It was great to have friends on my side. We might’ve been an unconventional group, and our alphas were all slightlyoverprotective, but we were family, and that was all that mattered.
9
TREV
“We’re sure that it’s safe to leave the mansion?” I hated that I even had to ask. But I had been out of the Ferrini security loop for so long during my recovery, and my latest assignment had taken me away from the business, not closer to it. Plus my mate was there, and I was reluctant to leave him.
Andro shot me a look, the dark arch of his brow nearly hitting his hairline. “Don’t question my judgment, Trev. I’m leaving my omega and child there as well.”
There were five of us in the back of a sleek black limousine. It wasn’t the first time I’d been in one of the Ferrinis’ fancy cars–far from it–but it was the first time I wasn’t working.
Orsino grabbed the decanter of whiskey and glasses from the wet bar.
“Listen, none of us like to leave our omegas home either, but trust me when I say that they need it. I know I need it.” Orsino tipped the glass back and drank his whiskey down in one swallow.
“Who’s with Marcella?” Louie asked as he took the filled glass from Orsino.
“The nanny. She’s watching over Marcella and the twins.”
“They’re working out well, then?” Andro asked.
“Yes. Thank goodness.”
“She’s been a godsend,” Felik said. “The twins are sleeping better than ever now that she helped us get them onto a routine.”
Orsino groaned. I had a feeling the dark circles under his eyes had nothing to do with stress from work. “I pray for that day.”
Andro chuckled and patted his shoulder. “Is that sweet daughter of yours keeping you up? I refuse to believe my beautiful niece is anything but an angel.”
“During the day, she is nothing short of perfection. At night…” Orsino’s eyes ghosted over, and he poured another glass.
Andro and Louie clapped him hard on the back as they laughed.
Seeing these tough men who I’d seen maim and kill their fair share of enemies gush over fatherhood was not something I had expected. Sure, I knew that Andro and his brothers would eventually have to produce heirs. I never thought they would become the family men that they are now. Falling in love with their omegas had changed them for the better. It was as if they had more to fight for now, more reason to protect their family name.
Now I did too.
Having Rowan experience a heat already and having it over so quickly likely meant the two of us would be fathers sooner rather than later. The thought both excited and terrified me. Sincebeing shot I had trouble trusting whether I was good enough to protect this family anymore; now I didn’t have the option to doubt myself. I had to be good enough. For the Ferrinis. For Rowan and whatever children we had. I would not let them down.
“Davy and Nil are watching over the omegas, Trev. You know they’re capable.” Andro handed me a glass of whiskey. Drinking with my cousins was not new. However, it was usually done at home, when I was off duty.
I took the drink and sipped it, letting the velvety texture of the expensive whiskey invade my senses.
“We also hired three new guards. They’re still in training, but they are proving to be competent,” Felik said.
Much had changed since Jeremiah brought Felik home and overturned much of our assumptions about the Menetti family. Now, Felik was fully ingrained into the family business. Felik’s family had once been competitors to the Ferrinis, and his brother Vance had made a run for a portion of the Ferrini territory. A decision he regretted, or he would, if he were still alive to regret it.
“See? Everything is well in hand. Let us take you out to celebrate your mating. Even if it is to your own cousin. Cheers to keeping it in the family, buddy.” Andro lifted his glass. Mischief and delight lit up his eyes–a rarity that I wasn’t used to seeing.
They all laughed at that. It was quickly becoming the running joke about Rowan and I being related.
I rolled my eyes. “I’m from the opposite side of the family, and Rowan isn’t even a blood relative. I’d never met him until last week! We are not related.”
“You two have been at the same family events over the years, I know you have.” Louie grabbed the decanter and began refilling everyone’s drinks. Apparently sobriety wasn’t something we were aiming for tonight.
“Sure, but we never talked. He hung out with Jeremiah, and they didn’t hang with us.” I only vaguely remembered seeing Rowan at those family events. My focus had been on getting close with the brothers, knowing that I would protect them one day as my father had done for their father.
“Yeah, cause we didn’t let them.” Louie laughed. It was true. Being older and alphas, we hadn’t wanted to hang with the omegas. Not our relatives anyway.