Page 99 of Fractured Empire

Dante Moretti, famed Capo of The Outfit just saw me laying in bed next to his son, presumably after a night of fucking him. There’s no way he believes Leon and I shared a bed simply to make my nightmares subside.

“Oh no, walking in on his fully clothed son in bed next to his fully clothed wife,” Leon teases, chuckling to himself. “However will my father who’s walked in on multiple of my siblings actually fucking survive?”

A full blown gasp flies out of me. “No,” I burst out, turning to look at him with wide eyes. “That didn’t really happen, did it?”

Leon seems to find my scandalized expression amusing. He laughs and leans forward, kissing my forehead. “Trust me, baby. We’re the least horrifying thing he’s seen when it comes to his kids. It’s not like he found us here midday, making out and about to get busy. He found a married couple asleep in the same bed.”

“Go back,” I instruct, needing to know more. “He seriously walked in on…how, when, why?”

I don’t know his siblings very well yet, but I know them more than I did before marrying into the family. Jade and Rayna text me the most, but others occasionally check in as well. It’s been a busy time trying to adjust to this new life, and I don’t exactly have time to make more than ten new friends. Still, I hear about them through stories from Bastian and Leo, or in texts from the girls.

Shaking his head, Leon can’t hide his smile. “It’s not that surprising, is it? We were a house of nine boys, a father, and an uncle at one point, you know? That’s a lot of space to be shared by testosterone-filled men who are prone to carnal acts.”

“Well, when you put it like that,” I say, exhaling through my nose. “I only lived with one boy, and I’ve seen far more of Ares than I’d ever like to admit or remember. He’s more obnoxious than your brothers, though.”

Leon arches an eyebrow and I wince, feeling guilty for my word choice.

“I mean, he does it on purpose. He likes to mess with people and freak them out. He’s still a good stepbrother, as far as I’m concerned. He cares about Gaia a lot, and he’s always been nice to my mom, despite having issues with his own mother figure in the past.”

“I figured that’s what you meant,” Leon says, not bothered by my rushed explanation. “It’s just that you have no idea the kind of menaces my brothers could be. Armani has a higher body count than anyone I’ve ever met, and he likes to get as many pretty people naked as he can manage. Dad once walked in on him with four girls and a guy. He had to just walk away and try to scrub it from his memory, but Armani was banned from the pool house for a full year after.”

“Oh, wow.”

Leon nods, clicking his tongue. “Elio has done his fair share of damage to our father’s psyche too. He got caught in his car when he was only fifteen. He was supposed to be working on the engine and he was not.”

My nose wrinkles, scrunching up tight at the imagery. “Your poor father. I think I’d have a heart attack if the boys grew up and brought someone around to…Yeah no, I can’t even imagine. Absolutely not. Is this one of the horrors of parenthood that no one thinks about? Your sweet precious babies growing up and having the hormones of—No, just no. Bastian and Leo aren’t allowed to grow up. I’m going to tell them just that as soon as we get downstairs.”

“God, you’re precious.” The compliment comes out of left field, hitting me hard.

“You can’t compliment me like that when we have to get out of bed,” I tell him frankly. Throwing the covers off, I peel myself up and off the mattress before he can sweet-talk me into staying longer. Then we really will get caught by his father doing something we shouldn’t. “I have to go change. I’ll meet you down there.”

“But you look perfect in those perky little shorts of yours,” he calls out, grinning as I spin around in the doorway.

Pointing a finger at him, I narrow my eyes and try to appear stern despite the butterflies jumping around in my stomach. “Keep those comments to yourself until the sun goes down, mister.”

“If you insist, baby.”

I have to pretend I didn’t hear him, otherwise I might actually give into his advances, whether they’re meant to be serious or teasing. Something about my big, strong husband calling me baby in that deep voice of his makes me lose all sense of propriety.

Thankfully, once I get to my room, I’m able to center myself and adjust to the new day. Thoughts of last night are still fresh and play around in my mind but not enough to derail my actions. I have to get dressed and act like a normal human in front of my father-in-law if I ever want to be able to look him in the eye ever again.

Trying not to take too long to ready myself, I wash my face quickly and throw on some casual clothes and slippers to head downstairs and see what’s in store for me. Dante Moretti can be an intimidating man, but I doubt the more terrifying side of him has a place in this house while his grandsons are here. The boys adore him and make that perfectly clear anytime the man is mentioned.

Leon also never has a bad word to speak against his father, despite seeming a bit salty that he dropped by unannounced. I honestly don’t mind the visit, even without warning to prepare for it. He hasn’t shown himself to be an over-stepper when it comes to boundaries that I know of, and since he mentioned needing to speak about work, I imagine he has quite a valid reason for coming by so suddenly. Even if he didn’t, the kids are thrilled to see him, and I could never be too upset about something that makes them so happy.

When I finally make it to the kitchen, there are trays of food on the island just like Dante mentioned there would be. They’re filled with eggs, breakfast meats, cheeses, and a variety of breads like English muffins and bagels. A true breakfast sandwich bar that’s actually kind of exciting—and mouthwatering. I love eating food that requires little effort, especially in the morning after I’ve just woken up.

The kids are chowing down at the table, sitting on either side of their papa, while I find Leon in the corner of the kitchen, giving Princess Spaghetti her breakfast in one of her fancy red bowls. She’s wagging her tail so fast, and bouncing on her toes by the time he’s done and setting the prepared meal down for her to eat.

“Looks like everyone found something to eat but us,” I say, catching his attention first. “Want me to make you a plate?”

“I’ll make you one,” Leon counters, turning on the sink to wash his hands. “Go sit, tesoro.”

My eyes widen at the sound of the pet name, not expecting him to use it so easily in front of others. “O-okay.”

“Kat, you sit with me,” Leo shouts, waving his hands despite only being across the room. He wouldn’t even need to raise his voice to get my attention, let alone wave his hands, but it’s cute all the same.

“Hmmm, is it your turn today?” I ask, raising my brows as I walk toward the table.