Page 96 of Captured Innocence

Both Joy and I snapped our heads in her direction then toward each other. “Whoa. Hold on here. Her?”

Lucia bit her lower lip, threw a glance to the door, then grinned like a kid at Christmas. “Don’t you dare tell Dar. We were determined not to find out, but my doctor blurted it out yesterday.”

Joy squealed, racing toward the couch, thumping down and giving her bestie a hug. “Congratulations. Now you have the perfect family!”

Perfect. The word wasn’t in my vocabulary. I chewed on my lower lip, the longing pulling at everything inside of me. I had a secret too, but a horrible one I had yet to tell the man I loved. It would crush him. “That’s so amazing, big sis. I’m so happy for you.”

“Then why do you sound like you’d prefer going to the dentist to have your teeth pulled?” Lucia asked, narrowing her eyes.

“I’m just worried.” I refused to allow anything else to cloud the situation. I had to keep my wits about me. I was one hundred percent positive that the tattoo was a key to finding the asshole. I just needed to clear my mind. The fucker hadn’t wanted me to see it. In fact, he’d been furious that I’d exposed it that day at my apartment in Paris.

“We both are,” Joy said then grumbled under her breath. “So, Enzo doesn’t want to find out the sex either, which I think is crazy. I need to paint the nursery.”

“Same here!” Lucia laughed.

“When are you going to tell him?” I did everything I could to be happy for them. They both deserved it.

Lucia had a wicked grin on her face. “Maybe when we have a wedding celebration? Huh? Are you really getting married to your fabulous hunk?”

I had to give her credit. She’d tried to accept that I loved him. “He hasn’t asked me yet, but he did sign a contract with Papa. It’s all but a done deal.”

Her eyes opened wide. “Our father was such an asshole. Thank God a man you care about came to your rescue. And I assure you that Mattia is going to ask. The way he looks at you is as if he’s going to devour you whole.”

“You mean exactly the way D’Artagnan looks at you?” I couldn’t help but laugh. She was right. Mattia had come to my rescue countless times. Would he do so again? I could only pray he wouldn’t need to.

“Well, if only we could have a champagne toast because I have a little secret for my man as well.” Joy stood, rubbing her tummy.

“Then you need to spill it. We could use all the good news in the world.” I meant what I said at this point. I’d tried to remain optimistic, but it felt like the world was crashing down on us.

“She’s right,” Lucia pushed. “Spill it.”

Joy acted like she was going to keep it to herself until I lunged toward her, laughing. At least it was good to be able to do so with family. The word was so foreign to me but amazing.

“Okay. Okay!” Joy backed away then tears formed in her eyes. “We’re having twins. A boy and a girl.”

The silence in the room was almost terrifying.

“What?” both Lucia and I said at the same time as we rushed toward her. There were hugs all the way around and for a few precious seconds, everything almost felt normal.

Then it was as if a blanket fell over us, an ugly reminder that we were waiting for a monster to appear from the shadows.

“I know. It’s hard to believe,” Joy said. “Maybe we will plan a huge party after this shit is over.”

“I’d like that.” The knot in my stomach remained.

Another quiet moment settled in, the tension tearing at all three of us. It had been almost three hours since we’d heard from the brothers.

“I don’t like the games the Ghost is playing,” Lucia said as she moved toward the window overlooking the pool. “Or our men for that matter. They’re going to get themselves killed.”

I immediately rose from the chair behind the desk in Enzo’s office, heading toward her. “You need to rest, sis. You know what the doctor said.”

“I’m fine. I’m just not a patient woman. Besides, I have a conference call in twenty minutes.”

“You’re not supposed to be working.”

She shook her head. “I’ve worked too hard to make the business special. I can’t let it go without a fight.”

Joy gave me a look and headed toward her best friend, guiding her to the couch. “You are going to sit your butt down right there. I’ll bring you your phone when it’s time. Then you’re going to rest. If not, you don’t get access to your phone. Do you understand?”

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