Page 61 of Mafia and Protector

“I had some business to talk over,” he said, walking over to kiss his sister’s cheek and give her a hug.

Jessica looked from me to her brother, noting the tension between us. “Do you have time for a coffee?” she asked hesitantly.

Jacob gave her a tender look. “Sure Jess. Coffee sounds good.”

Throwing a last glare at me, he headed back inside the house and I left for my meeting.

CHAPTER 19

JESSICA

A couple of weeks later, Rafael and Gabriel’s fourteen-year-old siblings, Nancia and Nate, came to stay for a few days.

The twins had a week off school, and while Nancia had some time to relax, Nate’s time was mostly going to be taken up with training in preparation for his initiation into the Società. He’d be going to work each day with Rafael and Gabriel, as well as working on his weapon skills.

“What do you think Nancia might like to do today?” I asked Rafael, as I made breakfast and we waited for the twins and Gabriel to come down and join us. “Do you think I should take her shopping? Or perhaps she’d like to go get our nails done?”

“She’ll probably like going shopping one day, but she’s also quite an outdoors sort of girl. She loves coming here because we have the horses and she can ride. She adores horses and she’s always been annoyed that father won’t let her have a horse at home and that she has to be driven to a local stable every time she wants to ride. She would much prefer to have her own horse—she even likes doing the mucking out and feeding and all that stuff.”

“It’s a shame Nate can’t spend the day with us too.”

“He’s got a lot of training to do over the school break. He’ll be initiated next year and there’s a lot for him to learn in the meantime.”

“It’ll be nice having another girl to stay and I’m looking forward to us doing stuff together.” It would be an opportunity to relax and do some fun things.

It pleased me that I was being accepted into the family and that Rafael wanted me to spend time with his siblings. When he’d first found out about the attack, I’d been afraid that although he said he wouldn’t pursue an annulment, he might not want me mixing with his loved ones. I had been worried how my being impure would affect our relationship. I’d always wanted children and I’d been afraid that Rafael might not think I would be fit to be a mother to his children.

However, here we were now, trying for a baby. Things were finally turning around for me, and I still found it hard to believe how well me and Rafael were getting on.

I couldn’t wait to have a baby. I knew I shouldn’t, but I was already obsessing a little about getting pregnant. I really wanted children and I had read that stress could prevent conception from occurring, and I had definitely been through a lot of stress lately.

I was forcing myself not to think about what had happened and I had even started doing yoga each day in an attempt to ease my anxieties. Having Nancia stay would keep me occupied and hopefully lead to me relaxing a bit more.

That day, I took Nancia to get our nails done and then out for lunch. We had a good time together and I was glad that I was getting on well with one of Rafael’s siblings. She was only fourteen years old, and I liked her childlike innocence.

That evening after dinner, we decided to watch a movie in the den.

The guys were already in there sitting on the couches while Nancia and I made popcorn in the kitchen before we joined them. The guys had bottles of beer, but I was avoiding wine and alcohol now that I was hoping to conceive, not that I was much of a drinker, apart from the occasional glass of wine with my dinner.

Nancia sat between Gabriel and Nate on one of the huge couches, while I walked toward Rafael who was on the other couch. As I approached, Rafael reached out his arm, indicating the space next to him.

After hesitating for a moment, I sat down next to him, letting myself press up against him and relax into his embrace. I could sense Gabriel and Nancia watching us, making me blush slightly. So far Rafael and I had not gone out in public much, and even just in front of Gabriel we were very hands-off.

“What are we watching?” I asked, trying to move everyone’s focus away from me and onto something else.

Nancia was allowed to choose, and she picked a recent comedy about cops in New York.

I was surprised—I thought she’d choose a girly film about princesses or some suchlike.

“Jeez, Nance, not another cops and robbers movie,” groaned Nate. “And you’ve already watched this one anyway.”

“Have you seen this movie, Jessica?” she asked me.

“No, I haven’t. In my household, family movie night always consisted of watching The Godfather movies or reruns of The Sopranos.”

“That sounds like a typical mobbed-up Italian family,” Gabriel laughed. “Nancia is a bit different though—she’s obsessed with cops, the FBI and the CIA.”

“And horses,” chipped in Rafael.

---