“A never-ending spiral of violence.”
“I want to live in the present and for the future. The past is the past.”
“For the first time in my life, I want the same. The past is dead, and I’m really excited about our future.”
“It’s going to be a crazy ride in many ways.”
Dinara hummed her approval.
“There are only two more races before the season’s over and most people will return to their families for Christmas. Only a few stay in camp, like Crank, and celebrate together.”
“We don’t celebrate Christmas in December. The orthodox Christmas is in January, so maybe I’ll stay in camp until January.”
Over my dead body. “I want you to celebrate Christmas with me and my family in Las Vegas.”
She froze in my arms. “I’m not part of your family. I’m sure your brothers and their families don’t want me there.”
I hadn’t asked my brothers yet but I loved Dinara and wanted to spend the holidays with her. I doubted Kiara and Serafina would have anything against it. Remo was very protective of our mansion, so I wasn’t sure about his reaction. And then there were Savio and Gemma. They both were absolutely easy-going under normal circumstances but half of Gemma’s family had been killed by the Bratva, so they might be biased in their opinion of Dinara. I kept those thoughts to myself. I would find a way to convince my family that Dinara wasn’t a threat. “My family should meet you and what better way to do it than for Christmas? They’ll love you like I do.”
“I’m not someone who has a long list of fans. I’m not one of those sweet, always smiling girls everyone wants in their family.”
“Trust me, you’ll fit in perfectly with your personality. Don’t let me celebrate Christmas alone. There’s nothing more depressing than being surrounded by happy couples and families while being alone.”
Dinara was quiet for a long time then she sighed. “All right, but please make sure I’ll be welcome. I really don’t want to intrude on your family time.”
“You are my family,” I murmured.
Dinara pressed herself closer to my body and kissed my throat. “I love you.”
The next morning I called Remo. He was the first person I needed to convince. To my surprise, he wasn’t against my suggestion. “Bring her along. Kiara will be ecstatic to cook for more people.”
“I expected more resistance from you,” I admitted.
“If you trust Dinara, I trust your judgment. Not to mention that both Nino and I know her, and doubt she’ll pose a risk. She’s got more reason to be grateful toward us than to hate us for an enmity between mob families that doesn’t really concern her.”
“What about Savio and Gemma?” I asked.
“Talk to Savio. If he’s against it, I can’t allow Dinara to join us.”
“I understand,” I said. “Thanks, Remo. I know I often didn’t show you my gratefulness for what you’ve done, but I won’t ever forget what you did to give Dinara justice. I’ll try to be less of a dickhead toward you in the future.”
“That’s a start,” Remo said wryly. “Now clear things with Savio.”
“Yes, Capo.” I hung up and dialed Savio’s cellphone. He picked up after the tenth ring.
“This better be good,” he muttered. “You’re interrupting my marital duties.”
I could hear Gemma hissing something unintelligible and something that sounded like a slap. Savio chuckled.
“I need to talk to you about Christmas,” I said.
“Okay? I’m not on the organization committee for Christmas. Ask the girls.”
“It’s about Dinara. I want to bring her along to celebrate Christmas with us.”
Silence followed on the other end.
His voice had lost its usual ease when he spoke eventually. “Remo mentioned that you and she are still together. I thought things would end after you finished your killing spree.”
“We love each other,” I admitted, even if I felt exposed admitting this to Savio. He and I didn’t usually share our deepest darkest emotions.
“Loving the enemy seems to run in the family.”
“Dinara isn’t the enemy. She was never really part of the Bratva.”
“Her father is Pakhan. Our women are part of our world by association even if they aren’t inducted.” It was strange to hear Savio so serious and it told me that this was a difficult topic for him and Gemma.
“Dinara left Chicago to be with me.”
“Good for you.”
“I know you have every reason to hate the Bratva, and Gemma even more so, and that’s why I want to ask if you’ll be okay if I bring Dinara along.”
“That’s not my decision,” Savio said, then his voice became muffled, as he probably described the situation to Gemma. I didn’t know Gemma as well as Kiara, but she’d never struck me as someone who’d judge people easily.
“Okay,” Savio said without warning.
“What?”
“It’s okay for you to bring her along. Gemma and I won’t judge Dinara before we meet her. We’ll give her a chance.”