Page 68 of Hired By the Consigliere

Aurora took my hand and squeezed, offering me a weak smile. “I’m fine but he’s going to realize we’re gone soon. We need to go.”

“I don’t know if we can all fit in this car.”

“We’ll make it work.”

Teo sat up front with the driver while Aurora sat in my lap, Luna sat uncomfortably in Luca’s lap while Alessandro was nearly crushed in the middle. It was extremely uncomfortable.

“I’m starting to get a feeling for how those clowns feel, all cramped in those small cars.”

“We just need to get to the nearest car rental, and we will get something big enough for all of us to drive the rest of the way home.” Teo glanced back at us.

Once we made it to the car rental shop and rented a spacious SUV we were able to drive more comfortably the rest of the four hours home. During our drive, we took the time to sort out all the details of what had happened between what Luna could tell us, what Aurora's father had told her, and what we remembered, we were able to piece together what had happened.

“So, Romano discovered the DNA test results and decided instead of giving Aurora back to me, he would take her to her father, who gave him a reward as well as agreed to set us up for Romano,” I summarized once all of the pieces were put together.

“Romano wasn’t with the group of men who attacked us earlier. The coward sent his men instead,” Teo said more to himself than to us.

Once we were finally back at the Venturi compound, Matteo and Alessandro got the guards up to speed so that they could be on the lookout for any new threats while we went inside and used their guest rooms to clean up for dinner. I couldn't wait to get Aurora home but the compound was more secure so we decided to stay there until we knew for sure whether or not her father would be making another move.

Chapter 28

Aurora

I took a seat at the dining room table for lunch and waited for Enzo and the others to join me. I was the first to arrive but staying at the Venturi’s compound meant more company for lunch than I was used to. It was nice spending time with everyone, but I really wanted time alone after everything that had happened. Enzo came in just as the server poured my drink.

“Ciao.” He leaned down and kissed my cheek before taking the seat to my left. “Teo and Mia won't be able to make it for lunch. It's just going to be us.”

“Oh okay.” I took a sip from my glass while the housekeeper brought in two plates of chicken paninis with antipasto, and we happily dug in.

“I've invited Ludovic and his wife to my club this evening."

"Have you spoken to him since everything that happened?"

Enzo shook his head. "I tried calling but he was out of town with his wife. I'm hoping I can talk to him in a casual environment and explain what happened with you and that I had no choice. Maybe I can salvage this..."

"I'm sorry."

Enzo looked at me with surprise. "For what?"

"For ruining everything. For letting myself get taken...I was just so upset—"

"None of this is your fault. I'm the one who should be sorry. I said all those horrible things. They were just to throw him off your trail but still..."

I forced a smile and took Enzo's hand, giving it a little squeeze. "How about we agree to blame Domenico instead of ourselves?"

"That sounds like a good plan to me." Enzo gave me a weak, yet genuine smile and squeezed my hand in return.

"Do you want me to accompany you to your club with Ludovic?"

"If you're up to it. It would be good to remind him who was at risk."

I nodded and took a sip from my water glass. "Do you have an idea of when?"

"I'll let you know as soon as I have an answer from him."

"Okay. Hopefully it will be long enough that this hideous bruise will have faded."

Enzo cupped my cheek and lightly brushed his thumb across the purple and blue skin that was just starting to show signs of an ugly green color around the edges.

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