After the doctor left the room, Dante pressed his palm to my stomach. It was too early to tell. We had to wait a few more weeks to find out the sex of the baby. It would be a surprise which of my guys fathered the child. They didn’t want to know, anyway. To them, this baby, and any future children, would be Lucianos.
Dante leaned in to plant a kiss on my lips, the passion behind it making my head spin. When our lips separated, I was breathless.
“Take me home,” I muttered. “I’m starving and need to rest.”
He smirked. “Anything for my queen.”
In the waiting room, we found Angelo, Stefan, and Nico. They had just as much of a right as Dante to be in the room with me. But for appearances, we agreed it was best to let Dante act as if he was the father. We already had enough attention on our family and didn’t need anymore.
Nico rushed over to us, worry furrowing his brows. “What did the doctor say?”
“We’re okay.” I ran a hand over my stomach and smiled. “The drugs Johnny’s guys fed me did no permanent damage.”
He breathed a sigh of relief, staring down at my belly. Angelo and Stefan also looked like the weight on their shoulders had disappeared instantly.
“Let’s go home.” I smiled at each of them. “We have a wedding to plan.”
* * *
On the night of our engagement dinner, my stomach was a mess. Despite my fear, they all seemed happy about the new addition to the family. They wanted a big family, and none of my guys even cared who fathered the child.
We would raise them as a Luciano.
That was all that mattered to them.
I heard Dante’s shoes tap on the hardwood floor in the hallway. Seconds later, he entered our bathroom. He’d moved all of my stuff into his apartment while I was still sleeping this morning. I never thought I would see Dante change for anyone—especially not for me. But he was taking our engagement and his new role within the family seriously.
Dante was all-in.
And all mine.
He entered the bathroom and put his hands on my shoulders, staring at me in the mirror. We didn’t speak, just looked at each other. Dante swiped a loose curl and fastened it into one of the diamond hair pins he bought me.
He looked gorgeous and dressed in a black suit that clung to his muscular body like a glove. Too tempting for words.
He cupped my shoulders, eyes fixed on me. “You look beautiful.” His fingers trailed down the length of my arm, leaving fire in his wake. “I’m a lucky man.”
I smiled at his words. “Yes, you are, Mr. Luciano.”
His hand skated down my neck and dipped between my breasts. Loving the feeling of his skin touching mine, I leaned back against his chest and breathed in his manly scent.
Dante buried his face in my neck and kissed my skin. “Your family just arrived.”
“It still feels weird to call them that.”
He shoved the hair off my shoulder. “The Vitales are your family, Ava.”
“Angelo said he will tolerate Carlo and Joey for me. But I know it must be killing all of you after hating the Vitales for years.”
His hands dropped from my body, and I instantly missed the loss of his touch. “This is what our father wanted.”
I spun around to face him, putting my hands on my hips. “You don’t have to marry me because of your dad.”
He inched toward me, pushing my back into the counter. “I’m marrying you because I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Because I can’t stand the thought of anyone else getting the privilege of having you in their bed, by their side.” Dante dipped his head down and sucked my bottom lip into his mouth. “You’re mine, Ava.” My heart beat so fast it felt like it was about to break through my chest. “If I didn’t want to marry you, I would have given you to my brothers.”
“Technically, you have.”
He shook his head. “You know what I mean. Stop trying to find reasons why we don’t make sense.”
