Page 9 of Single Mom’s Mafia Daddies (The Forbidden Reverse Harem Collection #22)
MATTEO
I whipped the car into the gravel drive and punched the gas with all my strength. The estate came into view as I rounded the bend and screeched to a halt. Renzo’s car spewed dust and gravel ahead of me, the sight gutting me. Renzo, the man who never showed emotion, was worried.
He’d barely left the vehicle when I leaped out of my car and ran him down. Sunlight gleamed on the estate’s limestone facade and bounced off Renzo’s tight jaw.
“What happened?” I fought to keep my own worry from my voice.
The manicured lawns stretched out behind him, the crisp, clean lines in such contrast to his fierce expression that I almost found it humorous. If not for the threat to Alessio’s safety, I might have laughed.
“Inside.” He pushed me ahead of him and scanned over my head. “Brian’s sweeping the perimeter. I’ll join him once I check in with Alessio.” He jammed his finger against the buttons on the keypad, inputting the emergency code that unlocked the door.
It creaked open and Renzo entered, one hand poised over his pistol and the other pushing me behind him.
“In here.” Alessio’s voice rang out from straight ahead. He stormed from the study looking like a grim reaper on the warpath. Blood smeared his neck, most likely from the cuts marring his face.
I stayed behind Renzo, watching his back and double checking the house at the same time.
Priceless paintings hung along the white walls that stretched wide in the open foyer.
To my left and right, matching rooms hosted thick wooden bookshelves laden with Renaissance antiques Alessio collected throughout the years.
No one outside of the family knew about this place, but that did not make it impenetrable.
“Twelve men on the perimeter. Brian on watch.” Renzo’s words snapped out with bullet-like efficiency. He wasted no time or breath on niceties but jumped straight to the point.
We followed Alessio into the study. The woman I’d investigated sat stiff and poised, her expression dancing with mixed emotions. Every darting look at Alessio caused the anger to return, and when she looked at the boy tucked close to her side, the fear overtook her.
Alessio paced, his strides long and furious.
Renzo stood back and locked his hands in front of him, his elbows resting on the pistol grips. “The situation is under surveillance.”
Alessio nodded and stroked his thumb and forefinger back and forth over his chin. His father had done the same thing when thinking, and I hesitated to interrupt his process. I focused on Lila and Leo instead. Their names, their likes and dislikes, were burned into my consciousness.
I retrieved a coin from my pocket—a vintage Lire 100—and flipped it across my knuckles. “Would you like to hear the history of the house?”
Neither would, but it served to bring their attention to me and away from Alessio, who continued to storm across the floor.
“I could take you on a tour.” I flipped the coin into the air. Leo watched it spin end over end, the silvery shine reflecting on the walls. I caught it with my left hand, hid it up my sleeve, then opened my hand.
Leo crawled across Lila’s lap and grabbed my hand. “Where did it go?”
Lila’s amused smile raised one side of her mouth, the dark shadows ringing her eyes slipping away.
“It’s gone.” I wiggled my fingers. “Wait.” I tapped his cheek and turned his head to the side. “Not gone. It’s right there.”
He cackled and fell over backward into Lila’s arms when I “found” the coin behind his ear.
“Do it again.” He kicked his legs on either side of Lila’s so that his heels bounced off the thick leather. “Do you know more tricks?”
“Tricks?” I shook my head. “No tricks. Only magic.”
“Magic’s not real.” Leo flashed Alessio’s favorite scowl, and my gut clenched.
Lila draped her arms around Leo and hugged him tight.
She took in everything, her looks quick but assessing.
I’d researched enough about her to understand her wariness.
She wouldn’t know whether she could trust us.
And after what happened to her shop, we were no more reliable than the men who destroyed her life’s work.
We’d have to earn her trust.
“If magic isn’t real, then how do you explain this?” I whipped an identical coin from his other ear and held it up to the light. The boy released a delighted laugh when I handed him the coin. “Better check your mother’s ears for more.”
Leo spun around and grabbed Lila’s head, pulling her face down and checking her over.
I moved to stand beside Renzo and motioned for Alessio to join us.
He stopped close enough for us to talk without Leo overhearing but still keeping a close eye on mother and son.
In all our years as friends, I’d never seen Alessio like this.
Worry stamped his face into long lines, and the constant swinging gaze to check on them caused my skin to prickle with unease.
“Verducci,” Alessio spat our rival syndicate’s name with a sneer. “They’re behind this. They must be.”
“How did they find you?” I propped my palm on the back of a chair, maintaining my relaxed facade while digging the wood into my hand to keep from ripping the room apart.
