Chapter 18
Allie
Mario didn’t turn on the lights like normal people do when they enter a room.
I hadn’t noticed it before, but tonight I did.
He stepped through the doorway, holding me slightly behind his side and blocking the room as he swept over the shadows in search of…
assassins…like him. Something I really should think about despite my sister’s orders.
Yet, in a way, she was right. Tonight might be the last night I had with my…
husband. Even if he survived, would I want to be entangled with yet another criminal family?
I’d worked so hard to get free of that stigma before, I was foolish to do this again.
My heart wasn’t listening, though. It was cataloging every move Mario made. It yearned for his warmth, his touch, the scintillating cadence of his voice.
He stood by the patio, waiting for a signal or simply taking the moment to observe his world without fear.
The night was clear. Starlight streamed through the double doors at the end of the suite. The view beyond the narrow terrace overlooked the Gulf of Tigullio and Portofino where the glittering Mediterranean stretched to the horizon.
It was everything my childhood fantasies imagined, and more. Mario’s silhouette was an obsidian cutout rimmed in silvery light. I approached, leaving the lights off and savoring his darkness.
His head dipped and I could make out the soft smile on his face, filling in the shadows from memories.
His voice was barely a whisper. “You are beautiful always, but the stars make your eyes shine.”
“I—thank you. To hear those words from someone as handsome as you are, it seems unreal.”
I didn’t want to lose him.
The thought shot through me like a blade, and it cut deeper. It hurt so badly, my breath caught and my knees threatened to buckle.
Was this what fear felt like?
Or was it hopeless love?
“Cara…” Instead of the husky tones he usually spoke that word with, there was a note of pain. I knew why because I felt the same way.
“Please don’t leave me. Please?”
His head dipped silently, but he rallied, sending me an intense message with his eyes that I couldn’t understand. “We won’t fight about this.”
“The hell we won’t. Going to Don Conti is…” Foolish, suicidal, dumb as all heck.
“I must.”
Damn that code of honor. “He’ll kill you.”
Mario smiled crookedly. “No, he pays others to do that.”
I pushed against his chest, but he was immovable. “That’s not funny.”
Yet his smile got wider. “Ironic, no? The assassin is the target.”
My breath caught. “Why are you telling me that?”
He took a deep breath. “You should know everything.”
I blinked. Something inside denied what I was hearing.
I didn’t want to know. Just like I didn’t want to know why the nosy neighbors followed my mom to the grocery store, or to church, or every damn time we were dropped off at school instead of catching the bus.
“What if I don’t want to know?” What if I can’t bear the burden one more time?
Mario shook his head. “It is too late for that. You are mine. And should I die tomorrow, what’s mine is yours.”
Oh fuck. “No one’s dying, because you’re not going.” I took two steps back.
He laughed silently. “I am.” His slow approach was meant to pacify me. I knew body language well enough to realize he was trying to soothe me like one would a frightened animal.
“Why? Why can’t someone else go? Why can’t your family get Don Manca out of there? I mean, don’t you have competent people who can, I don’t know, kidnap him from there?”
Mario’s shoulders shook. “One of those competent kidnappers is me.”
“Oh—kay, who else can help you do that?” My brain struggled to keep up with the revelations.
“No one. I will not have someone else’s corpse sleep in my coffin.”
That image was too vivid. My hands shook. I clenched them against my waist so he wouldn’t see how badly his words terrified me.
“Allie, we have this night. It is beautiful, and ours. Please?” He held out his hand and took another step closer.
“Mario.” My voice wobbled as his heat touched my skin.
His breath brushed my face as he slipped beneath my defenses. “I’m here. I want to love you.”
My eyes shot to his face. “I’m already there.”
His mouth fell open to a confused frown, then transformed to an enlightened oval.
A string of rapid-fire Italian too fast to decipher spilled from his lips like a prayer.
He saw my confusion and switched, saying, “My love. My life. You surprise me and humble me.” His lips brushed my skin as he pulled me close.
I trembled in his embrace, not daring to unclench my arms but desperately wanting to seize his body and drag him somewhere safe I could insure he’d never be able to escape from me.
He noticed my fear. “My love?”
“How did this happen? I did everything right. I stayed out of trouble, I got good grades, I earned a doctorate, and I’m still—”
“Do you regret meeting me?”
I gave it enough thought to answer honestly. “No. I don’t. I don’t think I’ll ever regret it. But I don’t know how I’m going to live without you.”
He sat down on the closest chair. His brow twisted up. Pain laced his frown. His breathing was shallow. “I didn’t think anyone would miss me.”
I sat on his lap. “I will. So, make a different plan. Please?”
His eyes searched mine. “It would start a war. Many would die then.”
Oh. I didn’t want that. Don Manca, Loppa, Firenze, and even Ringo had grown on me. I couldn’t and wouldn’t sacrifice any of them… Well, maybe Ringo. The bastard hurt my sister. But the others? No.
They were dangerous, much more so than my grandfather, yet they reminded me of him.
He loved us with his whole heart—Mom, Ellie, me, even Dad.
Doted on us no matter the circumstances or stressors of his life.
There were many families like Mario’s and mine.
Not exactly wholesome, but whole. Their love didn’t stop at legal lines.
It seeped everywhere. Even when it wasn’t convenient, or wise.
I kissed him.
He was right. We had a beautiful night together, and I was wasting it by arguing with him.
Or worse, trying to change him. He had honor, a code binding him to a strict course, and he loved his grandfather.
Even more, he loved the family who’d pay the price if he didn’t do what he had to.
I understood that duty. Foolishly, I’d thought I could protect my parents and my sister by proving to everyone we were just a normal family.
