Chapter 55
The pocket twins have spoiled me. Hollis too, as I can carry him even though he’s only a few inches shorter than I am.
Sandro is another thing entirely. Thanks to a steady diet, workout regimen, and—most recently—the hours he spends on his feet every day baking, he’s back to the physique he was before the kidnapping and his fall from grace.
What a physique it is, too.
The image of my cock buried where no others have been before… It’s a heady experience that I want to enjoy again and again. I have plans for my Piccolo.
Fuck, how did this even happen?
I had meant nothing more than to take care of him for Emilio.
The Little Monster is so under my skin that I’d do anything to keep him happy and safe, even if it meant taking his unruly Master in hand.
It wasn’t supposed to turn into this. In no universe was I supposed to become Allesandro Martelli’s Daddy.
But, when he looks at me with his bright blue eyes, I remember the man he was, the man that returned to us, and the man my Baby Boy so fiercely advocates for.
Somewhere in between all that is a man who never had the opportunities Cristian and I did.
Yes, what we lived through was fucked up.
I won’t lie and say our past isn’t the reason why Cristian so cruelly burned his bridges.
It’s what he was taught to do, after all.
We made it so only the two of us ever mattered.
It’s why, when he saved first Doc and then Sinclair, I disagreed.
Cris and his soft heart, though… He tried to do what I did for him: offer up a safe place amongst the darkness.
Fucking idiot. All it got him was a snarky doctor who doesn’t know his place, and a psychopathic lawyer with a merry band of minions who manipulates the law to his will.
Whatever Cristian was trying to create—a fucked-up family of his own, maybe—it didn’t work. At least not in the way he wanted.
My new Boy, however…he created the family he never had, just in fucked-up, unconventional ways.
I can respect that. I might not agree with his methods, and how he ordered them all to be loyal to him before they were ready, but I get what he was going for.
Now…it’s time to show him how to have the family he wants without all the pain and bullshit.
Him and Cristian both. Fuck, Javi and Roman are right; I need to hash it out with that asshole.
With a gentle hand on his back, I lead Sandro to his room.
Helping him undress, I watch with amusement as he squirms. It shouldn’t be so adorable, but reducing this larger than life man down to nothing more than a Boy to mold as my own?
There’s no greater feeling as a Daddy than seeing my Boy come into his own.
Sandro isn’t there yet, but by the time I’m finished with him, he will be.
I tuck him into bed and sit at his side, brushing his hair back. “Sleep. I’m here, Piccolo.”
He shudders. “Y—you don’t have to stay, you’ve already done so much.”
“Hush. I’m the Daddy here.” Leaning down, I kiss him gently. “I might go see Hol for a bit, but I’ll be back.”
“You don’t have to. I know you have other lovers, more responsibilities than I do. You don’t owe me anything.”
“Are you going to be a naughty boy now and argue with your Daddy?”
He flushes. “No, I’m sorry, Daddy.”
I grin at him. “You will be if you keep this up. Sleep, Sandro.”
He takes a few deep breaths but closes his eyes, and I stroke his hair until he falls into a deep sleep. It doesn’t take long, the excitement of tonight wearing him out after so long out of the game.
There’s more we need to discuss. His role in the Family, for one. Was this his last stand? Or the beginning of him understanding he can be Sandro and Allesandro at the same time?
I know what I saw, what I felt, but this isn’t like with Hollis and Benjamin, or even Roman and Emilio.
I cannot sway his choice in either direction.
After having his life ripped from him so viciously, this is a choice only he can make, but he doesn't have to do it alone.
No, my Little One will never be alone ever again.
Giving him one last kiss, I get up from the bed, pulling out my phone to check Hollis’s location—he’s not the only one who keeps tabs on everyone.
Thankfully, Hollis is in the bedroom we’ve barely used, rather than his office. This conversation will be so much easier without prying eyes, or ears.
Leaving Sandro is harder than it should be, but I do, closing his door firmly so no one disturbs him.
Cristian stands in the doorway to his room, watching me, with questions in his eyes that I don’t owe him the answers to. If Sandro wants to tell his friend what’s going on, he’s welcome to, but I don’t have time for whatever dumbass thing could come out of his mouth tonight.
