13. Lia
Chapter 13
Lia
"Okay, I'll tell you." I cross my arms over my chest. “You planned it with your father. You claimed you hated him, but it was all a ruse to bring me into the fold and see the reaction of the other leaders.”
“I hated him.”
“Past tense.” I arch an eyebrow. I could wait for him to tell me the truth, instead I want this over with. “Until you found out your mother’s death was natural, and he had nothing to do with it.”
“How do you know that?” At least he doesn't lie to me.
“I have my sources.”
"Why does that not surprise me?" He laughs, “But what you've gotten wrong is the plan to protect you was with my mother, not my father.”
I am surprised, but I nod casually. “Okay. Keep talking.”
He takes a seat. “She was friends with yours. Your mother made mine promise that if you were ever brought into this world that she would make sure you were safe.”
“Safe?”
“You gain my protection.”
I narrow my eyes, confused. “How does that protect me?”
“Antonio didn’t like it, but my father agreed to my plan.”
I gasp. “Your spectacle in Mexico. That…”
He interrupts. “That was to let Gallo know I was married. It was to let the others know I wasn’t conforming to their idea of the Syndicate.”
“Why didn’t you let them know who I was?” I’ve often wondered when I’ve been in bed at night. Dante married me but then kept me a secret, despite knowing how powerful it makes him.
“I had to know who’d react to it and how. “
“The ones I killed, by any chance?”
“Yes. You must appreciate I couldn’t name you until that was sorted because once everyone knows you are Aurelia Moretti, we have more obstacles to take care of.” He smiles. “You proved yourself as a worthy leader. But I’ll deal with everyone from now on.”
I’m no longer the na?ve girl whose life was taken from her. “I’m stronger than you realize.”
He laughs. “Don’t I know it?”
He stares for a moment and sighs. "But you've learned so much and you need to take a step back and process it."
My heart painfully slams against my chest. “My mother.” Swallowing back the lump that suddenly found its way into my throat, I blink back the water creeping into my eyes, refusing the cry. “I saw what she did.”
He stares at me, waiting.
“She…” I shake my head.
Dante bounds out of the chair and wraps his arms around me. “I know, and I'm sorry. I’m here for you. Just let me look after you.”
Overwhelmed by a torrent of emotions, and finally having someone to hold me, I crumble under the weight of my pain.
Tears stream down my face, and my body trembles with the intensity of the past few days. Dante keeps hold of me, enveloping me in a protective embrace.
"Shush, baby," he murmurs, his voice a gentle lullaby as he strokes my hair. "I'm here for you. I'm going to look after you."
I cling to him, my fingers clutching his shirt, seeking solace in his hold, and in the warmth of his embrace as he holds me tight and lets me sob before I ask, "How did you know I was here?"
Dante's eyes meet mine as he gently wipes away my tears. "Lia, every time you run, I'll search for you. Until you realize our connection runs deeper than the forces that conspire against us. Until you realize we're married forever and you're mine. Until you only run to me."
"You mean you asked Jove if he could track me?" That bloody fish is probably still swimming around the boat. I sigh, my body shaking against his.
Dante bursts out laughing, his chest rumbling against mine. "Antonio is the one who tracks you. If only you realized what that man has done for you, you may find it in your heart to forgive him."
"He let my mother die," I state, pulling back slightly to look into his eyes.
“She made the decision, not Antonio. Antonio never wanted it.”
Although his words resonate within me, he's no better than me. He is waiting for the moment to topple his father. "You know that your dad never wanted my mother dead?" I ask, watching his reaction closely.
"My personal problems with my father are bigger than that," he says, his jaw clenching.
"Things aren't always what they seem. I've just found out that the hard way," I say, squeezing his hand gently.
Dante sighs, his shoulders slumping slightly, but I don't push. It's his own internal war. “I never wanted him to marry your stepmother.”
“You feel betrayed?” I ask.
He nods. "I did."
“Me too.”
"At first. Then Dad told me his plan."
The words hang heavily in the air as I gaze at Dante, and the pieces fit together.
We’ve got so much to discuss and I change the subject. "I know it was you who saved me. You killed another first son for me," I utter, the truth finally escaping my lips. I had suspected it deep down, but the thought was too terrifying to fully embrace. "And you used to stalk me."
Finally, it all makes sense.
He never wanted me to see his face that night as he asked me to face the wall. He knew I’d remember him from the cafe a few days earlier.
Dante's nod confirms my realization, his eyes never wavering from mine. "It was the day I could no longer hide in the shadows."
A laugh escapes my lips as I playfully push his chest. "How long were you following me?"
"Since I found out about you," he admits, with not one ounce of regret in his tone. His hand finds mine, intertwining our fingers. "I needed to watch over you, protect you from a distance."
Memories of those instances when I felt someone's presence trailing me flood my mind. "Always in black and wearing a baseball cap?" I double check my suspicions, raising an eyebrow.
Dante's smile has a hint of mischief. Twinkling eyes. "I knew you realized it was happening."
"I was trying to find you at the party before…" I swallow as I think back to that time, my hand involuntarily tightening in his.
