Chapter Eleven Drea
As I watched Leo garnish our plates of Tuscan Salmon, I couldn't believe the wild twists and turns this day and night had taken. I’d been fitted for my wedding dress, almost had sex with the groom’s brother, and was about to eat a meal that said groom’s brother and I had prepared together.
While Leo took our plates over to the table, I grabbed a bottle of white wine out of the fridge along with an opener and two glasses.
After making my way over to him, I placed a glass in front of his plate. When he saw the label on the wine, he whistled. “That’s a hundred-dollar bottle of wine to pair with our cheap meal.”
Laughing, I replied, “What can I say? Like my cousin, I have expensive tastes.”
“Show me a mafia princess who doesn’t,” Leo mused.
“Maybe your sister.” When Leo’s brows rose in surprise, I said, “You know, from her being in the convent and giving up all her worldly possessions like nuns do.”
“She wasn’t a full fledged nun yet since she hadn’t taken her final vows.”
“I know. She reached out after your father’s funeral to thank me for being there for Rafe when she couldn’t.”
Although the Neretti brothers had attended, Caterina hadn’t. She was still recovering from her injuries.
As he worked unscrewing the cork, Leo cocked his head at me. “You don’t feel any resentment towards her considering Maeve is her sister-in-law?”
I snorted. “Like she can help what her brother does with his dick.”
Leo threw back his head with a laugh. “Good point.”
With the cork free, Leo poured two ample glasses. Holding his up, he said, “To Famiglia.”
I clinked my glass with his. “To Famiglia.”
After taking a small sip, I set my glass down and grabbed a fork. I swirled the pasta around the silver tines before scooping a bite of salmon. The instant the food entered my mouth, I moaned in delight. “Fucking delicious.”
Leo chuckled. “I told you I could cook.”
“While I didn’t doubt you could do the act, I was a little concerned about the execution.”
“Once again, you shouldn’t underestimate me.”
“In the future, I won’t.”
“What are you studying in college?”
“Art.”
He furrowed his brows. “Like painting?”
“Sort of.”
At my hesitation, Leo’s bite of salmon froze midway to his mouth. “Do you not want to talk about college?”
Heat rose in my cheeks. “Oh, I just imagined you were making polite conversation and really didn’t care about my major.”
“Of course I care. I want to know everything about you.” He seemed to think twice about his comment because he added, “You know, because you’re going to be my sister-in-law and mom to my nieces and nephews.”
“I do love to sketch and paint, but my degree is really more so I can manage a gallery. It’s sort of a double major between Art History and studying art.
“Let me guess. You picked out the art pieces in the living room of your house.”
My eyes bulged. “You saw those?”
“I did.”
“Since I’ve always had an eye for paintings, Father actually took me with him to several auctions.” I speared my salmon forcefully at the memory. “At the time, I was too naive and didn’t realize it was part of money laundering.”
“Ah, yes, the classic money laundering through art scheme,” I mused.
“Does your family do that?”
“In the past. Not so much anymore.”
Eyeing him curiously, I asked, “If you hadn’t been a Neretti, what would you have done with your life?”
Leo chewed thoughtfully before responding. “It’s hard to answer that because I don’t know a life outside of being a Neretti.”
“Surely there was something you wanted to be growing up besides the second in command to an underworld kingdom.”
“Let me guess. You’re hoping I’ll say something noble like I wanted to be a doctor or cop to help people, or an architect who designs gorgeous cities.”
I grinned. “I might not know you well, but I highly doubt even in childhood, you were thinking of noble pursuits.”
A laugh rumbled through Leo’s broad chest. “You do know me well.” After a gulp of wine, he said, “The truth is, I really want to do something that’s all my own. Something my brothers don’t have a hand in.”
“A hospital for orphaned children?” I suggested sarcastically.
“That mouth of yours,” Leo mused.
Tapping my chin, I said, “A high-end escort service?”
“Rafe’s already cornered the sex market with Inferno. But you’re sorta close with the idea of a club.”
“Then what?”
“I want to open a casino.”
Somehow, his response surprised me. Not that Famiglia families weren’t known for owning casinos, especially out west. “Really? You don’t seem like a flashy casino type guy.”
“I’ve always wanted to do something that provided entertainment. Then after Caterina married into the Kavanaugh family, I got to know her brother-in-law, Dare. When he told me about the casino he’s opening in Boston, I realized that’s what I wanted to do, too.”
“Maybe you guys could go into business together,” I suggested.
Shaking his head, Leo’s expression became determined. “No. I want to do it all on my own.”
“Then I’m sure you will.”
He smiled. “One day, Rafe can bring you to my opening.”
An ache spread through my chest at his words. “I’d like that a lot.”
“Maybe I’ll let you cut the ribbon.”
“Or maybe I could launch a bottle of champagne at the side of the building like they do with ships,” I suggested with a smile.
“I like that idea.”
I pushed my fork through the leftovers on my plate. With my chest tightening, I said, “I’m sure you’ll have a lovely lady on your arm by then. I doubt she’d allow me to cut any ribbons or break champagne.”
“I suppose not,” Leo said in a low voice.
The air around us grew thick with all the unsaid emotions. Considering what I was feeling, I had to believe that Leo felt them too. But we were too tightly bound by the honor of our world to say anything.
After exhaling a ragged breath, I rose from my seat. “I'd better get started on these dishes.”
“Let me help you,” Leo said as he stood up.
“No, no. You did the cooking. I should do the cleaning.”
Shaking his head, he argued, “You helped me cook.”
“You flatter me since I basically just mixed and stirred food. Besides, I’m just going to rinse and throw everything in the dishwasher.”
“You drive a hard bargain.”
I laughed. “If there’s one thing that’s consistent about me, it’s my stubbornness.”
“You and Rafe are really going to butt heads because he’s a stubborn ass.”
“Somehow I think that it’s a family trait.”
“Har, har,” Leo replied.
With the open concept kitchen, I watched Leo walk around the living room as I rinsed the dishes. When he picked up my sketch book I’d discarded on the table, I dropped the plate in my hand, sending water cascading over the front of my t-shirt.
At what must’ve been my gasp, Leo whirled around with the most endearingly guilty look on his face. “I’m sorry. I probably should’ve asked.”
“No, no. It’s fine.”
After cracking open the book, Leo dipped his head and began intently studying my sketches. I stood frozen at the sink, totally transfixed by the expression on his face.
“These are amazing, Drea.”
“They’re not great, but they’re pretty good.”
Leo shook his head. “I’m not bullshitting you when I say these are fucking amazing.”
Heat warmed my cheeks. No one in my family besides Vittoria or the twins ever complimented my art. It meant so much to hear someone outside of my family appreciate it.
Abandoning the dishes, I grabbed a hand towel as I went to join him in the living room. When I stood beside him, I peered over his arm to see which one he was looking at.
“Oh,” I murmured as mortification rocketed through me.
We’d been asked to do a self-portrait in one of the introductory art classes I’d taken this year. I’d sat before a mirror and sketched what I saw. Once my face had been done, I added myself into crashing waves. Instead of being swept under, I was rising above.
“It’s like looking right at you, and you’re so fucking stunning.”
Turning to Leo, I stared at his handsome profile. If I’d sketched my self-portrait now, it would’ve inserted me playing with fire because that was exactly what I was about to do with my next request.
“Let me draw you.”