20
Christian
"No, absolutely, not!" I glare at Nonna, who is seated in the throne-like armchair in the living room. Hell, she could be the queen, and the rest of us her lowly subjects as she arches an eyebrow at the rest of us assembled in the room.
"Saying no is not a choice, Christian," she informs me. "When you came on this family retreat, you agreed to take part in all the activities."
"I did not agree to take part in a scavenger hunt."
"Not just any scavenger hunt; it’s a Christmas-specific murder-mystery scavenger hunt," Theresa pipes up.
"Fuck me," Massimo murmurs under his breath.
"What was that?" Nonna swivels her head in his direction. "I don’t believe I heard you correctly."
"I said," Massimo coughs, "that, of course, I’ll take part in the, uh, Christmas-specific murder-mystery scavenger hunt, Nonna."
Seb smirks, and Nonna turns her gimlet eye on him next. "Something funny, Sebastian?"
"Nope," Seb straightens, "of course, not; I can’t wait to get started on the hunt." He rubs his hands together, as if in anticipation.
Luca chuckles. "Turn it down, compare," he murmurs, "you’re laying it on a little too thick."
Of course, Nonna hears him, for she narrows her gaze on him. "Something you want to share with the rest of us, Luca?"
"Just excited, is all, about this chance to, uh … participate in a scavenger hunt with the rest of the family."
"Don’t get so excited that you don’t listen to the rules properly," Nonna says dryly.
"Me, not listen when you speak?" Luca thumps his hand over his heart. "That will be the day, Nonna."
"You only have to command us, and we obey," Adrian interjects from where he leans a hip against the wall.
"No need to flatter me." Nonna sniffs. "Just as long as all of you take part in the game and play to the best of your ability."
"We are on board, Nonna." Michael pulls Karma closer into him. If those two were any closer, they’d be joined at the hip. Correction, they are already joined at the hip. My Flower, on the other hand… I glance toward where Aurora stands stiffly in a corner of the room. She’s half in shadows as if she’s trying to hide from the rest of us. Not that she can ever hide from me. I see you, my Flower. The more you shy away from me, the more I’m going to make sure that you’ll never evade me. This ... using Nonna to put distance between us is a temporary reprieve, so make the most of it.
She must sense my perusal, for she turns her head in my direction. Our gazes catch, hold, then she scowls at me before glancing away.
Nonna glances in Cassandra’s direction. At her signal, Cassandra picks up an open box filled with what seems to be folded pieces of paper. She walks over to the table in the center of the room and places it there.
"It’s time to choose partners for this game."
"Partners?" I scowl. "I don’t want to be saddled with any of my loser brothers."
"Then you’d better pick the right one," Nonna snaps. "Go on, boy," she waves a hand in the air, "pick a slip."
What-fucking-ever. Might as well as get this over with. I prowl over to the box, grab a slip, and open it. I can’t stop the grin that threatens to split my face in half.
"Well?" Nonna frowns. "Who is it? Share it with us, will you?"
"Don’t mind if I show you." I smirk as I cross the room.
Aurora glances at me; her gaze widens as I approach her. By the time I pause in front of her, her features are contorted in an expression that’s part horror, part bemusement.
"No," she whispers, "no, no, no."
"Oh, yes, Flower." I lower my head, so my mouth is next to her ear. "I get to partner with you fair and square; now you’re mine."