Page 28 of Reign of Hope

“I have a secret, Ally.” Elena pulls back to look at me.

I tilt my head, waiting for her to go on.

“I haven’t told Dante yet. He’s already angry about the other day. He’ll go into overdrive when he finds out,” she babbles.

“Finds out what?” I ask. My curiosity is piqued to say the least. Elena is straightforward, and Dante adores her. What could possibly change that?

“I’m pregnant,” she blurts out, then covers her face. “You’re the only person I’ve told. I took five home pregnancy tests, and they all turned out positive.”

“But the wine—” I begin, remembering that we all had a glass; the others had two.

“When no one was watching, I emptied my glass into the sink or the fern over there.” She points to the lonely plant in the room. “That plant is either going to die or flourish,” she kids.

“That’s amazing news, Elena. Dante is going to be overjoyed,” I declare. “He adores his nieces and nephew. He’s going to be an amazing dad.”

“He will be.” A shy smile forms on her lips. “We both want children, although he wanted a little more time to ourselves first. But with this situation hanging over us…” Her voice trails off.

“There’s never a right time to have babies. You said it yourself. We can’t expect normal. But you can celebrate the wonderful moments. Don’t let anyone take that away from you,” I tell her.

The front door creaks open, and Dante and Zano come in.

“Hey, baby,” Dante calls out. “Did you have a fun afternoon?”

“We’re pregnant!” Elena announces. Dante stops in his tracks, looking like a deer in headlights. But this is a momentary blip before he races over to his wife, lifting her into his arms and spinning her around.

I make my way over to Zano, who tucks me into his side as he watches on happily. “You’re going to be Zio Zano,” I whisper.

“I’m going to be cool Zio Z,” he murmurs, then brushes his lips over mine. “I take it you had a good afternoon?”

I giggle.

“Friends make everything better,” I reply, looking on while Dante kisses his wife with his hand gently resting on her belly.

SEVENTEEN

Not Just the Skulls

ZANO

My sister’s pregnant and Dante is going to go into overdrive to protect her. Dante’s a pretty even-keel, never-let-your-emotions-show kind of guy, but last night, he was smiling from ear to ear. And when it was time to go home, he called in extra soldiers to follow them. This means that the problem we’re looking into is going to take full priority.

Allegra looked on as Dante and Elena reveled in the happy news. She’s always wanted to have a family of her own, and I know she’ll be a wonderful mother. Elena has told me about Allegra’s doubts because of the trouble that Victorio got into, but plenty of kids can fall into a bad track. Victorio’s not a bad kid, but he has made terrible choices.

I hear Allegra in the shower. We’ve developed our own little routine. She insists on getting up with me every morning to make breakfast so we can eat together. That means she showers first while I put on the coffee. Then it’s my turn.

This morning, however, she’s humming while showering. The humming turns to singing, and I imagine her lathering her hair while belting out “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves.This is something I have to see. I open the bathroom door a crack. But it’s not the singing that catches my attention. It’s the silhouette of the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen, tilting her head back and letting the pelting drops of water wash over her.

I drop my shorts and slide open the shower stall. Ally lets out a stunned squeal but doesn’t have time to react because within seconds, I have her pinned against the tiled wall, my hand at the back of her neck, and I kiss her passionately. Fuck! Every kiss gets better and better. Her body presses up to mine. Her fingers come to my shoulders, holding on tight. Her mouth opens for me, our tongues dueling and exploring, but it’s not enough.

My hard cock is throbbing, aching to be inside her. I lift her into my arms, bracing her back against the tiles, her legs wrapping around my waist. With a powerful surge, I thrust inside her hot, wet pussy. Ally drops her head back and lets out a quivering mewl. I pull out, then come back inside her hard and fast. I can’t seem to control my urge to consume her. Every moan and sound she emits from her lips spurs me forward, needing to see her face flush and her eyes burning with desire.

Unfortunately, my thick cock is looking for its own release, and I’m not sure how long I can hold out.

“Hurry, cuoricina,” I murmur before kissing her again. I swallow her groan of satisfaction as her pussy clenches around my cock like a vise. She tears her mouth from mine, her teeth sinking into my shoulder. I love that my sweet Ally can get wild for me.

I let go, unable to stop the roar that has been building. Ally locks her arms and legs around me, panting and desperately trying to catch her breath. I give us a moment before setting her down on her feet, then moving back under the water.

Ally is the first to get dressed as I finish up in the bathroom. When I walk to the kitchen, I smell the bacon frying and see that Ally is flipping an omelet. I give her a sheepish grin and stop beside her to kiss her temple. Ally places several strips of bacon on each of the plates on the counter, and I take them to the table.

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