Page 74 of Heaven Help Me

“That was the most badass thing I’ve ever seen you do,” he whispers into my hair.

Betsy and Mary London pat my back and offer encouragement, even when I don’t let go of Deuce. I don’t think I’ll ever let go.

“I hope you get at least three blow jobs tonight,” I whisper in his ear, pulling back just enough to bounce my eyebrows suggestively.

His heated grin shoots straight to my heart. “Have I told you lately how much better your insults are getting?”

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Deuce

We should have seen this coming.

And under normal circumstances, we would have. But Valentina got cleared by the doctor, and wouldn’t you know it, she wanted to show her appreciation by keeping me up all night. I lost track of the number of orgasms I gave her and how many she dragged out of me. It was heaven. It was bliss.

The first light of dawn comes with a banging on my front door that is decidedly not bliss. Valentina sits up with a start, her dark hair a messy halo around her gorgeous face. Not even a residual black eye can mar her looks.

“I’ll get it,” I grumble, sliding out of bed and into a pair of boxer shorts.

“It’s Bettina.” Her voice is throaty and quiet and exactly the kind of tone that makes me want to jump back into this bed with her. It’s the actual words that stop me in my tracks.

“Shit.”

“Yeah. Wait for me. I’ll come down with you.”

So the banging continues while Valentina and I get dressed. There’s no time for splashing water on our faces or combing hair. Bettina won’t care anyway. She purposely arrived this early. It’s a strategy of hers I’ve come to know very well: catch your adversary on their back foot so you have an advantage. But I’m not her adversary. I’m her son.

I’m not sure she knows the difference.

We throw open the front door, shoulder to shoulder in both physical and emotional lock-step. We’re in this together. We are officially and forever a we.

Bettina is also not alone, but her escorts are far from a partnership. The two men in all black stand two steps behind her, darting eyes taking in every possible threat, not an ounce of emotion on their faces.

“Betty,” I drawl, resorting to the bored playboy persona that’s always worked best around her.

Bettina’s gaze darts between us. Whatever she sees causes her eyes to roll and then she’s pushing past us, sure I won’t stop her from invading my house. The bodyguards try to enter as well, but I stop them by stepping into their path and putting up my hand.

“My mother will be perfectly safe with me inside.” My tone brooks no argument. They don’t look happy, but then again, no one does in my mother’s presence.

When Valentina and I get to the living room, my mother is already sitting on the couch, legs crossed, designer snakeskin boot already flicking up and down. Impatience and anger practically crackle into the air from every pore. I gesture to the chair for Valentina and choose to stay standing next to it.

“To what do we owe the pleasure, Mother?”

She slams her foot down on the floor. “Cut the shit, Deuce. Why are you both ignoring my calls? Do you have any idea of what I’ve been trying to clean up in New York thanks to your clumsy disposal of Fazio? I’ve had to ferret out his minions as they run in all directions.”

A laugh bubbles up from my chest, but there’s no humor in it. I put a hand on Valentina’s shoulder. She’s so pissed she’s practically levitating out of her chair.

“I’m sorry our kidnapping and brush with death has foiled your plans this week.”

Bettina rolls her eyes again. “Oh, please. Fazio wouldn’t have hurt either one of you.”

“What about Marcel though?” Valentina says, her voice icy cold. “Maybe he wouldn’t have hurt your precious son or the woman he’s been obsessed with his whole life, but he could have very easily harmed Marcel.”

That seems to have broken through Bettina’s callous exterior. “I had no idea he was in such bad shape or that Fazio knew he was your father.”

“That’s the thing, Betty. The way you live, there are always unintended consequences. Collateral damage. And I thought I made this clear many years ago, but I want nothing to do with that life any longer.”

Bettina lifts her nose in the air. “I had to keep Valentina safe. You’re both very important to me.”