Walking away, I take satisfaction in knowing he can’t touch me anymore. Whatever obligation I felt toward him for so long, the guilt that sat in the back of my mind for years, even after I willingly left him behind…it’s no longer there.
Ifind Hollis in our suite, sitting in the chair he’s dragged into the bedroom, laptop on his lap, because even out of the office, my workaholic can’t help himself.
“I’m going to tell Javi to ban you from working after a certain time,” I comment lightly.
“Not even he’s that suicidal,” Hollis replies. He types something and then closes the computer, leaning forward to set it on the small table in front of him, before he stands and makes his way to me.
We don’t touch, just stare at one another. Hollis’s dark brown eyes almost seem black in the low lamplight.
“Did you have to fuck him?” His voice is quiet, but there's so much emotion wrapped in those six words, it’s as if he’s sucked the air from the room.
“Have to? No, I suppose not. Want to? Yes. And you can’t touch him.”
“Bullshit. You’re mine, Tennant. I gave you grace when you let Javi touch what doesn’t belong to him, but like hell am I going to let him get away with not facing me.”
“He needs me, Tesoro. Like you did, like Emilio. He needs to be shown a better way.”
“Why does it have to be you?”
I reach out to cup his cheek and Hollis flinches. I don’t let him pull away, though, drawing him closer so I can hover my lips over his as I slide my fingers into his hair.
“Would you rather he fell apart? How would that affect the Little Monster? You know as well as I do that those two are as entwined as we are. Niente viene prima di te, Tesoro, niente. Lo sai.”
“That’s not the point and you know it.”
“No?” I lean in and nip at his lips, enjoying the taste of his blood. I'm sad I didn’t get to sample my Piccolo’s—something I’m going to have to rectify soon.
Hollis rips himself away from me. “You know what he’s done!” he hisses. “I may allow him to live because Emilio needs him, but I am not comfortable with you getting so close to him.”
I watch him for a long moment before saying, “You know what I discovered today? You and he aren’t so different.”
Hollis laughs bitterly. “Explain that one to me.”
“Go rewatch the video, Hol. It’ll show you how right I am when I say that I’m the only one who’s ever fucked Allesandro with his consent.”
Hollis sucks in a breath, his hand dropping to his scarred wrist, wrapping his fingers around it, as if keeping it hidden will prevent his self-harming thoughts.
“He didn’t have to say the words for me to read his reactions. Go rewatch if you need to.”
Hollis shakes his head. “I don’t need to. I believe you. That…fuck. I didn’t expect that, but…everything put together, it makes sense. Who knows the horrors he endured with that father of his. From the research I’ve been able to find, the guy made Georgio and Sergio look almost sane.”
I grimace. Sergio Amato was an abusive asshole who only didn’t kill Cristian because it would have caused too many issues with those loyal to Cris’s parents.
And Georgio De Luca was…well, he gave his teenage son to the son who should have been institutionalized, so the bar really isn’t that high to begin with.
The problem is, until Allesandro took over, we didn’t know much about the Martellis—his father burned that many bridges in his lifetime.
So, whatever Allesandro endured…he did it alone, with only that dumb fuck Luca to pick up the pieces.
It’s a miracle he’s alive at all with that asshole watching his back.
“I’m not saying forgive him,” I tell Hollis. “I’m not saying I expect you to all of a sudden become comfortable with him overnight because of all this, but…you can’t touch him, Hol.”
He glares, his mouth tightening into a thin line, before he finally sighs. “I wasn’t planning on it. Am I unhappy he touched you without my permission? Yes, but…at this point, I think it’s safe to say the Martellis are fair game.”
I snort. “I don’t plan on sticking my dick in any more of them.”
He raises a brow. “No? Not even when you and Ignacio are done with your dick measuring bullshit?”
I give him a blank look, but he’s immune to my charms.
“Anyway. No…it’s like when Roman kissed you that first time.
I don’t feel the need to assert myself because I knew, when you told me you Daddied him, that you felt something deeper for him.
