by Ella Jade
“Shouldn’t he be focusing on getting Franco off her?” My father had to do what he had to do but he was being too cautious.
“He isn’t going to go to Antonio until he has all the facts.” Gianni scrolled on his phone. “You know that. Just let him do what he thinks is necessary and this will be over.”
“He doesn’t trust your new friend,” Dominick said. “She’s hiding something.”
“She’s afraid. Can you blame her?”
“Don’t get frustrated with me. Dad has to make sure she’s not a threat to us. What if he goes to Antonio and they think we had something to do with her at that warehouse?”
“Why would we?” My annoyance was evident in my tone. “That’s ridiculous.”
“It’s ridiculous how she was on the docks at that precise moment he pulled the trigger and then ended up with you. A coincidence that she encounters two powerful families in one night? Maybe she’s connected to the dead guy?”
“It is strange,” Gianni agreed. “You’re a logical thinker. You do the math. She’s worth investigating before Dad sticks his neck out.”
“Gianni’s right. We don’t know her. We don’t owe her anything.” Dominick shrugged. “We can’t change the old man’s mind.”
“He hasn’t attempted to reach out?” How long did he expect me to stay here? “Why can’t he tell Antonio this is a mistake?”
“You know that’s not how he rolls.” Dominick shook his head “This is a big step for him to contact Antonio. You’ll have to be patient.”
“Patient?” I raised my voice. “Franco could kill her if he finds her.”
“That’s not going to happen,” Gianni said. “I’ll make sure he gets nowhere near here. I’m keeping tabs on him and the guys closest to him. They have someone waiting at her apartment. We’ve put people on her work building and we’ve sent some guys to Connecticut to watch her mother and sister. If we have to, we’ll bring her family here.”
“How long do you think we’ll be here?” I knew this had to be done but how would I convince Nadia of that? I couldn’t tell her my father, the man who was supposed to help her, didn’t trust her and was now investigating her.
“Not long.” Dominick got up and went into the kitchen. “I’m going to make a sandwich before Gianni and I head out. When we come back maybe we’ll have an update.”
“I hope so because I have a life I need to get back to.”
“Are you kidding me?” Gianni joined Dominick in the kitchen. “This is the most excitement you’ve had in years. If I were you, I’d totally embrace this time.”
“It is tranquil here.” I could probably catch up on work I’d been putting off. I needed to hire some more staff. Maybe now would be a good time to review some applications.
“Fuck nature.” Gianni slapped some mustard on his bread. “I’m talking about the alone time with the woman upstairs. She’s going to be sleeping across the hall from you. How’s that going to work?”
“It’s only for a few nights.”
“Little brother, a lot could happen in a few nights.” Gianni smirked. “Trust me.”
STEPPING OUT OF THE shower, I dried off and wrapped a towel around my waist. My brothers ended up staying and eating here before they made their way back to the city. I didn’t mind spending time with them but I could see they were siding with my father. Our family protected one another. We always had. They were looking out for me. I just didn’t think it was necessary to protect me from Nadia.
Rubbing the side of my neck, I stretched it from side to side. I had hoped the shower would relieve some tension. My father, Nadia, and the trouble she was in hit me once my brothers left. They would be back in a couple of days and maybe this ordeal would be over.
“No!” Nadia screamed from across the hall. “Don’t!”
I ran to her room and burst through the door as the lightning crackled through the room. I went to the bed, finding her thrashing and kicking the covers off. “Stop chasing me. I didn’t see anything.”
“Nadia.” Sitting on the edge of the bed, I gently shook her. “Wake up.”
“No!” she hollered out again. “Please.”
“Nadia.” I tried to coax her awake. “I’m here.”
She shot up into a seated position and threw her arms around my neck, holding me as tight as she could. “Vince, please help me.”
“I’m here.”
Patting her back, I soothed her but when the roar of thunder rattled the windows she inched closer to me. “It’s just a storm.” I kissed the top of her head. “I’m here.”
“When he hit the bottom of the stairs, his body twisted.” She trembled in my arms. “He was bleeding from his mouth. There was a bullet hole in his head. His neck had to be broken.”
“I’m sorry.” Rage filled me when I thought about what she had experienced. “It’s over. You’re safe.” I vowed I would always keep her that way. “I promise.”
“I ran so fast that night. I didn’t think I was going to make it.” She continued to cling onto me. “A car almost hit me before I got to you. When it swerved to avoid me, it blocked Franco’s path. That’s how I ended up in your arms.”
“It was meant to be.” I ran my fingers through her long, thick hair. “I was in the right place at the right time.”
“You’re wet.” She let go but I still held her. “You’re... um...” She took in my exposed chest and towel.
“I was getting out of the shower when I heard you screaming.” I couldn’t help but notice that my damp skin had wet her tank top. I tried to look away but her nipples distracted me. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, it was just a dream.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” I moved closer to her, holding her against me, savoring her warmth.
