Primal sex is honest sex.
Gina understood it now. The hunter inside him didn’t want only her body, and he’d said as much.
“I want the shiver in your voice when you realize I see you, fully. I want that ache you feel when your mind’s being pulled open before your legs ever are.”
He did see her.
Matt saw her like no one else ever had, not even her.
What they shared together was special—a most sacred bond. And now that she had it, Gina wasn’t about to let it go. She’d fight tooth and nail to hold on to it forever, so too fucking bad if Tony or anybody else didn’t approve.
It’s their problem, not yours.
Coating her lashes with mascara, Gina leaned into the mirror. That’s what she told herself, anyway. Everyone, including her eldest brother, was downstairs. She could hear him. His voice, louder than the others, drifted down the hallway.
Even though she was exhausted, she dragged her ass out of bed at three in the afternoon. Her mother expected her to join the family for dinner before she had to work her fourth of six twelve-hour shifts in a row. She’d skipped Mass again this morning, so she knew better than to further her ire. Besides,with Teo, Nick, and Luca here to back her, this might be an opportune time to tell them about her and Matt.
If any photos had surfaced, Gina hadn’t seen them.
And if Tony had said anything to her parents, she’d certainly know it.
But even she knew, time was not on her side. In the eight days since the concert, her brother had been marinating on what he knew, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. It’s how he rolled.
You’re fearless, remember?
Gina wasn’t going to let him have it.
She grabbed her work bag and strolled down the stairs to pour some coffee and ready herself for what was sure to come. Teo stood at the kitchen counter, muttering to himself as he slammed down the remains of a bottle of Lambrusco.
“That bad, huh?”
“No worse than usual,” he said, tossing the empty bottle into the trash with a shrug. “Tony’s in there, all full of himself, bragging about how he got us a deal for a place over on Clark Street.”
“So, Wrigleyville’s a go, then?”
“Looks like it.” Teo turned away from her and pulled Mom’s salad bowl out of the fridge. “Dad’s talking about opening by September.”
“But that’s a good thing, right?” With her hand on his forearm, Gina glanced up at him. “You won’t have to work with him anymore.”
He scoffed. “Yeah, well, at least there’s that.”
“Has Tony said anything about Matt? Made any underhanded comments? Hinted at all?”
“Oddly, no, but you gotta know he will.” With a snicker, Teo put the bowl in her hands. “He’s probably been waiting for you so he can make a grand spectacle out of it.”
Yeah, ’cause he’s a dick like that.
“I’m gonna tell them before he does.”
Teo’s brow lifted, his hazel eyes widening. “Right now?”
“Might as well.”
“Oh, shit,” he muttered with a chuckle, then, composing himself, Teo hugged her to his side. “It’s gonna be all right, Gi. I got you.”
The room went silent as she took her seat at the table. She spooned a couple of meatballs onto her plate and helped herself to some salad while wondering how to broach the subject. Gina just wanted to get this over with and go to work.
She didn’t have to wonder long.
