Page 60 of Mafia King's Surprise Baby

Her hand slips down to her mound, her puffy lips glistening with her juices. I can smell her arousal.

It’s not the same—it can never be the same—but as I take in the scent, drink in the sight of her fingering her clit and her pussy, I can imagine it’s Bianca I’m seeing in front of me. Bianca taking her pleasure, not from me, but for herself. She was denied this when she was alive. Maybe in this way, by giving other girls a safe space around me, I can atone for all the ways we failed her.

Chapter 17

Bianca

It’s a miracle I still have a happy child with me when we land at JFK after a fourteen-hour flight. Hana and Hiro arranged everything, from helping me pack my things to organizing transport and, more importantly, chartering a private plane for us to fly back on. Enzo was thus able to run around the interior of the plane as much as he wanted, letting off steam when he wasn’t sleeping, and the captain even took him into the cockpit on a grand tour.

As such, the kid can’t stop talking about the plane, telling us all he’ll fly them when he’s big. I humor him, knowing full well that’s a pipe dream—Enzo is the first-born son of a Mafia Don, and as such, he’s the next generation of Pellegrini men who’ll ascend into that title. But who knows, maybe he will get to be a pilot for a while, until his father retires and hands over the family firm to him.

Thoughts of his father make my stomach flip more than the mild turbulence we encountered throughout the flight did. I truly have no idea what’s waiting for me in New York. While I know Leo won’t shut us out, I also don’t know how he’ll react to me reappearing. He took it really hard when I disappeared—Hana kept me apprised as to how much he hounded Mattia to help him look for me, how angry he was that my family was proceeding with my memorial. And now to think he killed Ardian Abrashi because he thinks the man murdered me…

A lick of fear slithers up my spine as we’re told we can disembark. Customs have already handled our papers, no issue flagged as it’s Bérénice Picard returning to the United States after she left four years ago. According to the identity that was crafted for me, I’m supposed to have an American mother, hence no need for visas to enter the territory.

I’m uncertain as I get up, picking up my son and placing him on my hip as we exit the plane. What’s awaiting me here? All I know is I couldn’t stay in Tokyo anymore. That would be me hiding my head in the sand, not facing my life, and this is something which might endanger my son later. This, I can’t let happen. Everything I’ve done so far, it’s been for Enzo. Everything I’m doing now is also for him.

A car is waiting for us on the runway. It’s the same type of black sedan with tinted windows that took me to the airport when I left. Hiro’s the one who hired it before, as he was in on the plan with Hana all along, I came to find. I’m assuming this is his doing again. Indeed, as we enter, I hear Hana conferring with the driver who is reassuring her our safety is paramount and our identities are secure with him.

I gulp down some of my apprehension as I strap my son in the car seat, and we start on the road to Lenox Hill. It takes us way over an hour in the early evening traffic, and I’m glad when we finally reach the house. Enzo’s still babbling away, excited about his first trip—we’ve never left Tokyo before. In front of my brother’s house, I stop and stare at the dwelling, everything that’s happened here rushing back to the fore to assail me.

I remember the night I came to Mattia for help after discovering all I did about Ardian. I remember finding out I was pregnant inside this place, realizing I needed to leave everything I’d everloved behind. No, not everything—Enzo was already with me that day. I held on to him all this time, and he’s my only constant now.

“Come,” Hana says gently as she opens the front door.

Enzo’s a little ball of energy who pings inside the house before we even have a chance to step in. He stops in wonder in front of the floor-to-ceiling panes that open onto the side deck.

“Maman,” he yells, turning to me. “Pool!”

I smile. “Yes, sweetie, there’s a pool. We’ll go in tomorrow, when it’s daytime again.”

I’m a little afraid he’ll start crying at being denied as his little face scrunches, but then he seems to resign himself. He’s never been a crybaby, thank goodness.

“Koji, you hungry?” Hana asks him in Japanese. “How about pizza?”

He starts jumping around, clutching his plush toy that never leaves him. “Margie!”

“Margherita?” Hana asks, knowing it’s his favorite. “Okay, let’s do that. B, pepperoni for you?”

I nod, watching Enzo tucking himself to her legs as she places the order on the phone, as if to make sure she doesn’t forget his pizza.

I should take him to wash up and get changed. The way he’s bouncing around, it’s obvious he won’t fall asleep anytime soon. The time difference hasn’t seemed to clock in yet, and neither has jet lag. It’ll probably be another story entirely in anothertwelve hours.

I grab him, telling him we need to make sure he’s clean for when the pizza arrives. He complies, letting me scrub him down with a washcloth and change him into a fresh pair of shorts and a T-shirt.

I’m letting him make angel wings on the big bed when the sound of the front door opening catches my attention.

“Han?” a male voice calls out.

It’s Mattia.

I swallow hard. I’m about to meet my brother again after four years. He thinks I’m dead—will he think he’s seeing a ghost when I’ll pop out in front of him in the next few moments?

I step into the hallway and peek into the open space of the kitchen and living area. Mattia has Hana in his arms. He’s holding on for dear life, as if he’s missed her and won’t ever let her go again. A pang hits my heart. Will this be the welcome I’ll get, too, from Leo?

He’s kissing her now, hands roving over her body. Hana giggles, then she’s breaking away.

“Wait, we have guests,” she tells him.

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