“The great thing you’ve got going for you is that when shit hits the fan, you’re able to leave. So, over time we’ll work on getting you off the property little by little,” I reassure him.
“Maybe one day,” Andre half-ass agrees.
We spend the next three hours talking about all the things that we want for our future and our future babies until Vito comes to the door and enters the code that unlocks the panic room door, giving us the all clear. Andre takes my hand, leading me out of his office to the kitchen where we scrounge up something for dinner. It’s not long before Vito, Loretta, Bryce, and Miss Tina join us. We sit around the small kitchen table laughing over stories of our childhoods. I sit back, looking at everyone’s faces smiling because, for the first time in I don’t even know how long, I feel like I have a genuine family.
Loretta leans over towards me. “I know that look. It’s the look of someone who has found their home.”
I glance at her out of the corner of my eye. “And you know that because you see the same looking back at you in the mirror?”
Loretta looks over at Vito, whose eyes are already on her. When they make eye contact, the man winks at her, shocking the ever-living shit out of me. A blush starts at the top of her head, making its way down her face and into the collar of her shirt.
“I do in fact see the same look in the mirror smiling back at me,” she says quietly before standing and making her way over to him, sliding into his lap.
The man doesn’t even stop his conversation with Bryce, but he shifts so she is comfortable, wraps his arms around her to make sure she is settled and happy. Glancing over at Andre, I find him listening intently to Vito and Bryce, but it’s as if he can feel my eyes on him because his gaze snaps to mine. I don’t say anything, just continue watching him.
He cocks an eyebrow in question.
I give a small one-shoulder shrug.
Andre’s smile is breath-taking then he shifts his legs apart, holding his hand out to me.
Not giving myself the chance to chicken out, I reach over and take his hand as I stand, moving to sit in his lap.
When I’m comfortable, I lay my head on his shoulder, exhaustion swamping me. Andre looks down at me with concern written on his face.
“Are you sure you’re okay? It’s only been two days since your fall, and you’ve been sleeping a ton. Do we need to have you checked for a concussion?” Andre’s concern knocks away more of the wall around my heart.
“In the first trimester, it is common for the mother to be completely exhausted. Add to the fact that she’s supposed to beon bed rest, and sleeping is exactly what she needs to be doing,” Miss Tina answers for me.
The table goes silent around us. Vito and Loretta are staring at us like we’re zoo animals, and Bryce is grinning like the cat that got the cannery.
“Are you pregnant?” Loretta gasps.
I nod.
“Holy shit. That’s freaking awesome! I’m going to be an auntie!” Loretta screeches, bouncing in Vito’s lap.
Vito leans into her. “Does this mean you're done being mad at me and are going to marry me?”
Loretta goes statue still before bolting out of his lap, out of the kitchen, and down the hall laughing as she goes. Vito sits there, not going after her.
“Are you going to go after her?” Tina asks him.
A sly grin curves on the right side of his face. “I like to give her a ten-second head start. That way she feels like she has a chance.”
He slowly stands, making his way across the room to go after her. Bryce looks between us and the door that Vito just left through, eyes wide.
“I swear you all are the weirdest and kinkiest assholes I’ve ever met,” Bryce grumbles, standing from the table. “I’m going to do a lap and check on the men. I’ll see y’all tomorrow.”
“Night,” we all call.
Looking up at Andre, I kiss him on his jaw. “I’m going to head to bed too. I’m so damn tired.”
“Let’s go, Tesoro,” Andre agrees, helping to my feet as he gets to his.
I lean over, hugging nurse Tina hard before I go. Andre and I walk up the stairs to his room in silence, both too tired to fill the silence. As soon as we make our way into his room, I go directly to his closet, strip out of my clothes and pull on one of his T-shirts, and Andre goes into the restroom. Once I’ve changed, I crawl into bed, thinking I’m going to wait for Andre to get out and then do what I need to do. I mean, that was the plan. Instead, I passed out while sitting at the end of the bed.
Thirteen
