Page 60 of Deadly Little Sparrow

“In your hearts, yes. On this earthly plane? Let’s hope not,” she says bluntly, and I decide that I’m definitely going to get along with this feisty old woman.

“I brought these as a thank you for having me over for dinner. It smells delicious,” I say, offering her the flowers and wine.

“Finally, some manners in this house,” Nonna says dramatically, taking the offering from me and giving me a kiss on the cheek, leaving sticky lipstick in her wake before carrying the gifts into the kitchen.

“Way to get us in trouble before dinner,” Alessio complains quietly.

I shoot him a smug look. “Charming family is just one of my many skills.”

“Speaking of which,” Enzo says, stepping out of the doorway that leads to the kitchen, leaving his grandma to finish cooking. “Xav says you do tech.”

“Sure. Programming, most troubleshooting and repairs, websites, all the basics and then some,” I answer.

“Good. That’s exactly what we need.” Enzo nods as if something is settled.

“Was that a job offer?” I cock my head. “Because I’m going to need to hear the actual offer part. And don’t expect me to come cheap.”

His lips twitch with a suppressed smile and he tugs on the lapels of his suit to straighten it. “We’ll talk,” he concedes, and I nod this time.

“We’ll talk,” I agree.

“Elio, Enzo, come set the table,” Nonna calls from the kitchen, and I’m not the only one who titters this time. There’s absolutely nothing funnier than a couple of mobsters and their grandmother. Fight me.

They slink off and I lean into the warmth of Xaviaro at my back.

“You really can’t stop busting his balls, can you?” he asks with a quiet laugh.

“It’s good for him,” I whisper back, turning towards him and meeting his eyes. “For the record, I’m all pretzel-fied over you too.” I rise up onto the tips of my toes and brush my lips against his.

Salvatore groans.

“Yeah, you two are gross,” Alessio says.

“Jealous,” I taunt, dragging my thumb over Xaviaro’s lip to wipe off the lingering dampness from the brief kiss. “You two never know, the love of your life could come along and break your nose any day.”

Salvatore’s eyes go wide. “He’s the one who broke your nose?”

“Oops,” I mutter, grimacing apologetically at Xaviaro. I assumed all the guys knew about our epic meet-cute at this point.

Alessio cackles. “I’m thinking Elio has the best shot at that one.”

“Wait, what?” Curiosity prickles through me.

“Ah, shit, forget I said anything. Elio will fucking kill me,” he backtracks immediately.

Salvatore snorts. “Elio is a pussy cat.”

“Yeah, I’m definitely scarier than Elio,” I scoff.

“Dinner,” Nonna shouts from the kitchen again, effectively putting a stop to the gossip before my curiosity can be satisfied.

It’s a question for another day, I suppose. And, honestly, I love that there will be other days. It’ll always be bittersweet that I have another day and Benny never will again. No amount of bloodshed managed to change the reality of that. Xaviaro puts a hand on my back again to lead me into the dining room, and I lean into the warm weight of his presence.

The revenge might not have done anything to bring Benny back, but it did lead me straight to Xaviaro. I’ve never believed in fate or that anything is meant to be. Life is too damn random and painful for bullshit platitudes like that. What I do believe is that sometimes you meet the right people exactly when you need them most. There isn’t a doubt anywhere inside of me that Xaviaro is my right person.

We all file into the dining room and take seats around a table filled with a boggling array of different foods, all of which smell sinful. Like, I would definitely cut somebody for the lambchop Xaviaro loads onto my plate. Luckily, the only thing I end up needing a knife for is to add a pat of butter to my bread.

I glance around the table while everyone else fills their plates, laughing and shouting over each other. It’s the kind of family I always wished for, I just didn’t expect it to be The Family. But I think I can work with this. At least shit will never be dull. My eyes land on Xaviaro one more time and my heart flutters when he meets my gaze.

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