Page 79 of Born into Mayhem

“I’m here to do a job, not fuck around with horny women,” he says.

Sandro laughs. “Can’t you do both?”

“He’s right,” Dario says. “All eyes are going to be on Mia tonight, and we need to make sure Leonardo takes the bait.”

“How do we get him to do that exactly?” I ask.

Dario looks down at me. His fingers run along my spine again, whisper soft and erotic as hell. “He just needs to see how crazy we are about each other. He’ll want to take you from me as soon as he sees it’ll hurt me,amore mio.”

Sandro looks at my brother. “Are you going to be the one to tell your dad about this? I’d say my brother should, but I think Lev will shoot him before he can explain.”

“I’m telling him myself,” Dario says. “As soon as we return to America.”

“You sure that’s the best idea?” Sandro asks.

“He’s going to have to get used to it. I’m not giving Mia up,” he says.

“I do have a say in it,” I tell the three alpha men surrounding me.

Sandro grins. “So you’re admitting you have feelings for my brother now? Damn, that really was one hell of a night.” He looks at his brother. “How many did you get through?”

“What?” I ask before Dario can say anything that’s going to get his very firm ass into trouble.

“I’m going downstairs,” Sasha says. “I don’t want to know what the fuck you’re talking about.”

“Get your ass moving,” Dario tells his brother. “We need to go.” Before he leads me out of the room, he says, “And none of your goddamn business.”

It might sound like a warning if he wasn’t smiling so big when he said it. Sandro laughs and smacks his brother’s back in away to gokind of way.

I really miss my knives.

Salvatore and Maria are waiting for us downstairs. I try not to looknervous when she runs her eyes over me. I didn’t do anything special with my hair, just left it down, and even though Dario had spent a small fortune on makeup, what I’d applied is pretty basic at best. The dress and heels are killer, though, and I’m pretty sure they’re what earn me the approving nod I see. She kisses both my cheeks and his dad does the same before he tells me I look gorgeous.

“Thank you,” I tell him, grateful when Dario slips his hand around mine again. I’m still trying to adjust to not hiding how I feel about him, but there’s no denying his presence is a comfort. I may not be used to expressing my love with words, but I’ve always shown him affection in my own way.

There’s a line of vehicles waiting for us when we step out front. Dario ignores the dark SUVs as he leads me to his black Ferrari Roma. He opens the door for me and keeps my hand in his as he helps me in, but before the door can shut, Sasha walks over and grabs it, holding it open so he can talk to me.

Speaking in Russian, he says, “We’ll be right behind you, and then once we get there, I’ll make sure I can see you at all times.”

“Okay,” I tell him, while Dario walks around to get in the driver’s side.

Sasha’s light blue eyes study mine. “You sure you’re okay, little witch?”

“I'm sure.”

He waits a few more seconds, refusing to be rushed. He doesn’t read signals like most people do. He misses a lot of things that are obvious to others, but he also picks up things that no one else catches. Whatever he sees on my face must convince him I’m telling the truth, because after a few more seconds, he nods and then shuts the door.

“Everything okay?” Dario asks, starting the car and filling the space with the sleek purr of the engine.

“Yeah, he’s just checking in with me.”

“He’s a good big brother,” Dario says while putting the car in gear and following the SUV in front of us.

“The best,” I agree, because he is. If I had told him that I wasn’tokay, he would’ve immediately gotten me the hell out of here without a second thought, no matter the consequences, no matter what it involved. Other people might not see him like I do, but I know I hit the jackpot getting Sasha as my older brother.

Dario’s hand reaches out to squeeze my thigh, and my hand quickly falls to rest on his. My wedding ring is still a weight I’m not used to, and I’m getting tired of constantly snagging the huge diamond on things, but I no longer hate what it represents. Everyone who sees it will know that my heart belongs to Dario. It doesn’t mean that he owns me. It just means I’m choosing to be with him, that I trust him and love him. It doesn’t matter that we aren’t married. We’re together, and it’s a commitment that I don’t take lightly.

“So who exactly is throwing this party?” I ask. “We should’ve been discussing all this last night instead of working our way through a box of condoms.”