Page 23 of Ruthless Secrets (Alpha Mafia Daddies #6)

Chapter Eighteen

MARCO

I thought I had mastered the art of making Clara happy, but now I’m suddenly not so sure.

As I lead her upstairs to one of the guestrooms on the top floor of Andre’s house, a nervous pit starts to form in my stomach. Even focusing on her small hand in mine does little to ease my anxiety.

She looks at me. “You’re being weird.”

“Am I?”

Clara huffs but says nothing until we reach the bedroom at the very end of the corridor.

When I pause outside the door, she looks up at me.

“What’s behind the door?”

I shrug. “Why don’t you open it and find out.”

I squeeze her hand tightly before letting go and taking a step back.

Clara frowns as she looks down at my bruised hand but curiosity seems to get the better of her. She turns the door handle and pushes it open, and for a second, there’s nothing but silence .

She takes in the room. “Oh my god! Marco! This is incredible !”

Turns out I can make Clara scream my name without even having to touch her. I might be more skilled than I thought.

“Do you like it?”

She gazes around the room in awe.

After speaking with Andre and Lila about Clara’s love for sewing, they both agreed that it would be good for her to have a space of her own that she doesn’t share with anyone else. Not even Zoe.

I wasted no time ordering a top-of-the-line sewing machine as well as countless rolls of fabric and other supplies that she might need. I’ve set her up with a proper sewing table and put in shelves to keep all of her fabric and projects organized.

There’s even a couple of dress mannequins by the window, that for some reason, I find incredibly creepy.

She steps into the room and starts to run her fingers along the rolls of fabrics. “You did this for me?”

“I would do anything for you Clara.”

Over the past week, Clara has disappeared inside her sewing room at every opportunity, sometimes even choosing to sew instead of eating.

One night the following week after Clara doesn’t appear for dinner, I decide to bring her some food to her room.

I’m glad she has had something to focus on that makes her happy, but she also needs to eat.

I softly knock at the door, a smile tugging on my lips at the thought of seeing what she’s been working on. She always gets so excited to show me her projects .

“Come in!”

“Dinner is served, m’lady.” I carry in the tray of food and shut the door behind me with my foot.

Clara lifts her head from where she’s sitting at her sewing table, and my chest swells when her face breaks out into a huge smile.

Her blonde hair is pulled back into a ponytail that drapes over her shoulder, and she’s wearing the same pink dress that she wore on our date.

For a moment, I stand by the door, completely transfixed by her.

“You brought me food?” Her voice snaps me out of my trance.

“Thought you would be hungry.” I carry the tray over to her worktable.

It’s covered in pieces of scrap material and markers. I have no idea what any of it is for, but if it makes Clara happy, then that’s all that matters.

She laughs, clutching her stomach as it rumbles loudly. “I guess I am. Being in here is like being inside a casino. I have no idea what time it is.”

“Is that a good thing?”

“Not if I should be socializing with your family.”

“They don’t mind. Though Lila says she wants you to make all of you matching dresses.”

“All of us?” She frowns.

“You, her, Rosa, Zoe, and Holly.”

Clara clutches her hands together. “Oh, my god, that would be adorable! I think I have the perfect fabric.”

She jumps to her feet and rushes over to the wall of supplies.

Before she can get distracted, I grab her around the waist and pull her back against me .

“Dinner first,” I murmur in her ear before nipping at her earlobe.

“Is that code for something else?” She turns her head to look up at me.

I bite back a groan as I press my hardening cock into her ass. “Do you want it to be?”

I kiss along her neck.

Her hand moves to the back of my neck as she rubs against me, eliciting sighs of pleasure.

But then the sound of her stomach growling interrupts us, and we both burst out laughing.

“Time to eat.” I release my arms from around her waist.

“Fine…” She rolls her eyes and walks back to her sewing table.

I subtly palm my length through my pants as I eye her bare legs. If I didn’t have to meet with my brother before heading to Nox, I would lock myself in here with Clara for the rest of the night.

As Clara tucks into her dinner, I take a seat in the armchair beside the window.

I want to ask her all about the projects she’s been so busy with, but she also needs to eat, so I force myself to keep quiet.

Her eyes meet mine between mouthfuls. “Can I come to work with you tomorrow?”

“Clara—”

“You did hire me as your manager, remember? You’re paying me to do a job that I’m not doing, and I don’t want to end up being a bad business investment.”

I fold my arms across my chest. “You could never be a bad investment. So don’t worry about that.”

“Well, I do feel like one.” She pushed her food around her plate as a crease forms between her eyebrows. “I like to feel… useful . ”

“You’re doing plenty just by taking care of Zoe.”

“That’s not what I mean. Besides, I just want to get out of the house. I never thought I would feel cooped up in a place as massive as this, but I do.”

I had thought the sewing would buy me a little more time, but it looks like I was wrong.

“I would love for you to come to work with me…”

“But?”

“But I can’t risk it. Not when I know Alfonzo is targeting me.”

Clara sighs before setting her fork down. She is all too familiar with the threat that Alfonzo poses, and she would be smart to stay away from Nox. But she is also stubborn, and I have a feeling she’s not going to let this go.

“I miss my friends. Or rather, my one friend.”

“I know.”

