His face turned red as he balled his hands into fists. “If you think I’m leaving here tomorrow without you and my daughter on my goddamn jet, you are out of your fuckingmind!” And he blew. This was how I expected Ciro to react. Primal and possessive.
“Just get it all out, Ciro. I won’t have you yelling or swearing in front of my daughter.”
“My daughter!” he roared. “Ourdaughter!” Ciro heaved, and I saw the resolution in his eyes. He wouldn’t give up until he got what he wanted.
My chest rattled with emotion. I’d pushed him too far. Why couldn’t I keep my mouth shut?
“Just calm down,” I told him in a calm voice. “I’ll be ready in ten minutes.” I left Ciro there with his hands on his head. I’d take the full ten minutes to give him time to get himself under control.
I’d poked the bear.
Would he bite back? Slay the threat to his livelihood?
Punish me for betraying him?
20
CIRO
Why hadI thought she’d make it easy for me? After all, she was the one who had betrayed me. I felt like a goddamn idiot for giving her the benefit of the doubt. Isla had been the sweetest, most caring and supportive woman. She’d literally do anything I asked without questioning me.
But I could tell motherhood and being a single mom had changed her. She gave off mama bear vibes. I couldn’t deny it was hot as fuck, and I admired her more than ever before.
If I didn’t pull myself together, I’d lose her for good, along with my daughter. I wouldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t lose them. If I had to force her to be with me, I would.
I took out my phone from my pocket. I’d felt it vibrate twice while Isla and I had our heated discussion. It was probably Paolo wanting to know the plan for today. Knowing him, he had slept in the car instead of returning to the hotel. He’d never leave me unprotected.
Opening my messages, I hadn’t expected to see a message from Courtney. Jesus, what were the chances she’d pop up atthe worst fucking time? It’d been months since I heard from her. The second text was from Roman.
I opened my brother’s…
Roman: Did you see her? Rosa heard you’re in SF again. Did you tell her about Isla?
Ciro: I’m at Isla’s now. I meant to tell Rosa but forgot.
A small lie. I didn’t forget, I avoided the topic. After finding out my father’s former lover was to blame for my mother’s murder, I spent a few days obsessing over it and talked about it non-stop. My family knew I was searching for information about Cara Clemente. Discovering I might have a daughter had been easy to hide.
Roman: What am I supposed to say when she questions me?
Ciro: Say nothing or tell her I’m following up on a lead.
Roman: Yeah, ok. Stay calm. Don’t fuck up again.
Ciro: Don’t plan to.
The nosy bastard was fishing for information. I wanted to tell him and my family about Pippa but decided to keep it to myself, especially after Padre’s heart attack. I didn’t want to get his hopes up. He needed to focus on recovering and I didn’t want my drama to distract him.
I hesitated a second before opening Courtney’s text…
Courtney: Ciro, baby! I miss you! How are you?
Should I or should I not reply? I was dealing with a delicate situation, one that Courtney unknowingly played a part in, and could potentially make worse. Hedging on the side of caution, I ignored the text and put my phone back into my pocket.
I met Courtney the year before Isla and I got together. We had a good time, but I knew from the get-go the only thing keeping us together was booze and sex. She liked to party and partied hard with drugs, something I didn’t like. When she found out about Isla, she went off the rails.
We had a friends-with- benefits arrangement, and it suited both of us for a while. Or so I’d thought.
Isla entered my life when Courtney was out of the country on a six-month modeling tour. She didn’t take the news of Isla well. Apparently, she was in love with me and tried to make me choose between her and Isla. It was fucked up.
