Adamo positioned himself at my side and touched my hip. I briefly glanced his way, surprised by his closeness and his open sign of our togetherness. I couldn’t deny that it warmed my chest more than the vodka had done.
Both Nino and Remo glanced at Adamo’s move but didn’t comment. Dad would probably have attempted to kill Adamo at this display of affection.
“Haven’t we all?” I said. “Change is inevitable.”
Nino inclined his head and shook my hand. “How about we continue our conversation in the office?”
“That sounds reasonable,” I said.
Remo and Nino exchanged a look before they headed back through the door.
Adamo smiled encouragingly, his thumb sliding along my hip. “You are safe in Vegas.” His dark eyes held absolutely no doubt.
“I know,” I said and briefly kissed him. We followed his brothers, past a long row of closed doors. My belly flipped when I recognized one of them as the door to the room where I’d spent my night. More memories from that day took shape. Cody’s face, which had been shrouded in darkness up until this point manifested before my inner eye, and with it came a wave of revulsion.
Remo threw a look over his shoulder before he opened the door to what I assumed was his office. He scanned my face and I steeled myself, remembering Adamo’s words about his brother’s talent to recognize other people’s weaknesses and darkest emotions.
When I entered the office with the boxing sack, desk and sofa, my breath briefly caught in my throat, as the events from a decade ago appeared in my head. Cody’s horrified expression, Mother’s attempts to bargain with the Capo, and his fury over it. Adamo closed the door with a soft click, but I jumped anyway. I could have kicked myself for this sign of distress because it didn’t go unnoticed. All three men registered my jumpiness. If I didn’t get a grip, they’d see me as the sheep among the pack, not another wolf.
Adamo rubbed my waist again and while I appreciated his support, and would eventually tell him so, I needed to show strength. I hadn’t come this far to cower like the girl I had been in the past. I’d moved beyond her. I had changed.
I gave him a strained smile before I stepped out of his reach and approached Remo who leaned against his desk, watching us with keen eyes. I wondered what Adamo had told him about our relationship and what the Capo thought of it. “Over the years, I made sure to stay up to date on your life,” Remo said cryptically.
I didn’t show a reaction. As the daughter of the Pakhan who loved to live a flashy life, I was in public more often than I preferred. I’d never hidden, and Dad wouldn’t have allowed it either. He wanted me in the spotlight, dressed in pretty dresses for the world to see. Few people dared to speak of the past, even if rumors had spread after my return. “So did I. You and your brothers have kept things interesting over the years.”
Remo’s eyes flashed with amusement.
“Why would the Capo of the Camorra have any interest in the daughter of his enemy? My life didn’t provide the same excitement as yours.”
Adamo and Nino watched our conversation but didn’t intervene.
“I wanted to see if I was right in my assessment of you.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What assessment?”
“If you’d prove as strong as I considered you to be.”
I scoffed. “I was a scared child who allowed people to use and abuse her. I wasn’t strong. I’m not the same person I used to be. I changed.”
Remo pushed away from the desk and moved closer, towering over me, which caused Adamo to tense. I met Remo’s gaze unwaveringly. Maybe it was foolish of me not to fear him but I could only see him as the man who’d freed me from my tormentors. “Even back then I saw your strength, even if you couldn’t. That you are here today, shows I was right. Maybe you changed on the outside, but deep down you are the same resilient child that survived.”
I swallowed, because his words awakened emotions I didn’t want to deal with. Adamo took a step closer, and his protective expression didn’t bode well. This was between Remo and me. If I wanted to get to the bottom of my past, I needed to talk to Remo alone. I had a feeling he wouldn’t be as forthcoming with information as long as I needed Adamo as my babysitter and bodyguard. He was testing me. I cleared my throat and looked at Adamo. “I need to talk to Remo alone.”
If Remo was surprised by my request, he hid it well.
Nino exchanged a look with his older brother before he left without another word. Adamo, however, pulled me against his side. “What’s the matter?”