Keeping Clara here is for her own good, but that doesn’t mean I don’t feel guilty for isolating her.

She had a whole life before I turned up and ripped it out from beneath her, and she has let me do so with minimal complaints.

I frown as a thought hits me.

Maybe Clara can’t go into the city to see her friend, but perhaps I could bring Sam out here to visit.

“Why don’t you invite Sam over here?”

“Really?”

As much as I want to keep her all to myself, it would also be good for her to be around other people.

“Sure, why not? I can have Jax go and collect her so I’ll know she’ll be protected, and the two of you can hang out here. I know it’s not ideal, but?—”

“It’s perfect!”

One minute, Clara is sitting at her sewing table, and the next, she’s climbing into my lap and throwing her arms around my neck.

“Thank you, Marco.” She kisses me.

“You don’t need to thank me,” I say against her lips as I rub my hands over her bare thighs. “I want to make you happy.”

“I am happy.” She trails her fingers along my jaw.

“Good,” I kiss her once more. “And I’m excited to meet your friend.”

Clara laughs. “She’s a force to be reckoned with, that’s for sure.”

“Is that your way of saying that she won’t like me?”

“Let’s just say, if she doesn’t like you, you’ll know about it.”

“How could she not like me? I’m delightful.” I flash her a wink.

I’m reluctant to untangle myself from Clara, but she needs to eat, and I promised Andre we would catch up before I head into the city.

Even though it would be easier for me to stay overnight and drive back to Westchester in the morning, the thought of sliding into bed with Clara is not something I’m willing to pass on, so the sooner I get my work done, the sooner I can get back to my girl.

I find my brother in his study, sitting behind his desk, typing furiously away on his computer. His hair is a little more disheveled than usual, as if he’s been running his fingers through it.

I’m hit by a pang of guilt.

Ever since Clara has come into my life, I’ve been distracted. While I have been working on dealing with Alfonzo, I’ve let a lot of my other responsibilities slide, which means Andre has had to shoulder the burden.

“Nice to see you keeping busy.” I chuckle as I close the door behind me .

Andre glances up at me, eyes wide, as if he didn’t hear me come in.

“So I’ve been thinking…”

Andre pushes back his chair and gets to his feet. “That’s never a good sign.”

“Fuck off. This is about Cillian Moore.”

My brother pauses. “What about him?”

He gets to work pouring us both a drink.

I take a seat on the couch and drape my arm across the back, watching Andre as he picks up the decanter of whisky. “He’s one of Tommaso’s biggest rivals.”

He frowns. “One of? I’d say he is the biggest.”

“Which is exactly why I think we should seek his help.” It’s an idea I’ve been mulling over for a few days but at some point, we’re going to have to take action, and I think this is the best way.

Andre replaces the decanter and picks up the drinks to carry over to the couch, handing me a glass. “I’m not sure… Cillian wouldn’t help us for free, and owing him a favor could prove to be a death sentence in itself.”

“We may not have any other options.”

Andre pops down onto the couch beside me. “Which is what worries me. I don’t like being indebted to people.”

“I’m aware.”

“Maybe we are more like our father than we realize…”

My hand tightens around the glass. “We’ll never be like him. We’ll make sure that our kids won’t have to deal with any of our mistakes.”

“Our kids… Sounds weird.” He shakes his head and takes a sip of his whisky.

I smile. “Yeah. I’m still getting used to it.”

Andre chuckles under his breath. “I thought I was outnumbered before. And now you’ve gone and added two more girls to the household. ”

“I’m not in the slightest bit sorry.” I smirk.

“Fatherhood looks good on you.” My brother glances sidelong at me. “Which is something I never thought I’d say.”

I take a drink. “Tell me about it.”

“Rosa is going to be ecstatic when she comes home from camp tomorrow. Be prepared never to see your kid again.”

I can’t help but laugh. I’m truly excited for my sister to meet Clara and Zoe. “I like that she now has strong female role models in her life. I used to worry that being raised by us wasn’t going to be enough.”

Andre chuckles. “I still worry. But I’m glad she’s not alone all the time. Lila really has taken her under her wing, and I have a feeling Clara will be exactly the same way.”

“It will officially be them against us. And just wait until Holly and Zoe are teenagers too.”

“We don’t stand a fucking chance.” Andre groans, rubbing at his jaw. “So, you and Clara… How are things going? You seem to be getting pretty serious.”

I swirl the whisky around in my glass. “I can’t help but have reservations. Not about my feelings, but about my ability to fully let my guard down.”

“Well, that’s understandable given your past history.”

“Something Clara said to me has been playing on repeat in my head. She brought up the fact that with or without Alfonzo, there will always be danger because of what we do. She was worried about getting close to me in case something happened.”

“You can choose to look at it like that, yes. But there are also dangers in everyday life regardless of your profession.”

I roll my eyes at him. “That’s really helpful, thanks.”

“What I’m trying to say is that’s the game of life, Marco. You live and you die, and it's up to you to make the most of the time you have together.”

“I guess… ”

Maybe I have been looking at this whole thing the wrong way. I’ve been letting my past cast too much of a shadow over my present, and ultimately, my future.

At some point, I’m going to have to decide to let the past go, otherwise it might just cost me everything.