeed does have breakfast on the table, and my stomach rumbles. I’ve had morning sickness for a while, but I’m also always ravenously hungry. It’s a bit of a conundrum, and now that I feel anxious about Dante getting hurt, my stomach rolls.
“Biscuits first,” Marisa orders as I sit down. “It’ll calm your stomach before the meat.”
I smile at her. She’s a kind, maternal woman and she keeps to herself most of the time, but it’s obvious that she cares about me, and especially Dante.
I munch on the biscuits and she’s right, it does seem to stop my stomach from churning. I wonder briefly how Marisa knew that would work.
“Do you have children?” I ask her, and Marisa looks at me, giving me a slightly sad smile.
She shakes her head. “I’m unable to have them. But Dante is close enough to my own son.”
I nod, understanding. “What was he like as a kid?” I ask, curious now that we’re having one of our own.
Marisa chuckles. “He was a little pain in my neck, that one. Always getting into trouble. He wanted to be a wiseguy from the moment he was born. Ran after his father all day long, and once, he snuck out with him on a job.”
My eyes widen, thinking of how horribly dangerous that is. “What happened?”
“Enzo caught him halfway there and scolded him, sent him back to the house. He came to me with a big sigh. He was about twelve, thirteen. He said ‘Marisa, I’m going to be the toughest guy in town. Just like Papa.’” She smiles, looking nostalgic.
