here. And I couldn’t do that to Nora or my mom, despite her misguided loyalty to my father.
For now, I was stuck here.
So I did the only thing within my power.
I held my head high, steeled myself, and said, “Let’s go.”
Chapter 7
Nicco
I padded into my room, shutting the door behind me. It had been a long fucking day. My aunt had tried to keep me company, but I was like a bear with a sore head. Only four days in exile and I was already starting to feel like a caged animal.
My father had no updates. Tommy, our investigator, and Stefan, the Family’s consigliere, were working around the clock to dig up dirt on Mike Fascini, but there was nothing new to report. And to make matters worse, Arianne had texted earlier to say she needed to talk to me.
Dropping onto the bed, I ran a hand through my hair. It was still damp from my workout. Dane and Uncle Alonso had a fully equipped gym in the house, so I’d spent a couple of hours burning off some steam. But it wasn’t enough. Restless energy coursed through my veins like lava. The whole time, I’d only been able to picture that fucker with his hands on Arianne.
My girl.
My life.
Luis had said everything had gone fine; that after dinner and drinks with Fascini’s friends, he had driven Arianne home and called Scott a cab. But my mind was the enemy, working against me to concoct all kinds of nightmarish endings.
And now she wanted to talk to me about something.
I was ready to detonate.
My cell started vibrating and I scooped it up, bringing it to my ear. “Nicco?” Her voice was small, and my chest tightened.
“Bambolina.”
A beat passed.
Another.
Neither of us spoke but the silence was deafening. This was our life now. Pained silence and bittersweet memories.
“How are you?” Arianne finally spoke.
“I thought it would be okay. I thought I’d come here, and knowing you were safe would be enough... but it’s killing me. It’s only been four days and it’s killing me.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I looked for you today. I wandered around downtown with Nora, expecting you to appear. What are we going to do, Nicco? How are we going to survive this?”
Letting myself fall backward, I inhaled a shuddering breath. “We keep going, Bambolina. We have to keep going.”
“I...” Arianne hesitated.
“What is it, amore mio?”
“My father wants to see me tonight... It’s about the party.”
My blood boiled. “Do you know when it is?”
“Soon, I think.”
I rubbed my temples. I wanted to comfort her, to tell her everything was going to be okay. But I couldn’t find the words.
The thought of Arianne being paraded in front of everyone, introduced as Scott’s fiancée, tore me up inside.
She wasn’t his.
She would never be his.
Yet, he was there, and I was here and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
“There’s still time. Your birthday isn’t until February. That’s still five months away. My father will have a plan before then. He will—”
“Nicco, stop. Please. I don’t want to keep doing this. It hurts too much.”
“Bambolina,” I breathed, her pain palpable even over the phone.
“Just talk to me, tell me about your day.”
“There isn’t much to tell,” I confessed.
“Humor me.”
“I had breakfast with my aunt, uncle, and Dane this morning. Then when he finally left to meet his friends, I helped my aunt around the house, then—”
“Wait, you did chores?”
I chuckled. “Surprised?”
“A little.” I heard the smile in her answer. “I can’t imagine big bad Niccolò Marchetti helping with the dishes.”
“You think I’m big and bad?” The corner of my mouth tipped. I liked hearing Arianne like this: playful and happy.
“Well, aren’t you?”
“Sometimes,” I lowered my voice. “When I need to be.”
There was a beat of silence, the slight ruffle of material. “What are you doing?” I asked.
“My towel slipped.”
Heat flooded me, zipping straight to my dick. “Don’t tell me you just got out of the shower?”
“Well, yeah...”
“Fuck, Bambolina. Do you have any idea how crazy that drives me, knowing you’re there, naked—”
“I’m not naked, I have a towel wrapped around me.” Arianne’s soft laughter was music to my ears, but it only fueled the blood pumping through me.
“I wish I was there.” It came out strained.
“Why?” Her voice was barely a whisper. “What would you do?”
“You really want to know?”
I waited with bated breath, my heart crashing against my ribcage. I hadn’t planned on this, but I’d take it. I’d take anything I could get where Arianne was concerned.