Page 49 of Sins of the Orchid

I watched her slim, open back as she walked out of my office and never looked back.

CHAPTER16

Adriano

Amore shut the car door on her side a bit too forcefully, which was unlike her. There wasn’t much that pissed her off. She had an easy personality, though slightly stubborn when she set her mind on something.

The parking lot was buzzing with life, people going in and out, but Amore was lost in her own world, and I suspected she was steaming. Whatever happened while I was gone, it had pissed her off.

“I’m sorry.” It was her last night before she went to study in Italy. I meant for it to be memorable. “How about ice cream before I drop you off?”

She turned her head sideways, her big green eyes on me. “At this hour? Nothing is open.”

It was only five past eleven.

“Adriano, most ice cream places close at ten. Just take me home.”

I took her hand in mine. “You are upset.” There was no sense beating around the bush. She pressed her lips tightly, unwilling to dwell more on it, but I was just as stubborn as she was. “I shouldn’t have left you alone.”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” she snapped, surprising me. “It would have been nice just for once if you would have pressed pause on skirt chasing. My last night before Italy where I’ll spend the next four years,” she grumbled accusingly, “And you couldn’t just spend it with me uninterrupted.”

Her complaint surprised me. She never seemed bothered about it before.

“I thought you’d have a good time dancing with Marco.”

“I did,” she hissed. “Until Santi came and smashed his face.”

“So why are you mad at me?”

“Are you really that daft?” she hissed. “If you would have just stayed with us, we could have ended this night on a perfect note. Instead of this clusterfuck.”

I narrowed my eyes on her. She was flushed and breathless when I burst into Santi’s office. Almost as if… they were fooling around. I shook my head. No fucking way! Amore wasn’t even Santi’s type. He usually went for blondes and mature women that only did as he commanded.

Amore was neither.

Even if her life depended on it, she was determined to follow through with her plans once she set them in motion. Her grandmother wanted her to study business; Amore took fashion and business. Her father wanted her to have guards with her at all times; instead, Amore convinced DeAngelo to teach her how to fight, so she could defend herself and retain some space.

No, I misread the situation. Santi would never even bother to look at Amore as anything other than our adopted sister.

Shifting the car into drive, I left The Orchid behind us and headed for the grocery store. We’d have ice cream whether she liked it or not.

An hour later, we sat in her father’s courtyard, eating Ben & Jerry’s directly out of the container while seated on the hood of my car.

“Sorry I snapped earlier,” Amore broke the silence.

“And I’m sorry for being a dick and ruining the night by leaving you alone.”

She nodded and that was how it usually went with us. Amore was a forgiving person, maybe a bit too forgiving. She didn’t hold grudges, but she had a tipping point. It was a little thing I had noticed about Amore over the years. She never forgave people that hurt the ones she loved.

It wasn’t surprising. She was loyal to a fault at times. Santi, Lorenzo, nor Luigi believed the two of us would stick together and remain best friends. But for some reason, she cared about me and always stuck up for me; always covered for me. Even when she was attacked two years ago, she didn’t blame me, and she was scared out of her mind.

But today, something had shifted. I just wasn't sure what.

“I don’t want to lose you, Amore,” I rasped. Something in my chest squeezed at the mere thought of it.

There were four years between us, but I never felt them. I wasn’t sure if it meant I was not acting my age or Amore was acting more mature than hers. Probably the latter, though everyone seemed to treat her like a kid. Overprotecting her.

Her small hand came to my thigh and squeezed gently. “You’re not,” she assured me in a soft voice. “After all, who would buy me ice cream?” she teased, her green eyes glimmering. “We’ll be friends forever. You are family, Adriano.”