“Do you want to try?”
Nicola nods hesitantly, walking closer to Art, and just like that, my boyfriend’s got the kid’s adoration.
“Touch your cheek like this when I say kiss, okay? Nacho kiss.”
The dog moves to Nicola and jumps to reach the kid’s face, hitting his mouth instead. The kid laughs. Such a pure, happy sound. I haven’t heard it in a while. When I turn toward Seb, he is staring at his son and at Art with curiosity in his gaze.
“Nicky, Uncle Luca and I brought you something back from Boston.” Marco lifts a paper bag and Nicola runs to him. He hugs him and then comes to hug me. He feels so small in my arms. Then he runs back to Marco and grabs the bag, looking inside with excited eyes and uncontrollable energy.
“Ohhh, you got him a train set, with rails, a station, even a rail crossing,” Fly exclaims. “There’s no space here, should we go somewhere bigger to build it?” He’s very good with him. Marco seems to think the same since he can’t stop staring at his fiancé with hearts in his eyes. So fucking weird seeing him like this.
“Me too! And Nacho!” Art jumps up and down, imitated by the dog. He makes Nicola giggle again.
Nicola looks at his father, silently asking for permission. When he gets it, he grabs Art’s hand and pulls him toward the door. My boyfriend blows me a kiss before disappearing.
Fly goes to Marco and wraps his arms around his neck, murmuring, “Hug me until I smell like you.” Which I unfortunately hear.
When he gets what he wants, he follows the others. Nacho doesn’t do the same, looking at me with those black, round eyes.
“Fucking hell, go!” I order him, watching him run out of the room.
“Do you still insist that the dog is not yours?” Marco teases.
“Do you still insist the cat in your penthouse is not yours?” I counter.
“That feral beast ruined one of my suits!”
“I remember Fly doing the same when you met,” Seb muses.
“Well, Fly doesn’t fucking claw at me.” He shows the long red scratch on his forearm. Doesn’t he? I saw the scratches he left on Marco’s back in the hotel suite we were staying in when we went to Boston.
“You, on the other hand, are fucking whipped.” He points his wine glass at me. I remember saying the same exact words to him after he got together with Fly.
“To a sickening degree,” he adds. “Your boyfriend has hickeys and marks all over his neck and shoulder. The fuck, man?”
He’s like that from getting cock and for belonging to me. I shrug.
“You think we don’t see the teeth marks you leave on Fly every time?” Seb interjects again, squirming in his chair.
It’s Marco’s turn to shrug. Pot, kettle, black.
“You really both found your cup of tea,” Seb declares, tilting his glass at us.
Tea? Art is more like a twistingly gorgeous flute of champagne. Will Seb ever find a tea of his own?
“Now, tell me about Boston,” the boss orders.
“Nothing else to add, unfortunately.” Marco sighs. “The Kings will be on the lookout, but there’s no trace of Jack Enzino.”
That bag of shit is still on the run. I don’t like it. Don’t like what he could do to Art if he gets his hands on him. By now, he must have heard he’s under our protection.
“He’s wanted by the police, too. Casper let me know they traced the name of the corporation on the title deed of the house with the backyard full of Mario’s corpses to Jack Enzino. The Yakuza and Bratva are looking for him as well—we will find him. They will come for lunch so we can talk about how to proceed,” Seb reminds us. “Keep a guy on Art if he goes out, just as a precaution.”
I nod. I’m grateful that Seb recognizes him as one of us. Art did smooth things out with the Corettis in the last month. His friendship with Aurora, the Donna Coretti, seems solid. I reckon that helped Seb’s liking toward him since he becameil capo dei capitwo weeks ago, thanks to Aurora’s agreement to it.
“Aurora stepped into the role of capo with no problem,” I say. Art was right, she is a ballsy leader, respectful, and a little unhinged, but on our side since we saved her life.
“Donna Coretti has offered us to use her shipping company for moving our weed and laundering as a thank-you for stopping the wedding. Doppi was also grateful that we brought his son justice by killing Mario and for returning the body to the family. He’ll retire as soon as Donna Coretti and her fiancé get the hang of things.”
