Chapter 7
7
DOMENICO
A fter that night, I was even more vigilant about keeping space between Gabriella and me. I even considered approaching Rafa about having someone else assigned to guard her. But not only would he want an explanation that I couldn’t give, every time I thought about someone else getting close to her—I saw red.
Gabriella didn’t seem to mind the distance, only interacting with me when necessary, which both relieved and chafed me. I shouldn’t want her to feel the same pain that I did, but the obsessed, possessive asshole inside me wanted to know she was still mine.
However, I was pissed about the dark circles under her eyes a week later. Rafa had given me shit over it, too. But when I reminded him that the only way to make sure she was sleeping was to be in bed with her, he changed his tune immediately.
“I think I’m going to head out early,” Gabriella told Aston when he walked into her office with a folder.
He set the packet on her desk, then frowned as he looked her over. I clenched my jaw so I wouldn’t tell him to keep his eyes to himself. “Is everything okay, chérie ? You look like you’ve lost weight.”
Frustration bubbled under the surface as I thought about her lack of appetite lately. I’d noticed that she’d lost a few pounds as well, but she brushed me off when I tried to get her to eat more.
“I’m fine. I just haven’t been sleeping well.”
Aston’s gaze slid in my direction, but as usual, my eyes and expression were unreadable.
“Take all the time you need, Gabriella.”
“Gabbi,” I grunted before I could think better of it.
Aston and Gabriella both looked at me, his expression confused and hers hinting at irritation.
“He can call?—”
I ignored Gabriella, keeping my eyes on Aston when I reiterated, “You call her Gabbi.”
His mouth curved slightly before he nodded and murmured, “ Je comprends .” Then he turned back to Gabriella. “Take as much time as you need, chérie . Bonne nuit. ”
He gave me a nod in farewell before leaving.
“Are you ready to go, sole ?” I asked her softly.
“ Sì .” She grabbed the folder Aston had dropped off and picked up two more before she stood.
“You need to eat,” I muttered as I waited for her to come around the desk and cross in front of the chair I was occupying in the corner of the room—facing the door.
“Stop babying me, Mico,” she snapped. “I have a mother and two older brothers, so I don’t need anyone else trying to control me.”
“Caring isn’t the same as trying to control you, Gabriella,” I corrected her.
“Fine. Then everyone needs to stop caring so much for me.”
“Being tired and hungry certainly hasn’t dulled that sharp tongue of yours, sole .”
Gabriella shot me a scathing glare, and I held back a smile. I much preferred her anger to no emotion at all. Yes, I was a hypocrite, but admitting it didn’t change anything.
We took the route from her office to the parking lot that went through the lobby so she could say good night to Gia, the gallery’s daytime receptionist.
“ Buonanotte, Gia,” Gabriella said with a soft smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Gia waved brightly, her overly sunny disposition making me mentally cringe. “See you tomorrow!”
She was a nice girl, but she could be a lot to take. However, the people she greeted at the front always seemed to take to her, which definitely made them more likely to open their wallets.
We left the lobby out a side door that led to the hallway, at the end of which was an exit leading out to the parking lot. After a scan of the area, I gestured for Gabriella to walk ahead of me and stayed close behind until we reached the car.
When we returned to her apartment, she took a shower while I prepared a meal. I was happily watching her eat when my phone rang, and I pulled it out of my pocket. Rafa’s name was on the screen.
“ Sì,” I answered.
“Where are you?” he barked. The question was odd considering he had trackers on Gabriella’s car, keys, phone, and purses. Not that she was aware of them.
“Gabr–bbi’s apartment,” I answered, stumbling over her name.
“Stay there and lock the place down. I’m headed to you now.”
I shot to my feet and stalked across the room where I could speak low enough that Gabriella wouldn’t hear me. “ Cosa c’è che non va? ”
“Alec, Leo, and Dante will be there shortly as well. I’ll fill you all in when I get there.”
“ Fatto, ” I agreed.
