“Things are going to get bad,” I say softly.
She wriggles away and wraps the towel around her. “I don’t want to talk about this right now.”
“It’s important,mia cara.” I follow her into the room. She pulls on her clothes. I manage to get on underwear and a pair of sweats. “If Corrado wanted you dead before, you better believe he’s coming twice as hard now.”
“Then isn’t Elisa in danger too?” She glares at me from across the room. “She’s still back at the hospital.”
“She can come stay with me then. I’ll make sure she’s safe. But, baby, you have to go.”
Her mouth drops open. “What are you talking about?”
“You need to leave the city. Corrado’s going to take control of the Serrano operations while Raf is in the hospital. Then he’s going to come after you and your brother. You two are the biggest threats to him.”
“I’m not going anywhere. I just told you I wanted to run, but I’m not running anymore.”
“Fiorella, listen to me. This isn’t just about you and me anymore. It’s about our baby and our family.”
“I’m not leaving.” She glares at me, and anger swells in my guts. This girl can be so damn stubborn sometimes. I love it about her, except for when it gets in the way. “You don’t get it. I made up my mind. It was so freaking hard to come to this decision, and now you want me to throw that away?”
“This isn’t running. This is going into hiding until I can take care of your murderous fucking uncle.”
“Oh, what, you’re stepping in now? You’re taking over?”
“I’m the only one that can while Raf is down. I’ll push back against Corrado. I’ll keep him from taking complete control of the Serrano assets. And when Raf comes back, he’ll take the mantle of Don.”
“Then you’ll do that with me by your side.”
“Fio—”
“No, Luca. You need me. You can’t just start a war, right? Everyone will see an outsider killing Serrano soldiers, and they’ll turn against you hard. It’ll be so much worse. But if I’m here, I can help. They know me. There are still Capos that respected my father and will be on my brother’s side. I can help get them together.”
I shake my head, walking toward her. “Not an option. You’re leaving the city.”
“That’s not happening. I’m staying.” She stands her ground as I approach, glaring at me defiantly. God, she’s so fucking beautiful, and she pisses me off so much. “This is my family. I spent so long feeling bitter toward them for what happened to me and Elisa, but now I’m starting to understand it was just a bullshit accident. I don’t have to hate them anymore. I can move on and try to make this family better.”
“I won’t let you put yourself in danger.”
“Then protect me.” She puts her hands on my chest as I stop right in front of her. I hold her hips, heart racing. This isn’t how I wanted this to go.
“I’m afraid I can’t. I don’t… in the past…” I stare at her, pain from the jagged scars deep inside my heart ripping open all over again.
“The past is gone,” she whispers, getting on her toes to kiss me. “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know what you think you might’ve done or maybe didn’t do. All I know is we’re here right now, and the family needs me. I can’t run away.”
Fuck.
I lean my forehead against hers.
I hate it, but she has a point. If I fight this war without her, it’ll look like the Marino Famiglia’s pulling off a violent coup. The other families might not like that, and the Serrano Capos will definitely revolt. But if she’s the one making calls and having conversations and pulling strings, then it could work.
All I have to do is keep her safe. I have to trust myself in a way that I haven’t in a very long time.
It kills me. This is my wife and my child. They’re my everything, and if I let her stay, she’ll dive straight into the fire. That’s the kind of woman she is, and it’s part of what I love about her.
“Together then,” I whisper, bending down to kiss her. “Because I love you, Fiorella. I love you and our baby.”
She kisses me back, leaning in hard, her taste flooding my mouth. I hold her body tight, and fuck, this might be the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but doing it with her feels almost easy.
“I love you too,” she says and grins at me. “Maybe we can get back in the bath? You know, to celebrate?”
