I’m betting it was after Caleb left to meet Anais.
“Good for you. He seems crazy about you, and I really hope it works out. You deserve to be happy.”
She looks miserable as she forces a nod, and my heart hurts for my bestie. It feels wrong for me to be so ecstatically happy when she’s dejected and heartsore.
Joshua glances over his shoulder, communicating with his eyes. I loop my arm through Elisa’s and we walk to the entranceway of Nat and Leo’s homey house. “Thanks for everything, Nat. It’s been a wonderful Christmas.”
Leo snorts out a laugh, and his wife shoots him the evil eye. He promptly shuts up, and I can’t hide a grin. Gotta love seeing a dangerous made man humbled by his wife. Someday, I want that to be me. To beus. My eyes are drawn to Joshua like a string being pulled between us, and I can tell he’s thinking similar thoughts. A rosy-red flush creeps up my cheeks, and I literally radiate happiness.
“We loved having you here.” Natalia bundles me into a hug. “Thank you, Gia. Thank you for bringing my son back to us. I couldn’t be happier you two are together. It’s the best Christmas gift of all time.”
“Enough conspiring.” Joshua pulls me out of his mother’s embrace to wrap me up in his. “And stop hogging my woman.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” His mom beams and wipes a tear before she wraps Elisa into a warm hug. She whispers in her ear as Leo saunters over to us.
“You kiddos take care in the city. Watch your backs and don’t take any risks. It’s dangerous out there.”
“I won’t be there for long,” I say. I’m mostly heading back to the city because my team is meeting up tomorrow night in honor of Aldo and Pisano, and I want to be there. “I’ll just pack up my stuff, say goodbye to my folks, and then I’ll be on my way back.”
“We look forward to having you stay with us, and you’re welcome for as long as you like.”
I reach out and hug him. “Thanks, Leo. I appreciate it.”
“You’re family, Gia. You always have a place with us.”
“Let’s hit the road before traffic builds,” Joshua says, nodding at his mom and stepdad as he walks Lise and me to his car. He helps Elisa into her seat as I climb into the passenger seat, and then he climbs behind the wheel.
We wave to his parents as we pull out, driving down the long entrance to the front gates.
Elisa falls asleep after ten minutes, and I lower the music so it doesn’t wake her.
“Is she okay?” Joshua asks in a low voice.
“She will be.”
“Do I need to kick my brother’s ass?”
“Is that a rhetorical question?” I lift my eyes.
“Do you want me to talk to him?”
“And say what? You can’t force someone to love.”
Joshua glances briefly into the back seat through the mirror. “He loves her. The only women Caleb truly loves are Mom and Elisa. It’s because he loves her that he stays away. He knows he’s not good enough for her. That he can’t give her the things she needs. He’s trying to do right by her.”
Yeah right. If he knew the things I knew, he wouldn’t say that. But Elisa made it clear she doesn’t want me or Joshua getting involved. And I think this was the breaking point. I think she’s finally ready to move forward with her life, and I’m not doing anything that might cause her to regress. She needs to forget about Caleb Accardi. He’s not the one for her.
“It’s a moot point now anyway. She’s over him.” I almost blurt about her date, but that’s not my business to share.
Joshua quirks a brow but doesn’t question me, and I’m glad.
“I spoke with Ben this morning, and we’ve had a little breakthrough.”
The leather squelches under my butt as I turn to face him. “What kind of breakthrough? Did my plan work?”
His face contorts into a grimace as he signals to move into the left lane. “Unfortunately not. None of the lies we spread were sent out into the community. Somehow, the rats knew it was a trap.”
“Well, that sucks.”
