Chapter 10
TEN
Sable
Being back with Milo should have been more comforting, but he was too keyed up to sleep the past couple of nights. He held me but neither of us settled down or slept that much.
I didn’t know how to calm him. His quiet fury that I had come to expect was no longer contained. The beast within him had been unleashed. Whatever internal struggle he fought had come to the exterior, no longer able to hide. I feared he would never be the same.
What does that mean for us?
As we strolled down the main staircase, Milo clasped my hand in his.
“You’re distracted,” he said when we got to the bottom of the stairs. “What’s on your mind?”
“It isn’t a bad thing.” I hoped he would see my news as a positive situation for me. “I think it might be good for me.”
“What is it?”
“One of those interviews panned out. I got a job offer.”
I didn’t know if it was the designer skirt and shoes I interviewed in, or the fact that I said on my resume I worked for the Accettis that landed me the opportunity. Whatever it was, I was thrilled I’d finally gotten a job.
“It’s for an insurance agency in the city and—”
“No.” He let go of my hand and adjusted his cufflink.
“What?”
“You’re not taking a job at a random insurance agency with a bunch of strangers.”
“Milo, every job I find the people will be strangers for the first few days.”
“I don’t like strangers.” He caressed my cheek. “You can come back to the dealership and be my assistant. I can keep an eye on you there.”
“Angela doesn’t like me.” I didn’t have a solid reason to believe that, but it was a vibe she gave off. She was always talking about Nico and how she was the only one who knew how to keep the place running while he was away.
“Angela is the least of our problems.” He shrugged. “But I’ll talk to her.”
“No!” I raised my voice. “I… I mean, I got a job. I’ve been looking for so long and now I’ll be able to…”
“Able to what?”
“I’ll feel useful and earn my own money.” I leaned against the banister. “Can’t Ax take me?”
“No.” His jaw tightened.
“I thought he was my guard.”
“He is but you can’t expect him to accompany you to your job every day. And what would a potential employer think about you bringing security with you?”
I didn’t think that through. Being with Milo came with a set of rules I still wasn’t used to.
“Luckily for you, there is one place where security is perfectly acceptable, and even luckier for you, I happen to need my assistant back.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Why?” He arched an eyebrow. “Don’t you like working with me?”
“I do.” I looked down, trying to resolve my disappointment. It wasn’t that I even wanted the job at the insurance agency, but it was something I did on my own. That meant something to me.
“Hey.” He raised my chin, holding me in his intense stare. “You were assaulted a few days ago because I left you unprotected. I don’t know anything about this place where you want to work. Who these people are. I can’t let you go off and fend for yourself.”
“They don’t have anything to do with your business.”
“My enemies can get to anyone.”
There was no arguing with him. If I wanted to stay with him and trust he could do his job, I had to do what he wanted of me. He had been on edge ever since I told him about the threat Bello made about Diego trafficking me.
It was only a threat. I didn’t believe that Diego would be bold enough to come after me now that I was back with Milo.
“When things settle down around here and Medina is no longer a problem, and you’re no longer a target.” He took my hand again. “We can revisit you looking for a job.” He kissed me with gentle lips. “But it’s my wish that you’ll want to be with me every day and never leave my side.”
“Well.” I kissed the corner of his mouth. “When you put it that way.”
“I know, right?” His flirty ‘I can make you do anything I want’ smile flipped my insides. “Who wouldn’t want to be with me all day?”
Loving him was so easy. Why did everything else have to be so complicated?
“I want you to have your independence, and if you feel you need to make your own money, I’ll support that decision." He squeezed my hand. “But it’s going to be something you really want to do, and if that’s working at an insurance agency, so be it, but maybe there are other options for you.”
“I’ve never had options.”
“You do now, Sweet Sable.” He raised my hand to his lips and pressed them to my wrist. “I’ll always take care of you. I’ll support whatever you want to do.”
“I want to take care of you too.”
“Then come back to work with me and keep me grounded. If I know you’re safe, I can focus. You’ll be saving me from danger, because if I’m not worried about you, I can’t let my guard down and be caught by surprise.”
“Okay.” It wasn’t that I didn’t want to work at the dealership. I liked it there, with the exception of Angela. Perhaps the way I felt about her had more to do with my insecurities and less to do with her odd obsession with Nico. “I can come back today.”
