Chapter 28
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Having my family home, all together in celebration of this new life soon to come into the world, was truly a blessing.
They threw me an incredible baby shower. There were two cakes—one just for me and a larger for everyone else that came from our local bakery. The main cake was chocolate with baby blue frosting and had a tiny pair of white and baby blue colored shoes on top. Dominic allowed Bianca to head the party planning, and I thanked her for such a wonderful job.
She’d kept the party small with only me, Dominic, my brothers, and Katrina as guests. I made sure she understood how appreciative I was.
The food the guys cooked and prepared for the party was too much. Literally. We handed out leftovers to the staff and their families. It all gave way to a good nap when everything was said and done.
I finished applying my liquid foundation and switched to my powdered one, beginning to blend that onto my skin. And then, I added a touch of blush afterwards.
Staring at myself in the bathroom mirror, I wondered what Dominic was up to. As the baby shower wound down, he told me he had his own surprise for me that he wanted to personally hand deliver. He instructed me to meet him in the foyer in what was now ten minutes and to dress all fancy like we were going to some expensive and inclusive restaurant. With my makeup mostly put away, I picked up my tube of red lipstick, took off its cap, and contemplated wearing this color. I never could really pull off red lipstick, but it went with my dress.
I chose my maroon, contrast mesh V-neck with rouching at the waist. Reaching mid-thigh, it hugged and flattered me, the breathable fabric a plus. I was grateful for my ability to zip it up myself because I wanted this outfit to be his surprise.
I twisted the Flamenco red-labeled lipstick out of its tube and applied a light coating on my bottom lip to see if I liked it, quickly deciding on it. Rubbing my lips together, I dabbed tissue on them to blot away excess lipstick.
With my wet hair left to air dry, I fixed it again, threading my fingers through it and making sure it settled just right as I smiled seductively, like a woman up to mischief, but in reality, I was pleased with the hot, sexy mama staring back at me.
“Let’s do this,” I said to myself, my lips making a popping sound after once more rubbing them together. I turned off the bathroom light and headed out of our bedroom.
Catching sight of Vincenzo’s bedroom, I smiled at the handmade name plate hanging on the door. Dominic took the time to source its designer. On the letter V, a king’s crown dangled like it was hanging off its left side tip.
In his room were all his gifts—clothes, toys, furniture and a cherry wood toy box, along with some baby books and necessities like bath time accessories and diapers. Oh, the mountain of diapers. And wipes. My brothers pitched in and put together a gift basket full of toys for Vincenzo. Bianca was working on a baby quilt, but I wasn’t allowed to see it until it was finished.
Vincenzo moved and wriggled around, aggravating my already aching back, hips, and pelvis. I glanced down at my belly and rubbed my hand over it, telling him, “I love you kid, but you’re killing me today.” He kicked in response. I laughed as I walked the rest of the hall.
Entering the threshold of the foyer, I gasped.
So many red rose petals were on the floor, scattered far and wide, but it wasn’t too overwhelming. The lighting centered around the foyer, dimming the further out it shone. “Oh, my God,” I whispered, my hands fluttering up to my lips in a prayer-like gesture.
Moonlight Sonata played through our speakers. I walked around in awe, hanging out by the left staircase when I noticed Dominic stepping into the foyer. He took my breath away in his blood red suit with thin, black pinstripes, his hair slicked back. Holding a rose, he slowly took me in from head to toe, his heated gaze sweeping over my body like a caress.
“Wow,” he marveled seductively. My heart raced in anticipation as he walked toward me. The comforting scent of his cologne and click-clacking of his shoes tamed my butterflies. “You’re simply beautiful, amore mia .”
“So are you,” I admired, then cautiously asked, “What did I do?” I raised my brow.
Chuckling, Dominic handed me the rose. “Nothing. Happy birthday, Bellissima .” I held the rose, trimmed of its thorns, close to me as sweet nothings were whispered in my ear, all of it in Italian.
I turned my head toward him. “Where did you send everyone?”
He planted feather-light kisses under my ear. “Hotels.” His kisses trailed to my jaw.
“They’re safe?”
“Sonny reports back to me every hour.” His mouth found mine. “My men are watching them.” He kissed me, taking his time, spreading his palm over the side of my face. “We can’t live in fear.” He kissed me again, long and passionate.
“Is anyone here?” I wondered, tearing myself from a mouth so sweet.
“Scioli, the guards, and my crew downstairs.”
Surveillance—they never left, only rotated shifts.
“Can you do that more often? Kick everyone out?”
Dominic positioned one hand on my back and his other on my belly, startling me when he dipped me. He assured he’d never drop me after I grabbed his arm instinctively, holding on tight. Leaning down closer, his breath tickled my face. His sensual blue eyes gazed into mine.
“Just say the word.”
I softly moaned at the feel of Dominic’s lips against my neck. I let my head fall back, slightly turning it to welcome him licking and suckling my skin.
“You make me so happy,” I moaned.
