Page 13 of Till Death Do Us Part

“No,” he tells me bitterly, his steely gaze narrowing on mine. “I have no interest in fucking anybody else for the time being. And I expect you to stay loyal to me too. There can be no men, Pippa. If I find out another man has touched you sexually, I’ll kill you both. I don’t particularly care one way or another about you as a person, but I do care about my reputation. Fuck it up and you’re dead.”

My mouth gapes, my hands clammy as his words take effect. There isn’t a single part of me that believes he’s lying.

Before I can respond, a door opens on the other side of the room and Leonardo steps into the lounge, dressed in black dress pants and a black shirt. He sends a wink my way, rolling the cuffs of his sleeves to reveal thick ink-covered arms.

“Pippa,” Antonio snaps, pulling my attention back to him. “Do you understand?”

I swallow nervously, a lump in the back of my throat. Coughing to get rid of it, I finally answer, “Yes. I understand.”

Later in the morning, I stand on the runway, watching as my family exit their car. My hands twist in the hem of my sweater, tears springing to my eyes.

“We’ll miss you, sweet girl,” Sofia whispers into my ear, hugging me the moment she reaches me. A tear falls over my lash, but I swipe it away quickly, fighting to keep the rest at bay. The last thing I need to do right now is cry. The flight to New York is at least eight hours. If I start to cry now, I fear I won’t stop. “You’ll let us know the moment you land.”

“Of course, I will.” I squeeze her tightly for a long moment, longing to take her with me. She pulls away, running her hands down my arms until they’re holding mine. There’s a smile on her face, but it doesn’t hide her sorrow as tears spill over her cheeks.

“You’ll behave. Please, Pippa, promise me you’ll behave.”

While I am not sure that is a promise I can make, I squeeze her hands and nod anyway. “I will.”

The private plane comes to life behind me as Antonio’s men make their way up the stairs. Wind whips at my hair, the strands that have fallen out of my clip slapping against my cold cheeks. I squeeze my eldest sister’s hands once more before moving to hug Elisa and then Rosa. They cling to me for longer than necessary, but I make no move to push them away.

“Give em’ hell, kid,” Rosa whispers, winking at me as they move away, leaving me alone with my father.

“La mia dolce, bambina,” Papá whispers, pulling me into his body and wrapping his arms around me. The scent of whisky and cigars hits me, and I breathe him in, my eyes filling once more. “I will miss you very much.”

“I’ll miss you more, Papá.”

“Not remotely possible,” he tells me earnestly, his voice dry with emotion. “Be good, and be cautious, bambina.”

“Always.” I nod, stepping back and patting my thigh to show him where my gun is stashed—the perks of flying private. He sighs, though a chuckle slips from his mouth.

“You’re going to be the death of me, child.”

“Ti voglio bene, Papá,” I whisper, my voice cracking under the weight of my words. While my sisters and I can speak fluent Italian, we prefer to speak in English, unlike our father who often slips into his native tongue. He gives me one final hug.

“I love you too, my sweet little girl,” he finally responds, his eyes glassy as he pulls away from me.

Taking a deep breath, I spin on my heel and walk the few steps towards the stairs of the plane. Leonardo comes up beside me, his hand pressing into my lower back when I turn to look at him. “You ready for this, Princess?”

CHAPTER FOUR

TheflighttoNewYork takes longer than it should, thanks to turbulence, so by the time the wheels drop, exhaustion hits me like a tonne of bricks. I close the book in my lap, stifling a yawn when I reach for my bag and drop it inside.

The door opens, letting bright sunlight filter into the jet—a welcome change from the cold dark sky back home. Standing, I brush my hands over my thighs, tossing the bag over my shoulder before making my way to the door.

“Welcome to New York,” Antonio says while taking his leave down the stairs. I scan the runway, though there is little to see beyond a handful of black SUVs awaiting our arrival.

Taking the handrail, my steps are cautious as I make my way down the stairs; the tiredness in my bones makes me more unsteady on my feet than usual. Which is a difficult feat, considering I am already clumsy at the best of times.

Antonio gestures for me to follow him into the second car, his arm propped against the open door. Forcing my feet to move quicker, I stumble over the last step, but a long arm wraps around my waist, halting my fall. “No wonder death doesn’t scare you, Princess. You’re a walking disaster.”

I snap my head up, my eyes locking on Leonardo’s as he stares down at me with an amused grin on his face. He keeps his arm around me, helping me down the last step. As we reach the ground, I let out a slow breath before thanking him.

“What did I tell you about thanking me?”

“If saving me from breaking my face is not worthy of a thank you, I can’t help but wonder what you consider is.”

“I guess we’ll find out at some point, won’t we?” he ponders aloud, letting me go and pushing me towards Antonio. The latter steps aside, letting me slide across the backseat before stepping in beside me. I rest my head against the leather, closing my eyes as the rumble of the engine lulls me to sleep.

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