“You’re an uncle now, Brando,” I said, my voice warm with excitement.
Even though Maxim, Giorgio, and Lorenzo had already heard the news, they still let out cheers and whistles. Brando’s eyes widened in surprise, his whole expression softening as the news sank in. A flicker of concern crossed his face quickly and was gone in a second.
He stepped forward, kissed my cheek again, then turned to Carlo and pulled him into a brief but heartfelt hug. “Congratulations.”
Carlo placed a hand on Brando’s shoulder. “And although it’s still very early,” he said, “Emily insists you should know that we want you to be our little doll’s godfather.”
Brando stilled for a moment.It was like the weight of those words hit him all at once. His piercing blue eyes locked onto mine... then Carlo’s... searching for confirmation. When he found it, a genuine smile slowly spread across his face, real and bright, lighting up the whole room.
“There’s no one better than you to look after them if anything ever happened to us,” I said, and started crying like a total idiot.
Brando was now looking at me like I’d lost my mind, so Carlo explained the situation with a chuckle. “Pregnancy hormones. Apparently, they crank emotions up to eleven.”
Maxim put on a mock-serious face and cut in. “Thank God none of us can get pregnant.”
Lorenzo smirked and jumped right in. “If you got pregnant, you’d fuck every woman in Italy in two rounds. Because the only feeling in you is pure lust!”
Maxim shrugged. “Can’t argue with that.”
“Shut up, you clowns,” Carlo muttered.
Brando was still staring at us with a strange expression, like he wasn’t quite sure how to process everything.
Carlo snapped his fingers in front of his face a few times. “Hey. Looks like the hormones are rubbing off on youtoo.”
That broke the tension.Brando smiled and stepped forward, wrapping me in a warm embrace. “Thank you, darling. Thank you for trusting me. I swear, I’ll protect this child with my life.”
He pulled back a little, his tone gentle but steady. “But I can also promise you this, nothing’s going to happen to you or Carlo. You’ll both live long lives and raise your children together.”
I wiped my tears and gave him a watery smile. “Thank you, dear Brando. You’re the best brother in the world.”
Then I turned to Carlo. “You’d better go. Brando wanted to talk to you.”
An hour later, the door opened and Carlo stepped in, but he wasn’t the same man who’d walked out. His jaw was tight, his teeth clenching over and over, a clear sign of how pissed he was. Brando followed close behind, his expression somber, more subdued than usual.
Without saying a word, Carlo crossed the room, poured himself a drink, and downed it in one shot. He slammed the glass down on the table with a sharp clink, then turned to Maxim. “Tomorrow morning, you’ll travel with Brando and Lorenzo.”
Maxim barely opened his mouth before Brando cut in. “Maxim is your consigliere and head of security. I can’t risk taking him with me. You need him here more than I do. I’ve already informed a few of my best men. I promise, there won’t be any problems.”
Maxim, suddenly alert like a tiger ready to strike, stepped closer to Carlo. “What’s going on?”
Carlo exhaled slowly. “Carmina’s dying. She asked Brando to see her one last time. She’s in a hospital somewhere in the U.S.”
Maxim frowned. “That’s dangerous.”
“It’s not. I made sure of everything beforehand,” Brando said.
Maxim didn’t back off. “Why even risk it? She was never a real mother to you.”
Carlo answered instead. “Doesn’t matter. She’s still his mother, and he has the right to say goodbye.”
Brando gave a small nod of thanks. Carlo ran a hand through his hair, frustration written all over his face. “Don’t stay any longer than you have to. I’ll call Noah tonight and ask him to support you if anything comes up. Be careful, brother.”
Brando gave him one of those long, unreadable looks. Then he placed a hand on Carlo’s shoulder and walked over to me. He bent down, kissed my cheek gently, and whispered, “Take care of yourself, little bird.”
I smiled, trying to mask the worry. “You take care too. And come back soon.”
Brando turned to glance at Carlo one more time. The way his gaze lingered for those few seconds felt... different. Like he was saying goodbye to more than just his brother. The look unsettled me. But I pushed the feeling away, blaming it on my hormones.
