Page 53

“That’s good.”

“He slept last night. Through the whole night. First time in days.”

She doesn’t say it out loud, but I hear it anyway.

I nod toward her. “You look like you finally exhaled.”

She gives a small, tired laugh. “That obvious, huh? I think maybe I did.”

I glance down at her bare feet in the grass. “You always do that?”

“Do what?”

I point at her feet in the dirt.

“When I’m stressed.”

“What, walking around barefoot in the garden has anti-stress elements?”

“Might not be everybody’s cup of tea. But it’s mine. I like to ground myself with nature. Touch something that can’t lie to me,” she says. “Dirt. Leaves. Air. Flowers.”

I nod, watching her. “And me?”

She looks up slowly, lips parting.

“I haven’t decided yet.”

That hits deeper than it should and all thoughts of teasing her further vanish.

I take a breath, stepping closer. “You will.”

She arches a brow. “You’re that confident, aren’t you?”

“No,” I say. “More hope than confidence.”

She watches me a second longer, then looks back at Luca, who is now battling an imaginary army under the apple tree.

“You love him,” she says.

I follow her gaze. “Yeah. I do.”

“You don’t have to,” she murmurs. “He’s not yours.”

I glance at her, unsure what made her say that. “When has that ever mattered, Almeria?”

“Men like you – you don’t love another man’s seed like yours. Never have. Never will.”

“Men like me?” I scoff. “Am I not protecting the boy?”

“To soothe the guilt in your heart from what you caused me,” she says quietly. “And...to secure your position as a Don in the syndicate.”

I bite on my tongue, wondering how to counter the true words she just spoke.

“That was the reason before. But you and I both know that has changed. I’m here every waking hour of the day. I think about you two more than I think about my meals. And I love to eat. I don’t need to do all that to be a Don. But I do it anyway. Because your safety and happiness matter to me. And I’ll pass through hell and high water gladly if it means it’ll put a smile on your face.”

She says nothing.

But she doesn’t look away from me.