“Very few of them are untraceable.”
“Most of our options are only traceable if you look for them specifically. Neither Nina nor we will ask for a thorough exam.”
“Our uncles might,” Matteo said with a twisted grin.
“Then we’ll handle them.”
“When?”
I’d considered our options. I wanted him gone as fast as possible, but we needed to figure out the perfect timing, not to mention that I still wasn’t sure who should put the poison in his drink. “Father’s suspicious. We should wait a few days at least. Maybe we can wait until Gottardo or Ermano come for a visit. We can blame them if the poison is detected.”
“I assume you don’t want to involve Nina.”
“I don’t trust her. She hates Father and wants him gone, but once he’s dead, she might put the blame on us.”
Matteo and I discussed a few more details before I grabbed my phone to talk to Father about Grace. As expected, he wasn’t fond of the idea of me asking the Senator to banish his daughter. I couldn’t wait to kill him.Matteo came over for dinner that day, to Gianna’s dismay, but she was mostly busy keeping a close eye on her sister. I had to give it to the redhead: she was fiercely protective of Aria. It was one of her few character traits I liked.
After dinner, Aria and Gianna disappeared upstairs only to return a few minutes later in bikinis.
Matteo followed his future wife with keen eyes, but I, too, had trouble looking anywhere but at Aria in her tiny pink bikini.
“I really hope you have your eyes firmly focused on your future wife,” I muttered. I knew Matteo would never hit on my wife, but I still hated that he saw her this scantily dressed.
“I can’t process your words, the blood has left my brain,” Matteo said with a chuckle.
Aria sent me a quick smile before she and Gianna walked out onto the roof terrace and stepped into the Jacuzzi.
“We could join them,” Matteo said eagerly.
“Yeah, right. You and Gianna in a Jacuzzi half-naked together. That’s not going to happen.” I motioned toward the kitchen. “Let’s grab an espresso.”
Matteo reluctantly followed me. I prepared us espresso but my eyes kept returning to Aria, remembering when we’d been in the Jacuzzi.
“You watch her as if you want to devour her,” Matteo said.
“You’re one to talk. You’re eye-fucking Gianna all day, when she isn’t even your wife yet.”
“Aria is your wife and you still don’t get more action than me,” Matteo taunted.
“Trust me, I’m getting more than you can dream of, and soon…” I stopped myself, realizing I was talking about sex with Aria with my brother. In the past we’d always shared our sexual adventures with each other, but Aria was my wife and I respected her too much to divulge that kind of information.
Matteo chuckled. “Come on, Luca. You’ve never been like this. I’m your brother. Tell me, how is it to be with one of our girls? Are they too stuck up for blowjobs? I can’t imagine Aria loosening up. She doesn’t seem like a woman who’d ever suck a dick unless you forced her, and we both know you can’t hurt a single golden hair of hers.”
Anger shot through me, and I raised a hand in warning. “Don’t talk about Aria like that. Ever.”
Matteo tilted his head, regarding me curiously. Scowling, I averted my eyes. Fuck it.
“You’re very protective of her, and it’s definitely not just possessiveness.”
My eyes were drawn to my wife once more as she and Gianna chatted and laughed in the Jacuzzi. I felt possessive of Aria, there was no denying it, but it definitely wasn’t the extent of my feelings, not even close.CHAPTER 19I was fucking ecstatic when Gianna finally disappeared from view on her way to her plane back to Chicago. Aria looked heartbroken. It gave me a strange sense of…unease, because I realized she felt lonely in New York. Aria whirled around and threw herself into my arms, sniffling. I caressed her back, my mind drifting to my plans for the night. They’d hopefully distract Aria from her sadness. “I thought we could grab dinner and then have a relaxing evening.”
“Sounds good,” she said quietly, but her expression flickered with anxiety. I wasn’t sure how to relieve her of her fear. All my life my purpose had been to terrify others. Soothing someone’s fear was completely out of my comfort zone.Aria was tense throughout dinner and hardly touched her food. She was scared of the unexpected, perhaps even still scared of what I’d do, but I had absolutely no intention of being rough with her.
“Why don’t we head inside?” I suggested.
She gave a small nod.
I wasn’t a patient man. I’d never had to wait for anything in my life. I knew she was nervous, but I wanted her tonight; my cock was fucking eager to claim her. We stepped inside and Aria moved toward the liquor cabinet, reaching for the brandy. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her against me. Her eyes widened. “Don’t,” I said quietly. I didn’t want her to be drunk when I claimed her. I needed her ‘yes’ to be real.