Page 43 of His to Hold

As Matteo gets his cellphone from his pocket, I step out into the hallway. Several of our men stand to attention when they see me. I wave a dismissive hand, as it looks like a couple of them might follow me to the elevators. Going to see my mother was just an excuse. I need a minute to clear my head. The last few days have been intense.

Pushing through a double door, I come to an abrupt halt. A woman in a blue gown is standing at the end of the corridor, leaning against a tall, gray-haired man whose arms are wrapped tight around her. His chin rests on her head as he murmurs something to her.

It takes me a minute to realize what I’m seeing. My mother and Boris Reznov, head of the fucking Bratva, are hugging. It’s an intimate picture, but I could be reading it wrong. He might simply be offering her comfort.

That notion is dispelled a moment later when Boris pulls back. He takes my mother’s face in his hands and lowers his head. There’s nothing platonic about the way he kisses her. Fury boils in my veins. The Volantes have been allies with the Reznov Bratva for years, but there is no way I’m allowing this shit to happen.

“Reznov!” I bellow as I storm along the corridor toward them.

My mother springs back in surprise, guilt written all over her face. She tries to get between me and Reznov, but I push her aside as gently as I can, considering my rage. She screams as I draw back my fist and punch Reznov square in the face. There’s a satisfying crunch as he reels from the blow. Blood spurts from his nose. I hit him again and again and he goes down.

My mother shrieks again as I dive for Boris. He tries to defend himself as I grab his lapels and smack his head against the floor, but with his arms flailing, he doesn’t land a punch on me. I haul him up again, intending to crack his fucking skull open, when a shout stops me in my tracks.

“Tony, no!”

Looking up, I’m stunned to find Isabella, flanked by Dante and Paul, one of the guards from the Westport house. Dressed to kill, Isabella is a fucking goddess. The expression she wears is one of anger laced with concern.

While I’m momentarily distracted by the vision my wife presents, Dante rushes forward and drags me to my feet, away from Reznov.

“Calm the fuck down,” he hisses in my ear as I try to throw him off. “We’ve got an audience.”

As my mother drops to her knees next to the Russian prick, I glance around the corridor and realize we’ve drawn a small crowd. Some onlookers are hospital staff, others are my men. There’s even one woman in a hospital gown, an IV attached to her arm, gawping at us.

“Get the fuck out of here!” I yell and people scatter. I turn to my mother, who’s fussing over Reznov. “And you get the fuck away from that Russian bastard.”

“Antonio!” My mother tries to scold me as she strokes Reznov’s face with a tenderness that tells me she cares about the asshole.

“I’m serious, Mamma. Go back to the waiting room.”

She stiffens at the cold command in my voice, but doesn’t move. She actually looks to Reznov for guidance. He nods, and she gets to her feet. Shaking her head in disgust as she passes me, she walks away.

“Help Mr. Reznov up,” Isabella tells the giant at her back.

Paul does as she asked, grabbing Reznov under the arms and lifting him to his feet. I watch in disbelief as Isabella steps up to the Russian, raising her hand to his face and tilting his head one way and then the other, examining his injuries. She whispers something to him, then leans closer and gives him a quick hug. What the fuck? Have the women in my family gone insane?

“I love Ava.” Reznov turns and looks me in the eye. It gives me great satisfaction that his face is a mess. “We plan to marry.”

“Over my fucking cold, dead body!” I lunge for him once more, but Dante holds me back.

Again, Isabella murmurs something. Reznov nods resignedly, pats her arm, and walks away.

“Make sure he leaves,” I tell Dante. He follows as the Russian Pakhan staggers away. “And you,” I turn my ire on Paul, “get back to Westport before I shoot you between the fucking eyes for bringing her here.”

“No.” Isabella touches the big idiot’s arm. “Wait downstairs. I might need you.”

Like fuck she will.

“Yes, Mrs. Volante.” Paul accepts her order over mine. What the fuck did my wife do to deserve such loyalty all of a sudden?

As he moves off toward the exit, I march over to Isabella. Grabbing her arms, I back her against the wall. Her breath hitches as I lean in closer. Fear and arousal flare in her eyes.

“Now, my disobedient wife, you can explain what the fuck you’re doing here.”

CHAPTER 16

Isabella

My heart beats furiously as Antonio pushes me against the wall. It was shocking to see him attack Boris Reznov like that, but I guess it was always going to be explosive when his mother showed interest in a man. The Volante brothers are fiercely protective of Ava, and I suspect they have an image in mind of her being an eternal widow, mourning the loss of their father until the day she joins him in the afterlife. Not that her destination is likely to be the same as Marco Volante’s. If there is a hell, he more than earned his place there.

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