In what I liked to call Dominic’s love bites, he gently grazed my throat with his teeth, gently taking my skin between his teeth. The pressure wasn’t enough to hurt me—only enough to send a wave of tingly pleasure all the way down to my toes. He pulled back and stared into my eyes, his gaze unwavering as he slowly guided me upright, sliding his hand up to the back of my head. His stare had me in a chokehold, his eyes burning with a need and desire I was all too familiar with, but there was something else. A certain focus. Maybe even a hint of the butterflies.
He touched the side of my face, pushing his thumb against the corner of my lips before dragging it down my bottom one, very briefly touching his forehead to mine before teasing my mouth, grazing my lip between his teeth, then slowly letting it go. Startling me again, he grabbed a fistful of my hair and slammed his mouth to mine for a powerful, possessive kiss. My hands latched onto his arms before I slid them up to his shoulders for better balance.
I didn’t know what came over him at that moment, but wow! Panting, I pressed my palms to his chest.
“Are you okay? You seem a bit on edge.”
“Always observant.” He winked, a hint of a shaky smile on the corner of his lips.
I pressed my palm to his face, his clammy skin confirming my suspicion. “I have to be,” I winked, too, “especially when a brave, brutal man such as yourself looks like one of those boys in high school trying to get the courage to ask out his crush.” I took a step back, my brows furrowing. “What’s going on with you?”
Was I getting bad news? Was he buttering me up before a big disappointment? Were the roses and his best, breathtaking suit just to soften the blow?
He, too, stepped backward, blowing out a breath, staring at me for a beat. Fiddling with his cufflinks, clearly distressed about something, he told me to turn around or close my eyes. Just not to look at him. Eyeing him suspiciously, I cocked my brow, closing my eyes shortly after.
“Is it anyone in the family?”
“Huh?” he questioned, puzzled.
“The bad news you’re about to throw at me—no one’s hurt, are they?”
Although his lighthearted chuckle brought me a sense of ease and calm, I was still royally confused.
“No, no,” Dominic assured. “Nothing like that, I promise. Just don’t look until I tell you to.”
He walked up to me, taking another deeper, steadier breath. His cool hands took hold of mine. His scent… I could smell the adrenaline rush. I could almost feel his racing heart. What the fuck was going on?
“I have something I want to say.”
He made a noise of disapproval when I opened my eyes and then touched my eyelids after I closed them, like he was holding them closed.
“No.” That word was soft-spoken. Controlled. Meek. After two beats, he created a thin distance between us, saying, “ Voglio passare la mia vita con te , Lilith Marie Wardman. La domanda è: vuoi passare il resto dei tuoi soldi con i miei ?”
Whenever Dominic spoke in Italian, it did something to me. Something that made me want to remove his clothes and make sweet love all night long.
“My love is all I got out of that.”
Dominic laughed for a moment before composing himself.
“Lilith, I fell in love with you from the first moment I saw your photograph. The stunning red of your hair. Your soft, brown eyes. Your smile. I loved it all, but my damn soul held me back.”
A tightness wrung in my chest as I thought of the demons he overcame.
“I remember the night I first touched your supple skin. Smelled your strawberry hair and your luscious blood flowing through those veins. I wanted your touch, your flesh against my flesh, and your undying love. And now, I have all those things, and it brings back something I’ve seldom felt—hope.”
I swallowed the urge to sob sappily, hold Dominic in my arms, and rock him while I professed my love yet again.
“When I heard you tell me you loved me, I felt that same hope. I felt something that was taken away from me time and time again. The night we laid together was a night I’ll cherish forever. Telling you that I love you was the greatest challenge of my life. Greater than growing accustomed to this life and to this world… And now, impending fatherhood.
“When you told me you were carrying my child, it made things between us all that more real, and it scared me. I acted foolishly and went into that dark place in my mind to rethink who I was as a man and reexamine my priorities. Now, as I watch our unborn blossom and thrive inside of you, I couldn’t be prouder.”
My heart skipped a beat. I heard and sensed him moving. What was he doing?
“I want to spend my life with you, Lilith Marie Wardman.”
Those words… The volume of Dominic’s voice lowered. Oh, my God, was he… Oh. My. God.
“Open your eyes.”
I gasped, tears rushing to my eyes, my chest tighter as I clasped my hands over my mouth in a prayer position. Dominic was resting on one knee, a small box in his hands. In that little black box, an enormous diamond sparkled on the silver band it was set on.
“Will you marry me?”
“Yes.” I rapidly nodded, my tears running down my face. “Yes, oh, my God, yes, I’ll marry you.” I grabbed a chuckling Dominic by his lapels the second he stood tall, passionately kissing him. “Fuck yes, I’ll marry you,” I breathed.
He laughed against my mouth. I smiled, gushing over Dominic Matteo Rosini all over again. His step back broke our kiss, and I looked at his hands as he pulled out a silver chain from inside his jacket. As he put my ring on the chain, he said, “For now, I want you to wear this around your neck.” He told me to turn around and then swept my hair over my shoulder. I held it as he put on the necklace. He must’ve remembered how my hands tended to swell lately. That small sentiment made me smile.
