Chapter 15 Vega
Vega
I was so focused on Kane that I didn’t see Ryder move. One minute, he was in the chair beside me, and the next, he was on his knees beside Kane, pressing his head to my lap.
“It’s my fault, little star. I’m the one who fucked everything up.
Loving you was so easy. I took one look at you, and I felt alive for the first time in my life.
The thought of letting you go destroyed me.
I refused to think of a life where you weren’t in it.
” His body shook as he wrapped his arms around my legs, holding on like he was desperate for an anchor.
Kane edged closer. “There were other options than marriage, but we thought it was the only one that kept you safe, mo réiltín.”
“What was the last seven years? I thought we had something special.” I looked down at them, bowing before me, breaking my heart a little more. “Christ, I thought you two were going to be my happy-ever-after.”
“Don’t say that. Not like it’s past tense. We are your happy-ever-after.” Ryder lifted a hand, cupping one side of my face. “We are, Vay. Always.”
“You married other people!”
“And we got that annulled.”
“Like that’s better than simply getting a divorce?” I shot back.
“It means the marriage was never real, baby. Like it never happened.” Kane took my mug from me then pressed a kiss to my palm.
Fuck, I was already weakening. All it took was them on their knees, giving me the big puppy eyes. That those eyes were full of tears and regret, remorse and love, helped their cause.
“You were never a whore, Vay.” Ryder pressed his forehead to mine, and something released in my chest. “You’re the love of my life. My first, my only, in every way. You know that, don’t you, little star? God, tell me you know that.”
“I…”
“Please, Vay. Please, tell me.”
“Yes,” I whispered.
“I’m so sorry I hurt you,” he rasped, his lips skimming along my jaw. “It never should have happened. I’ll spend the rest of our lives trying to atone for the pain I’ve caused you. I promise.”
Kane grasped the back of my neck, turning me so he could brush the softest kiss over my lips, his other hand going to my belly. Pressing his fingers right over where our baby was kicking. “I love you, mo réiltín. Every day since I met you, I’ve loved you.”
I closed my eyes, absorbing their words, their touch.
“Say you love me,” he commanded, teasing me with another kiss.
“I love you,” I breathed, leaning into him, only for Ryder to shoulder him aside and steal the kiss for himself. “I love you too, Ry.”
“I love you, Vega. So fucking much. We’re going to make this right. We’ll earn your forgiveness.” He pressed his thumb to my bottom lip, his blue eyes intense. “Whatever it takes, I’ll prove to you that loving us wasn’t a mistake.”
Body melting, heart in danger of turning to nothing but goo, I tried to push them both away. They wouldn’t budge. “It’s not going to be that easy,” I groused, leaning back in my chair since getting up wasn’t an option.
“Whatever it takes,” Ryder repeated.
“I’m not even staying here. Ernesto knows I’m leaving tomorrow.
That’s why I wanted to talk to Kane tonight.
” I’d come to the farm with my father to get to know him better, to give us a little time to get used to each other.
After everything Ernesto had done, how he’d fought to get back to me, he deserved a little time together.
But I had a life waiting for me back in California, one I liked and didn’t want to give up. My boss had given me some grace when I’d explained I had a family emergency, but they wouldn’t hold my job indefinitely. People were depending on me.
Before, I’d molded myself to fit into Ryder’s and Kane’s lives. Even when it came to my career, I’d taken a position that would coordinate with a schedule that allowed me to be with them when they needed me.
Now, I was working in a position I’d always wanted, and I wasn’t going to turn my back on my responsibilities, on the things that had brought me a little joy when I’d been at my lowest. Not for anyone.
“I’ll follow you anywhere, Vay,” Ryder vowed.
“Sure,” I scoffed. “That’ll last for a hot minute.”
“I already made the arrangements,” Kane said, lightly stroking his hand from my belly to my back and down to my hip.
“No, you didn’t,” I denied, more just to argue, because giving in yet was too easy for them. “You don’t even know where I live now.”
Burying his face in my neck, he kissed his way up to my ear then casually listed my address.
“Easy guess,” I muttered, fighting the whimper building in my throat. “Anya Vitucci probably gave you that information.”
“Anya Vitucci would sooner slit my throat than give me anything, mo réiltín. That woman hates me on principle alone.” He snipped at my lobe then pulled back enough to smirk at me.
“Long before my parents got married, Ma and Cristiano Vitucci hooked up. Supposedly. That was at least a decade before I was even a gleam in my da’s eye. ”
My mouth dropped open, gaping at the man. “Okay, I’ve never met your mother, but something tells me that Anya would annihilate her.”
“Without a single doubt,” he agreed with a laugh.
“If she didn’t give you the details, then how do you know where I live?” I demanded.
“I have friends in interesting places.”
“Undoubtedly,” I grumbled. “Well, if you made ‘arrangements,’ what would you do about your ‘jobs’ here?”
Ryder caught my hands in both of his, probably to stop my air quotes. “What jobs? Sorry to break it to you, baby, but we’re unemployed at the moment.”
Kane nodded. “Yeah, I finished my last shift about an hour ago.”
“You mean cleaning up whatever mess you made down at that barn, where people follow you inside but, weirdly enough, only you return?” He shrugged.
“I’m being serious, Kane. I’m not dense.
You two are freaking kingpins. Oh, sorry, lieutenants.
That’s what Papa’s men call you. I’m still not sure if that’s slang for a CEO-level position or if you’re just hired muscle. ”
“We are not teaching you the hierarchy of the fucking mob, Vay. So don’t even try that bullshit.
” Ryder gave me a stern look that quickly turned into a smolder that ended in him kissing me.
Lifting his head, he dropped his hand to the other side of my belly.
Another kicking limb greeted his touch. “Hello in there, little one.”
Damn him and finding ways to instantly melt my heart.
“Back to the subject at hand,” I redirected. “I want to know what’s going to happen. Your lives are here, in Philly.”
“Our lives are wherever you are,” Kane corrected. “If you’re concerned about our family businesses, Vega has full control over them. We signed over full power to him weeks ago.”
“Oh.” I didn’t know what else to say. All along, I’d thought the whole point of the secrecy, the wedding, everything, was for the ultimate power shift. The Bianchi-Brennan-O’Machain legacies would create some untouchable family that everyone else would have to bow down to.
And now, they were walking away from it all.
Ryder searched my face for a long moment before kissing me again. “You’re worth more than all of it and then some, Vay.”