Chapter 29
CIRO
I left my heart in San Francisco. Was that a song? If not, it should have been. An angsty, bluesy song. The kind that squeezed the air out of your lungs with every strum of a guitar. Where you’d find yourself lost in the words and the melody, transporting you back to a moment in time.
I could almost imagine the tune and the scene in San Francisco, when I was pushing my daughter in the stroller and Isla was in perfect step with me, her hand curled around my arm.
What I wouldn’t do to be back in California with them right now. It’d only been a few hours since I left them, and I felt bereft without them.
The driver pulled up to the security gate at the estate and spoke to the guard, then we drove in front of the five-car garage. I sat in my seat for a moment as I read the text Isla sent me.
Isla: Alba is thrilled with her room. She says, thank you.
Isla: I hope your flight was good. I think Pippa keeps looking for you. I know I do.
She misses me. It was like I could hear her saccharine voice. Damn, if it didn’t make me miss her even more.
I typed out a quick reply.
Ciro: Tell Alba it’s my pleasure. At the estate now. Kiss Pippa for me.
Ciro: Next time, I want a lot more kissing and sex.
Why hide the truth? We had a lot of time to make up for. Intimacy had been a huge part of our relationship. When we were naked and vulnerable, we were our true selves together.
I waited for a reply, noting it was Pippa’s bath time.
After a few seconds, I inhaled a deep breath, exited the car, and stared at the black matte Lamborghini I enjoyed riding in.
It was bulletproof and had many custom modifications.
It would never suffice. I needed a family car.
Tomorrow, I’d order a new SUV to have delivered before I brought my girls home to Canada.
Home blared like a neon sign as I made my way to the staff’s door. My hands started to sweat, and my heart raced.
Why did this have to happen now?
I’d just spent two nights with Isla. My home was where she and Pippa were. They would be safe with me. I wouldn’t let anything happen to them.
Inhaling a deep breath, I fought to calm my anxiety, anxiety that was linked to the past. My phone vibrated in my pocket. Isla. Just seeing her name steadied my heart.
Isla: I might be open to more kissing and sex.
Isla: I take that back. I definitely want more of both.
A cocky grin played on my lips. She wants me. I knew it. I’d seen the desire in her eyes all day.
Ciro: Then it’s a date.
Isla: I look forward to it.
I tugged on my shirt collar. Isla excited me in every way, but now wasn’t the time to get turned on.
Ciro: I’ll call you tomorrow.
Isla: Ok.
“Are you just going to lurk in the servants’ entry all night?” my sister asked, peering at me with a quizzical brow.
“I was just texting.” I slipped my phone into my pocket and approached her.
Her brow rose higher. “Texting who?”
“I’ll get to that in a bit.” I kissed her temple, putting my hand on her back to lead her out. “New blouse?”
She smiled, appraising me. “Yes, do you like it?” I could tell she sensed something was amiss.
Roman let me know everyone was curious about why I had missed Sunday dinner.
He told them I’d be around later in the evening.
It was better to tell everyone about Pippa at once.
This way, there weren’t any hurt feelings.
“I love it. Purple is your color.”
She stopped in the kitchen, studying me some more. “Thank you. Is something going on I should know about?” Naturally, Rosa would suspect something was up. I was being way too nice and complimentary, totally out of character for me.
She looked radiant pregnant. Seeing her round belly made my heart hurt. I hated not knowing what Isla’s body was like during her pregnancy with Pippa.
“Yes, but I want the whole family to hear it at the same time.”
“Okay… I had Gianni make a plate for you and put it in the warmer. Shall I bring it into the study?” She placed her hand on my shoulder.
“Maybe later. Let’s join the others.”
“Ciro, it’s not good to make your pregnant sister nervous.”
“I don’t mean to.” I ushered her along. The faster I got this announcement over with, the better for everyone. “Evening, all,” I greeted the family as we entered the study.
Roman and Luca stood near the fireplace, brandy in hand. My brother-in-law, Wolf, was on the leather sofa also enjoying his after-dinner drink.
This room wasn’t a typical study, small and cozy. It was extensive with a wall of custom shelves filled with very expensive books and a bar. My father loved this grand space and designed it himself.
Warmth surrounded me, along with sadness. My gaze flitted over mahogany-paneled walls, coffered ceiling, button-tufted leather sofas, and ended at the Remotti family crest above the fireplace mantle. I had a legacy to add to it now… my daughter.
“Can I get you a drink?” Roman asked, holding up his snifter.
“Yes, thank you.”
My brother nodded as Luca stepped up beside me.
