Page 32 of His to Hold

“Nah, she’s happy here. I asked her once, but she hates the city.”

I pop another piece of chicken into my mouth and chew it slowly before swallowing. “You could make her an offer she can’t refuse.”

Antonio shakes his head. “I’m not in the habit of coercing people into doing things they don’t want to.”

I have to stifle a laugh at that blatant untruth but Antonio must see the skepticism on my face.

“Well, maybe in business, but I wouldn’t force someone who’s part of the family to do something they didn’t want.”

I wonder if Antonio truly believes what he’s saying. He’s not above applying pressure to those closest to him. That’s not an argument worth having. I decide it’s time for a diplomatic change of subject.

“So what movie were you watching?”

“Just some car chase movie.” The offhand way he says that suggests he doesn’t think I’d enjoy it.

“I like action movies,” I tell him. “Maybe we can watch the rest of it together.”

“If you like.” He’s distracted as his cellphone rings. He takes it out of his pocket and rejects the call before tossing the phone on the table. A moment later it lights up again with Matteo’s name.

“Aren’t you going to get that?”

“No, he probably just wants to give me shit about not being at Leo’s party.”

He’s missing a party to be here with me? It’s unlike Antonio to skip out on any family event. He believes in presenting a unified appearance to the public.

“Leo’s throwing a party?”

“Mamma is.”

“Ah.” That makes a lot more sense. Leo Volante is not known for his hosting skills.

“She was pissed they didn’t have a proper wedding so Leo’s letting her throw this shindig.”

“It’s not like you to miss a family celebration.”

Antonio shrugs. “It was more important for me to spend some time with you.” He sets down his fork and reaches across the table to take my hand. “We need to get to know each other again and I need to prepare y?—”

He cuts off, mid-sentence, as his phone rings again. This time it’s Sandro. It seems to me his family needs to get in contact with him.

“You really should get that. It might be important.”

He picks up his phone, switches it off, and tosses it on the table. “What’s important right now is that we work on getting you ready for when we go back to the city.”

Unease runs through my veins like a sliver of ice. “Why? What’s happened?”

“Rico’s family is looking for him. They’re asking questions.”

“What sort of questions?”

“About you and…” Antonio is cut off once again as footsteps sound in the hall. He gets to his feet, pulling a gun from his back. I didn’t even realize he was armed.

“Who is that?” Antonio glares at me. “Did you let someone into the house?”

Stung by the accusation, I can’t formulate a response. How can he think that of me? Heart pounding, I clutch the edge of the table as Antonio moves toward the door, ready to confront the intruder.

“Boss, are you there?”

Antonio’s tension eases fractionally as a familiar voice drifts along the corridor. It’s Rich, one of the bodyguards who accompanied us on this trip.

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