Page 5 of The Bodyguard's Vow

Although I held back a derisive scoff, I couldn’t stop my mouth from running away. She had that effect on me. “What do you see in that spineless drip?”

“For one thing, he didn’t go running when he heard the last name DeLuca.”

”That’s not a reason to date someone, Gabriella,” I grunted. “You deserve better.”

“I don’t know why you would say that since you clearly don’t think I’m good enough for you.” With that parting comment—stabbing me in the chest with guilt—she stepped into the bathroom and slammed the door shut.

“Motherfucker,” I hissed. The lowest level of hell was probably reserving my spot at that moment.

Logically, I knew it was better for both of us this way. In another time and place, I might have risked everything to be with her. But I was the one who didn’t deserveher. I wasn’t going to drag her into my darkness. It would drive a wedge between Rafa and me, which would eventually ruin our friendship completely when we watched the world we lived in taint Gabriella little by little until her sunshine was completely snuffed out.

2

GABRIELLA

“Ihope you don’t mind hanging out with me.” Vivienne shook her head with a soft laugh. “Your brother has taken his protectiveness to a new level ever since we found out that I was pregnant.”

“I was actually looking forward to getting some quality girl time without Rafa hovering,” I assured her.

I adored my sisters, but since we were the same age, it hadn’t taken me long to feel closer to Vivienne than them. Lucia was only two years younger than me, but there was a big difference between almost eighteen and twenty in our world. She hadn’t been allowed to spread her wings much yet, so I felt our age difference more deeply when I returned from New York. Although I’d stayed with our cousin Nic—who was the head of The Family, the boss——between art school and interning at our gallery there, House of Verità, I’d still had the chance to broaden my horizons while I was there.

And Chiara was seven years younger than me. She was the most sheltered of us all because she had only just become a teenager and was the baby of our family.

Vivienne giggled. “But he does it so well.”

Considering all of the practice he’d gotten with Lucia, Chiara, and me, I wasn’t surprised. “He really does.”

As far as I was concerned, Vivienne was the best thing that had happened to my brother. It was all due to her that Rafa was happier than I’d ever seen him…and the baby she was carrying.

She leaned forward and lowered her voice, a conspiratorial gleam in her eye. “The best girl talk is about boys. But I’m assuming you don’t want to hear any of the dirty details about your brother and me.”

The instinctive retching sound I made confirmed she was right, but just in case, I also answered, “Absolutely not.”

“That’s what I thought.” She settled her elbow on the table between us and propped her chin against her palm. “I guess that leaves us with George. How are things going with him?”

That was a tough question to answer. I had been looking forward to being allowed to date for years before it finally happened, so I should’ve been thrilled to talk about my first boyfriend. Instead, I didn’t feel an ounce of enthusiasm. Which was sadly also true for all of the dates George had taken me on since he first asked me out. Probably because he wasn’t the man who had starred in my every fantasy for the past four years.

It also didn’t help that George wasn’t going to earn any boyfriend of the year awards anytime soon. Except maybe for being the most boring one ever.

There were no spontaneous kisses, no heated glances. Maybe I’d hoped that being involved with someone like him would make me forget the unattainable man who I'd spent countless nights dreaming about. Clearly, that wasn’t working out.

“Could be better,” I mumbled into my coffee cup. It also chafed that Domenico was right. George was a spineless sap.

Vivienne’s eyes narrowed. “That isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement for the guy. I don’t really have any datingexperience beyond your brother since my jerk of an ex-fiancé doesn’t count, but I’m a good listener.”

“There isn’t anything wrong with George,” I mumbled, trying to find the words to explain how complicated my situation was without confessing my crush on Domenico. “It’s nice to go out on dates, but he doesn’t really get me.”

Vivienne rested her hand over the barely noticeable bump of her belly. “You deserve to be with someone who’ll sweep you off your feet, Gabbi. Like Rafa did with me.”

“I know, but I thought maybe he was moving so slow because he’s old-fashioned.” Heaving a sigh, I shrugged. “Although we go out on dates by ourselves, he basically treats me like we’re courting, as though it’s more than a hundred years ago and he doesn’t want to break any rules.”

Her nose wrinkled. “I wouldn’t like that at all.”

“He hasn’t even tried to kiss me yet,” I confessed.

Vivienne’s hand dropped to her side as her eyes widened. “Really?”

I nodded. “Not even a peck on the cheek.”

---