26. Luciano
Luciano
For the past six days, my princess has been fighting me over everything.
She doesn’t want help in the shower. She doesn’t need to nap. She can walk up and down the stairs by herself.
She’s fucking exhausting.
And I’ve never been happier in my life.
“Open,” I instruct.
She glares at me the way she loves to whenever I’m irritating her. “I’m not hungry.”
“You’ve had four bites of pasta. You need to eat some more.”
I hold the fork to her mouth and wait. She’s so damn cute when she’s stubborn.
My gaze roams over her; she’s wearing a tank top and shorts pajama set with ruffles around the hems, along with a pair of fuzzy socks pulled up to her knees.
This has been her daily outfit ever since I brought her home.
I think I want to make a rule that she should always be dressed like this here. So relaxed. So adorable. And all mine.
“Baby girl,” I say firmly.
She huffs before finally opening her mouth.
Jesus.
Was that so hard?
“Good girl.”
Fallon rolls her eyes while she chews, but her cheeks turn pink like they do every time I call her that. It’s a constant game between us. One that I plan to live for the rest of my life with her.
“You enjoy this way too much,” she finally says. “Don’t you have to get back to work?”
I shake my head. “I’ve been working from home while you sleep.”
Alessandro has come here several times to meet with me when Fallon has been resting.
We still need to meet with the Sicilians in person, but I personally reached out to Salvatore and Romeo to thank them for their help with finding Joshua.
The four of us have been in discussion about the potential of working together on a few things.
Salvatore seems genuine, but it will take some time to fully trust them.
The bruises on Fallon’s face have faded considerably, which she’s been fretting about because of Lacey’s birthday coming up.
I considered not going since it’s so soon after Fallon was attacked, but our doctor assured me she can resume normal activities starting tomorrow.
Though I’ve really fucking enjoyed having her all to myself this past week.
Even if she was arguing with me most of the time.
One thing I’ve come to realize while she’s been here is that this is where she belongs.
This is her home. Right here with me. And that’s something I’m going to tell her when we’re in Vegas.
I don’t care that we’ve only known each other for a couple of weeks.
Fallon Camille Davis is my girl, and I plan to make that permanent in every way possible.
I’d ask her to marry me tonight if I didn’t think she’d slap me and tell me I’m insane.
I guess I’ll give it a little bit more time before I get down on one knee and give her the emerald engagement ring I’ve already had made for her that she doesn’t know about.
“Where are we going?”
I shrug because she’s asked the same question over a dozen times, yet I haven’t given her an answer. When I took her to the apartment this morning to choose what to wear for Lacey’s birthday, I told her to pack a bag for two days. She tried squeezing information out of me, but she was unsuccessful.
I then told her to put on a comfortable outfit to wear on our way to the hotel since it was going to be a bit of a long ride.
She eyed me suspiciously, but then got dressed and came out in a pair of black leggings and an oversized dark green sweater that hangs off one of her shoulders.
I love that she doesn’t try to be someone she’s not around me.
She still wears the clothes that she wants and looks hot as fuck while doing it.
Her hair lies around her shoulders in gentle waves that hide the laceration on her head.
I’ve looked at it every night since we removed the bandage, and it reminds me that I could have lost Fallon.
If she hadn’t fought for herself, she may not be here with me today, which makes me sick to think about.
I’ve never been the kind of guy to stop and smell the roses, but seeing the person I’m in love with nearly die makes me realize that I need to cherish each and every moment I can with Fallon.
We only get to live one life, so I’m going to live it to the fullest with her.
Our SUV moves through the streets of Seattle, and when we take the exit for the airport, Fallon turns to look at me with wide eyes.
“Why are we going to the airport?”
“Because we’re going to fly, princess.”
Her mouth falls open, so I use that moment to press a kiss to her plump lips. I keep it brief, and as I pull back, her pupils are blown wide. This past week without fucking her has been torture. My balls have never ached so badly, but I wasn’t going to take a chance on hurting her.
When the SUV pulls through the security gates of the private side of the airport, Fallon gasps and looks around at all the private jets.
“We’re really flying?” she asks, staring ahead of us in awe.
“Yeah, princess. We are. Are you ready for this?”
Her eyes shine with tears, and she looks over at me. “I’ve never been on a plane before.”
I reach over and brush a lock of her hair away from her sweet face. “I know.”
“I love you,” she says, making me smile softly.
“I love you too, princess.”
And fuck, do I mean it.