I ran my hands through my hair and took in a deep breath. “Jesus Christ. Are we really considering this? What are we saying here?”
“I think we need to fly to Florence,” Stefano announced.
Chapter Seventeen
Hailey
“You both can go fuck yourselves,” I said as I tried to slam my bedroom door in their faces.
How dare Stefano and Thomas just show up here and try to enter my room as if nothing had happened. When Thomas’s shoe blocked the door from closing, I added, “You said my penance was over once I’m pregnant. Well, I am. So, now you both have to leave me alone.”
“We’d like to come inside,” Thomas said.
“Hear us out, and then we’ll leave if you still want us to,” Stefano said from behind Thomas.
It was odd to hear both of them ask permission and not just demand their way in. There was no aggression, no threats, no intimidation. That alone had me backing away from the doorway as they opened the door fully and entered.
“Gio said you both were in Miami,” I said softly.
“We were,” Stefano said.
I hadn’t realized that I had my hand on my belly protectively until I noticed both men staring down at where my palm sat.
“How do you feel? Gio said you were ill during the travel here,” Thomas said.
“Just morning sickness,” I answered shortly. I didn’t know why they were in my room appearing to care, and it unnerved me. “The doctor arrived this morning and examined me. Everything is fine, and the baby is fine. He said the heartbeat sounded healthy.”
I watched the men before me light up in a way I had never seen before. Both of them smiled—identical—and their usual dark eyes seemed to sparkle as they continued to stare at my stomach. Their eyes were fixated as if they could see the baby inside.
“I’m about six weeks along,” I added. I had no idea why I wasn’t seething in anger any longer. Or at the very least afraid that they’d treat me like they had in the manor. I should be calling them every name in the book but instead was excited to talk about baby news with them.
“When will we know the sex?” Stefano asked.
We? That word seemed so foreign to me.
“In about twelve more weeks. It’s also too soon for the doctor to tell if I’m having twins or not. He said with you both being twins, it’s likely I could.”
After a moment of awkward silence, Thomas spoke up. “Why don’t we all go for a walk? One of the reasons I liked this place when buying it was that it sat on a few acres of beautiful countryside. I think we should go check it out.”
“Some fresh air could do all of us good,” Stefano agreed.
I wondered if they felt like the walls were closing in on them just as much as I did. Now that we weren’t in the manor, the energy between us felt different. Off in many ways. Uncertain for sure.
I was angry. But not really.
I was hurt. But also happy they were in front of me.
I was confused… very much so.
“The shoes you bought for me in the closet are a little too big,” I said as I went to find a pair to put on. “But I was reading in a pregnancy book the doctor gave me that I could expect my feet to expand and swell. So, I guess that’s a good thing.”
“We’ll get you more shoes,” Thomas said, and I had no doubt.
I was pretty sure that when it came to materialistic items, the brothers would buy me whatever my heart desired. The thing was… I wasn’t a materialistic person. I wanted so much more. Things that didn’t cost money, and things that the brothers clearly weren’t willing to give.
As we walked outside, I saw Gio standing by the front door with two other men in suits.
“We’re going for a walk,” Stefano announced.
“All is secure,” Gio said. “Cameras, sensors, security gates around the full property. I personally toured the premises myself.”
“Thank you, Gio,” Thomas said. “There’s an envelope inside on the kitchen counter waiting for you.”
“But we’d like you to stay for a few more days. My brother and I will need to brief you on some business in the States we will want you to handle while we are here.” Stefano placed his hand on my lower back as we took the stairs down.
“How long do you plan on staying?” Gio asked.
“A while. We don’t plan on traveling unless need be while Hailey is pregnant,” Thomas announced.
“And then we don’t want to leave the baby right away either,” Stefano added.
My heart stopped as I glanced at one brother’s face and then the other.
Staying?
They were staying?
For months. For almost a year at least.
With me?
“We’ll talk more and go over everything after our walk,” Thomas said, stepping closely beside me.