Chapter 35 Lupo #2
I open the door and step back, letting her enter first.
It's a good-sized room. Windows overlooking the garden. A desk for when she's older. Bookshelves waiting to be filled.
And a bed with a pink princess bedspread.
I had Emilia find it. While I was arranging security and transportation and everything else, I had her go to a store and buy the most princess-looking bedspread she could find. It has castles and crowns and everything a little girl might want.
Elena gasps. She runs to the bed, touching it reverently. "Daddy! It's a princess bed!"
"I thought you might like it." I crouch beside her. "This is your room now. We can decorate it however you want. Paint the walls. Add posters. Whatever makes it feel like home."
"Can I have my drawings on the walls?"
"All of them. We'll frame them if you want."
She throws her arms around me. "Thank you, Daddy! I love it!"
I hold her close, breathing in the scent of her hair. This little girl who's stolen my heart.
"You're welcome, my sweet girl."
Isabella is standing in the doorway, her hand over her mouth. When I look at her, I see tears in her eyes.
Happy tears, I hope.
"There's more," I tell Elena. "Look out the window."
She runs over and gasps again. "I can see the chickens! There's a spot for the chickens!"
"We'll build the coop right there. So, you can see them from your room. Watch them every day."
"This is the best room ever!" She bounces on the bed, testing it. "And it's so soft!"
"Your mama's room is next door," I say. "Connected by a bathroom. So, she's always close if you need her."
Isabella looks at me sharply. "My room?"
"I thought—" I clear my throat. "I thought you might want your own space. At least at first. Until you're comfortable being here with me. I didn’t want to pressure you."
She's quiet for a moment. "Can I see it?"
I show her the room next to Elena's. It's smaller than mine but still spacious. A comfortable bed. Windows with views of the bay. A bathroom connecting to Elena's room.
Everything she might need to feel independent.
"This is your own space," I say quietly. "No pressure. No expectations. Just—yours."
"And where's your room?"
"Down the hall. The big master suite." I hesitate. "But Isabella, I'm not—I'm not assuming anything. I know this is a lot. I know you need time to adjust. I wanted to give you your own space. A place that's just yours."
She looks at me for a long moment. Then she steps close and kisses me softly.
"Thank you," she whispers. "For thinking of that. For not just assuming."
"I love you. That means respecting what you need."
"I love you too." She glances back at Elena's room, where we can hear her still exclaiming over everything. "She seems happy."
"She's resilient. Kids are."
"I hope so." Isabella touches my face. "And what about you? How are you doing with all of this?"
"All of what?"
"Bringing us here. Turning your bachelor villa into a home with chickens and princess bedspreads and a three-year-old."
I think about it. About how my life has changed. How yesterday I was planning an operation and today I'm arranging chicken coops.
How I went from being Don Rossi, cold and untouchable, to the man who promises bedtime stories and swimming lessons.
"I've never been better," I say honestly. "This—you two—this is what I want. What I've always wanted without knowing it."
"Even the chickens?"
"Even the chickens." I pull her close. "Especially the chickens. Because they make Elena happy. And when she's happy, you're happy. And when you're happy—" I kiss her forehead. "That's all that matters to me."
"The great Don Rossi has gone soft," she teases.
"Don Rossi is standing right in front of you." I meet her eyes. "But so is Lupo. And Alessandro. I'm all of them. All for you."
Elena calls out from her room. "Mama! Daddy! Come see! I can see the whole garden!"
"Coming, baby!" Isabella calls back. "We should go. Before she tries to climb out the window."
"She wouldn't—" I stop. "She would, wouldn't she? Oh my God, I didn’t think of that."
"She's three and a half and excited. She absolutely would."
We hurry to her room. Elena is indeed leaning out the window, waving at the guards below.
"Down," I say firmly, pulling her back. "No leaning out windows. That's a rule."
"But I wanted to say hi to the nice men."
"You can say hi from down here. Where it's safe." I close the window slightly. "New rule. Windows only open this much unless Mama or I are with you."