I let go of my hair and looked down at my ring, placing my palm over it and holding his hand with my other as he brought me into his arms, wrapping them around me. It was a whole new embrace, one that showed me how far he had come and reminded me why I was so damn proud of him. I was glad we fought for what we wanted. For each other.
I sniffed, tilting my head back to lean against his shoulder, bringing my face to the bend of his neck. “This feels like a dream I never want to wake up from.”
“This isn’t a dream. I never planned on falling in love, but from the moment I found you?—”
“ Found ?” I smirked, unable to help myself.
“...Good one.”
We laughed, gently swaying to our own beat. I continued to lose myself in the tranquility of it all.
This night was everything I could’ve dreamt of. One of my biggest wishes came true tonight, and I just wanted to go on the roof and shout my love for Dominic and my happiness to the residents of all of New Jersey.
“I’ll stand by you,” I sang the lyric to the song by The Pretenders, one of my favorites.
“I’ll stand by you,” Dominic sang.
I snuggled tighter against his body. “Won’t let nobody hurt you.”
We sang the chorus one more time before just standing still and taking in this picture-perfect moment.
“Are you hungry?”
Well… That was quite a broad question these days.
“I mean…” I let my words trail off, amused at myself for dipping my mind into the gutter.
When his breath fanned against the skin of my neck, tingles erupted. His next words had me clenching my thighs.
“My queen is such a naughty, naughty girl.”
“What do you expect?” I sassed, a taste of sarcasm on my tongue.
He grazed my earlobe between his teeth, sliding his hand up along my body, slipping his fingers inside the dress at my breast. “I’m taking you out to eat, and then, I’m bringing you back home to fuck you senseless.”
I arched into him, pressing my ass against his noticeably hard cock. “Will I be able to walk after this senseless fucking?”
Squeezing my breast, he purred, “Not if I can help it.”
* * *
Mrs. Lilith Rosini.
Had a nice ring to it.
Speaking of rings, I couldn’t get enough of mine. I did ask him if my hands swelling was why he wanted me to wear it this way, and he confirmed my assumption. I was quickly growing used to wearing it on this chain.
“Where are we going again?” I asked, enjoying the scenery along the interstate.
“Rossanos.”
“Do they have steak?”
Amused, Dominic nodded. Good; I was craving a bloody steak.
I looked out of my window, everything feeling surreal. I was getting married to my best friend, the man I loved and who I’d take bullets for. The man who just needed to be listened to and given a chance. The man who saw my faults and my history and refused to throw me away like everyone else had prior to him. Like how some threw him away.
I thanked God every day for granting me a second chance, a way out of the hell I lived. I thanked Him for connecting me with my new family, and now, I thanked Him for blessing me with my own little family.
Our convoy of security kept up with us.
“They won’t come into the restaurant with us, will they?” I knew the answer, but with the latest going on, I wasn’t sure if Dominic adjusted the rules.
“No. They’ll surround the place and wait. If it wasn’t safe, we would’ve eaten in tonight.”
Dominic must’ve been just as nervous as I was. There was an enemy out there we couldn’t see that could pop up at any moment like in that game of Whack-A-Mole. Another of ours was working for Aleksi. It was a betrayal unimaginable, and their suffering when we caught them would be astronomical.
Making a noise of discomfort, I adjusted in my seat, hand on my belly.
“Is everything alright?”
Nodding, I said, “It’s that damn ligament pain again that Julie explained to us.”
What I neglected to tell him because he didn’t need the unnecessary panic was what I felt this morning in the shower. It was separate from my ligament pain. It was the same tightening of my belly that I experienced previously occasionally. It lasted less than a minute, but this time, I felt a strange pulling sensation reaching into the sides of my belly, almost like something was tugging those ligaments.
I felt around my belly. Beneath my belly button was hard, that hardness spreading downward.
“Are you sure?” he suspiciously asked. He reached over and put his hand on my belly, pushing on it. I felt my body relaxing at his touch, the tightness easing. “Should I turn around?”
Shaking my head, I turned to see his worry and concern. Smiling, I put my hand on his and gently squeezed.
“Don’t let me spoil our plans please.”
He focused back on the road. Just as I was about to do the same, my belly tightened again, stronger and catching me off guard. I clutched my belly with both hands.
“Ow,” I groaned, wincing. Vincenzo stirred, not helping matters.
Taking his hand away, Dominic muttered, “Like hell you’re fine,” and then warned me to hang on as he hit the brakes and sharply turned, cutting through traffic in an illegal U-turn. I held onto my belly and the short handle above my door, groaning louder at the pain rippling through my lower back, hips, and groin.
Horns blared and F-bombs were thrown around left and right, including some middle fingers.
I took short, slow breaths through the pain.
Dominic immediately dialed someone on the car phone as soon as he forced his way back into traffic.
“Get on the phone with Julie and tell the staff to get everything ready… I don’t know. Just fucking do as I say!” He roughly hung up the phone, pressing his foot on the gas and weaving through traffic as fast and as safely as he could.
Some fucking celebration this turned out to be.