She reached for my hands, her fingers warm and steady as they grasped mine. “You did what needed to be done, boy.” Her words landed heavy in the air, full of truth rather than the condemnation I half-expected.
“I wish it could have ended another way,” I admitted. A week had passed since David’s death, and while the sharp edge of guilt had dulled, it hadn’t vanished completely. It didn’t rule me or distract me, but it fucking lingered. We’d grown up together. Sure, we’d never been particularly close, but we’d been playmates until school and life separated us. And now he was dead.
Another stark reminder of the cost of leadership.
Aunt Valentina squeezed my hands gently. “David wanted the crown, and he was willing to risk his own damn head to get it. He knew the cost of betrayal, and he went into this ill-advised scheme with his eyes wide open. He simply underestimated you. To his own peril.”
“Yeah,” I sighed, nodding because what the fuck else could I say? There was nothing I could say to her about killing her son that would ease her pain, no matter how well-deserved his death was. No matter how necessary.
She flashed a sympathetic smile as if reading my thoughts. “All is well again, Lorenzo. Ella is safe back at school. Lena is coping as best she can, given everything. And,” she began with a half laugh, “she has been staying with me.”
That surprised me since they’d never been all that friendly, but I kept my surprise to myself. Grief hit everyone differently, and if they needed each other to get through David’s death, I wouldn’t judge.
“You are back where you belong,” Aunt Valentina pushed on, interrupting my thoughts. “This is how it was always meant to be. How your father and our father pictured things.” She patted my chest once, the move full of affection. Then she kissed both of my cheeks before she smiled. “Come on, everyone is waiting.”
The family was already gathered. It was the first family dinner since Matteo and I got back.
Luca, my brother-in-arms, was there along with all the other important people that made up the DeRossi organization. Trusted advisors mingled with lieutenants and family members; even loyal associates sipped DeRossi wine as they smiled and made conversation. Everyone in this room had earned the right to be here through loyalty or blood—in many cases, both.
The room fell silent as I stepped up to the head of the table with Luca at my right side and Ren on my left.
She looked up at me as I took my place, her smile warm and calm, like she belonged here too, not as an accessory to my life but as an integral part of it. Matteo sat beside her, leaning close and whispering something that made her laugh softly.
He watched her like she was the best thing he’d ever known. And maybe she was. The love that showed between them never failed to steal my breath. He’d been so young when Sofia died, and he’d never had that motherly connection with any of his previous nannies. Not even with Aunt Valentina.
California would be a big adjustment for Ren, I knew it as well as she did, but she’d already made herself at home in small ways. She asked questions to make sure she understood everything before she made any changes around the house. She learned and watched and did her best to fit in without changing who she was.
It only made me love her more.
Dinner was a chaotic affair with bottles of wine flowing freely, loud conversations at every end of the table, and smiles all around while some Italian opera played softly as background music. Everyone was happy that tensions had eased, but they needed to hear the words.
From me.
I stood. “For years,” I began, my voice carrying easily across the room, “this family has weathered storms because we understand, we havealwaysunderstood, that loyalty isn’t optional. It’s survival.”
Murmurs of agreement rolled around the table.
“The Russians are still a problem,” I continued. “But without inside information, their leverage has vanished. Their operations in Southern California are slowly unraveling. They think they’re still in charge, but for every move they make, we hit back just a little harder. They will learn, quickly, that they cannot fuck with the DeRossi family.”
Laughter and applause followed, loud and approving.
“To do so means an untimely end.” I smiled back at all the happy faces and raised my glass. “To family and friends, those still here with us and those who are not. To the past that shaped us and the future we protect fiercely. To old family and new.” I smiled as expected, but I couldn’t help thinking about my father, my wife, and even my cousin—three people who should have been here but weren’t. This life demanded choices, and not everyone survived those choices.
It was the nature of this life.
Cheers roared around the room, and more bottles of wine were opened. This was what it was all about, the fighting and the deals—it was to protect this.Family.
My family.
When the room settled once more, I reached for Ren and tugged her to her feet with a soft smile, wondering what I’d done right that the universe had given me a second chance with her.
She looked at me as she stood, eyes bright and trusting as I pulled her close, hooking one arm around her waist. “What are you up to?” she whispered.
“Serenity Majors,” I began, ignoring the way my heart pounded in my chest. My arm tightened around her, grounding myself in the feel of her soft curves pressed against my side. This was where she belonged. Where she’d always belonged.I should’ve fought for her.“This woman kept my son safe so I could focus on protecting everything my father, and his father before him, built.”
The room stilled.
“She is the reason I am standing here today.”
