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Matteo
“You can’t be serious,”I say, pacing the living room of the guest house.
“It’s not that bad.” Sienna lifts her hands in denial. “Clara has a point. Do you think you can be there, seeing this awful man talk to me and do absolutely nothing?”
Blood boils in my veins. I wish I could take her away today, but I need four more days to wait for our passports—a whole week from the wedding. I pull her to me and hold her arms, making her look at me. I need her to know how serious I am about not losing her. “I don’t want you to be unprotected.”
She stares at me with her big hazel eyes, and a zest of energy bounces between us. “I’m not going to war. I’ll be in a mansion surrounded by people.”
Tommaso’s mansion. It’d be different if she were in Antonio’s home and I were at the guest house. Besides, I know my way around her childhood house. I’ve never set foot in the Caruso’s mansion before. “If he touches you…”
She lifts her chin. “I’ll knee him.”
“I’ll give you a small gun, just in case. You can put it in your purse,” I say, doubting anyone will frisk her as she goes to a party at her soon-to-be in-law’s. She needs the protection, just in case.
“I’ve never fired a gun before,” she says.
“Aren’t you lucky I’m available to teach you?”
A delicious smile greets me. “You really love me, don’t you?”
I kiss her cheek. “Yes.”
She traces a path along my arm, caressing my skin, and shivers of delight go down my spine. “We got this. How’s your mom doing?”
“She’s adjusting to the news,” I say.
She chews her lower lip. “Do you think she’ll give me a chance one day?”
My shoulders tense, and I tighten my hold on her to distract her from my doubts. I hope my mother will be okay with all of this—I’m aware I’m springing a lot on her. “She’d be crazy not to.”
“At least we have better chances of her blessing our love than my dad, right?”
“Yes.” I plant a kiss on her shoulder, then enjoy her nearness before I take a couple of steps back. “By the way… have you thought this through? When we leave… we won’t be able to contact your father anymore. Or Clara or anyone,” I say. Maybe this isn’t the best time to go over logistics, but she needs to be aware of what she’s agreeing to.
“It’s fine.”
“It’s different when they’re gone,” I say. My heart skips a beat. If we go through all this trouble to start a new life somewhere and she contacts someone from her past, a single phone call or email will destroy everything.
“I’ll be okay. I’ll make my own family. With you.”
“With me,” I say in a hoarse voice. I never even considered having kids. Not in this life. The idea opens itself to me like bright morning sunshine. She’ll be the best mom around… and I’ll protect my children with my life. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
I run my index finger down her nose. “I’ll do anything to make you happy.”
She catches my index finger with her mouth and nips at it playfully. “You won’t need to do much.”
25
Sienna
“I thought it’d feel heavier,”I say when Matteo gives me the black semi-automatic gun. The cold metal weighs on my hand, but not how I’d expect it to. Maybe I watched too many action movies.
He’s brought me to what looks like an abandoned shooting range outside Chicago. Crunchy leaves cover the dirt floor, and enough trees scatter the otherwise wide-open space.
Leaning against the hood of the car, he smiles. “It’s the perfect size for a small clutch, which I’m sure is what you’ll be taking with you later tonight.”
