Page 38 of Roman

I rubbed my eyes. “I know. I had to hand-feed her last night to get food into her.”

There was silence, and I looked up. Aldo was staring at me. “You hand-fed her.”

“She wasn’t eating.”

“I often don’t eat, and you don’t feed me.”

“You don’t look like Effie,” I replied.

“And how exactly does she look?”

“Like she needs to be looked after.”

He stared again. I met his gaze. “I have to make sure she is okay before I let her go.”

“Which will be when?”

I reached for a file. “When I decide the time is right. Now, are we working or gossiping?”

He chuckled. “I’d say we’re falling, but I don’t want to get slugged.”

“Fuck off.”

“Okay, boss. Now, what is next on the list?”

A couple of days later, we were back in the same office, planning. Effie was still upstairs in my suite, and Vi was coming to see her again. Effie had been sleeping a lot, and I made sure she ate, ensuring the kitchen sent up a couple of the protein drinks to her during the day along with her meals. She checked with her staff a few times, but they were handling the place well in her absence. Effie told me she liked to read, and I bought her a Kindle and a subscription to an all-you-could-read service she liked. It kept her happy and quiet, and I often glanced at the computer when I was out of my office to see her asleep over the device. I liked watching her sleep for some reason. Her peaceful naps seemed to help calm me. I knew she was looking forward to seeing Vi today, though. Last night she’d been restless, asking about going home again.

She hadn’t liked my response.

Aldo’s phone rang, and he stood, strolling to the other side of the office. He leaned against the wall, a tender smile on his face. “Hey, baby. How’s your day going? Having fun?”

Covertly, I watched him. His indulgent tone, the smile, the softness of his actions with Vi were something I was still getting used to. He had totally changed since he’d met Vi, his protective nature coming out full force. The emotions he had always kept under wraps were evident in every aspect of their relationship. Nonna adored Vi and was thrilled Aldo had found someone. He had been around so long, he was another one of her boys.

He listened for a moment, his gaze skittering to me, then back to the carpet he suddenly found interesting. “I don’t think that’s gonna fly, baby.”

I could hear Vi’s voice, the tone pleading. He glanced my way again.

“Are you really gonna make me ask him?”

“Ask me what?” I demanded.

He pulled the phone away from his ear. “Effie needs some things. Clothes and girl stuff.”

“Tell Vi to order whatever she wants.”

“Vi wants to take her shopping.”

I shook my head. “No.”

Vi began to yell, and Aldo put her on speaker. “You can’t keep her in this room, Roman! And women like to look at things and try them on! Not order all of it online and get shit off Amazon. The outlet mall has lots of great places. We’ll take a couple of men.”

“No. She is not leaving this building,” I snapped.

“You stubborn bastard,” she snarled. “All right, then. I’ll take her downstairs to the hotel boutique and the spa. We won’t leave the building.”

“You still get two men.”

Vi huffed out a long, annoyed sigh. “Fine.” Then her voice changed. “Aldo, I’m going to spend some cash.”