Page 48 of In My Blood
CARA
“What smells so good?” I looked up and almost choked on the forkful of French toast I’d eaten when Dante walked in. Maybe I hadn’t taken in the full size of him the day before, or maybe I’d just forgotten, but holy shit! He looked huge filling the entirety of the doorway as he walked into the kitchen. He actually had to duck his head to get clear through the tall doorway.
I coughed loudly and embarrassingly, the French toast going down the wrong way, and everyone froze and looked to me as Rafe started to pat my back.
“Are you okay?” he asked me as he hit a little harder the longer I coughed for. I nodded and tried to wave him away. Desperate for the mortification to end. By the time I cleared my throat, my eyes were watering and everyone had moved closer in concern.
“Sorry,” I gasped. “I’m good. Just went d-down the wrong way,” I told them all breathlessly. I grabbed my coffee and took a huge gulp to wash it all down with, praying everyone would go back to their business.
The source of my panic induced choking was stood opposite me, across the counter when I looked up. Dante. His eyes were locked on me and he was analysing me way too hard and tooclosely. I fidgeted, brushing the loose strands of my hair behind my ears just so I would have an excuse to look away from him, but he wasn’t an easy man to look away from.
He wasn’t beautiful like Callan, or even roguishly handsome like Arran and Dio. Dante was all rough edges and intense eyes. His stubble covered chin made him look a little rougher, but in the best way. His stare was so intense it made me feel fidgety for multiple reasons, all at once. He was dressed in black jeans, paired with a snug fitting black t-shirt that clung to every plane of his very apparent muscles beneath it. I followed his heavily muscled and veined, tanned arms down to his enormous shovel sized hands. He could likely pick my entire body up in just one of those things, I thought to myself. Everything about him was huge, and intimidating, and yet I felt strangely comfortable with him so close to me, which wasn’t like me at all.
While I always kept my wits about me, near men, I tried hard not to show openly the fear they invoked in me, never wanting to show my neck to them, as it were. But that didn’t mean that men didn’t scare me after the multiple bad interactions I’d had with them in my lifetime. And Dante should be terrifying me right then, but he wasn’t. It had been the same with Arran, despite him too having an imposing and threatening edge to his sheer size and looks. I had just felt some strange and unknown level of comfort at them both being close, which made no sense and made me sound insane, I knew.
“Here. Some water,” Callan said, distracting me when he set a glass of water down before me.
“Thank you.”
I busied myself taking a few sips, and by the time I looked up again, I was relieved to find Dante had turned his intense attention to filling the plate he now held in his hand.
“What is it, Rafe? You do realize it’s the weekend?” I looked up, startled again, and this time it was Gia who had stormed into the kitchen and smashed the door open.
“We’ll need to reinforce that door at this rate,” Terza grumbled, making me smile a little. I was sure she was pretty used to dramatics in this house.
“Come and sit down,” Rafe told Gia calmly.
“You know I don’t eat breakfast!” she cried as she flung her arms across her chest and stood her ground, still pouting.
“It’s not about breakfast. Now, come and sit down,” Rafe said more firmly. I was surprised when Gia actually listened and came to take the seat nearest to Dio. She was dressed in a tiny set of shorts and vest top pyjamas that were edged with lace and far too scanty - to my mind, anyway - with all of the guys in the house. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable sitting with my brother wearing so little, let alone men not related to me, but Gia didn’t seem to care.
“What is it, Rafe? I’m assuming all of the dramatics are for Cara’s sake,” she huffed with a deep roll of her eyes.
“This has nothing to do with Cara. I called you down here because I’m fuming with you right now and I refused to wait until you chose to rise from that pit you call a bedroom,” Rafe snapped. He didn’t lose his temper, but it was clear from his tone that he was angry.
“I haven’t done anything!” she cried as she looked around her nervously, her gaze ultimately landing on Dio, as if she felt he’d save her from Rafe’s wrath.
“Cara’s clothes?” Rafe prompted.
“What about them? I didn’t pick those, if that’s the problem,” she said as she threw a disgusted look at the hoody I was wearing. I tried not to be hurt by her disapproval, but it definitely stung.
“Cara is wearing Callan’s clothes right now because you didn’t buy her a bloody thing in her size! Would you care to explain?”
“I bought clothes in the sizes Dario gave me!” she defended herself as she looked to Dario innocently. I didn’t know her well enough to gauge whether or not the look was real, but the eye lash fluttering didn’t make it feel genuine.
“Try again, princess. I gave you the sizes and had you read them back to me. You had them all down correctly,” Dio told her firmly.
“Did you even try the clothes on? Just because one thing doesn’t fit, doesn’t mean it’s all wrong?” Gia said to me accusingly.
“I checked the sizes in most everything. It’s fine if you just made a mistake,” I tried to help her.
“If it’s fine then why are you down here telling tales on me?” she hissed angrily, and I felt crappy for even saying anything.
“Don’t you dare, Gia!” Rafe bit back. “I asked Cara why she wasn’t wearing her new clothes and she said they didn’t fit. She just assumed it was a mistake because you didn’t have her sizes. This has nothing to do with her. How could you be so selfish? I spoke to you, told you Cara barely had any clothes. You knewhow urgently she needed some essentials, and instead of helping her you looked out for yourself, as always! I’m so disappointed in you right now.”
“What’s new?” Gia sulked as she folded her arms over her chest again. “I’m always such a disappointment, aren’t I? No wonder you were so desperate to get little miss perfect back!” Gia stabbed a finger towards me with those words and I sat shocked speechless.
“Gianna! That’s enough. Don’t be so foolish. You know as well as everyone else here how much your brother loves you. That won’t change no matter how hard you push him, and it won’t change just because Cara is back. You should be on your knees thanking God that your sister has returned to you right now, not trying to hurt her!” Terza cut in angrily.
