Page 58 of The Temptation
He holds a hand out in front of him. “I’m here to talk, nothing more. Naturally, I’m pissed he took you there without my permission, but he’s my best friend, my underboss. I don’t take either of those things lightly.”
“I made him take me along,” I admit. “He didn’t want me to go.”
“He should’ve called me or had someone else deal with it.”
“Do you honestly think he was going to let anyone else deal with that woman? You know how he is. He’s private. He’s?—”
“Too fucking good to that cunt,” Dante says, cutting me off.
“I agree.”
“Can I come in now? I bought one of Caterina’s outfits for you to sniff. Arabella told me you were missing her baby smell.”
When he holds up the bag, I snatch it out of his hand and bring the little pink onesie inside to my nose, inhaling deeply. It smells like baby powder and the faintest trace of her, that sweet, elusive scent I thought I’d never catch again. My chest tightens with longing.
“Fine,” I say, taking a step back and opening the door wider. “But you could’ve smuggled her here instead.”
He leans in and pecks my cheek as he passes. “You know I can’t do that,” he replies. “But this shit will be over soon enough, and you can come home.”
Home.
I want that more than anything. But the hardest part about that is knowing my time here with Romeo will have to end.
The thought lodges in the back of my throat like a stone.
Chapter 12
Romeo
I’m surprised when I enter the kitchen and find Dante sitting at the table with Lucia. He said he was going to call by, but I didn’t expect him to get here so soon.
Although it appears he’s listening to whatever Lucia is saying, his eyes are locked on me as I cross the room and pull out a chair, taking a seat opposite him.
After our call, I’m no longer concerned that he’s going to wipe me off the face of the earth for what I did, but like I anticipated, he was furious when I informed him of what happened. I can’t exactly blame him, so I’d be a fool to think my place in the family won’t be on the line if anything happens to his sister-in-law in the future.
“Dante,” I say, with a slight nod.
“Romeo,” he counters, and the disappointment I see in his eyes makes me feel uneasy.
He’s given me so much over the years that I owe him more than just loyalty. I owe him my life. Things for me would’ve turned out so differently if it weren’t for this man.
“I thought I taught you better,” he says. His voice is low, but sharp enough that my stomach knots.
“I didn’t have a choice,” I reply, even though I don’t believe my own words.
No matter how persistent Lucia was, I still could’ve said no, but my protectiveness towards her has escalated to a new level. She’s no longer just a job to me; things have become personal.
Dante casually leans back in his chair and steeples his fingers in front of him as he studies me.
“There’s always a choice,” he eventually says. “It’s the consequences that aren’t optional.”
“I fucked up, I know. I’m willing to take any punishment you dish out.”
“The hell you will,” Lucia screeches.
Both our heads snap in her direction. We were so focused on each other that I forgot she was there. This is the kind of family business we’d never discuss with someone on the outside.
Her attention is now locked on Dante. “You’re not going to punish him, are you?”
