Only Remo and Nico know the true extent of the hell I’ve been going through since Sienna broke things off with me.
Even though Remo is two years older than me, we clicked during high school. Where it took Nico some time to learn my moods, Remo caught on instantly. He has an uncanny way of being able to read my mind.
“I know.” When he hands me another tumbler of bourbon and takes a seat across from me, I shake my head. “I wish I knew what was going on in Sienna’s mind.”
“Maybe you should consider letting go. Things are tense between the two of you at every gathering, and the others are noticing.”
I shoot my friend a glare. “Don’t even go there, and I don’t care what the family thinks.”
“Why Sienna?”
He has asked me the same question over a hundred times, and every time the answer remains the same. “Because there’s no one else who makes me feel the way she does.”
I take a sip of the amber liquid and savour the burn at the back of my throat. I stare at the crystal tumbler as flashes of the woman who has me tied up in knots race through my mind.
Her beauty is serene. Whenever I see her, she instantly calms the violence in me.
Her fragility calls to the monster inside me, bringing forth such an urge to protect her that it overwhelms me.
Her people-pleasing nature makes me want to lock her in a safe place where no one can abuse that side of her.
I once watched Sienna pet Bullet, Dad’s rottweiler, like he’s a damn puppy and not a trained killing machine. The dog rolled over and let her love on him for as long as she wanted. She had the same effect on Bullet that she has on me. Just like the dog, I’d happily roll over for her.
If only she’d let me.
The reasons I love her are endless. There isn’t a single thing about her that’s a turn-off.
“Sienna is…my opposite in every way. She makes me feel…” I pause as I try to think for a moment. “She eases the storm inside me. Without her, there’s only darkness.”
Remo lets out another sigh, giving me a compassionate look.
Before he can say something else, I order, “Change the subject.”
His features grow serious, and just as I think he’s going to harp on about my obsessive love for Sienna, he says, “I ran into Valentina and the kids today.”
Only Adriano, Remo’s older brother, and I know Remo once had a crush on my sister. Unfortunately, she was already married to Will, her high school boyfriend, whom I don’t like at all.
When she told me she was marrying the spineless weasel, who knows nothing about the workings of the Cosa Nostra, we had such a big fight we almost stopped talking to each other. Dad had to play mediator between us.
I still think she could’ve done so much better, and Remo certainly would’ve been my first choice for her.
I raise an eyebrow at my friend. “Yeah?”
“I popped into the mall to upgrade my phone when I saw her walking with Asher and Talia. She looked exhausted, and when I grabbed her arm to get her attention, she almost had a heart attack.”
“So, you scared her.” I shrug to indicate I’m not following.
“She startled badly. The kids as well.” He leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “My gut tells me something is wrong.”
“I’ll check in on her and the kids,” I say to set his mind at ease.
Silence falls between us for a few minutes, then he lets out a chuckle while shaking his head. “Look at us, Christiano. Pining after women who don’t want us.”
“Mine wants me. Sienna is just fighting it for some reason,” I set him straight.
“Yeah-yeah.” He climbs to his feet. “Come on. Let’s spar. I need to get rid of some energy.”
Drinking the last of the bourbon, I set the tumbler down on the glass coffee table, which is situated between the couches, and get up.
