“You think I’m going to be the one to break it to Uncle Toni that we stole the Capizola heir again? Yeah, not happening.”
“I’ll talk to him.” I ran a hand down my face, reluctantly pulling myself from Arianne.
“Are you hungry?” She seemed so content standing there, as if it was just a normal Sunday morning.
It wasn’t.
Luis was right.
We needed to get our stories straight and figure out what came next. There was no way Arianne was going back to that piece of shit, but if she didn’t... Well, it had the potential to pull the trigger on everything, and we were still in the dark about Fascini’s endgame.
Catching Luis’ gaze, I beckoned for him to follow me outside. “Stay with her,” I ordered Enzo and he gave me a two-fingered salute.
“Tell me everything.”
Luis closed the door behind him and joined me on the porch.
“Fascini is pulling all the strings. Roberto swears he didn’t know about them bringing the wedding date forward.”
“What do you think Mike has on him?”
“I don’t know, but whatever it is, it’s big. I’ve known Roberto a long time, Nicco. I have only known him as scared as this one other time and that was the failed hit on Arianne.”
“You think Fascini has threatened to hurt Arianne again?”
“Not Arianne. She’s the key. Think about it, she’s the future of Capizola Holdings. They need her to get rightful and legal access to his empire.”
“So if not Arianne... her mom?”
“Aside from Tristan, she’s the second most important person in his life.”
“Fuck.” I raked a hand down my face. The bombshells just kept coming.
If Luis was right, and Arianne didn’t go back, she could potentially be sentencing her mother to death.
“It’s a mess, Nicco. But you know you can’t send her back there, not now. He shoved a fucking gun in her mouth and—”
“Don’t, just don’t,” I gritted out as my fist ground against the wooden railing. I wanted to fuck something up. Preferably that psychopath’s face. “He needs to be dealt with.”
“She won’t let you do that. She won’t want his blood on your hands.”
“Do you have an alternative?” Because we were running out of options.
Luis' cell started ringing and he pulled it out of his pocket.
“Roberto?” I asked.
“No.” He frowned. “But I need to take this.”
“I’ll be inside.”
He nodded, stepping off the porch and heading for the SUV.
I went back inside, smiling when I saw Enzo helping Arianne find plates. Leaning against the door jamb I watched them. Enzo still looked like a cold-hearted bastard, but the fact he was here told me all I needed to know.
He was warming to her.
“Are you going to stand there all day?” His brow rose as he glowered at me.
“Put me to work.”
“Actually, we’re almost done. Take a seat and breakfast will be served.” Arianne flashed me a warm smile, making my insides weak.
“Where’s Vitelli?”
“Taking a call.”
“Problem?” Enzo mouthed.
“I don’t think so.” I took a seat at the breakfast counter. My stomach grumbled at the smell of freshly cooked bacon and pancakes. “This looks great, Bambolina.”
Arianne smiled as she served us each a plateful of food. “This is nice,” she said, taking the stool beside me.
“When are you going to call Uncle Toni?” Enzo asked.
“We have time.”
I needed this.
She needed this.
We’d spent our entire relationship fighting fires, I think we’d earned one morning.
“Nora texted me.” Arianne cut into a pancake, pushing it around her plate.
I held my breath, expecting her to deliver another bombshell. “And?”
“She says hi.”
“You told her?” Enzo groaned.
“No, I didn’t tell her, but she’s not stupid. She knows there’s only one place I’d be if I’m not at the hotel or the apartment.”
“You can’t tell her,” I said thickly. “Not yet.”
“I know. She knows I’m safe, that’s all that matters.”
“I’m proud of you.” Curving my hand around the back of her neck, I drew Arianne toward me, brushing my lips over hers.
“I keep thinking I should have killed him. If I’d have done it then this would be over...” She shuddered, dropping her silverware onto the plate.
“Hey, you did the right thing.” She didn’t deserve to have his blood on her hands.
“But I could have...”
“Nah,” Enzo said, surprising us both. “You don’t want to carry that kind of burden. You did what you needed to do to protect yourself, that’s what matters. You leave the rest to us.”
The protective edge in his voice soothed something inside me. I needed to know Arianne had people. If things went to shit