Page 123 of Sin & Secrets

Things had been awkward when I returned to theCandelabraas her boss. At first, she was treading on eggshells, trying to avoid me, probably out of fear that I might fire her. But as things settled, a tentative acquaintanceship had blossomed.

Now that I’m temporarily out of commission, she is, after all, our best performer.

“Will you all let me through!” a voice cries out from the back of the gathering crowd.

My brain short-circuits.

“Mom?”

Giuseppina Bellini elbows her way past the line of bodies and stands before me, radiant as ever, the soft lines of her face curving up into a huge smile.

My mother opens her arms for me and I run to her, a child all over again.

“Cassy, Cassy, Cassy!” she whispers into my hair, a near-perfect match to her own. “I missed you so much.”

“Mom!”

She pulls back, squishing my cheeks between her palms. “I can’t believe my baby is having a baby.”

I grin, although the snot and tears leaking from my face must make me look monstrous.

“Honestly,” she laughs, wiping it all away with a tissue. “And here I thought you’d forgotten me, now that you have this new fancy life in the big city.”

“Never,” I laugh right back.

Ever since that fateful day in Giuliano’s penthouse, we must have spoken on the phone almost every day.

At first, it had just been a lot of crying. Mom took some time to adjust to the news about my dad, and though I had spared her many of the gorier details, she was terrified by my encounter with Giuliano.

But slowly, we began to rebuild our relationship. She’d share the stories she remembered of being a part of the Guild while I introduced her to Rocco and all the new branches of my ever-blossoming social circle.

I throw my arms around her once more, not quite believing that she is finally here, standing in front of me. “It’s so good to see you.”

“Rocco flew me out and set me up in one of the rooms here,” she tells me. “We have all week to catch up properly, so go talk with your friends.”

I pull away, squeezing her hands once more before letting her go.

I’m about to turn back into the chattering fray, when a familiar warmth encircles my waist from behind, and a head rests on my shoulder.

“Did you really have no idea,Angioletta?”Rocco’s voice sends shivers down my spine as he whispers in my ear.

“I was a little preoccupied today, actually,” I admit.

He kisses my cheek before spinning me around to face him. His strong, tattooed arms never leave their hold on my waist.

“I want to show you something.” His charming smile never ceases to cause my heart to flutter. “But if I give you my present first, Chiavari might murder me in my sleep.”

“I resent that!” the redhead shouts from the other side of the room.

I roll my eyes, and Rocco’s smile turns mischievous as he leans forward to whisper in my ear. “Let’s get out of here.”

At that moment, music erupts from deeper within the house, and the crowd begins to disperse, offering us the perfect opportunity to slip away relatively unnoticed. I spot Teo wagging his eyebrows at us as we hurry up the stairs.

Rocco leads me right to the end of the corridor toward the room I first stayed in when we arrived.

“I just finished the redecoration of the master suite,” I tease. “Do you want to go make the most of it?”

He chuckles. “All in good time.”

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