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And if they start revolting because I’m living with a former Italian mafia princess? That’s basically the worst-case scenario.
“You know why I didn’t tell you.”
He tilts his head and nods to himself, looking away. “Yeah, I get it. With everything going on, you didn’t want to take the risk. Too much at stake, and it’s easier to keep it to yourself, right? But you still should’ve trusted me.”
Something in my chest softens. “Yeah, all right, I should have.”
“I like Valentina.” Niall leans back in his chair, hands behind his head. He’s got a little smile on his face again. “She’s smart and strong. I bet she can keep your ass in check.”
“Most of the time.” I grin back at him. “She tries, anyway.”
“Despite everything going down with the cousins and such, you’ve been making good decisions lately. The chop shop job went great, and now this business with the Rocco guy seems to be headed in the right direction. More product on the street means more money in all our pockets. The cousins might not be able to separate the whole Italian thing away from pure business, but there are plenty of people in the family that can see what you’ve been doing, and they appreciate it.”
I’m surprised to hear that. From my perspective, everyone despises absolutely everything I do, and nothing’s ever good enough. “That’s nice to hear,” I admit.
“Valentina’s a part of that. I get it, she’s not the right kind of girl for the boss of the family, but if there hadn’t already been whispers about your leadership before her, I doubt anyone would’ve really cared.”
I grunt and lean back. So much for feeling all right for a moment there. “And now here we are. She’s living at my place for the foreseeable future, until I can get Julien to agree to leave her alone.”
Niall gestures at my phone. “Go ahead and call him then.”
“I’m not in any hurry.”
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. You two are actually together, aren’t you?”
“Something like that. I’m not really sure what you’d call it.”
“Fuck buddies, maybe?”
I give him a hard look. “Don’t degrade her like that.”
“Ah, so you’re more. That’s good. I was worried you were just into her because she’s pretty.”
“Yeah, well, it’s more.” I stare at my friend, and I feel strangely vulnerable for the first time in a long time. I don’t have relationships and I sure as fuck don’t talk about women. They’re a distraction most of the time. But now Niall knows I’m infatuated with Valentina, or at least he’s figuring out how serious I am about it, and I feel like I’ve shown too much of myself. Even to him.
“Good. That’s a good thing. The cousins might not love Italians, but they’ll respect you more if she’s not just a mistress.” Niall pushes his chair back and stands. “You don’t have to worry, cousin. I’m not going to tell anybody about her. Aside from the fact that you’ve got my loyalty, I would also prefer not to see our family descend into civil war.”
“That’s very kind of you.”
He waves a hand like it’s no big deal and goes to leave. As he steps out, another person’s in the hall. He moves aside, gesturing for Valentina to move past him. “We were just talking about you,” he says.
“Good things?” she asks, looking over at me.
“Mostly.” Niall winks behind her back and heads off.
Valentina watches him go then sits in the chair he just vacated. “What was that about? You two making up?”
“Yeah, something like that.” I stare at her, aching to pull her across the desk and into my lap. “You all good?”
“I wanted to talk about last night.” Her face is set, and I can’t tell if she’s here to apologize or what. “I understand why you feel the way you feel.”
“You made a choice for me that could impact my entire family. It’s a big deal.”
She nods slowly. “I get that. From my perspective, I was trying to stop two friends from getting into a feud for no good reason, but I understand that I was being a little too shortsighted.”
My anger begins to dissipate. Valentina’s a very, very proud person, and coming here must’ve been hard, much less sitting down and admitting that she could have been wrong. “I appreciate you saying that.”
“And I might have overreacted when you brought up the Capo thing.” Her gaze slips down. “Last night wasn’t my best.”
