Page 119 of Scarred Hearts

She pulled away from Giovanna finally, smiling at Jenna. “Allen wore a little button camera during your wedding, and we got to watch you and Ian marry too.”

She beamed. “Oh my God! You were there.”

“We were in spirit,” our father replied.

“Now,” our mother said, putting her hands on her hips, “can we please meet our five amazing grandchildren or are you going to keep them from us?”

“Kids!” Ian called out. “Come downstairs!”

As our kids descended the staircase, followed by the nanny, Zoe, their grandparents sat down, loving every minute of meeting the kids and hugging them. They pulled out a bag, giving everyone multiple gifts. I slipped my arm around my sister, kissing the top of her head.

“I can’t believe they’re alive,” she sniffled.

“I know,” I replied, trying my best to convince myself that the scene before me was real.

“Excuse us for a second,” I said, taking Giovanna’s hand in mine, leading her through the house into the kitchen.

“Are you okay?” she asked when we were alone.

I nodded, roaming the room. “Yeah, I just need some time to process that it’s all real. Everything just seems too perfect. Them, returning, us… all of it.”

Grinning, she took a few steps over, coming to a stop in front of me, sliding her arms around my shoulders. I held her sides firmly. Standing on her toes, she pressed her lips to mine.

“What can I do to convince you, it’s real?”

“Promise me something,” I said, and she nodded, “if this is part of my coma and I’m still in the hospital, and you’re really some hot nurse taking care of me or something, please, for the love of God put me back in my coma if I wake up. I never want to lose you.”

She burst into laughter, crashing her lips to mine, then leaned back. “Sir, I assure you I’m never leaving you. You’re stuck with me.”

The business phone Frankie had given me rang loudly in my pocket, and I slipped it out, checking the screen. “I can’t get one fucking day of peace,” I muttered, placing it to my ear.

I’m dealing with some family stuff today. I spat into the phone before he could speak. We’ll talk later.

Ending the call, I clenched my jaw, marching to the back door and wrenching it open. Giovanna followed behind as I stepped outside.

“What are you doing?” She called out, and I came to a stop by the pool.

“Spending the day uninterrupted with my family in case everyone disappears tomorrow.” I dropped the phone into the water.

EPILOGUE

ONE YEAR LATER

TYLER

I roamed the lavish office that once belonged to my late father-in-law, Vito Aggio. The polished mahogany furniture and ornate decor still held their grandeur, but now they were under my ownership. A part of me thought it would feel strange to be back in this space, but it’d been just over a year since I took over as the boss of the Aggio Crime Family. I’d been given the option to break tradition and change the family name, but I couldn’t bring myself to strip away the legacy of Giovanna and her brothers. So, it remained.

Luca had resumed his music career, and thankfully, his injuries from the attack weren’t as severe as they first appeared. With some cleverly applied makeup, you couldn’t even tell he had endured any pain at all. He and Nadia were still together, and she accompanied him on tour, keeping him grounded. We only saw them every few months, but we did manage to attend one of his sold-out concerts at Madison Square Garden last month with Amber and Chance. He even landed a cameo in the upcoming movie Chance was directing and writing a song for the soundtrack.

Enzo moved back to New York, committing himself to assisting the family in any way possible. Though he still spent many late nights out partying with various women, he never faltered when it came to handling business matters. He always put the family’s needs first.

Carmine stepped up to fill Frankie’s position by my side as my Underboss after an unfortunate accident. Five months ago, while assisting in disposing of someone I’d ordered the execution of, a gun went off prematurely, killing him. The news hit Giovanna hard, as she’d known him since she was a child. Carmine promised to do his best to stay out of prison, and so far, he’d proven himself to be a valuable asset to me. He kept watch over New York, alerting me any time I needed to travel back to handle business in person.

Another warm summer was fading away, and soon the kids would be heading back to school. Our children begged to spend some time in the city before we made our way back to Boston, and it was a welcome diversion for both Giovanna and me. I had some important business matters to take care of, and she wanted to have a day out with the kids and take them shopping. Luckily, they’d now grown accustomed to having security around, so they didn’t question me when I insisted they have three guards with them at all times.

Angelo’s footsteps echoed through the hallway as he entered the office. “Can you sign off on this, boss?” he asked, coming to a stop in front of me.

“I haven’t even been back from my honeymoon for a full week, and you’re already asking so much shit of me.” I sat, rolling the chair underneath the desk. “What is it?”

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