Nicolo doesn’t sit. Of course he doesn’t. He stands near the wall, arms crossed, his presence filling the room like a second shadow. Too broad, too steady, too…much.
The vet, a kindly older gentleman with silver hair and wire-rimmed glasses, smiles as he slips on gloves.
“First vaccine today,” he says in accented English. “We’ll start her on a course. You bring her back in two weeks, si? Then again for boosters next month. After that, annuals.”
He scratches Duchess gently under the chin, and she melts instantly. Traitor.
“And she looks healthy otherwise,” he continues. “Good appetite?”
“She ate some leftover turkey this morning,” I admit, glancing at Nicolo’s glower out of the corner of my eye. “She practically inhaled it.”
The vet chuckles. “Good sign. Strong appetite. She will grow fast.”
Duchess lets out a soft squeak as the needle goes in.
My chest squeezes, and I whisper, “Brave girl. It’s okay.”
She burrows against my sweatshirt when it’s over, purring like nothing happened.
The vet scribbles something onto a chart, then looks at me again. “Is the name that we have on record the correct one?”
I stroke her head. “Yes. It should be.”
The vet smiles as though it suits her. “Duchess, then.”
Beside me, Nicolo exhales, sharp and quiet, like he’s trying not to comment. But I catch the faintest flicker in his eyes when they land on the kitten tucked against me—and under the look of irritation, it’s almost as if he approves.
Almost.
I square my shoulders, meeting his gaze head-on. “You can’t get rid of her now. She’s officially mine.”
He doesn’t answer, just pushes off the wall, looming closer, the edge of his cologne cutting through the antiseptic air.
His voice drops, low and steady. “I’ll soon be rid of both of you when your brother says you can go back to New York.”
I bristle at his tone, but mask it by rolling my eyes.
Instead of firing back with something sharp, I turn my attention back to Duchess.
24
NICOLO
THREE DAYS LATER
She’s completely moved her attention to that creature that she called Duchess. Should’ve known that was all it would take to get her off my back.
I should be grateful. Should enjoy the quiet for however long it lasts.
But instead of doing the sane thing and going back to building my empire, I stand by the window watching her.
She’s in the garden, laughing like the world outside these walls doesn’t exist. That yellow dress clings to her like it was made to torment me, the hem flirting with her thighs every time she bends to scoop the kitten up. Her hair is loose today, tumbling over her shoulders like sunlight made tangible, catching on the breeze. She looks so bright, it hurts to look at her.
The kitten bats at her fingers, and she coos, soft and unguarded, her mouth curving into a smile I’ve never once seen aimed at me. She doesn’t know I’m watching her from here.Doesn’t realize how reckless she looks, a beacon in a world full of men who would gut me just to get close enough to touch her.
My phone buzzes on the desk behind me. Urgent. Business.
I don’t turn. Because for one dangerous second, all I want is to stay right here watching her.
