“Don’t you remember what my mother used to say?”
“Your mom said a lot that has stuck with me.”
“She told us to leave an example. You don’t just eliminate your enemy. You make sure everyone watches you slaughter them. You leave a mark so everyone else thinks three times before they ever try you again. Now, tell me what you need from me. How do we set an example?”
“I fucking love you.”
I crash her lips. However, deep inside, I pray she never asks me for children. It’s the one thing I don’t think I can bring myself to give her. The one thing I will say no to.
CHAPTER 17
Loosen Ends
Gio
I squeeze Ny’s face and kiss her hard before we walk out of the guesthouse to head up to the main house. Last night is still on my mind. I would love nothing more than to spend the day making up for lost time, but I have shit to do so I can have her with me for life.
Jace walks up and gets between us, bringing reality back in. He throws an arm around Ny’s neck, causing me to frown. We agreed to make Ny look like our buddy in for a visit, but I’m feeling possessive after what happened between us last night.
“Marco is working today,” Jace murmurs.
“Did he do as we thought?”
“Sure did.”
“Good, his job is done.”
Jace turns to me and winks. “I thought you would say that. I made sure the hogs weren’t fed this morning.”
“Sounds like some fun is about to go down. I want in,” Ny says.
“Not this time. I need you here with me. I need to see something.”
“Do I get to see her?”
She doesn’t need to say who. I figured she’d want to see Ma. The hogs are on the farm, but I don’t want to leave Ming here alone and I don’t know if she can be trusted with what Jace is about to do.
“Tomorrow. I’ll take you myself. We can stay the weekend there.”
“You’re sending Ming back tomorrow, right?”
“Depends.” I shrug.
“Gio,” she drags out in warning.
“You trust her. I need to make sure you’re making the right decisions. There will be no weak links, especially not the ones connected to you. Besides, I’m looking for something.”
“Should I even ask?”
“No, you’ll figure it out,” I reply.
Jace kisses the top of Ny’s head and takes off. I fight against moving closer to her to place my hand on her back. Nonno and Ming come into view, having breakfast on the pergola and I think better of it. I glance at Ny and grin to myself as I flick my gaze over her.
“Hey, you might want to go up and soak in the tub.”
She looks up at me and bites her lip. “Is it obvious?”
“Hell yeah,” I laugh. “I should have placed you in the tub last night. That walk is a dead giveaway.”
She throws a punch at my arm. I dodge it, then pull her into a brotherly-looking hug. Placing my lips to her ear, I whisper, “I can’t wait to spend the weekend fucking you. Get your rest now.”
I release her and watch as she walks away to head into the house. She looks so fucking adorable in my T-shirt. I miss her already.
Schooling my features, I walk over to join Ming and Nonno. I’m shirtless and in a pair of gray sweats. Although I’m not looking at Ming, I’m observing her reaction to my presence.
My Ny is a beautiful woman and she’s already wealthy without me. I need to know the people around her aren’t jealous or envious of her. She has to be able to trust the women closest to her.
I note that Ming takes me in, but she looks away quickly. I question if it’s because she’s shy or if she’s doing it out of respect for Ny. I start to fill my plate with fruit as I wait for the staff to bring out my breakfast.
“Ming, would you mind giving me and my grandson a moment?”
She wipes her mouth and stands. “No, not at all. I’m going to go catch up with Nyla.”
“Thank you.”
Nonno watches until Ming disappears. I bite into a piece of mango. I already know what’s coming.
“It’s the way you look at her. From the time she arrived how you feel has been written all over your face. When she’s near you your posture reads possession. These are the things I’ve noticed. Those are the things you need to work on.”
“Anything else?”
“She is the same with you. She will need to learn to control her feelings as well. The rumors about you and Jace have taken on life. However, having her here exposes you all. I would think she was the third person in your relationship. This isn’t what you want, sì?”
“No, she can never be thought of as ours.”