I can't go there and change the subject. "What changed? Why did you stop?"
"Before I killed Nico," Dante begins, his voice steady, "he made a call to his brother, revealing that he had found you. He wanted them to claim you, to make you theirs. I only discovered this after I took his life. After, I tried to find you again, but you'd disappeared."
My head spins with the implications of his words. "So Ricardo Bianchi knows about me?" The realization sends a chill down my spine, and I wrap my arms around myself.
"We believe he knows Aurelia Moretti is alive. Not who Lia Bailey is," Dante says, rubbing my arms soothingly.
Bile skates up my throat as I think about how the now mafia boss is not only aware of my existence, he wants me to be his mistress. Not that I would ever have agreed.
Instinctively, my hand rests protectively over my growing stomach as my babies stir within me. Dante's gaze locks onto the movement, a hint of longing flickers in his eyes.
"Can I feel my babies?" he asks, his voice laden with hope as his hand hovers just above my belly.
I hesitate for a moment, then gently take his hand and place it on my stomach.
My body shivers as his touch connects with the life growing inside me, the lives we created.
Dante's eyes soften with tenderness as he responds to my question. "And so you know, Cade has Ricardo’s home permanently bugged, so if he suddenly gets wind of who you are, we'll be alerted. Right now, he's more focused on finding his father and his brother's killers than searching for you." He clears his throat, his expression shifting. "How did you do it?"
I shake my head, not understanding.
"How did you poison the cigar?" he presses, his eyes studying me intently.
I clear my throat, fidgeting with the hem of my shirt. "I'd like to say that my plan went without a hitch, but the cigar was meant for Eduardo Gallo. It was his cigar box."
Dante laughs. "You took a cigar from his box and poisoned it?"
"No!" I exclaim, waving my hands. "Rafe had one. I unraveled it, made it lethal, and then swapped it out for one in the box when nobody was in the office." The words are so matter-of-fact, Dante doesn't react with anything but a smile. "Eduardo hired a hitman to kill me. My only regret is he didn't smoke the cigar."
He chuckles quietly, but it lacks real humor. "The assassin is dead," he states, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
Our gazes lock. "You killed him for me," I whisper, my breath catching. I know without his confirmation.
"I would do anything to protect you, Lia," he declares as he cups my face. "I will kill any person who tries to harm you. I will burn this world to the ground if it means it keeps you safe."
"You would." I swallow hard, feeling the intensity of his words. "Thank you."
He smiles, his hands holding my biceps as he strokes them up and down my arms, the gesture both comforting and electrifying. "I’m madly in love with you. Once you believe that, we can move forward and build a life together."
He loves me.
I search his eyes, seeking the truth in his words. "You want me as much as you want these babies?"
Dante's expression shifts from raw passion to confusion, his brow furrowing. "Oh, fuck, Lia. Is that what you thought? I've wanted you from the very moment I laid eyes on you. I wanted to know who the girl I was supposed to be betrothed to was if the past hadn't been altered. And when I saw your face, your smile, and heard your laugh, I wanted you with an intensity I couldn't comprehend. I fell in love with you when you were just sixteen years old. But I knew I had to wait for you."
Tears stream down my face, warmth blooming in my chest. "Hold me," I plead, my voice choking with emotion.
He wraps his arms around me, providing the security I desperately crave.
“I love you... I love you so much.” His whispered words against my hair cause my heart to crash against my breastbone.
"I love you too, Dante," I confess, my voice trembling as I bury my face in his chest. "But I thought you were using me, that I was merely a means to an end."
He pulls back slightly, his hands cupping my face as he looks deep into my eyes, his burning gaze searing into my mind. "Lia, you're everything to me. You're the anchor that keeps me grounded, the light that guides me through the darkness. I want you until my dying day and then my ghost will come back and sleep with you every night until you're ready to meet me on the other side."
I choke out a laugh. "That's strangely romantic."
He smiles, his thumb tracing my lower lip. "I want you. I love you. You're the love of my life, the mother of my children. I want all of you."
"And Rafe and Cade. How do they fit into that life, you see ahead?" I ask, my hands resting on his chest.
"They want you. And the beauty is the three of us are going to make sure you're safe from every threat. But…" He swallows as his gaze lands on mine, a flicker of vulnerability crossing his features. "You're more mine. They have each other. We have each other."
I laugh, playfully hitting his chest. "You're so territorial."
"You've not seen the half of it, Lia. From now on, you are no longer a secret. From now on, everyone will know you're my wife." He pauses, like he's suddenly unsure. His hand gently slides over mine as I stroke my belly. "What are you thinking?"
"Are you sure we will be safe?" Our fingers cover the lives we've created.
"I promise," he says, his voice carrying the weight of a beautiful vow.
Tears of joy roll down my cheeks as our lips slam together in a torrid kiss.
"I'm tired." His deep, gruff voice is muffled when he picks me up, his muscular arms cradling me securely. "And I want to sleep next to my wife."
I wrap my arms around his neck, my head resting in the crook of his shoulder as he carries me down the steps to the bed.