“I’m sure you can figure out what it was about.” She gazed up, mesmerizing me with those beautiful eyes. “I didn’t get to the part where I ran into you. Franco got to me first.”
“That won’t ever happen.”
With the next clap of thunder, she jumped in my arms. “The thunder gets me every time.”
“Your eyes.” I pressed my palm to her cheek. “Get me every time.” Licking my lips, I dropped my gaze to her mouth, trying hard to fight the urge to kiss her. I would lose.
She tilted her head, her warm breath grazing my mouth as she parted her lips slightly. “Kiss me.”
Before she even had the words out, my lips were on hers. Tangling my fingers in her hair, I deepened the connection. Nothing else mattered. Not Franco’s threats, not my father’s warning or Dominick’s words. If this kiss was forbidden, I’d earned every second of it.
Trailing my hand up her side, I brushed my fingers over her breasts. When she squeaked out a sexy, little noise, my erection reminded me that there was nothing between us but my towel and her panties.
“Vincenzo...” she sighed into my mouth as I bit the corner of her bottom lip.
How far was I willing to take this tonight?
Chapter Seven
NADIA
Make Me Forget
I believed him when he said he would never let Franco get to me. Maybe I was being naive but no one had ever stepped up for me the way he had. He was there when I needed him last night and again this morning. When I opened my eyes from that horrid nightmare it was his arms who comforted me.
Snapping out of the fog my dream had left me in, I realized he was damp, almost steamy.
“You’re wet.” He was barely dressed. “You’re... um...” Wow! I could count his abs.
“I was getting out of the shower when I heard you screaming.”
My body responded in ways that it shouldn’t have. My nipples ached for his attention and the yearning between my legs wouldn’t subside. Sex hadn’t been an activity of mine in some time. My hormones were letting me know in no uncertain terms.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, it was just a dream.” But this wasn’t a dream. He was naked and I wanted him.
�
�Do you want to talk about it?” He held me to his warm chest.
“I’m sure you can figure out what it was about.” It was difficult to talk about it. “I didn’t get to the part where I ran into you. Franco got to me first.”
“That won’t ever happen.”
The next booming roar of thunder that shook the foundation of the house caused me to jump. “The thunder gets me every time.”
“Your eyes.” He pressed his palm to my cheek, making me tingle. “Get me every time.” When he licked his lips, any resolve I thought I had was gone.
“Kiss me.” He somehow lowered my inhibitions, made me bolder.
Twisting his fingers in my hair, he did as I asked. I could taste beer on his tongue as he swirled it in my mouth. As he traced his fingers over my breasts, I moaned in pleasure. All the anxiety of the past day faded away.
“Vincenzo.” I climbed into his lap, straddling him. “Please make me forget.”
He broke the kiss, holding me against his chest. His erection pressed into my center as both of our erratic breaths filled the air. I couldn’t tell if it was my heart beating so hard or his. Maybe it was both of ours.
Taking my face between his hands, he gently kissed me. “I would do anything to take that memory away from you,” he whispered. “It kills me to know that you were affected by something so ugly. So unnecessary.” He closed his eyes, struggling with himself. “I can’t have sex with you.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want to do something either one of us will regret.”
“We’ve already shared more than I have with most.”
“I don’t even know your last name.” He released me from his hold, guiding me onto my back and then lying to face me. “You’re beautiful.” He caressed my hair. “And, in case you hadn’t noticed, I’m very attracted to you.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
He had the most genuine smile. How could a man with such a gentle soul come from such a violent family? Was I really asking that question considering I may have come from the same type of DNA? No! It was different with me. I didn’t even know if Antonio was my father. And if he was, I wasn’t raised in that environment. Vincenzo had been but he turned out fine.
“What’s wrong?” He twisted my hair around his finger. “You can talk to me.”
I could never tell him what I suspected. No one could ever know who I could be. I knew in my gut that being part of that family would be a death sentence. Vincenzo wouldn’t trust me if he thought I was one of them. I had to protect us both.
“I’m tired.” I massaged my temples. “That nightmare took it out of me.”
“Try to relax.” He adjusted his pillow, propping himself against the headboard before moving me onto his chest. “I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Let’s stop saying what I don’t have to do and assume that I’m going to tend to you the whole time we’re here.” He played with a strand of my hair, relaxing me. “Does that sound good to you?”
“Yes.” I sighed as he continued to twirl my hair around his fingers tugging it gently.
The summer storm left as quickly as it blew in. My nightmare was a distant memory. We may not have been tangled between the sheets the way I had anticipated when he kissed me, but being next to him, cuddling against him was perfect.
“Marrone,” I whispered as I closed my eyes. “My name is Nadia Marrone.”
The last thing I remembered before drifting off was his lips on my temple.
VINCENZO
Tommy and I took a morning hike in the trails. I needed to clear my head. Sleep didn’t come easily last night. Turning Nadia down wasn’t something I would have seen myself doing under normal circumstances. Given our current situation, I didn’t think complicating matters was in our best interest. Maybe when this trouble was over, we could see where things took us.