"Okay, Daddy." She doesn't seem upset by the rule. Just accepts it.
That's good. She'll need to learn rules here. Safety rules. Security rules.
Rules that keep her alive.
"Lunch!" Emilia calls from downstairs. "Come eat before it gets cold!"
Elena runs for the door, then stops. Runs back and grabs her rabbit. "Bunny needs to eat too!"
"Of course he does," I say seriously. "Can't forget Bunny."
We go downstairs together. The dining room table is set simple, not formal. Emilia has made pasta al pomodoro, bread, salad. Simple food. Comfort food.
Elena climbs into a chair and Emilia brings her a special plate with smaller portions, child-sized.
"Eat, my child. You need your strength to help with the chickens later."
"Can I really help?"
"Of course! I'll need someone to tell me their names.”
Elena launches into an explanation of all six chickens, their personalities, who lays the best eggs. Emilia listens intently, asking questions, making Elena feel important.
I watch my housekeeper bonding with my daughter over chickens and my heart fills to overflowing.
This is my family now.
Not just Isabella and Elena. But Emilia too. And Ciro, who carried chicken crates without complaint. And the guards outside, who protect them.
All of us.
A family built from crime and violence and circumstances none of us chose.
But a family nonetheless.
After lunch, we settle the chickens. The groundskeeper and I build a temporary coop while Elena supervises, telling us exactly how the chickens like things.
Isabella watches from the patio, Emilia beside her, the two of them talking quietly.
By evening, the chickens are settled. Elena's room is arranged with her things. Isabella's room has her clothes put away.
We're home.
That night at bedtime, Elena yells for me. "Will you read me stories, Daddy?"
"As many as you want,” I say.
She chooses her favorite three books. I read them all, doing the voices, making her giggle. When I finish, I expect her to ask for another.
But instead, she looks at me seriously. "Daddy? Are we safe here? Really safe?"
The question catches me off guard. "Yes, baby. Really safe. The safest place I know."
"But what if the bad men come back?"
"They won't. I promise." I brush her hair back. "And even if they tried, they couldn't get past the gates. Couldn't get past the guards. Couldn't get to you."
"Because you'd stop them?"
"That’s right." My voice is absolutely certain. "No one will ever hurt you again, Elena. No one will ever take you. You're mine to protect. Mine and Mama's. And we'll always keep you safe."
She thinks about this, then nods. "Okay. I believe you."
I tuck her in, making sure her rabbit is positioned just right. "Sleep now. Tomorrow we'll check on the chickens first thing."
"And then swimming lessons?"
"Soon. We have to make sure you're ready first. But soon."
"Okay." She yawns hugely. "Goodnight, Daddy. I love you."
"I love you too. Sweet dreams."
I turn off the light and step out, leaving the door cracked like she likes it.
Isabella is waiting in the hall. "Is she okay?"
"She asked if we're safe here. I told her yes."
"And we are?"
"As safe as I can make you." I take her hand. "Come on. I want to show you something."
I lead her downstairs, through the house, out to the patio.
The city spreads out below us, lights twinkling. The bay is dark except for boat lights. Above us, stars are starting to appear.
"It's beautiful out here," Isabella breathes.
"This is yours now. All of it. Everything I have—it's yours and Elena's." I turn to face her. "I know it's not the life you chose. I know it's not what you wanted. But I'm going to do everything I can to make you happy here."
"You already have." She steps closer. "The princess bedspread. The chickens. Giving me my own room. Not pressuring me. Just being you. The man I love."
"I'm trying to be the man you need. The father Elena needs."
"You already are." She kisses me softly. "You're exactly who we need."
We stand there on the patio, holding each other, looking out at our new life.
Tomorrow I'll have meetings. Security briefings. Business to handle.
Tomorrow I'll be Don Rossi again, at least for part of the day.
But tonight, I'm Lupo.
A man who has everything he never knew he wanted.
And for the first time in my life, I'm whole.