Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Leon
“Ineed a new wife.”
My father never shows his hand when reacting to information.
He’s always had a carefully crafted demeanor and he doesn’t allow it to crack.
I’ve only seen him drop his completely controlled composure a few times in my life, usually out of anger, and almost always in private.
But he doesn’t react in anger at my words, nor does his body betray him.
Dante Moretti doesn’t flinch or stiffen, his shoulders remaining still and strong.
No, his face is what changes. For the first time in my life, I’m given a view of genuine surprise in his eyes.
His shock can’t be concealed, and it doesn’t seem like he’s even attempting to hide it once he recognizes what’s happening.
“What?” he asks, his voice dropping an octave. He can’t believe what he’s hearing, of that much I’m certain.
I understand, of course. We haven’t even buried my wife yet.
Three days is a short mourning period, even for a man who wasn’t in love with the deceased.
And part of me isn’t surprised that my father is dropping his practiced emotional wall.
When he lets go of it at all, it’s always for his children. Usually when we need him most.
“My boys need a mother,” I tell him stiffly, hating the sound of the words. “Cleo herself demanded that I don’t let them grow up with only one parent. She said they need a mother’s softness, and I don’t disagree.”
“I…” Dad blinks, clearing his throat. “I don’t disagree either. I sometimes wish that I had found a woman to play that role for you and your brothers—I think about it more than you know. But are you sure that this is something you want to be thinking about so soon? There’s no rush, Leon.”
“Of course there is,” I disagree calmly. “You know a ridiculous number of eligible women are going to be thrown at me by their fathers. I want to find the right woman to be in my kids’ lives before the decision is made for me.” Again, I don’t add, but I swear he can sense the absent word.
“It won’t be made for you.” The statement is a vow, a solemn promise that I know he won’t break. My father is many things, but a man who lies to his children about such matters, is not one of them.
“Either way,” I reply quietly. “I could use the help with the kids. Having Apollo and Rayna here is good, but Leo and Bastian already love Rayna so much. I don’t want them to get even more attached when she can’t stay forever.
Leo already treats baby Vaughn like a little brother.
Imagine how sad he’ll be if he’s here for months and then suddenly he’s not. ”
Dad can’t hide the small, fond smile that always graces his lips when his grandchildren are mentioned. “I understand. Do you have something in mind? Or someone?”
Well, that’s the complicated part, isn’t it?
I have no one in mind. I’ve been off the market for years, and I haven’t exactly been searching through my world’s single women.
I’ve never had any interest in the topic, and I still doubt that I do.
What if I end up with another wife who lies to me?
Who secretly hates living every day in my presence?
I could handle it again, I think. Perhaps if it weren’t as extreme as the last time.
“I’ve thought about a contract. One that would make being my wife a formality.
I want someone who is focused on the kids, but I suppose one who also is open to more…
eventually. A wife in name, but a nanny in practice.
I doubt that Bastian or Leo will want her to be a mother for quite some time but it might be a good place to start growing that connection. ”
“It’s not a bad idea.”
“But?” I ask, sensing it coming.
“But are you sure an arrangement is what you’re looking for? I know it didn’t really work out with Cleo the way any of us had expected—”
“You can say that again,” I mutter.
“But,” he continues, “we could always hire someone to be a nanny while you look for a woman to love. A real partner. Like Apollo has found in Rayna, or Matteo has found in Anya.”
I hold back a sigh, already having considered hiring a nanny, rather than marrying one. It doesn’t solve my problems, and it only creates more of them.
“Hiring someone means trusting someone,” I point out, shaking my head.
“Trusting someone who has no stake in our family seems like a poor idea. It wouldn’t get the mafia princesses of the world off my back either.
Unfortunately, I’m now one of the highest ranking single men this organization has seen in a long time.
Discounting you, of course. Since you’ve made it clear you aren’t looking. ”
He huffs, almost chuckling through the noise.
“Not to mention, a nanny is not a mother,” I add, frowning.
“Whoever marries me will be acting as a nanny for my children, yes, but as my wife, that relationship is bound to grow. She’ll live with us, and see them daily.
She’ll be responsible for them not just because she’s being paid, but because she’d be family.
We always treat Moretti wives as our kin, even if there isn’t love sealing that bond. It’ll work, I think.”
It has to work.
“You’ve thought a lot about this,” Dad comments without a hint of judgment.
If anything, he seems pleased or proud. “Are you…Leon, are you ready for another partner? We can work something out if you’re not.
I can tell everyone to back the fuck off you, and we could hire someone who we could trust completely.
Distant family, someone Martha recommends, one of my men’s daughters or wives.
Anything if it means not pushing you before you’re ready. ”
A warmth radiates in my chest that almost feels painful.
“I was going to ask you for a divorce,” I reveal, looking down at the countertop.
“Before I knew she was sick, I was going to beg you to let us dissolve things because I was drowning being married to Cleo. I’ve been so lonely for years that I almost got used to it, and then it started to eat me alive.
Now I don’t know how else to live. I need another adult in this house.
I won’t hold my breath hoping that she’ll want anything more with me.
Right now, I can only afford to think of my kids. ”
Looking up, I find my father’s bright blue eyes staring back into mine. “I would have given you a divorce, Leon. If you had told me how bad things were, I wouldn’t have denied you.”
