Page 57 of Risky Vows

"How are you doing, rat?" I ask.

She lifts one shoulder. "Well… sad for Andie. How's Dante?"

"He's a mess. Never imagined losing her that way. The baby will come home in a few days, but he has no idea what to do. He'll need a nanny and is looking for one. But as you may guess, it's hard in this line of business." Women aren't exactly lining up to work for a mafia boss. They know what the job entails—the good, the bad, and the ugly. Dante must also ensure he hires the right nanny or nannies for his daughter. He'll run lots of background checks, the whole nine yards.

"Why don't you tell him to stay with us for a while? Between Colleen and me, we can take care of the baby while he finds someone," she says, a brighter light flickering in her hazel eyes. “Helping him and the baby is the only thing I can do to honor Andie."

I take a deep breath. Dante has a large home, but I see how she has a point. To offer him to come and stay here, where he'd have her and Colleen to help with the baby while he looks for a nanny, would take some of the load off his back. Still, that's a generous offer. "You'd do that?"

She chews on her lower lip. "Of course. Unless… you're rethinking our marriage."

"Why?"

"Because now that Alonzo is back… you don't need me anymore." She takes a step back, and I worry. Is she going to back down? Say this is all too much for her. After all, what kind of protection did I give her? She was kidnapped even after marrying me. If anything, our marriage may be more of a headache than a blessing.

"That's where you're wrong. I need you more than ever."

She lets out a long sigh, then shakes her shoulders. "Phew. Good. Because if you said otherwise, I was prepared to fight."

"I'm prepared to fight too." I roll up my sleeves and show her the fresh ink I added this morning. It's the outline of a rat in an empty area on my wrist—so she's over my pulse.

Before I knew about Andie’s passing and left to meet Dante, I had my favorite tattoo artist pay me a quick visit. I wanted to show Amara I was serious about her—that she's never leaving me, and her mark will never leave my body.

She claps her hand to her mouth, looking completely surprised. "Is that a?—"

"Rat? Yes." My skin heats immediately as she touches it.

"What? Why?"

"I want to have you with me at all times. I love you, Amara," I say, meaning every damn word. I don't know if my love and obsession for her are healthy, but they’re unstoppable. And it's time she knows it.

"Do you mean that?" she asks, a trace of vulnerability in her voice. She stares at me, her luminous eyes questioning what my soul already knows.

"Yes, of course I do."

"Our argument before I left was awful. I never knew that James was using me all along. I thought, 'How can Massimo truly love me?' since James didn't—and I believed he did for the longest time."

"James was a weasel. I regret telling you that in a moment of anger. We can't speculate. Maybe he loved you, but he went into the relationship with the wrong intentions."

Tears fill her eyes, and mad jealousy travels through me. I know it's wrong—the man is fucking dead. But I can't avoid it. I want Amara all to myself. Always.

"Are you trying to make him look less bad to make me feel better?" She smiles at me, and a part of me softens.

I run my finger down her nose. "Did it work?"

She stands on tiptoes to kiss my cheek, and my pulse spikes. "Thank you."

I want to hug her, touch her, fuck her. But we have to finish talking. And given the bruise on her stomach, we shouldn't have sex yet. I want her to heal and be pain free. "I'm sorry for our argument before you left. I shouldn't have lashed out at you," I say, the words pouring out of me. "I felt betrayed. Then you asked me if I thought about killing you… did I want to end my misery? Yes. But I'd take my own life before taking yours—which scared me."

"Please don't ever take your own life," she says in a serious voice, peering up at me. "That would destroy me."

"I promise not to."

She traces the outline of my lips with her finger, leaning into me. A warm energy bounces between us. "I lied. And I promise to never lie to you again."

"I love you." I pull her to me, and her arms circle my neck. I caress her hair, inhaling her feminine scent. "I missed you so much. I was worried you'd want to leave me again after what happened. Because being a mafia wife is a lot."

"It's a lot, but what I get from being your wife tops everything. I love you, Massimo," she says, unlocking a kind of happiness I never knew existed.

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