“I heard her screaming last night,” Tommy said. “I ran upstairs to see what was going on but you were already with her.”
“I wondered where you were.”
Tommy had been with me since I was in high school. My father insisted he go to college with me too, and law school. Most of my friends knew he was my guard. Those who knew who my father was didn’t even questioned why he was always a few steps behind me. He’d always been discreet especially when it came to my relationships.
“I didn’t stick around to ask questions.” He threw a rock into the stream. “You looked like you had it under control.”
“I don’t think I have anything under control at the moment.”
“That’s not like you.” He studied me. “What’s wrong?”
“Have you been here the past few days?”
“Yeah, things aren’t normal. You’re caught up in the life your father worked so hard to keep you out of. You’re falling for a woman you know nothing about.” He grinned. “And you’re out of your routine. I know how much you hate that.”
“Why would you say I’m falling for her?” I was curious because he knew me better than most. He’d been there for half my life. In some ways, he was just as much my brother as my biological ones.
“I see the way you look at her.” He tossed another rock into the stream, disrupting the water. “You’re concerned for her but it’s more than that. I noticed it the first night and then again when she showed up at your office. I was there when you had some conversations in the car. You’re trying to distract her from the harsh reality that she’s in serious trouble.”
“Not if my father can fix it.”
“It’ll all work out.”
“Dom and Gianni told you they don’t trust her.”
“They may have mentioned it.”
“What do you think?”
As we made our way back to the house. I thought about how much I valued his opinion. He’d always offered me solid advice.
“I don’t think she’s playing you. There are some things she may not be telling you but we all have secrets, don’t we? If you give her time, she’ll open up. It’s only been two days.”
“That’s what I tried to tell my brothers but they are siding with my dad.”
“They’re siding with you,” he reminded me. “They look out for you. They don’t want you caught up in this.”
“Too late.”
“Either one of your brothers would step into your place but they aren’t you. Trust your gut.”
“I will.” I patted his back. “Thanks for always listening.”
“Want some more advice?” He glanced up at the porch where Nadia was having breakfast.
“Sure.”
I couldn’t take my gaze away from her. She wore a tight t-shirt and a small pair of shorts that hardly covered her rear end. I didn’t know whether to kill Gianni or thank him. Right now, I was leaning toward thanking him.
“Don’t spend so much time out here with me,” Tommy said. “When you could be spending all of your time with her.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” I hurried to the house and up the porch steps. “Good morning.”
“Hi.” Her voice was soft and her gaze shy. That was new.
“How is your knee feeling?”
“Much better.”
“Did you sleep well?” I asked.
“Once I was in your arms I did.”
“I stayed with you all night.” I couldn’t bring myself to break away from her. The sound of her soft breathing was far too relaxing for me and before I knew it I was asleep.
“I know.” She poured a cup of coffee from the carafe in the center of the table and placed it in front of the vacant chair next to her. “Thank you.”
“It was my pleasure.”
“Will you join me for breakfast?” She motioned toward the setting where she’d placed the coffee. “Maybe we could get to know one another?”
“I’d like that.” I took a seat next to her, pouring some cream into my mug before taking a sip. “You know far more about me than I do abo
ut you.”
“You’re more public than me.”
“I did check out your company’s website. You have some high-profile clients.”
“It started out as a hobby but then I was offered an opportunity to design a logo for an up and coming interior designer and she helped me expand. It kind of fell into my lap and I embraced it.”
“I can get you a laptop if you want to check in.”
“That would be helpful. I have a great team but they know something is up. I would never just walk away.”
“It won’t be for very long.”
“Am I ever going to go back to normal?”
“I hope so.” I took her hand. “These things have a way of working themselves out. Once my father explains that you have nothing to do with any of this and they have his word you won’t say anything, it’ll be fine.”
“I would never tell anyone. I want to forget any of this ever happened.”
“All of it?” Why was I going there? “Would you really forget it all?”
“Not the part where I met you.”
“I wouldn’t trade that part either.” I kissed her cheek. “I don’t want to forget our kiss last night.”
“I’ll never forget that.” Scooting into my lap, she cuddled against me. “I’m hoping we can explore more of that while we’re here.” She brushed her lips along my jaw. “What else is there to do?”
“I can think of a few things.” I slipped my hand to her inner thigh. “Your skin is so soft.”
“Your brother likes skimpy clothes.” She giggled. “I can’t wait to meet him.”
“You’ll like him. He’s a character.”
“Dominick is the oldest?” she asked. “He works with your dad.”
“Gianni is next. He also works with my father. I decided on law school and handle most of the family business property ventures. We have a lot of land that needs developing. I manage most of that.”
“Salvatore runs the winery,” she said. “I remember him from the documentary.”
“Sal does run the winery along with our mother Vencenza”
“You’re named for her?”
