Page 53 of Family Ties

“I shouldn’t share a bed with you,” Emma says. She says it so softly I have to strain to hear her. I don’t think she even realizes she’s speaking out loud. The words slip into the dead air unfiltered, a stream of unconscious thoughts. If I were a better man, I’d ignore them. Instead, I listen. “You’re only going to break my heart.”

Damn stubborn woman. No matter how many times I tell her, she refuses to see how crazy I am about her. She’s so blinded by her fucking idea of things that she can’t see this for what it is. If I hadn’t wanted to be with her, I wouldn’t. I’d be a part of my child’s life, yet, but I wouldn’t be anybody’s husband.

Emma has been mine since the day I set my eyes on her.

There’s a knock on the door. It’s barely audible in the quiet night, and I don’t think it would have woken me up. The only reason I hear it is because I’m staring up at the ceiling, trying to figure out how I’m going to convince Emma our marriage is as real as it gets for me.

When I open the door, Matteo is standing there clutching on to a teddy bear. Davide, who has been tasked with standing guard with him for the night, stands behind him.

“Is mommy in there?” he asks me. He’s almost shy as he pulls his stuffed animal closer to his chest. I glance at Davide, who shrugs.

“I’m not going to keep the kid from getting to his mommy,” he mutters. Out of all of my cousins, he’s the one who has the hardest time connecting with Matteo. I figure it’s because he’s always been one of the youngest of the family and hasn’t spent much time around kids. It’s why he’s usually more than happy to take the night shift watching him so he doesn’t have to speak to him.

“Hi buddy,” I say, crouching down lower so I can be eye-level with him. He tilts his head up slightly so his eyes meet mine.

“A monster was watching me from the window. I need my mommy to come check for me,” he says, his bottom lip popping out into a pout as tears form in his eyes. I glance over his head at Davide, cocking an eyebrow. Sure, it could be he had a nightmare, but it isn’t a risk I’ll take. Davide nods his head in understanding and pulls out his phone to send out texts. I want the camera footage watched and the entire property scouted.

“Mommy is sleeping. Do you want to come lay down with us?”

“Okay, daddy,” he says as he holds up his arms to be picked up. My eyes dart up to catch Davide’s, who’s looking up at us from his phone. He’s never called me that before.

It doesn’t surprise me the kid knows. He’s a quick study, learning things about the people around him. He quickly came to realize my mom has a sweet tooth, and her trying to disappear into the pantry alone meant she’s going to sneak a treat in. So he started following her into the pantry, and he would come out smiling and smelling like sugar. Then there’s the fact he learned his mommy wouldn’t tolerate his cussing, something he learned from spending too much time around his cousins, but Andy lets him get away with it.

I set Matteo down in the middle of the bed and he quickly cuddles up to Emma. Emma cracks an eye open, and a small, sleepy smile stretches over her face when she sees who it is.

“I’m sleeping with you and daddy tonight,” he tells her. My body freezes, and I watch for Emma’s reaction. She throws her arm around him, pulling him into her body and placing a kiss on his forehead before returning to sleep herself. In the safety of his mother’s arms, Matteo forgets about every worry he has of monsters watching him. I stand at the side of the bed, trying to figure out what I should do. I can either join the investigation to figure out if there had been a monster outside my son’s bedroom, or I can crawl into bed with my family.

Fuck it. My men don’t need me micromanaging when I know Davide has already called Andy in to lead things. There’s a reason Andy is the cousin I’m closest to and also the man who will become my second in command when I take over for my father. I trust him with my life. I trust him with the safety and well-being of my child.

Decision made, I crawl under the cover and stretch an arm across Matteo so I can lay it on Emma before succumbing to sleep.

Chapter Thirty-Three- Emma

Enzo is staring at me with fuck-me eyes.

It’s highly inconvenient when we’re sitting at the table with his mother and sisters. Bianca is joining us to go over plans for the engagement party and wedding. Caterina and Alessia are both enthusiastically throwing out ideas while Mia, Enzo’s youngest sister, is more reserved. She has shown little interest in the entire process. Instead, she sits with Matteo and colors pictures with him. She has quickly become his favorite aunt, and I think that it’s because she matches him in calmness.

“Red is classic. It’s romantic,” Alessia argues. She’s been pushing hard for us to include red in our color pallette. I never realized that you had to come up with colors for your wedding to revolve around.

“She’s a redhead. We’re not doing red-on-red. Rich blues, greens, and beige,” Caterina argues back. They’ve been going back and forth for a while, and no one has bothered to butt in between them. I’m tempted to remind them it’s my wedding, but I don’t think it would do any good.

Enzo’s ignoring them. I can feel the heat of his gaze on me when I’m not looking directly towards him. It feels dirty. Even though he isn’t doing anything inappropriate, it feels wrong that this is happening in front of his family.

My libido has all but done missing since I had a kid. Not that I had a lot of chance to exercise it beforehand. I’d just never felt the need. Not the way I do now. Every look from Enzo, his soft touches, and the words that come out of his mouth. They all have an effect on me. It’s embarrassing how easily he turns me on.

He’s pleased with himself. I told him that sleeping together was a mistake, but he hasn’t let that deter him. Strategically placed touches that seem innocent, his bedroom eyes staring at me from across the table, it’s all a part of a ruse to get me back into bed with him. So I ignore him, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of seeing me squirm.

“Sorry I’m late,” Bianca says. She approaches the table and gives everyone but Enzo a brief hug, me included. It catches me off guard, but I think I compose myself before I look like an idiot. “What do we have so far?”

“I have most of the engagement party taken care of already. We mainly have to complete the guest list and make sure the menu is correct.”

“And the wedding will happen maybe in the spring, maybe in the fall, maybe next winter,” Mia says. This catches Enzo’s attention.

“I’m not waiting until next winter to get married.”

Alice chuckles at her son, shaking her head. “But winter has such amazing color combinations we could do!” Caterina whines.

Enzo glares at her until she pouts with her arms across her chest. Alessia smirks in victory as she crosses winter-wedding off the giant whiteboard they have brought into the kitchen. There’s more wedding talk, I throw in my opinion occasionally. At one point, Enzo steps in again to remind his sister’s that it’s my wedding, not theirs.

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