Page 14 of Twisted Obsession

After placing Valentina across the back seat of my car and slamming the door in a bid to control the anger seeping out from every single one of my pores, I helped Giovanna into the passenger seat. Witnessing her obvious distress as tears began to flow silently, but freely down her face, I fastened her seatbelt while swearing under my breath.

I only understood one thing—the higher up you were, the further down you could fall, and I was going to take Salvatore’s fucking legs out from underneath him.

Chapter Six

Giovanna

‘You’ll stay with her?’ I questioned Pia as she opened the door of my parents’ suite.

‘Of course. I’m sure she’ll be fine now the doctor has administered a sedative.’

‘I hope so.’ I said the words with what I hoped was some conviction behind them, but truthfully, I wasn’t sure I cared. I’d seen my mama feign so many illnesses to get her own way in my lifetime that I felt she’d cried wolf one too many times. I understood my parents were disappointed, hurt even, but I understood that my nonno was dying and that was the most important factor here. Not either of their different, but still very childish, outbursts.

I released a small sigh.

One dealt with.

And just where the hell were my brothers when I needed them here? I could only hope they were out searching for our papa and would bring him home soon.

Family is everything.I heard my nonno inside my head, saying one of the things I must have heard him say a million times over.

I gave a smile of thanks to Pia as she ducked back inside, and turned to face the men waiting for me. Lorenzo and Paulo, my bodyguards, were standing either side of the doorway, just as I knew they would be. Because, of course, they would have followed Dante’s car with or without instruction from my eldest brother.

Like they followed me everywhere.

The air seemed to crackle around us with pent up testosterone, and I turned my head from one side to the other as they took it in turns to glare at Dante, who was leaning on the opposite wall with his arms crossed over the top of the pale blue shirt I’d gripped so tightly on to as we’d left the villa with my mama.

Dante.

‘Dante.’

His gaze lifted from the floor to find mine and despite the fact I had never felt so emotionally overwrought, a spark of happiness ignited inside of me.

‘You stayed.’ The words left me as a statement of fact.

‘Of course.’ He pushed himself off the wall and took a step towards me at the same time. ‘I needed to know that you and your mama were okay.’

‘We told him to go, and that he would have been contacted later,’ Paulo countered.

‘And you don’t want to know what I said to that… other than that Don De Luca had given me his express permission to help you with your mama, and I wasn’t leaving until I knew you were both okay.’

‘Has my papa returned home?’ I questioned the three of them, but it was Dante who answered.

‘No, not yet.’ He shook his head but never broke eye contact with me, offering me the quiet strength he felt I needed.

‘Oh.’

‘Your grandfather has, and he’s asked to see you just as soon as you were able.’

My legs began to tremble and instinctively I reached out to find something stable to cling on to. Dante reached me first and clutched both of my forearms to help steady me.

‘Come here.’ He pulled me closer to him and enveloped me in a fragrance that reminded me of sandalwood with top notes of mint. I recognised it as an expensive cologne I’d admired before. Even though I couldn’t remember the name of it, I knew it was one I would always associate with him. He guided me to the small, cream velvet love seat that had been outside my mama’s rooms for as long as I could remember. Feeling behind me for the edge, I gratefully sat down and Dante sat down beside me.

‘Better?’ he questioned.

‘Better,’ I agreed, sighing out loud as I swept my tongue over my suddenly dry lips. Not knowing if they were dry due to my emotional state or the closeness of the solid man next to me.

‘Get her some water,’ he demanded, not looking up at the two men now standing barely two feet away from where we sat.

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