Page 157 of Lovely Venom

The Vitales are as close as a family can get. They might argue at every meal and trade barbs like it’s their full-time job, but they will go to the ends of the earth to defend each other. And while the mood is lighter and everyone is happy, I haven’t missed the suspicion lingering in Angelo’s eyes when he looks at me.

He doesn’t trust me, and that can only end one of two ways. Either they’ll accept me for who I am, or I’ll cause a divide between the two brothers.

The thought makes my stomach churn, and I lose my appetite before I can even finish a quarter of what Nonna put on my plate.

“Not hungry?” Cristian looks over at me in concern.

“I ate what I could,” I answer indirectly, hoping he doesn’t notice the shift in my mood.

But of course, he does.

For the rest of the meal, I catch him checking in on me, and I try my best to forget my problems for a while. I really don’t want to dampen the mood.

When Rafe gets up to take a call, Abella comes over and steals his chair, eyeing the marks on my neck.

“He gets bitey when he’s feeling possessive.” I shrug.

“Must be a genetic trait.” She laughs.

Cristian squeezes my thigh, quietly indicating he heard that even though he’s listening to Michele tell a story.

I can tell Abella wants to pepper me with more questions, but before she gets the chance, Angelo glances up from his phone and meets Cristian’s gaze.

“Ares is here. He wants to talk.”

It’s the news we’ve been waiting for, and I’m anxious thinking I probably won’t hear it firsthand. Men in this world usually like to talk business alone. But Cristian surprises me when he takes my hand in his.

“Ready?”

I nod, and Angelo doesn’t appear to be happy with this development, but he doesn’t argue.

“I’m coming too,” Mariella says.

She ignores Angelo’s sigh, seemingly determined to get to the bottom of whatever Ares is up to.

Eventually, Rafe, Michele, and Romeo also join us, and we all head out to the open-air courtyard together.

Naturally, Ares is sitting there completely unbothered that he’s in enemy territory.

“I’ve heard so much about the famous Vitale hospitality over the years,” he drawls as we sit across from him. “But I can’t say I’m impressed. I save a man’s life and don’t even get an invite into the house?”

Cristian looks visibly annoyed, and I’m already worried about how this might go.

“Why don’t you tell us how you knew about the boat to begin with?” he says. “That seems like a good place to start.”

Ares’s smile falters slightly, and for once, he looks conflicted about whatever it is he’s about to divulge.

“Well, through no fault of my own—” He pauses to emphasize that part. “I had the unfortunate circumstance of having a traitor in my midst. As you know, these things happen occasionally⁠—”

A chorus of angry Italian and a few choice words eject from the Vitales before Mariella takes the lead.

“This isn’t a fucking joke.” She glares at Ares. “My brother almost died. So you better start explaining yourself before I⁠—”

“Mariella,” Angelo cuts her off. “Let’s hear what he has to say before we start threatening to chop him up.”

Ares’s gaze slides over her, something dark smoldering in the depth of his eyes. “Someone woke up with a little bite in them today. If you’re in the mood for some role play⁠—”

“For fuck’s sake,” Cristian grits out. “Just tell us what you came here to say.”