Page 69 of In My Blood
Exhausted, I gave up and slammed my hand down on the ‘stop’ button on the treadmill, stepping off shakily. I had barely managed five kilometres and I felt like my heart was going to beat right out of my chest, it beat so hard and fast. I was sweaty all over and my ribs despised me for putting them through the agony they were throbbing with.
I just about managed to stumble on wobbly legs to the centre of the room, then I flopped down exhaustedly on to the soft mats, and grunted at the pain that move caused in my side. I dropped flat to my back to try and ease the pain. I was completely done in, laid out on the ground like a starfish, just trying to catch my breath.
I’d barely been laid there a minute when I heard my voice being yelled. I struggled to lift up onto my elbows and looked to the door just as Cal ploughed through it like his arse was on fire.
“Fucking Jesus Christ!” he panted as he paused close to my feet and just looked me over.
“What the heck is going on?” I asked with an amused smile. I loved how frantic and winded Cal looked. It was so opposite to how calm and cool he had been most of the day before.
“Dante called…he saw you on the cameras…he said you collapsed,” he gasped as he held his phone, which he had in his right hand, up to me.
“I didn’t collapse…well, not in the unconscious sort of way anyway,” I assured him, still feeling out of breath myself.
“CALLAN! ANSWER ME RIGHT NOW!” Dante boomed so loudly through Cal’s cell phone, that we could both hear it loud and clear.
“Maybe you should deal with him,” Cal said as he leaned in and handed me the phone, then sat down beside me.
“Dante?” I said as I cautiously brought the phone to my ear, ready to tear it away if he yelled again.
“Cara? Are you alright? Are you feeling unwell?” he asked all at once.
“I’m fine, big guy,” I assured him with a smile. “I just wore myself out on the stupid treadmill and decided to have a lie down while I recovered. You were watching me?”
“Not watching you. Checking on you. It’s my job to keep you safe, even when I’m not there.”
“Where are the cameras?” I asked as I looked to Cal. He pointed up to the corner of the room and I saw a tiny white box that was barely noticeable.
“There are cameras on that floor and the three above, in every room. Above that we just have them in the hallways. Rafe didn’t want them in the bedrooms,” Dante told me, clearly not happy about any part of this house not being surveilled at all times.
“Gotta say I agree with him on that,” I told him.
“You shouldn’t push yourself that hard. You were too exhausted. You’re still healing. In future, you don’t go to the gym without one of us with you,” he told me bossily.
“One of you?” I questioned as I tried to keep the smile from my face, knowing he was watching me. But it was hard to do when I found his directness, and grumpiness so endearing. He had been checking in on me despite the fact he wasn’t even in thehouse. Maybe to some that was stalkerish behaviour, but to me I thought it was kind of sweet.
“Me, Rafe, Dario, Arran, or Callan if no one else is available. Your family. We’re the ones who will take care of you. You come to one of us if you need something. No one else. Just us. Understand?”
“Yes,” I agreed, knowing he needed to hear that answer. “Where are you?”
“Working. I’ll be home soon. No more exercise. Hand the phone to Cal,” he ordered, and I just laughed out loud.
“Okay, Mr. Demanding. I’ll see you later.” I was still laughing as I handed the phone off to Cal, who brought it to his ear even more hesitantly than I had done.
“Dante?”
I don’t know what Dante told Callan, but Callan seemed to be doing a lot of agreeing. I left them to whatever they were discussing – me, I suspected – and laid back down flat again. I had caught my breath now, and Dante had brought a smile to my face. I knew the grumpy arse likely wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but he was mine. I liked the way he spoke to me. He wasn’t rude. He was just honest and direct. I could handle that – more than that, I enjoyed it. I’d never been great at reading people’s true intentions, but with Dante I felt like I didn’t need to.
“He’s an odd one, huh?” I asked when Cal ended the call and tossed his phone down on the mat. He collapsed back to lie beside me, then chuckled.
“You could say that, but he means well. He’d never hurt any of us, and he’d do anything to protect this family.”
“I can believe that. Is there a reason he is the way he is? Or is that just him?”
“That is definitely just the way he is. What you see is what you get with Dante. He’s always been like that as long as I’ve known him. I have questioned before if he could have some kind of Aspergers, or Autism, but I would never dare to suggest it to him.”
“Did you ever meet his dad, Enzo? That man used to terrify the stuffing out of me. He was a monster.”
“No. Marcello and anyone who was loyal to him were all long gone by the time Rafe took Arran and I in. Dante doesn’t talk about his past either, but I get the feeling it was bad. Rafe told me once that Enzo started training his son to be a mafia enforcer from the age of ten. Can you imagine what that kind of training would entail? It makes me shudder just to think of it,” he told me.
