Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Barone responded. “I would agree, except we know damn well that Dante has no loyalty to us. He could lay that same bloody mess at our doorstep to deflect and distract.”
Enzo raised his arm and gestured with his drink hand. “Hate to admit it, but it would be an elegant solution to his problem.”
“Buon pomeriggio,” I said as I stepped into the room.
The men rose.
Barone crossed first, hand out. “Sebastian, good of you to come.”
“Always.”
I nodded to the others.
Then I turned to Matteo. “You should head to the villa. Now.”
He frowned. “Why? What’s wrong?”
I accepted a hand-rolled cigarette from Cesare then cupped my hand over the match he struck to light it. Pulling back, I blew out a cloud of blue smoke, before saying, “I have a feeling your girl’s about to do something very stupid.”
With a curse, Matteo bolted out of the room.
After shaking Benedict’s hand, I took the glass of Cynar he offered before unbuttoning my suit jacket and settling in one of the oxblood leather seats arranged around the ancient fireplace. “So, gentlemen. How many guns and men do you need?”
CHAPTER 44
MATTEO
Aquick glance in the stable proved she had taken the Alfa Romeo.
Clever girl.
Fortunately for me, that vintage car had a tricky clutch.
Sliding behind the steering wheel of the nearest black Range Rover, I sped out of the villa grounds.
It didn’t take long to find her stalled along a secluded side lane to the main road to the village. She must have pulled over onto the narrow unpaved road when the car gave her trouble.
She was dressed in a pretty blue-and-white dress completely unsuited for the chill in the air, circling the car with her mobile raised high, looking for service.
She wouldn’t find any.
The open country between the winery and the village was a dead zone.
I pulled up behind her and shrugged out of my heavy canvas coat, placing it over her shoulders. “You silly little thing. What are you doing out here?”
Ella leaned the top of her head against my chest. Her voice was barely above a whisper. “I broke your super-expensive car.”
My arms wrapped tightly around her as I stroked her hair. “You didn’t break the car, babygirl. Not that I would give a damn if you had.”
“It just sputtered and then stopped.”
“It has a trick clutch. Tell me what’s going through that adorable head of yours. Why did you steal a car and try to leave?”
“I screwed up. I should have told you everything when I had a chance. Then maybe—”
She pulled back. As she did so, my oversized jacket slipped off her shoulders.
I yanked on the lapels, then gently pushed her arms through the sleeves. “Tell me now.”
After swiping at the tears on her cheeks, she shook her head. “I can’t. It’s too late. Please, just let me go back to Sicily. My sister needs me.”
My jaw tightened at the mention of her sister. The idea that my girl had put herself in danger—again—for that woman made me want to howl with rage, but I kept it in check. She was too vulnerable. Too scared and conflicted. The last thing she needed was me going all caveman on her now.
That would happen later.
When this was all resolved.
Then I’d lay down the law when it came to always telling me the truth and never hiding her problems from me. And the consequences for doing so.
I brushed her thick blonde curls away from her face. “You’ve just deprived me of a big, dramatic car chase like in the movies. The least you can do is talk to me.”
Her lips twisted.
I tilted her chin back. “Is that a smile?”
She grasped my wrist as she tried to lower her head. “Don’t make me smile. It’s bad. Really, really bad. I think something’s happened to my sister. I need to get back to Sicily.”
“You’re not going anywhere, Antonella. I forbid it.”
She broke free. “You can’t forbid me from helping my sister.”
“The fuck I can’t. Your sister is nothing but trouble. She’s no longer your problem. She’s mine.”
Ella paced back and forth in front of me with her arm wrapped around her middle. “You don’t understand. You don’t know what’s going on.”
“Babygirl, I am holding on to my anger by a very thin strand. You are two seconds away from being bent over the hood of that car and having your skirts flipped over your head while I spank your pretty little ass raw as punishment for this latest stunt.”
Her arms reached behind her to cover her ass. “You wouldn’t dare. Not here. Not out in the open.”
My hand rested on the silver belt buckle of my leather work belt. “Watch me.”
Her cheeks bloomed with bright color as her lower lip pushed out in a pout. “You’re not being fair.”
“Trust me, baby. I’m being very fair right now. If this were my father or uncle, you’d already have a red bottom. Now talk.”