I blinked back tears, moved beyond words at his declaration. I was about to reply when the front door was shoved open, a frantic-looking Maddox stalking into the room.
“What the fuck?” he roared, his gaze wild as it landed on me and then his father. “What are you doing here? Why is she crying?” he demanded, his breathing labored as though he’d run from somewhere.
“He didn’t make me cry. Well, he did sort of,” I blathered. “But in a nice way.”
“Just checkin’ on your girl until you could get here, Mad,” Axel assured him calmly. “I’ll leave you to it.”
Father and son exchanged a look that stated Mad had his work cut out for him.
“Thanks, Axel,” I murmured.
“Anytime, darlin’.” He nodded, and with a final chin lift to his son made his way to the exit.
“You scared the shit outta me,” Maddox exclaimed, ripping his hand through his hair in agitation.
His admonishment sparked my anger.
“You don’t get to tell me to be careful. Youliedto me.” My words were a pained whisper as I churned my whisk violently through the batter.
“I didn’t lie.” His voice was quiet, determined. “I just didn’t share.”
I scoffed, shooting daggers at him. “To me they’re one and the same.”
He nodded. “You’re right. I knew Angelo had a niece.” His admission had me bracing for the rest. “I was curious about you. I can’t say why. I didn’t have any sort of ulterior motive. I didn’t plan to seek you out but when my bike broke down near where I knew your bakery was, I found myself going inside. Then, sweets, swear to God, you looked at me and I was done for. I think I fell in love with you on the spot.”
I looked up at him, surprised by his admission, my hand poised over the bowl. He looked tired, dark circles making his eyes look even brighter as he stared back at me.
“If I told you I knew who you were, you would have dismissed me on the spot.” He raised a brow, challenging me to argue. I remained silent, knowing he was right. I would have shut down immediately had he told me then. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t have told me soon after. “And I’d never wanted someone or something so badly in my life,” he continued vehemently. “Maybe it was the wrong decision, and I know I should have told you since then. But I swear, baby, it was nothing more than me being so stupid in love with you. I was afraid to do anything to risk that. To risk you.”
“How much did you know about me?” I demanded.
“Not a lot,” he replied. “Gunner was doing some digging into the Rossi family. All I knew initially was that you ran the bakery and didn’t seem to associate with the rest of your family. I wondered what your story was, if you were lonely.” His voice was soft, tender as I tried to reconcile his concern and the fact that he’d lied to me.
He took a step in my direction and in another moment, he was standing in front of me, coaxing my body to face his so that he could look into my eyes. The whisk was still clutched in my hand, smearing batter on both of us as he drew me closer. “That day I first walked into the bakery, you became my world. All I wanted to do was to protect you. Maybe I went about that the wrong way, but that was where my heart was at.”
“You should have told me,” I replied dully. Some of his words had gotten through, but I was still hurt, immensely so. “What happens the next time you feel like you could lose me over something? Or need to protect me? Will you lie then too?” I challenged. “Will it be up to Stephanie to tell me the truth?”
His eyes sparked with anger at the mention of her name. “I will always protect you,” he vowed. “But I swear, I’ll never lie to you again. By omission or otherwise. And as for Stephanie, if she wasn’t a woman there’d be a hell of a lot more retribution coming her way. As it is, she’s been forced to leave town and she won’t be welcome back. Ever.”
I stared at him, my emotions in turmoil.
He wrapped his arms around my waist. “You and this baby matter more to me than anything on this planet. I’ll work every day to deserve you both.”
I sucked in a surprised breath. “I didn’t realize you knew.”
He looked down at me, his eyes shining with a contentment I hadn’t seen in him before. “I forced it out of them.” He shrugged without apology. “I was freaked the fuck out that you were sick and I didn’t know why. They said the baby looks good? That you’re okay?” His expression was cautiously hopeful.
I nodded. “I’ve been feeling off for a few weeks now. I thought it was just stress. But it got much worse yesterday.”
“How could you not have told me you were feeling sick?” he demanded.
I looked down at my hands, knowing I should have probably told him. “I didn’t want to worry you. You’ve been working so hard on the bakery and trying to take care of things with my uncle. I didn’t want to put more on your plate.”
“I’m your man.” His statement was a forceful growl as he gripped my hips for emphasis. “I will do whatever needs to be done to take care of you, always. It’s my right and my fucking privilege.”
The air hung heavy between us, thick with tension.
His hand dropped to my belly. “You were already everything I ever wanted—now you’re giving me the greatest gift, one I didn’t even know I needed and now already can’t live without. You can’t keep things from me, Francesca. I need to be able to take care of you and our baby. Do you understand that?” His nostrils flared as he swallowed hard.