“How was Frisco?” Luca eyed me curiously. For about two seconds, I wondered if Roman had said something to him about Pippa.
I shook the idea out of my head. Roman would never betray me.
My sister sat beside Wolf, placing her hand on his thigh, an anxious twitch in her smile.
“Good,” I replied to Luca. “How’s the casino?”
“Is this a business meeting?” The little shit. He knew it wasn’t.
“No. We’ll save the shop talk for work tomorrow morning. Eight o’clock. My office.” I winked, knowing it would irritate my brother. Sure enough…
Luca groaned. “Why so early?” He was a late riser unless it was a meeting.
Roman handed me a glass. The caramel-colored liquid was precisely what I needed to settle my nerves. Maybe I should’ve waited for Isla to be with me. She calmed me better than any drink ever could…
The first time I had brought Isla into my father’s study, she didn’t speak for the longest time, as if absorbing it all. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was the first woman I had ever brought into my family’s home. She would be the last.
I remembered how she had cradled my face, staring up at me with unshed tears, after I’d shown her a picture of my mother. She’d said, “I see Giovanna in you. You have her hypnotic brown eyes.” It was then, after she paid me the highest compliment anyone could give me, that I let her into my heart.
“Ciro? Are you okay?” My sister’s concerned voice sliced through my thoughts.
I shook myself out of my head and found all eyes were on me.
“Yes. I’m sorry. A lot has happened in the last couple of days.”
Rosa gasped, pressing her hand to her chest. “Well, don’t delay another second. My nerves are about to unravel.”
Wolf growled low as he wrapped his arm around her and tucked her into his side protectively.
Why had I decided to tell the family all at once? The pressure was mounting, and my father looked on edge like me. He of all people should be relaxed and carefree, following his open-heart surgery.
I turned toward Roman; he issued a slight nod. I then pulled out my phone to show Padre the pictures I’d taken of Pippa over the weekend.
“Another text?” Rosa shot me a cross look.
“No. There really is no easy way to do this, so I’ll just say it.”
“Well, get on with it.” She took Wolf’s hand. Pregnancy had made her emotional and anxious. She knew the dangers in our lives and of her Russian husband, whose brother was Bratva. And yet, she was bring a child into the evil world. Clearly, she was braver than me.
I inhaled a deep breath, then blew it out slowly. I strode toward Rosa and my father, knelt, and presented my phone. “I have a daughter.”
My sister covered her mouth. As she stared at my beautiful baby girl, her eyes filled with tears.
“Isla.” Padre looked me in the eyes for confirmation.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Isla had a baby… your baby?” Luca asked in disbelief.
“Yes. Isla.” I held my father’s gaze. “Her name is Penelope Giovanna. She was born October sixteenth.”
His wet eyes stayed locked on the phone. I swiped the screen to show him there were more pictures. At least a hundred of my baby girl, and even a few of Isla, I’d snuck when she was busy tending to Pippa.
“She has Giovanna’s name?” Padre continued to swipe the screen on his own.
“Yes. But Isla calls her Pippa.”
My sister’s face brightened. “Adorable.”
“And lovebug.”
“Holy shit! This is huge.” Luca shuffled over beside our father to see the pictures. “Damn, she’s a cutie.”
Rosa smiled. “She’s precious.”
“An angel,” Padre said. “But Ciro, why am I just now hearing this?”
My stomach twisted. I knew he’d ask, but I was ashamed of the why.
I glanced sidelong at Roman. He hung back as I knew he would.
He was the staunch observer in the family, whereas Luca was the troublemaker and comic relief.
I was the detached fighter. We all looked similar with dark hair, except I was the only one with my mother’s brown eyes.
Roman and Luca had hazel green eyes like their mother’s.
“Did she know the night of the party when she left you?” Luca asked through gritted teeth. Always jumping to conclusions, assuming the worst. He liked Isla, but he’d have my back before hers.
“Isla discovered she was pregnant a few weeks after we broke up. She’d heard I was in LA and was going to tell me.” I paused, meeting Luca’s pensive gaze. “But didn’t because she saw me with another woman.”
“Ciro!” My sister gasped again.
“It was a misunderstanding, but she thought I’d moved on. I assure you, I had not,” I replied in a firm and genuine tone.
“But it looked like you had,” she said knowingly. Women were spectacular at cutting through bullshit.
“Yes.”
“Who?” Luca asked. His anger was now directed at me.
“That’s not important,” I said.
“The fuck it isn’t. Who?” My baby brother rolled his hands into fists, ready to rip me to shreds on Isla’s behalf.
“Luca,” Padre reprimanded, shaking his head. “And so, Isla finally decided to tell you?”