“Don’t get mad, but I spoke with your father earlier.”
She stiffens in my arms and attempts to pull free, but I clamp my arms around her, keeping her where she is.
“I didn’t give him anything. I told him I would explain it when I could, but you were under my protection and by extension his family was too. He accepted it at face value, and he’s agreed to keep this confidential. A team of twenty men should be landing in Detroit shortly. They will keep your family safe. Nina too, I promise.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“You’re precious to me, and I know how much you care about your siblings and your cousin. I wanted to give you peace of mind in case Dominic is using them to threaten you. Is he?”
She shakes her head, and I know it’s a lie. I work hard to temper my frustration. “You don’t have to be scared, Valentina.” I caress her face. “Whatever it is, I can protect you. Dominic doesn’t have half the resources or the smarts I have. I can easily outwit him, but I can’t do it blind.”
“There isn’t anything else to tell. But thank you for taking care of my family. It definitely gives me peace of mind.”
She’s not going to give in now, so I drop it for the moment. Let her think it through and hopefully whatever she is hiding she’ll feel comfortable telling me soon.
“I know your relationship is fractured with your parents, but your dad was really upset and worried about you. I didn’t give him details, only to say your marriage wasn’t a good one and I’d removed you from a bad situation. I warned him not to call Dominic. I told him we were handling it and it needed to be kept on the down-low.”
“He was only saying that because it was you. My dad hero-worships those in leadership. He’s probably building a shrine to you as we speak.”
Her words are tinged with bitterness, but there’s a lot of pain too. I won’t ever push her to reconcile if she doesn’t want to, but her father was genuinely upset, and he didn’t come across as an uncaring man. If he was a prick like mine, I’d understand it, but I think he thought he was doing right by his eldest daughter, that she had the prospect of a better life with a wealthy underboss than marrying asoldatoand leading a simpler life. I suspect Dom has been keeping her from her parents on purpose, but I could be wrong.
“He cried on the phone, honey.” I brush hair out of her eyes. “It didn’t appear to be an act.”
She worries her lip between her teeth as her face contorts painfully before smoothing out. “I really don’t want to talk about him, Fiero. It hurts me too much, and what’s done is done and can’t be unchanged.”
“I didn’t bring it up to upset you.”
“I know you didn’t.” She turns into me, resting her head on my shoulder. “Can we go now? I want to climb to the top of the Statue of Liberty.”
“There are one hundred sixty-two stairs to get to the top. Sure you’re up for it?” I joke, wanting to defuse the tense situation.
“I’m more than up to the challenge. It’s why I’m wearing sneakers,” she says pointing to the new pink sneakers resting on the floor at her feet.
“Okay.” I stand with her in my arms, carefully setting her down. “I just want to ask one final thing and no more talk of the fat fuck for the rest of the day. How many men will he take with him for protection?”
“You mean coming here?”
I nod as I place her in the seat and crouch in front of her to put her sneakers on.
Her brow furrows as she thinks about it. “He has little regard for thesoldatidespite how he acts with them. He won’t lose any sleep over his men, so I guess he’ll bring at least eight, maybe ten.”
I had a similar figure in my head. “We’ll be prepared.” I hold out my hand. “Come on, we’ve got a busyday ahead of us.”
28
FIERO
I’m lost in thought as I check my weapons in my office while waiting for Zumo and Caleb to arrive. Dominic’s plane is due to land at La Guardia shortly, and he’ll be here within a couple of hours.
Yesterday was one of the best days of my life. Valentina loved my Harley, and I’m picturing regular bike rides, hikes, and picnics in our future. I’ll probably invest in another motorcycle. One that caters specifically for passengers because most of the bikes in my garage were chosen for speed, not comfort for passengers. Apart from my sisters, I’ve never taken any woman out on one of my bikes. Feeling Valentina pressed all up against me from behind, her slim arms locked around my waist, and hearing her whoops and hollers had blissful contentment seeping bone-deep.
Seeing the awe in her eyes on Staten Island and the childlike exuberance on her face as we stood at the top of Lady Liberty and admired the spectacular view is something I’ll never forget. I took her to the Top of the Rock too, and we looked down on Central Park from up high. A quick trip to St. Patrick’s Cathedral rounded off our sightseeing, but there is still so much to show her.
When everything has settled down, I’m vowing to take her everywhere. I loved introducing her to The Big Apple, and I can’t wait to show her all the other magical sights of my city. We stopped at a local Italian restaurant on our way back to Long Island, sharing antipasto and the most delicious meat cannelloni, before heading home where I spent the rest of the night buried deep inside the woman I love.
It’s easy to get jaded with this life. To forget the simple pleasures. Having Valentina in my life reminds me to appreciate and enjoy the minor things I tend to take for granted.
“Any news?” Valentina asks, materializing in the door of my office. Her eyes skim over the rifles, equipment, and boxes of bullets strewn across the table.