I hung up and turned around, nearly plowing right into Gabriella. She stumbled, but I caught her arms before she could fall, then I waited until she was steady to let her go.
“Are you okay?”
Gabriella glared up at me, her lips pursed and eyes hot with anger. “What was that about?”
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.
“Was that Rafa?”
“Sì.”
“You wouldn’t be taking the call over here if you weren't trying to hide things from me again,” she argued. “I deserve to know what’s going on when it involves my life.”
“I don’t disagree, sole . But I really don’t know what has happened. He’s on his way and will fill us in when he arrives.”
“Us?”
I told her about the other visitors on the way, and fear crept into her eyes.
“Why is he bringing so many enforcers?”
“Gabriella.” I grasped her chin in one hand and promised, “I will never let anything happen to you. Prometto, sole mio .”
If she noticed my slipup, calling her my sun, she didn’t comment on it.
“Try to eat something,” I encouraged since she’d just sat down to dinner when I got the call from her brother.
Gabriella’s expression made it clear she thought I’d lost my mind.
“Will you ever do as you're told?” I teased.
“I wouldn’t hold your breath.”
I chuckled, and her eyebrows shot up to practically her hair line.
“Did you just laugh?”
“It does happen,” I replied with a smirk.
“Yeah, like once in a freaking blue moon.”
Before I could say anything else, the alarm system beeped, and the front door unlocked. I let go of Gabriella and stalked toward the door, reaching it just as Rafa walked inside.
His eyes were so filled with fury that they were nearly black as they darted around until they landed on his sister. In just a few strides, he’d closed the distance between them and gathered her up in a fierce hug.
“Rafa? What the heck is going on?” she asked, her voice muffled because her face was pressed into his chest.
He looked at me over her head, and I was shocked at the fear pulsing behind the rage. After a second, he loosened his grip and guided Gabriella over to the couch. “Sit,” he told her. “I’ll explain everything in just a minute.”
She’d just taken a seat when Alec, Leo, and Dante stalked into the apartment, the last one slamming the door behind him.
“Tell her,” Rafa said tightly, looking at Leo.
My brother exhaled harshly, scrubbing his hands down his face. “You’re sure you want her to hear all the details?” he questioned, his eyes darting to me briefly. I frowned, wondering why it seemed as though he was directing the question at me. But before I could dissect his meaning, he shifted his attention back to Rafa.
“I promised her I wouldn’t keep this shit from her,” Rafa confirmed. He studied Gabriella for a moment, then nodded firmly. “She can handle it. My sister is stronger than I give her credit for.”
Gabriella gave him a small smile, then she turned her attention to Leo.
“The gallery was hit tonight.”
Gabriella gasped, and her hands flew up to cover her mouth. “Was anything taken? Or destroyed?”
Leo winced. “They weren’t after the art, Gabbi. But yeah, there was some damage.”
“Me?” she guessed. “But I left early.”
He nodded. “When they realized you weren’t there, they wanted Gia to tell them where you’d gone.”
“She doesn’t know where I live,” Gabriella whispered, horror taking over her expression. “Is she alive?”
“Barely,” he admitted, shifting his weight uncomfortably.
I understood his awkwardness. We weren’t used to sharing shit like this with the girls. And nobody wanted to be the target of their tears. Even the boss, Nic, who was the meanest, most ruthless, cold-blooded son of a bitch I’d ever met, crumpled in the face of tears from the women in the family.
“They took her into surgery because they were afraid that she had internal bleeding. We haven’t heard anything yet.”
“Where the fuck was Aston?” I growled.
“He was in the vault. When he came out, he heard the commotion and ran up to the front. He saved Gia’s life. When the men knew she couldn’t tell them anything, they were about to kill her, but Aston took out three of them.”
“Three?” Alec asked.
Leo nodded. “Aston didn’t bother with the two who ran out because he wanted to get Gia to the hospital. But he gave us descriptions, and Marco is on it.”
