Sienna hands me a steaming mug of decaf. I helped her put Darcy and Max to bed. She has been on edge all day, waiting to hear from Maddie. Finally, at three pm we got the call. Maddie has a little baby girl, Hope. She is beautiful, with pouty lips and bright blonde, fluffy hair. The pictures that made me smile the most were the ones with Grayson holding Hope next to a smiling Maddie.
All of these men are complete softies for their wives and babies.
I know Luca will be the same one day.
The men arrive home and head straight to the office. Luca stops and gives me a kiss before heading up. A kiss that leaves me wanting more.
“Do you think they would want a coffee?” I ask Sienna. I can’t stop thinking of them sitting up there planning everything out.
She pulls her hair up into a bun and chuckles. “Scotch or Brandy maybe. Coffee, no.”
“Oh.”
Not once in all of this madness have I even touched a drop of booze. Not that I am anywhere near cured. I know I never will be. This, though, is a massive win for me.
And I only have one person to thank for that.
Luca.
“What are you smiling about? It looks good on you,” Sienna says and sits next to me on the couch.
“Just that it’s been a long time since I craved a drink, despite all of this. I think I’m getting somewhere.”
She wraps an arm around me. “I’m happy for you. I’m glad you turned it around. Trust me, I’ve seen what that can do to a person.”
“Yeah, it was rough. Luca is the one who pushed me through this.”
“That’s one thing about Luca. When he loves, he loves so fiercely. Even if it breaks him,” she sighs.
“I won’t break him. I’ll try my best to heal him.”
On my way to bed, I stop as I walk closer to the office, hearing Luca’s voice.
“I’m not staying in this city with her, and I’m never letting her leave my side again.”
Uncle Frankie raises his voice. “So you’re going to leave us here to deal with this? Fucking bullshit. You can’t just run from your problems. Rosa is safe here. I need your help to find Eva.”
As the room comes into view, I can see the men all sit around a large table.
Their heads turn to me, they probably hate me. I swallow the lump in my throat and back away.
“I-I’m sorry. I’ll go.”
“Rosa. Wait.” Luca stands, not before throwing daggers at Uncle Frankie.
I suck in a breath as he throws his chair out of the way and beelines for me, wrapping his strong arms around me and pulling me tight.
I look up at him and smile, the first time I’ve genuinely smiled in a while. When he’s holding me, nothing else matters. I slip my left hand from around his waist and press it against his chest.
He drops a kiss to my lips. “Come with me. You need to hear this. No more secrets between us. I won’t hide anything from you. Ever.”
I bite my lip to hide the smile, my heart fluttering. He’s mine. No hiding, no sneaking around, no Dante.
He laces his fingers through mine and walks us over to his spot at the head of the table. Picking up his seat, he drops down and motions for me to sit on his lap.
Nerves churn in my stomach as everyone stares at me. Guilt rips through me–I caused this.
“I’m so sorry,” I blurt out. “I’ve put you all in danger because I couldn’t take it anymore. I couldn’t do it.”
My hands cover my face, and Luca pulls me in.
Frankie slides his chair back and walks over to us.
“Rosa, don’t you dare ever apologize for this. We are all sorry we couldn’t save you sooner. It will eat me up every day. I should never have left you with your father. I should have protected you then, like I promised. But I will fight with my life to protect you now. I swear.”
He shoots a glare at Luca behind me.
“This might be a good time to tell her,” Luca says behind me.
My brows furrow in confusion. “Tell me what?”
Frankie huffs, his eyes narrowing at Luca. “Why I left after your mother’s death.”
“Okay?” I’m still confused.
“That explosion was in retaliation for your father’s actions. He killed Dante’s mom, Romano’s first wife.”
“Yeah, I know that. But why did that mean you had to leave? And then come back to kill him? I don’t get it? Why didn’t you even say goodbye?”
Luca squeezes me tighter.
Frankie balls his fist and looks away. “That explosion also killed Leila. My pregnant girlfriend.”
My mouth falls open. I remember a pretty blonde woman there. I had no idea who she was. We always had guests, so it wasn’t unusual.
“I killed your father as revenge. His stupidity ruined my life. I left because I didn’t want to leave you and Eva without parents. But, now—” He runs a hand over his beard.
“—now, I wish I did. You should have been with me. I didn’t realize my brother would fuck up so badly with his own kids.”
“He changed after mom died. I hated you, Frankie.” I sigh.
He holds out his hands, palms up. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“I was so angry. I knew that if you stayed, Dante would have never hurt me. And you would have never let him live like dad did. I became an addict because I was petrified he would come back for me.”
“Do you still need help?”
I shake my head. “I have it. Luca had me in counseling. He helped me through my withdrawals. I haven’t touched a thing since. I mean, I came close.”
Luca releases his tight grip on me, and I leap off his lap to hug my uncle. He was my best friend growing up. The one who would take me to school, listen to me moan about my bitchy friends, and take me for ice cream. A man who’s life my father ruined, too.
“You saved me. That’s all that matters. I’m just glad to have my uncle Frankie back.” I hiccup. His chest vibrates against my face as he chuckles.
He hugs me tightly. “I’m sorry.”
I pull away, wiping away my tears. “I forgive you.”
As I stand, I hop straight back on a smiling Luca’s lap. I shiver as he brushes my hair away from my neck, his breath beating against my skin.
Grayson and Keller sit opposite Frankie and Theo with their arms crossed, looking at me and Luca.
Luca clears his throat. “The only way I can keep Rosa safe is leaving. I want Frankie to run this while I’m away. You want to take down Romano–he’s yours.”
I can feel heat flush my cheeks. “I can’t let you do this; this is all my fault. I have to be here for Eva. You have to be here for your family.”
“Rosa.” He pins me with a stern glare. “I think I’ve made it pretty clear. My world revolves around you. Keeping you safe is my priority. I should never have agreed to marry Maria in the first place. I knew my heart belonged to you. I just thought I could one day have it all. And it turns out, I can. Because you are ‘having it all’, Rosa. We can finally have the life we dreamed about.”
Grayson clears his throat. “We’ll make sure it’s safe here, so you can both come home.”
Frankie cracks his knuckles. “And Romano’s mine to kill. I’ve been waiting ten long years for this. That fucker is going to pay.”
Luca gives him a sad smile, but quickly recovers himself. “I mean, I’m going to be lounging on a white beach in Greece with the love of my life. No rush.”
I can’t help but feel sorry for Keller, who’s sitting there with a face like thunder watching on.
“Keller?” Luca’s voice is soft. I look at Frankie and signal to the door. These two need a minute. They’ve just lost their mom, and now Luca is leaving.
Keller’s tattooed hand runs over his face. I slink off Luca’s lap, and he catches my hands. Turning to him, I give him a soft smile. “You need to speak to your brother, Luca.”
He nods and sits back as Frankie and Grayson stand to make their way to the door.
“I’m going back to my girls.” Grayson salutes Luca and leaves.
I drop a kiss to Luca’s lips.
“I’ll see you back in bed, mia vita.”