But the cracks were made before I was born.
I’d only patched them enough to ignore them.
I broke contact before he could deepen the kiss and drug me senseless with his lips. “How about a plan that doesn’t start a war, and you have a chance to come back to me?”
His smile was hesitant at first but grew. “I will do that.”
Not try. Will. My heart sang.
“Come,” I tugged him out of the chair and toward the bed. We had mere hours left. “I stole one of Ellie’s nightgowns.”
“You steal many more and she’ll have none.”
I paused at the edge of the bed. “I bet Ringo would like that.”
Mario made a sound of disgust. “Let’s not mention him tonight, please?”
Yes. I had better things to do with my lips and mouth than speak his name.
We connected again as I slipped free from my robe.
His fingers traced the slim satin cords holding the shimmery fabric in place.
The fabric was a soft blue, but shone silver in the night.
It was so simple that it clung to my skin but flowed like water to my thighs where it ended without lace or other fanfare like her more daring outfits.
This piece was something I’d wear if I had someone I loved.
And behold. I did.
Mario traced the satin with his finger tip.
He paused briefly where the tip of my breast crested and the fabric fell loosely for a span.
His body warmth contrasted with the chill of the night making the point he lingered over firmer and swollen with an ache that longed to be engulfed with his touch, or his lips.
The high moan trapped in my chest pushed up my throat and lodged there as he slid his fingers lower.
At my waist, his hand flattened out and his palm caught my hip to draw me closer. His lips met mine, and I forgot about everything except his mouth and the smell of his skin.
Then he slid his hand under the hem of the lingerie.
It started innocently at my thigh where the fabric ended.
But his fingertips curled inward, as if to grasp me like I was his personal Proserpina.
Unlike that poor woman, I was fully willing.
My foot lifted from the floor as I wrapped my leg around his, curving my body against him.
His kiss deepened as his fingers crept higher, creasing the satin as he found only skin underneath.
He dipped his fingers between my legs. “My heart? Where are your underwear?”
I tried to catch my chuckle, but was unsuccessful. “I told you. I stole a nightgown, not her underwear.”
“Madonna mia.” His kisses turned frantic. My feet left the floor, and my back hit the bed. Mario hovered over me his lips spilling words too quickly to translate, but they were good words.
Between beatitudes, he kissed my neck. The nightgown was little more than a scarf caught under my arms as his hands roamed my body. His passion turned southward as his mouth covered my breasts with intense, open-mouthed kisses that devoured my senses and left me breathless.
He spread my legs wide, laying an evident trail of devotion toward his goal. His tongue honed in on my clit, and I arched off the bed as the zing caught me by surprise.
Of course, that simply helped tune his radar, and soon I was helpless and gasping, balancing on the edge of too much and oh-my-goodness not nearly enough. My fingers dug into his hair, not directing as much as clinging on for dear life.
“Mario, please?”
He ignored my pleas. My body quivered as my orgasm swelled. All self-control fled, and I screamed aloud as the pleasure hit an intensity I hadn’t known possible.
I needed him. Now. I kissed him open-mouthed as I wrapped my legs around his body, giving him no opportunity to escape.
“My love?”
“I need you.” Those words were foreign to me, yet they felt right.
“One moment, I—”
“Now, husband.”
His eyes locked on mine. Something greater than lust lingered behind the questions there. He notched himself at my opening and waited there for my cue.
I pulled him close. “I need you. Just you.” Nothing between us, no guard rails, no holding back. If this was all I had of him I’d take it with me with absolutely no regrets.
“My heart…” He sighed as his body sunk into mine.
My words echoed his. I spoke them in both our native languages, testing them, tasting them, and most importantly, owning them in every iteration possible.
Our bodies remained entwined throughout the night. It was as if my heart knew it was nearly time to say goodbye and wasn’t ready to let go.
Even in the morning when Mario’s soft kisses woke me, I clung to him, trying to drag him back to bed and remove the carefully pressed suit from his shoulders. He resisted me. Brutally, I laid out my clothes for traveling and brushed my hair into a simple ponytail so it would stay out of my eyes.
Mario studied my movements. “Don’t be angry with me.”
I frowned into the mirror. “Then don’t lea—”
“Don Valentini, it is time.” Loppa’s muffled words killed my hopes.
Please stay. I wanted to scream it so loudly it would echo through the house.
Mario kissed me one last time. It was only a quick brush of lips against my brow. “Loppa is coming with me. He will remain at the gate for Don Manca. Firenze is arranging the boat. It will take you and your sister. Do not remain here.”
“You’re coming back.” I didn’t ask. I demanded it.
Mario searched my face. A shaky breath escaped as he tried to form a reply. But instead, he offered more directions. “You will stay on Sardinia with Don Manca’s brother. He has a villa in the mountains. It is guarded and safe. There is a doctor who visits. You will—”
“You are coming back.” I willed it into being. I would not be alone. “Then, we’ll talk about the rest, understand?”
“My love. If—”
No. I would not let him weasel out of this.
He might have doubts, but I didn’t. Not about this.
If there was one man in this world who could arrange a miracle and avoid death, it was Mario.
He was formed from men like Don Manca and that bastard, Niccolò Valentini.
He had friends like Loppa, Firenze, and Ringo.
I would accept nothing less from them. “We’ll talk about last night and everything else when you get back. ”
He nodded, accepting my words.
But I don’t think he believed in them.
Too soon, he and Loppa slipped away. The house held its breath waiting for violence that hovered at the edges of everyone’s minds.
And I did what came naturally. I planned, plotted, arranged all the moving parts so that when it came time to move, I’d be ready.
But to move those plans into reality, I needed Ellie.