Page 50 of Unwilling Vow (Mafia Marriages 4)

19

Jace

There’s an obvious tension between us, and I’m not sure if it’s because Olivia thinks that I sleep around or if I missed the mark entirely.

Was it a bad idea to invite her to go baby shopping with me?

I like spending time with her. That shouldn’t be a crime. She’s fun to be around in a way that I’ve never experienced before.

I don’t usually keep women around. It’s not that I despise dating, but it’s hard when everyone knows you’re wealthy. Women typically throw themselves at my feet for my fortune.

They don’t want me. They want what I can offer them.

Olivia is different.

It’s what I like about her. From the first time we met at my office, she didn’t look at me like I had the key to the kingdom and an entire treasure she could get ahold of. Sure, she knows I’ve got boatloads of money, but she’s oblivious to the other powers that I hold.

Especially, the darker ones that are far more sinister. It’s best to keep her in the dark.

What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. Isn’t that the truth?

“You’re quiet,” Olivia says as we stroll alongside one another under the harsh glare of fluorescent lighting.

I’m pushing a cart, not because I’m planning on buying anything specific, but because it seems the right thing to do. I don’t expect Olivia to push the cart.

I purse my lips. “Do you have enough maternity clothes?” I ask.

She cocks an eyebrow and stops walking. “We’re not shopping for me,” Olivia says.

She’s right, but I don’t want to admit it. I keep strolling down the aisle for the newborn clothes. It’s too early to tell whether it’s a boy or a girl.

Do I even want to know the sex before the baby is born?

I want a son, an heir to the Barone family, but raising a kid. Fuck. I don’t know a damn thing about how to do that.

Why did I think being a single father was a grand idea while also being a don?

What the fuck was I thinking?

Olivia snaps her fingers in front of my eyes. “Where’d you go, Jace?”

She can’t know my doubts and fears.

Don Caruso is still out there. I have a security detail on Olivia anywhere she goes. I have my men shadowing me everywhere I go.

Except they don’t live with me. They didn’t need to.

My house is separate from my work.

The compound where my men live, interrogate ruthless savages, and command the city isn’t far from my home. But I like to keep business separate from pleasure. And my house makes it easy to bring women home for a wild night without a thousand and one questions.

At least it did until I met Olivia.

She doesn’t know about the compound, and I don’t intend on her discovering it either. There’s no need with the protection that I’ve put on her, a bodyguard everywhere that she goes. It’s a necessity after learning about Luka’s threats.

I’d kill the bastard if I could get inside his home without being detected. But it isn’t that easy. He has dozens of men, ready with guns to slaughter me.

Wordlessly, I wander with the shopping cart toward the newborn apparel. “Any hints on whether it’s a boy or a girl in there?” I offer her a smile. It’s friendly and warm, but all I feel is fear.

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