Page 37 of The Bodyguard's Vow

“I didn’t just ‘get together with’ Gabriella.” Domenico glared at my boss. “She’s my fucking fiancée.”

Aston shook his head with a deep sigh.“Putain de merde.”

Domenico handed me the latte, and the delicious aroma of coffee mixed with oat milk and brown sugar wafted to my nose. “Mmm.”

With that done, he shifted his attention back to Aston. “I’m the one who has reason to be frustrated, not you. It’s not too much to ask for you to get it right and acknowledge that Gabriella will be my wife this weekend.”

“I miss the days when you barely said a word.” Aston quirked his brow. “Before you found your darling bride-to-be.”

Domenico could keep his cool in almost any situation—except for when it came to me. So I needed to intervene before this got out of hand. “Aston, didn’t you want to check the exhibition guest list to ensure we’ll have enough champagne?”

He cocked his head to the side. “Did I?”

My eyes narrowed as I reminded him, “You mentioned it literally thirty minutes ago.”

“Then I suppose I should go do that,” he murmured.

I’d known Aston since I was a little girl and worked with him for almost a year. I’d never seen him so distracted. Not even when he was engrossed in finishing a painting. He was a master at multitasking, which was a huge part of why Belladonna Gallery and Vellum & Vine were so successful, even though they weren’t the main focus of his role for The Family.

“He seems off,” I mused as he walked away.

“I’m just glad he’s gone.”

Domenico gripped the back of my neck, angled my head, and claimed my mouth with a kiss that left my wits scattered. “What was I saying?”

“Something about the asshole who gets to spend more time with my fiancée than I do.”

Domenico had turned out to be more demonstrative than I ever could have hoped. He didn’t hesitate to tell and show me how much he loved me, each and every day over the past three months while ourmammasplanned the wedding. I would’ve been happy with eloping, but I was the first girl in my generation to get married, so it was going to be a huge thing.

I glanced toward the hallway that Aston had gone down. “He actually hasn’t been around as much as usual.”

“Hopefully, that’s because he’s getting his shit together so you won’t be bothered by any gallery business while we’re on our honeymoon.”

I grinned at Domenico. “Three whole weeks of just the two of us. I can’t wait.”

His hand drifted down to my belly, and he corrected, “Two and a half.”

We found out two months ago that I was pregnant, but we’d been keeping the news to ourselves so my brother didn’t completely lose it before the wedding. “And I’m already eating for that other half, so you’d better hand that over. Now.”

He opened the bag and peeled the wrapper from a chocolate chip muffin. “Here you go.”

“Yum,” I mumbled around a big bite. “Thank you.”

He waved off my gratitude, like always. “Thanks aren’t necessary. It’s the groom’s prerogative to pamper his bride.”

“I love when you call me that, but I can’t wait until you can use wife instead.” I beamed him a smile before popping more of the muffin into my mouth.

He brushed his lips over my knuckles. “Only four more days,sole mio.”

“I can’t wait.” I let out a dreamy sigh. “I know I’ve complained that ourmammashave gone overboard with the wedding planning, but now that we’re so close, I’m excitedthat they went over the top with everything. It’s going to be gorgeous.”

“I’m happy to hear that,sole mio.” He led me over to the bench against the wall to our left and sat down, pulling me onto his lap. “Because I have a surprise for you that I’m hoping will make our big day even better for you.”

I twined my arms around his neck and asked, “How when it’s already going to be perfect?”

“Your brother called in a marker the governor owed The Family. Getting your father paroled almost three years before he’s eligible would’ve raised too many red flags over his connection to us, but he’s giving him a compassionate furlough. They’re typically reserved for life-threatening family emergencies, so if anyone asks, your aunt Raimona is at death’s door.”

Happy tears spilled from my eyes. “My papà is going to be able to walk me down the aisle?”

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