Page 48 of Twisted Knight

I drank my coffee silently, just looking at her and not fighting hot I felt, gladly drowning in my feelings for her.

Soon enough she was done with her breakfast and the cleaning lady came in.

We drove to the hospital, mostly chitchatting about the chess game Jude was going to see tonight.

“Thank you for before,” I told her when we entered the hospital and Jude ran ahead of us, much too excited to see his sister and his new nephew and niece.

She waved her hand dismissively. “It was a little early for that conversation.”

I nodded silently as we waited for the elevator. It was too early, of course it was, and yet why was I ready to make a commitment? Because she was an enchanting goddess; it was the only possible explanation.

She reached for my hand and brushed her fingers against my palm. I closed my hand, not ready to let go. We stood side by side in the elevator, holding hands, and only let go when the doors opened on Cassie’s floor.

The door was ajar, the kid already in the room and sitting on a chair by the bed, looking on in awe at his sister holding his brand-new niece.

“You made it.” Luca chuckled, holding his infant son in his arms.

My heart squeezed in my chest at the look of pure happiness and tranquility on his face. It was all I’d ever wanted for my best friend. He deserved love and happiness, and after the car accident, I feared he would never get that, but now he had Cassie and his children.

Emotions clogged at my throat, making it hard to swallow.

I cleared my throat and turned to Cassie. “How are you, baby mama?” I asked her with a little grin, going to the bed and giving her a kiss on her forehead before looking at the little girl in her arms.

She was so little, so fragile, a wave of protectiveness came over me. Something so powerful it almost knocked me down, and I swore right then and there I’d protect these children with my life.

“What a beautiful little princess,” I murmured, not trusting my own voice under the overload of emotion that had been hitting me for the past few minutes.

I touched the little girl's button nose. “At least she doesn’t have her father’s nose, something to be grateful about.”

“Vaffanculo stronzo,” Luca muttered, making me chuckle.

I turned my head toward him and winked.

He rolled his eyes, rocking the baby in his arms. “Domenico, don’t you want to meet your godson?”

I froze. No, that was just too much. I looked away and blinked. Fuck it, I could feel the tears burning in my eyes.

I cleared my throat again. “There must be dust around here; my allergies are acting up.”

“Probably,” Cassie agreed as India, who was standing beside her, nodded her head in agreement.

“There’s no dust here, and you don’t have a dust allergy, Dom. Do you remember when we went in the attic?” Jude piped in.

We all laughed at his adorable obliviousness, easing some of the tension.

I walked to Luca who was standing at the end of the luxury hospital room and looked at the little boy he was holding, the heir to the Montanari legacy… How could such a small thing have such a heavy load on his shoulders?

“Meet Marco Domenico Montanari,” Luca announced with so much pride.

“Domenico?” I asked in disbelief.

“The name of his godfather,” Cassie announced from behind me.

I turned around to see the baby was now in India’s arms. Lord, that woman appealed to all my primal needs.

I shook my head, shutting down where my thoughts and feelings were going. It was clearly not the time and place.

“And this is Arabella Maria,” Cassie continued, throwing a dreamy look toward her daughter.

---