“None,” Lucky reassures him. “I know how to lose a tail in thirty seconds. I missed my calling as a professional race car driver.”
“Maybe in your next life,” Alessio quips, then turns to me. “Isla, meet Camilla and Bianca, our sisters. Girls, this is Isla. She’s best friends with Priest’s wife Luna, her maid of honor, and the current cat sitter for our resident ball of fur, Cid.”
I notice that he doesn’t bother introducing his mother. Camilla is the one with about an inch on her twin’s height, so I make a mental note of that.
“Nice to meet you,” I say with as bright a smile as I can manage, given the fact that we’re in a subterranean bunker to avoid the lethal Russian mobsters who may or may not be trying to kill us all.
I even manage a wave in his mother’s direction, not wanting to be rude. The girls greet me with a chorus of hellos.
“Isla, this is our mother,” Lucky adds in, giving Alessio a look. “Antonella Rossi.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Isla,” Antonella says softly.
She doesn’t look like I’d picture a Mafia wife looking. No teased hair, no gold hoops dangling from her ears or chains at her neck. She’s understated and sophisticated, and it’s easy to see why she has such beautiful children. The woman herself is gorgeous.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” I tell her.
Alessio tenses up even more but doesn’t speak to Antonella directly. Instead, he turns to Lucky. “You can put her in the bedroom at the end of the hall. Bianca and Camilla will be next door and across the hall. Give them the rundown on how this place works.”
Lucky nods. “Got it. Mom, Bianca, Camilla, follow me.”
So he calls Antonella Mom, and Alessio refuses to acknowledge her existence or even refer to her as his mother? Hmm. Interesting.
Camilla flashes me a smile. “See you in a bit, I guess?”
“Yes,” I respond, even though I’m not sure if I will see her.
I don’t know what Alessio expects of me, and it’s obvious that he’s very raw where his mother is concerned. This must all still be a lot for him to process. He’s had a major shock of surprise half sisters and the return of his mother after so many years, andthen on top of things, the Bratva have been waging a Mafia war in Priest’s absence.
He’s got a lot on his shoulders right now. I don’t want to be one more burden or source of stress.
He waits until Lucky and his sisters and Antonella are safely down the hall and ensconced in what will be Antonella’s room before tugging me by the hand toward his bedroom.
“What are we doing?” I ask breathlessly as I struggle to keep up with his long-legged strides.
“We’re getting the fuck out of here the only way we can.”
He pulls me into his bedroom and kicks the door closed behind us. Then he’s on me in the next breath, pinning me to the door, kissing me like he’s starved for me. I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him back with equal abandon, the desperation that’s been kept at bay all day long finally bursting free. So much has happened, but all I want to think about is Alessio.
And Cid.
Shit. I have to think about Luna’s fur baby too.
I move my head to the side, but Alessio is unfazed. His lips find my throat instead.
“What about Cid?” I manage. “I’m not even sure where he is.”
“He’s down here somewhere.” Alessio sucks on my neck the way he did in St. Thomas, and I’m dead.
My clit pulses in response.
“Couldn’t have gotten lost,” he croons.
“But he might be lonely.” My willpower is lessening by the second. Soon, it’ll be nothing but smoke, gone up in flames.
“He has four new people to spoil him. Let him be their problem for now,” he growls against my skin. “He can hide under a chair and pounce on Antonella’s ankles.”
His hands are on my hips, cradling them in a possessive way that melts me and makes me forget that we’ve both just unloaded some heavy shit on each other, between my past andhis mother. I try to respond, but I’m finding it difficult to process anything other than the lust raging through me.
