Chapter 1
The door closes.
As the car starts rolling forward, I roll down the window, stick half my torso out, and with one angry perfect swing, I smash the entire windshield of Escobar's Ferrari. Since everything’s allowed.
Glass detonates everywhere. I look straight at Escobar.
"Big car, tiny balls!" Lorenzo's friend yells at him.
Good. You deserve it.
And if Gio had gotten hurt, I'd make you swallow every goddamn piece of that glass.
…
We get into the house. I barely get the door shut before I guide Gio straight to the couch and make him sit. Daisy's eyes go wide the second she sees us. "What happened?! Where the hell is Lorenzo?!"
"Daisy, please," I say. "Can you get the first aid kit? Just in case? I'll explain in a second."
"Why, oh my God, Gio, are you okay?!"
Gio groans as he leans back. "Unfortunately for someone out there... I survived."
"GO." I point.
Daisy sprints and returns in three seconds flat. I start peeling off his gear piece by piece. I'm holding my breath the entire time.
Okay. No blood. No torn skin.
Just bruising under the suit.
I let out the deepest exhale of my life.
Christ, Gio... I love you SO much for spending actual money on your gear and not just blowing it all on stupid shit.
You are a god. I drop my forehead into the side of his neck, grounding myself. He's alive. Not lying twisted on asphalt under headlights. Not a nightmare I can't wake up from.
He's here. The father of my kid is here.
And I swear on everything, I'm never letting him risk his life like that again. I learned tonight that even if you're perfect, even if you do everything right… one asshole can still end you.
Death does not give a damn. It takes whoever it wants.
Gio presses a kiss to my hair. It pisses me off that he's mad at himself. Like he caused this. Like he wasn't the ONLY one out there doing everything correctly.
I wrap my arms around him tight. "Can we take a shower and not leave this house for a week?" I mumble into his chest. He gives this weak little laugh. "Yeah. I vote yes."
"Wait—your arm. It hurt. There's no cut but—something's off. Should we go to the hospital???"
Gio panics instantly. "What? No?! No. I'm fine. I swear. I fell fast. I didn't hit hard. Rava, I swear on—"
"Swear on your child," I demand.
He looks me dead in the eyes. "I swear on our son. I'm okay. I just want to lie down with you. That's it."
I nod. Again. Again. Again. My whole body trembling from adrenaline that still hasn't left. "I should've thrown that metal bar at his HEAD," I mutter, realizing it too late. "Not the windshield."
Gio snorts a laugh. "Oh my god, imagine you in jail."
"Shame on you," I slap his leg. "How are you laughing after what just happened?!"
"I'm sorry," he says. "I don't know. I'm trying to choke down the rage before I go back out and kill him."
I cup his jaw and kiss him once more because I can feel his fear under the humor. "No more random races," I tell him. "Only Lorenzo and Marco from now on. Deal?"
Gio nods immediately. "Deal."
Good.
Because I'm not losing him over some entitled psychopath with a fast car and zero brain cells.
9) Overprotective Gene
Gio
I'm lying here in the softest little pile of happiness ever. It's almost embarrassing how good it feels.
The three of us are on the bed. Like a family sandwich. Rava on one side, me on the other, and Antonio squeezed between us cause he refuses to sleep in his own bed tonight.
He is glued to my chest while I'm tracing slow circles on Rava's bare shoulder. He's not asleep, but he's drifting.
My angel. Christ. Moments like this ruin me. I'm so stupidly happy I could cry. No joke. My throat actually burns.
It feels like life finally stopped trying to beat the shit out of me and decided to give me this instead.
This bed. This warmth. This ridiculous little family we built. And then I think about our daughter... A tiny girl with his face and my personality? I'm fucking done. Finished. That kid is going to destroy me in every way and I can't wait.
I glance at Antonio. My little man.
There was a time his name used to hurt, like a ghost walking through me. Confusion, sadness, nostalgia... all mixed up.
But now when I hear "Antonio," I think of his laugh first. I think of him calling Rava "Vava." I think of that dumb silly little dance he does when he's excited. I think of all the things he added to my life without ever trying.
He didn't erase the past. He just gave me new memories that sit beside the old ones without fighting them.
The damn doorbell ruins everything.
I give Rava one last slow stroke on his shoulder, slip out from under the blanket, and drag myself up. I rub my eyes, yank a shirt over my head while walking, and open the door.
It's Lorenzo.
But not my normal Lorenzo. Not the loud, dramatic Lorenzo. This Lorenzo looks like someone robbed his entire bank account, blamed him for it, and then told him to smile for the camera.
He's standing there with both hands over his face. He steps inside without a word and starts pacing.