Gabriella turned her tear-filled gaze on Rafa. “What now?”
“Now you run,” he stated, his hard voice every inch the boss who was not to be questioned.
“Okay,” she whispered.
“Okay?” he echoed.
Like me, he’d been expecting a fight.
“I don’t want anyone else getting hurt because of me.”
“ Bene ,” Rafa said, gently taking hold of her face and wiped at the few tears on her cheeks with his thumbs. “You know that none of this is your fault, right?”
“Yes,” Gabriella replied softly. “But it doesn’t stop me from feeling guilty that Gia was almost killed by people looking for me.”
It was killing me to stand back and let Rafa comfort Gabriella, but giving anyone emotional support was difficult for someone who rarely let themselves experience it. And if I attempted it with Gabriella, it would be like holding up a blinking sign that announced how I felt about her.
“She doesn’t blame you,” Leo chimed in. “Aston mentioned that Gia told him that in the ambulance ride to the hospital.”
Rafa pulled her in for another hug. ”Domenico will keep you safe, but don’t forget everything I taught you, sorellina .”
“I won’t,” she promised, gaining her composure and giving him a firm nod. “I promise to keep Domenico safe, too.”
Rafa cracked a smile while the other guys coughed or pressed their lips together to hide their chuckles.
“I have no doubt.” Rafa’s eyes came to me, and he tossed over a set of keys. “The cabin is clean. Completely untraceable. Dante brought a car for you to take out of town. Ditch it no more than an hour from here and?—”
“I know what to do,” I grunted. “Go pack a bag, Gabriella.”
Rafa’s brow dipped when I used her full name.
Shit.
Thankfully, Gabriella stole his attention by throwing her arms around him. “ Ti amo, fratello maggiore ,” she told him, squeezing him tight.
Rafa kissed the top of her head, then urged her toward the bedroom. When she was out of sight, his dark eyes swung back to me. “If anything happens to her, you better be dead already.”
“You’re questioning me?” I asked, without inflection.
“I know you would die for her, Domenico,” he sighed. “I just…it needed to be said.”
“Understood.” I stalked to the guest room to throw together my own bag, then rejoined everyone in the front room.
“We’ll follow you to Atlanta to make sure you don’t have a tail,” Alec informed me. “After you ditch the first car, don’t make any stops. We don’t want you to end up on any security cameras.”
Dante handed me two slim black cell phones, and I traded him for mine. Gabriella walked over and handed hers to him as well.
“They're clean, but I want the SIM card changed every few hours, then trash them completely before you head up the mountain. You’ll find another set at the cabin.”
“Don’t use them unless it’s an emergency,” Rafa added, looking at Gabriella.
“I’m not an idiot, Rafa,” she snarked.
Her show of fire had me smiling inside. My girl had a tender heart, but she was a fucking badass.
“Let’s hit the road,” Dante called out.
“I just need a minute with my brother,” Leo stated, watching Rafa for a sign of permission.
Rafa nodded and guided Gabriella out the door, with Alec and Dante close behind.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” he muttered once we were alone.
I cocked my head to the side and frowned. “Since when don’t you have faith in my abilities, fratello ?”
He shook his head and met my eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. “That’s not what I mean. You’ll be alone with her up there. Don’t cross that line, Domenico.”
I blinked, not sure if I was understanding him correctly.
“You think I don’t know my brother well enough to see what the fuck is happening? The only time I see anything besides an unbreakable wall in your eyes is when you look at her.”
Well, shit. It probably shouldn’t have surprised me. The only person who knew me better than Rafa was Leo.
“I don’t know if he’d ever forgive you, Domenico,” Leo stressed. “So you better be damn fucking sure if you’re gonna risk it all for her.”
I wanted to assure him that I wouldn’t break my vow, but for the first time, something held me back. When I thought about what could have happened if Gabriella had been at the gallery…it had left a gaping hole in the walls I’d built inside me, and I wasn’t sure they could ever be repaired.