It’s hard for me to wrap my head around, but that’s because of what they did to me.
I’ll admit that. It burns. I want to… Fuck, I can’t believe I’m saying this out loud, but these past months, I’ve wanted nothing more than to cut myself open and bleed out all the pain.
“Everything from Cristian and Allesandro getting kidnapped to Roman getting hurt, and us being so close to losing him if that chandelier had hit him in just the right place…” Hollis sucks in a breath.
“Hurting myself that night at the Martelli mansion was the first time in a long time that I felt like myself. It only spiraled from there, Ten. So, no, I don’t fucking understand where you’re coming from with Allesandro because it fucking hurts. It hurts so much. I don’t…”
I take a step towards him and he steps back, holding up a hand to ward me off.
“I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing. I agreed to meds because we both know I haven’t been okay for years.
I even agreed to stupid therapy because I know the medication isn’t a magic fix.
But talking about this shit? I don’t know if I’m strong enough.
Emilio sees me as his Angel. You, Roman, and Jude see me as some pillar of strength, but that’s not me.
And I don’t know how you can do this with Allesandro because I don’t get him. ”
“You don’t have to, Tesoro. I promise, I’m still just as cautious as you are with him. But…I do believe him when he says he wants to be more. He broke himself open for me today, and it was beautiful. Watching it on the cameras is different from seeing it, feeling it, in person.
“You don’t have to forgive him for what he did to our Little Monster. Hell, I’m still pissed as hell over that, but…as I was reminded yesterday, this Council is bringing in a new era, and that means giving him a chance when we otherwise wouldn’t.
“We Amatos already have a reputation for forgiving when we shouldn’t, after the Carter/Cristian thing. The Martellis do as well. This is a new slate for us all, a new beginning.
“You don’t have to like him, but you will respect his place in Lio’s life, and in mine. I won’t force you, Hol. But I am asking you to trust me. I know you’re only worried for me and Lio, but this,” I gesture between the two of us, “has only ever worked because of the way we trust one another.”
Hollis sighs before finally saying, “Because I trust you, and Emilio. That is the only way I can ever be okay with this… Maybe he’ll earn my trust, my understanding.
From one survivor to another. For now… I am not taking a knife to his flesh because I love your dumbass too much to hurt you—same reason fucking Benjamin is still alive.
” He gives me a look. “You need to stop this habit of collecting broken things.”
I laugh a little. “But then I wouldn’t have you.”
He scoffs. “You’re such a dick.”
“I’ve never pretended not to be.” I watch him for a moment, studying the way he takes a deep breath, how he holds onto his wrist for a little longer before finally pulling his hand away. “Okay, Tesoro?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. Your new Boy is, too. I’ll…try, okay?”
“That’s all I ask. I know things won’t be resolved overnight. His actions caused a lot of damage, but I believe he realizes that, and is working on rectifying his fuck-ups.”
Hollis nods once. “I told Lio this would be a hard road, but one I supported him in; you have the same support, Ten.”
I smile at him. “I never doubted it.”
He shakes his head and walks back over to me. “Tutto ciò che sei mi appartiene. Anche il tuo nuovo Piccolo.”
I snort and reach for him, pulling him flush against me. “I think you’re picking up bad habits from Leandro,” I mutter, dipping my head and kissing him lightly.
“Where do you think he learned them from?” Hollis bites my bottom lip until we’re sharing blood along with saliva as we kiss.
While I know this isn’t going to be easy—especially with Hollis’s past nipping at his heels and the impending therapy sessions he’s been avoiding—he all but gave his blessing for me to take Allesandro under my wing.
The two of them probably need to be thrown into a room together to hash things out, but for now, it’s all I can ask for that Hollis understands how much this means to me.
Maybe he’s right. Maybe I enjoy fixing what others have thrown away, but only because no one ever did that for me. Cristian molded me into what he wanted me to be, while I encourage Hollis, Benjamin, Roman, and now Allesandro to be the best versions of themselves. For me, and themselves.
Because we’re all survivors, and our weaknesses can also become our greatest strengths.