But before I can rise from my chair, the door to my temporary office flies open and the twins stride in.
“You are not going to believe the juicy bit of information we just picked up,” Raf says, looking more alive than I’ve seen him since the day his wife died.
Sandro, on the other hand, looks half beat to hell, his lip bloody and a shiner darkening his left eye.
His hair is wet, dripping with sweat would be my guess, judging by the pair of boxing shorts that peek out from the waistband of his joggers and the towel draped casually around his bare, tattooed shoulders.
“You’ve been at the fighting pits,” I observe dryly, quirking an eyebrow because we all agreed they were too dangerous after the stunt the Murrays pulled.
There’s an unspoken rule in underground fighting that what conflicts might arise between families on the streets are to be left at the door—or sorted out in the rings.
But still, the Murrays run the bare-knuckle fights, and seeing as they were part of the force that came barreling through our front gates to burn down our family home, we came to a consensus that we would take a break from attending until things cooled down.
Or so I thought.
“I tried to talk him out of it,” Raf says, waving a dismissive hand at his twin as he stops in front of me. “But you know Sandro. There was only so long that was going to last.”
Rising from my chair, I cross my arms over my chest as I scowl at my two younger brothers. “And what would have happened if the Murrays decided to hold you there?” I press.But who am I to judge my brother for his inability to stay away?It would seem a lack of discipline when it comes to impulsive urges is a trait that runs in the family.
Because I know that even if I’m not happy that Sandro’s started fighting again, I’m still going to visit Stephanie as soon as I’m done scolding him about it.
Guilt twists in my gut when I consider my decision. Sandro might be risking his own life by going against orders—but I’m risking hers every time I go near her.
No doubt, that’s why she wanted to start a new life without me.
My dark thoughts spiral as I consider the potential ramifications of my actions.
I have enemies—more now than ever.
And if I go to visit her, I could be leading them right to her doorstep.
But I’ve been careful.
Aside from that first day, when I wasn’t even entirely sure it was even her, I’ve made certain no one was following me.
“Gio.” Raf snaps his fingers in front of my face, calling me back to the present.
I was so caught up in my own thoughts, I didn’t even hear what he said.
“Is something wrong?” he asks, his enthusiasm dampening slightly as concern flits across his face.
Wrong?
Everything is wrong.
Our family is in shambles, the men who were meant to be ruling it either dead or gone, and the woman I love is back from the dead and pretending she doesn’t know me.
But how do I say any of that?
It’s not my brothers’ burden to bear.
“Sorry,” I mutter. “You’re going to have to repeat that.”
The only pushback I get is an eyeroll before Raf jumps right back into his story, his enthusiasm blatant in his growing volume. “I went with Sandro becauseI’mnot an idiot and knew it was a bad idea to start mingling with the Irish again, so I wasn’t about to let him do it alone. But while he was getting his ass handed to him in the ring?—”
“Hey,” Sandro objects behind Raf, but Raf just keeps going.
“I struck up a conversation with one of the guys we used to be pretty close with back in the day.”