“Actually.” He led me across the foyer. “My father has requested to see you.”
“Why?” A wave of anxiety came over me. “What could he want with me?”
“Relax.” He rubbed my arm before resuming down the hall that led to Nico’s study. When we arrived at the door, Milo turned to face me. “I have some errands to run.”
“Wait! You want me to go in there without you.” I shook my head, feeling even more distressed than before. “Why?”
“That's what my dad wants.”
“I can’t.” As if on cue, my stomach twisted and my hands trembled. “What does he want?”
“You’re going to be fine.” He knocked on the study door. “I promise.”
“Come in,” Nico said.
“Milo! He’s scary.” My eyes widened, pleading with him not to throw me to the wolf.
“Trust me.” Milo opened the door and nudged me in. “I’ll see you later. You’re going to be fine.”
“Don’t leave,” I whispered as Milo hurried down the hallway. Shit!
“Hello, Sable.” Nico got up from his desk when I faced him. “Come in and have a seat.”
“Thank you, Mr. Accetti.”
“You’re living in my home.” He pointed to the black leather couch in front of the huge picture window that overlooked a stream in the backyard. “You can call me Nico.”
“Okay.” Even if I called him by his first name, I would still be terrified of him.
“Would you like some coffee or juice?” he asked. “I could have Antonella bring you something.”
“Thank you but I’m fine.”
When he moved toward me, I instinctively dropped onto the sofa, sinking into the soft leather, feeling small and vulnerable in the presence of such an intimidating man.
I had never been alone with him, and I couldn’t remember saying more than a few words to him.
“You look anxious,” he said.
“Can you blame me?”
When he smirked his features softened and I caught a glimpse of Milo in his expression.
His custom gray suit accentuated his tall frame and solid muscles.
And just like Milo, everything about him screamed perfection.
From his manicured fingernails, down to his black, perfectly polished shoes.
Knowing what this man did for a living should have repulsed me, but there was something in his eyes that drew me to him.
As if I were in the presence of greatness.
How did the Accetti men do that? Killers through and through but they had a way of making me feel safer than I had a right to be. When Nico sat next to me, my hands stopped shaking and a strange calmness fell over me.
“I suppose I can’t blame you, but you’re not in any danger from me,” he said.
“But I am in danger.”
“Unfortunately, that tends to come with people who associate with my family.” He shrugged. “It’s the one thing I detest about my line of work.”
He gazed out at the stream, lost in thought, and I couldn’t help but think about his wife and unborn child. Is he thinking about them now?
“I do the best I can to keep my business away from those who want to be around my family.”
“I’m sure it isn’t easy.”
“Some days are more challenging than others.” He tapped his fingers on the arm of the sofa. “The only way I can keep you all safe is by demanding total control over my surroundings. I have to be the one who calls the shots.”
“It doesn’t seem like anyone argues with you.”
“They know better.”
“Do you think I’m here to get in your way?”
“Not at all.” He smiled. “I asked to meet with you because you’re very special to my son.”
“He means a lot to me.”
“I can tell, but I can also see that being with you has caused him some stress.” He held up his hand before I could protest. “It’s not your fault. Unfortunately, what happened between you and Bello is part of our world.”
“Going after an innocent woman shouldn’t be part of anyone’s world.”
“Which is why I would never do it.” He gazed back out at the stream, and I couldn’t help but think it held some significance. “Women and children are off-limits. But not everyone has the same code that I do. I don’t do business with those men.”
“I believe you.”
“Without getting into too much detail, Milo is struggling with having you in his life and being loyal to me.” He stood and went to the shelves behind his desk and picked up a pitcher of water.
“He needs you in his life, and I approve, but I can’t have him making mistakes that distract him or put the rest of us in jeopardy. ”
“Do you think I’m too much of a distraction?”
“You’re much easier than my daughter-in-law.” He poured the water into a glass. “I can see that already.”
“Lissia has quite the reputation.”
“She means well.” He sipped his drink. “My son needs you.”
I need him.
“We’re going to keep you safe, but I have to do something that needs to be done to protect all of us, and I’m not sure you’re going to like it.”
“What is it?” I got up and walked to the front of his desk. “I want to help any way I can.”