Lila laughed along with Leo when he attempted to stuff a coin into her hair so he could “find” it again. Her laughter brought light back to Alessio’s eyes. Even Renzo stopped scowling long enough to crack an amused grin.
“You can smile?” I punched him in the shoulder. “I didn’t think it was possible.” Especially so soon after an attack.
Renzo punched me back, his meaty fist knocking me a step backward until I cracked against the wall. “Don’t get used to it.”
“Are they fighting?” Leo’s small voice traveled straight to my heart and daggered its way into my soul.
He sounded so scared that I had no choice but to return to them and drop to a knee. “No fighting. Renzo and I are playing.”
Lila’s face twisted.
“Would you like something to drink?” I moved to distract her before she decided this was the wrong place for her and Leo. Some part of me wanted her to stay, not just for the safety measures, but because she intrigued Alessio, and that was enough to draw my curiosity.
Alessio avoided looking directly at Lila, and her gaze skipped over him like she couldn’t bear to spend any time in his presence. They obviously meant more to each other than Alessio had indicated.
I poked a finger into Leo’s shoulder, and he rewarded me with a laugh. “What’ll it be? Milkshake? Something fizzy?”
“We’re fine.” Lila shifted on the couch, her body sinking deeper into the cushions. The simmering tension escalated with every avoided look.
“If you keep wiggling like that, the couch might eat you.” I clicked my tongue. “And that would be a shame.” I motioned from Leo to Renzo. “You made him smile. Think you can do it again?”
Leo tucked his hands beneath his chin and buried his head on Lila’s shoulder. “No.”
Renzo and Alessio stood with their heads bent together.
I needed to join them, but Lila and her boy held me captive.
His sudden shyness reminded me of Alessio as a boy, back when we’d run together with nothing more important to us than getting into mischief and seeing how long it took for our fathers to find us.
“It’s just as well.” I winked at Lila. “If he smiles too much, his face might break.”
“Maybe it would get stuck that way and he’d have to smile all the time.” Lila tickled Leo’s belly. “Wouldn’t that be funny?”
The giant soldier tipped his head in our direction, listening to us as we poked fun at him, but remained focused on Alessio.
“How about those drinks?” I scooted into the closest chair. “I’d be happy to show you around, let you get a feel for the place.”
“Not sure it will help.” Lila patted Leo’s back. “Pretty sure you could fit a city block in here.”
“Half.” I shrugged when she gaped. “We like having plenty of space.”
“A beautiful prison is still a prison.” Her chin jutted out, stubbornness turning her eyes cold.
Even with her suit rumpled, her hair disheveled, and a streak of what looked like blood trailing down the side of her neck, she was a stunning woman.
Her long curls draped over one shoulder, Leo snuggled in on the other, and her body was tense as strung wire even as she soothed him.
“And you’ll find no safer one than this. Here with us.” It was a promise I intended to uphold.
“Matteo, walk with me.” Alessio’s commanding tone forced me to comply.
I stood and adjusted my suit, winked at Leo and Lila, and followed Alessio into the hallway.
“What are you doing?” He tunneled his hands through his hair.
I maintained my relaxed posture but crossed my arms. “Keeping them from falling apart. She’s not from this world, Alessio. She needs reassurance.”
“Don’t.” He poked me hard in the chest. “Don’t tell me what she needs.”
“Why not?” I tipped my head to the side. “You don’t seem to want anything to do with her. You won’t look at her. Won’t speak to her. If I hadn’t stepped in, she’d have bolted. We both know how that ends.”
“Fuck.” Alessio tore his jacket open, sending buttons flying. The rush of anger reddened his face and all the tiny scratches I’d noticed earlier darkened.
“You need to tell her.” I’d thought it from the moment he had me investigate Lila.
“The timing of Leo’s birth aligns with your time at the college.
He’s likely your son.” My mouth twisted hard enough I felt it pull to one side.
“Hell, he looks exactly like you. There’s no doubt he’s yours.
If any of the Verduccis saw it, they’d know too.
That’s probably why they attacked the boutique. ”
“I can’t tell her.” His clipped response begged for a rebuttal.
Alessio stiffened when Renzo joined us. “Where’s Lila?”
“With the boy. She asked to see their rooms.” He stuck his thumbs into his belt. “They’re safe.”
“As safe as she’ll allow.” I shook my head with a sigh. “She’s a firecracker, Alessio. Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
“Fuck off, Matteo.”
I grinned despite the anger in his face. “You’re afraid. The great Alessio is worried that if he tells her he’s part of the mafia, she’ll leave.”
It was a valid concern. Once she knew the truth, she became a liability if she had no loyalty to us. The boy gave us that loyalty, even if she didn’t know it.
I signed as the analytical part of my brain overrode the flirty playboy. This was business, not pleasure.