“I know,” I admit, letting out a heavy breath. “It breaks every rule in the book to end a marriage that forged an alliance. But I know you would have done it anyway.”
“Yes,” he agrees, voice almost strained.
“There are things even a man with the amount of power I possess cannot do, but there are no limits to my strength when it comes to my children. I would have figured it out, happily, for you. Bastian would be the key to the alliance, rather than your marriage. And if they demanded more from us…Hell, I would have married one of Cleo’s cousins to set you free if I had to, Son. ”
“You sacrifice too much for us,” I tell him in disbelief.
Dad shakes his head. “You’d do the same for either of your boys. You’re a father, Leon. You know it’s not too much.”
“Still,” I relent, frowning. “I could have married one of her cousins myself to keep the familial connection. I could have married anyone else if it meant I could breathe in my house again. I don’t even think I wanted to be in love anymore.
I just wanted to feel affection again. Caring, or friendship, or anything other than nothing. ”
“You’re a strong man, Leon.” My father picks up his drink, and swallows a thick gulp before letting the glass clink back down onto the counter.
I tip my glass in his direction and he takes that cue to pour more of the bottle into my cup.
“I know you know that your mother didn’t love me.
She was certainly warmer than Cleo at times, but she was generally disinterested in feeling.
But I had my brother with me, and I had children surrounding me at every corner to keep me fulfilled.
I’d like to tell you that I know the loneliness that you’ve suffered, but I think I only know a fraction of it. ”
“A fraction of it is enough,” I grunt, taking a long drink of my own. “Will you help me find the right candidates? We could narrow down a small group of women and I’ll meet them. I want to find someone who works as soon as possible. You know more people than I do. Apollo does too.”
Dad nods, bobbing his head slowly. “We can drum up the best possibilities and discreetly set up meetings. You want someone who speaks Italian and English, I imagine, for Leo. Any other requirements you’ve been thinking up?”
“Healthy,” I reply immediately. “No hidden conditions this time. I can’t allow my children to feel another loss like this, especially as they’re getting older.
Their memories of losing Cleo will naturally dull and fade with age, but as they grow up, they retain more.
I can’t deal with them taking another death even more difficult than this one. ”
“Agreed,” he says quickly. “We can make a health examination a requirement.”
“I want someone who’s happy. Leo is full of joy and energy, and I don’t want him to be muted because he’s an Underboss’s son. And Bastian, he’s still very shy. Having someone bubbly and nice would help him come out of his shell, I think.”
“Happy, healthy, speaks Italian,” Dad lists off. “I think we can work with that.”
It feels like a done deal, so my head dips. “I’ll talk to the boys soon, after the funeral. To try and explain what will be happening.”
“They’re smart boys, they’ll understand. Leo may even be excited. He likes meeting new people.”
“He’ll be excited until he hears that Rayna and Vaughn are leaving.”
Dad chuckles. “He’ll see them plenty, you visit as much as you can.”
Trying not to frown, I tell him, “Sometimes I thank God that Apollo isn’t their favorite uncle or they might just be better off living with them. Rayna is special to both of them.”
“And Matteo is special to Cesar and Isobella,” my father replies calmly. “That doesn’t mean they would want him to replace Dmitri.”
“Yeah, well, Dmitri is alive.”
“Give yourself some grace, Leon. You’re a great father, and they wouldn’t want another to take your place.”
His words feel warm as they hit me right in the gut.
“And for what it’s worth, I think you should know that Cleo was a rare case. This next woman will care for you, it would be nearly impossible for her not to. We’ll choose well, and this will work out, Leon. I won’t allow you to go through this again.”
“You can’t control everything, Dad.”
He smirks. “Thirty-two years of being my son and you’re still underestimating me? I feel like I should be insulted, Son.”
The sound of the sliding back door gliding open cuts through the air before I can reply. Rayna steps onto the covered patio with her feet bare and her hair pulled back into a loose ponytail that her son has definitely been tugging at.
“Hey, the boys want you to come watch the movie,” she says, almost whispering. Keeping her voice low so that Leo and Bastian don’t follow the sound of it, I imagine.
“All right.” I nod, swallowing the rest of my drink and standing up without needing more prompting. My kids could ask for a fucking unicorn today and I’d find them one; watching a movie with them is no burden.
“Here,” Rayna adds, reaching out a hand. “To help mute the whiskey smell.”
A piece of chocolate, I realize.
Chuckling, I take the offering, unwrap it, and pop it into my mouth.
“One for you too, Papa,” she says, tossing a piece to my father. “No need for the kids to smell your stinky adult juice. Leo told Apollo he smelled spicy and icky after he used bourbon to glaze the steaks tonight.”
“Of course he did,” I huff with a chuckle.
Leo loves to crinkle his nose and declare things icky if they don’t smell like something he’d like to eat.
“Well, come on. I think you might just steal the attention from Vaughn. They miss their daddy and you’ve only been out here an hour.”
She knows just what to say to snap me into Dad mode.
All the guilt and resentment that flowed out of me earlier is quickly replaced with fondness and love for my children.
Maybe things are going to be okay faster than I expected.