“The situation with Medina is escalating and Milo wants to go after Bello. As much as I want to kill him myself for hurting you, now isn’t the right time.”
“I’d rather you don’t kill anyone on my behalf."
“Noted.” He tapped his forehead. “But I can’t promise I’ll honor that wish. Don’t take it personally.”
“Understood.”
“I like you.” He nodded. “You’ll take care of my son.”
“I’ll try.”
“Milo is struggling right now. He has a lot of anger that he doesn’t know what to do with.” He came around his desk and stood next to me. “I expect that from Marchello, but Milo has always managed to contain his rage.”
“I think I know what you mean,” I said. Milo was more agitated than when we first met. I noticed a shift in him the night Bello attacked me, and I wasn’t sure how to help him. “He’s angrier than usual.”
“I depend on him to keep his rage in check and rein his brother in, but I understand where he’s coming from.” He pointed toward me. “His fear of losing you is taking over. That’s a horrible place for a man in our line of work to be in.”
“I don’t want to be the reason Milo loses focus and makes a mistake."
“Then we must control the elements we can that will keep him on task.” Nico leaned against the edge of his desk. “Chance is one of those elements.”
“What do you mean?” If Chance had done something again to interfere with Milo’s business… “I didn’t expect this conversation to be about him.”
“Your brother is one bad move away from my son killing him.”
“I thought Milo was over that? Has Chance done something?” Oh no! “Milo and I won’t survive another mishap from my brother.”
“I know that.”
“Please, you can’t let Milo kill Chance.”
“I’ve gotten to know Chance over the past few days, and he really does want to look out for you,” Nico said.
“We look out for one another.”
“I respect that, but he has never had the guidance and opportunities to become a man.”
“He didn’t have a solid role model.”
“Which is why he makes the choices he does. Your brother is destined to make the same mistakes over and over again if someone doesn’t intervene.”
“You want to be the someone?” I asked.
“Your brother needs an opportunity, and I’m in a position to give it to him. As I said, the next time one of our enemies dangles something shiny in front of Chance, or if they use you as a threat, Chance won’t be able to resist.”
“You learned all of this from just a few conversations with him?”
“I’m excellent at reading people, especially those who are close to my family,” he said.
“I’m going to help your brother because it will help you and my son move forward as a couple.
Milo needs to know that you are safe so he can do his job without worrying that you'll protect or defend Chance’s poor decisions. ”
Taking Nico up on his offer didn’t seem like a bad idea. Chance needed someone to believe in him and Nico had experience raising men.
“I have a vineyard in Italy.” He took out his phone and pulled up some pictures. “Scroll through.” He handed me his phone. “It’s a beautiful property.”
I perused the pictures of the vineyards and the gorgeous Italian landscape. “It’s lovely.” I handed him his phone. “You want my brother to go to Italy?”
“I do.”
“He doesn't have a passport.” That was all I could come up with? “I mean, he’s never left New York.”
“You let me handle the details.” He touched my shoulder. “He can go to the vineyard and learn the business.”
“The wine business?”
“The wine business.” He let out a hearty laugh, relaxing me even further than he had earlier. “Believe me, that’s all I’ll trust him with.”
“Have you told Chance yet?” I asked.
“That’s on today’s agenda, but I’m certain he won’t refuse me.”
“No, I don’t think he will.” I bit the corner of my bottom lip. “We’ve never been away from one another.”
“It won’t be forever.” He placed his phone in his pocket. “Just long enough to figure himself out. It will also help Milo.”
“Thank you, Nico.” A tear slipped down my cheek. “This is an opportunity of a lifetime for my brother. I’ve always wanted good things for him. I tried but…”
“Don’t cry.” He wiped the tear from my face. “I need Milo’s focus to be on this family. This is a win for all of us.”
“Milo’s family is his priority.”
“I hope you know you’re part of this family.”
When he patted my cheek, the longing I had shoved deep into the darkest depths of my soul over finally having a father in my life broke free. Who would have thought that wish would have been granted by a cold-blooded assassin?
You never can tell.
“It’s an honor that you consider me part of your family.” I hugged him. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He pressed his hand against my back, giving me the sense of belonging I had hoped for since I was a child. “But only you can decide if that’s a blessing or a curse.”