Not walking. Spinning.
Like a damn Beyblade in our living room. Rava comes out of the bedroom, closes the door quietly behind him, and just watches him spin.
"Use your words," Rava says in that soft teacher voice he uses on toddlers.
Lorenzo opens his mouth but doesn't speak. Drops onto the couch. Covers his face again. And then starts laughing.
A lot.
"What the hell is happening?" I ask. I'm laughing too because when people laugh in front of me, my brain just joins in.
Rava stares at him. "Did you hit your head? What is this?" Lorenzo suddenly jumps up, grabs both of us by the arms, yanks us close while still laughing.
"Say it," I warn him, "or I'm punching you until you spit it out."
He drags his hands through his hair, shaking.
"Daisy's pregnant."
Rava's hand immediately flies straight to his mouth. My jaw drops. Next thing I know, me and Rava throw ourselves at him, and now we are all spinning around like crazy, laughing.
Lorenzo looks like he's two seconds away from crying. He's sweating. Rava fans him with his hand. "Okay, okay, okay breathe breathe breathe you're fine you're fine you're fine—you're just gonna be a dad, that's all."
Lorenzo covers his face again and hugs Rava tight, and I jump on top of both of them. "Oh my God. When? How—?" Rava asks.
Lorenzo snaps his head toward him. "You actually wanna know how?"
Rava smacks his shoulder instantly. "Shut up. That's my sister."
"Please," Lorenzo says, rolling his eyes.
"Like you're any better. Okay. Anyway. Sit down, both of you.
" We crash onto the couch, me and Lorenzo.
"I'm bringing the cake, wait for me," Rava says.
And instead of slicing anything like a normal person, he just brings the entire bowl of the cake he baked yesterday and sets it on the table.
My sweet impatient little creature. He climbs straight onto my lap.
Lorenzo sits across from us. "So, where's Daisy right now?" Rava asks, already scooping cake with his fingers. "Tell her I'm mad she didn't tell me."
"NO," Lorenzo says immediately.
I laugh. "First of all, shut up, because your kid isn't born yet, but our kid is, and he's sleeping, so keep your voice down."
"Good point. Sorry, daddy Gio. Anyway, Daisy doesn't know I told you. Sorry. I couldn't hold it in. She told her best friends... you guys are mine."
He shoves a massive bite of cake in his mouth.
Stops. Stares at it.
"Damn. This is good. You made this too?" He points at Rava. Rava nods, proud as hell, literally smiling with teeth. "Give Daisy the recipe," Lorenzo says. "Actually, give it to me. I'm not letting her do anything alone. She'll kill our kid by accident."
Rava elbows me lightly. "Yep. Now I'm sure you two are family. You've got the overprotective gene."
Lorenzo tips his head back onto the couch, staring at the ceiling. "Guys... I'm gonna explode. This is insane. I'm gonna be a dad. Me. A dad. Can you even picture that?!"
I shrug. "You want an honest answer? No. Not even a little. But to be fair, I didn't see myself as a dad either, and here I am. So yeah. You'll be fine."
He jumps back to his feet. "She’s been so sick these past few days," he says, pacing again.
"I mean, she was complaining nonstop about her stomach hurting, snapping at me for literally breathing wrong, she got mad because I 'sprayed the entire perfume bottle on myself.
' I sprayed the same amount I always spray.
She acted like I drowned her in cologne.
Then she started throwing up. Like. A lot.
Everywhere. And I told her it was because we keep eating gummy candy or something.
" He throws his hands up. "I didn't know, okay? "
Rava's already covering his mouth trying not to laugh.
"Her friends told her to take a test. Which I didn't even think of.
So she comes to me holding five tests. All of them positive.
Every single one." He pauses. "Bro, I cried.
I'm not joking. I sat there talking to my hamsters for like an hour, telling them they were gonna have a baby sibling. "
Rava melts instantly. "Aww... that reminds me of us when we found out about Valentina. Top five days of my life."
"What was number one?" I ask.
"When I found out you left for Spain and abandoned me," he says, still staring at Lorenzo.
That was emotional stabbing.
I laugh. Poor thing.
Spain really did ruin us, cut our rope clean through, then years later tied us back together with steel instead.
I pull him closer into my chest. "Okay," I say. "We need to go out. Get drinks. Celebrate. Does everyone else know?"
"No," Lorenzo says. "I was gonna tell them right after you guys. I feel like Marco's gonna scream and Noah's just gonna stand there frozen, staring at me. Oh my God, I can't wait." He starts pacing again. "I'm gonna be such a cool dad," he says. "I legit can't wait."
10) Surprise
Rava