Page 48 of Little Dove

“I’ll be fine,” Amara assures her. “And thank you, Gia. I really appreciate you doing all this.”

Gia reaches out and takes her hand, giving it a quick squeeze with a gentle smile. “I know it’s a lot, Amara, but I promise, I’m happy to. I want you to be comfortable here.” Amara nods, giving her a small smile of her own. They separate and then Gia heads for the door, and I bark out an order to the two soldiers still putting together the cabinet. Both immediately stand to follow her, and Gia gives me an exasperated look. “That’s not necessary,” she argues.

“Yes, it is,” I say firmly. “You want to explain to your husband,cara, that you have gone without your guard?”Thankfully she doesn’t argue with me any further, taking her leave with both guards following closely behind her.

“Why do we need to have guards on us at all?” Amara suddenly asks, stepping forward and turning to look up at me, a frown on her face. “I thought you said we’re safe here.”

“You are, but that doesn’t mean someone might not try to get through our defences. If they do, we don’t want you to be alone.” I purposely don’t tell her it’s already happened, and we refuse to let it happen again. Of course, she doesn’t look the least bit convinced, but she lets it go. “This is going to be a nice space,” I tell her with a smile.

She shakes her head. “It’s way too much, Lazaro. How am I ever going to pay them back? They bought the best of the best of everything. There is no way that I can afford any of this.” She looks on the verge of panic, and I quickly step forward, gripping her shoulder and making her look up at me.

“Amara, you have nothing to worry about when it comes to that,” I tell her firmly. “ Gia and Nico will never accept money from you. This is all a gift, from one cousin to another.”

“No, it’s too much,” she says firmly. “You need to convince them.”

“Me?” I ask in amusement.

She glares up at me. “Yes, you. They’re not going to listen to me. Tell them I’m terrible at cutting hair or something. Or at least tell them to take some of this stuff back, so I don’t feel so guilty.”

“Amara,” I chide lightly. “Do you really not want any of this? Take the money out of it for now.”

“Of course I do,” she huffs. “This is so much more than I could have ever dreamed of having. Do you see that chair and bowl? They are top of the line. Like, the kind you dream of, never thinking you’re ever going to have in your lifetime unless you win the lottery or somehow make it big, and have celebrityclientele coming to your shop. I can’t just sit back and accept this, especially if this whole situation is over soon. I’ll have to figure out what to do with it all.”

“Like Gia said, it can all go into your new salon.”

She shakes her head. “And where am I going to find a new salon that will allow me to use all of this? Most of them are already set up, and it’ll cost a fortune to have this all added. And in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly swimming in extra cash.”

“That’s a worry for then.” And not one that I’m going to let her stew on for too long, with my plans already made and in motion. “For now, focus on this and see it for what it is. An opportunity to hone your skills on people who are eager to let you try things out with them. You said you didn’t get much of a chance before, and now you will.”

She huffs and crosses her arms over her chest. “You’re supposed to be on my side, not making sense and talking me out of being mad.”

I chuckle. “Colombina, when it comes to you, there is nothing I won’t do to ensure you are happy. And this will make you happy, we both know that.” She opens her mouth to argue with me again, but I quickly say, “No more arguing, Amara. You know I’m right.”

“Whatever.” She sighs. “I’m ready to get something to eat. It’s been hours, and unless you want me to get majorly hangry, I need some food.”

“Hangry?” I ask, perplexed. Is this another one of those strange American sayings?

“Yeah. If I’m hungry for too long, I start getting irrationally angry. Hungry plus angry equals hangry.” She gives me a look that says she’s sure I’m short of a few brain cells.

“Then we best feed you,” I agree, guiding her out of the room. “Though I’d be interested in seeing what you do when you’re hangry, as you call it.”

She looks up at me with a serious expression. “Trust me, Lazaro, you really don’t. I’m liable to throw something at you, and considering our height difference, I’ll probably going to hit something you really don’t want me to.”

I grin down at her, amused. “You can try,dolcezza, but all you’ll be doing is adding to your punishment tally, and you’re already up to a good amount.”

She must not think I’m serious, because she simply rolls her eyes. “Sure, whatever.”

I’m going to enjoy spanking that sass out of her. And though I told her I’d do things at her pace, I think it’s time I amp things up.

16

AMARA

Okay,I don’t think I’ve ever had anything as delicious as this meal right here. I don’t even care that I’m basically gorging myself and probably have it all over my face. This meal is worth the embarrassment that will probably come to me the minute I’m finished. God, Nico’s chef is amazing. If he cooks like this all the time, he seriously needs a raise.

When I finally finish my food and sit back, I see Lazaro watching me with a smile as he finishes his own plate. “Are you a little less, what did you call it, hangry?” he asks me in amusement.

“Yep. Lucky for you, or I’d be terrible to deal with. Just saying.” I smirk at him, making him chuckle.

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