Page 37 of Reign of Fate

“Did you have fun last night, Daddy?” Adriana asks. Every night I’m not at home to tuck her in, I tell her I have to work. And every morning, she asks if I had fun at work. The nights when we catch an enemy and I get to torture the fucker before putting him out of his misery, I tell her I had fun. Last night was not the case.

“No, cara. Last night was just plain old work,” I respond.

Adriana puts her elbow on the table, her cheek in her hand. “That’s too bad. I wish you could have had fun like Mama and I did. We played and read and cleaned up all the toys.”

“Well, Mama must be pretty special because you never clean up when Mrs. Withers asks you to,” I remind her with a lift of my brow.

“She doesn’t put on music. We dance and clean up,” she says and looks at Elisa, “Right, Mama?”

“Absolutely!” Elisa responds with enthusiasm. “There’s no reason we can’t have fun while we work, is there?” She gives Adriana a little tickle, then sets down a pancake with chocolate chips lined up to look like a smiley face in front of her.

“Aren’t you special?” I say, then turn to Elisa. “Do I get a smiley face? I’ve been a good boy,” I tease.

Elisa puts a plate with a stack of pancakes in front of me, and mine has strawberries lined up to look like a rocket. “I know you don’t like chocolate chips. I thought you’d appreciate strawberries,” she says with a shy smile.

I glide my hand up her leg and under her skirt. Elisa quickly glances aside to see what Adriana is doing, but she’s so immersed in pouring ridiculous amounts of syrup on her pancake that she isn’t paying attention to us.

“Ivo…” Her voice drifts off.

“Thank you for breakfast,” I say, keeping one hand on her thigh while with the other, I take a forkful of my pancake and shove it into my mouth. “Delicious,” I say, licking my lips, but Elisa understands it’s not the pancakes I’m referring to.

“You’re welcome,” she says politely. I drop my hand and pull out the chair next to me.

“Come and eat.” I give her a wink.

ELISA

Ivo’s going to be the death of me. I can’t stop thinking about him. I want to rip his shirt open and climb on top of him. I’ve never thought this often about sex in my entire life. Suddenly, I’m a sex fiend. Well, just when it comes to Ivo, that is.

“I’ve got to go see Raffaele for a bit,” he announces. “I’ll be back soon.” Ivo’s still staring at his phone. A text came through, and his face became fierce, like he was doing his darndest not to throw the mug he held across the room.

I’m not sure how to console him, or even if I should. Guido was out of commission and was never involved in Mafia business after his injury. Guido’s mood swings were all about his inability to walk or to “be a man,” in his words. His outbursts were emotional, but I could deal with that. I would point out all the other good attributes he had and how he saved me from my family. That reminded him that he’d accomplished something amazing, even from a wheelchair.

Ivo’s a completely different man and has an important position. Next to Raffaele, Ivo’s the one our men listen to. His face hardens as he taps his message and hits Send.

“Evangeline’s not feeling well. Raffaele doesn’t want her left alone.”

“I’ll be happy to keep her company. Adriana and I can make some homemade chicken soup.” Adriana’s beaming. “Would you like that?” I ask her.

“Can we make biscuits? Mrs. Withers makes biscuits, and she puts butter on them. They taste so good,” she exclaims.

“I’ve never made them, but I’ll find a recipe, and we’ll get right on that. I think you should pack some of your favorite toys and maybe some coloring books. We want to make sure we do quiet games today. Evangeline needs to rest,” I tell her.

Adriana drops her fork and races off before either of us can say anything.

Ivo stands, pulls on my ponytail to tilt my head back, and drops a light kiss on my mouth. “My regina, always thinking ahead. Raffaele is sending over the doc. Evangeline’s been like this for over a week. She seems fine, then she’s not.”

I smirk, and he narrows his eyes. “What are you thinking?”

“I’d rather wait for the doctor’s opinion,” I tell him, but Ivo’s catching on, and when it dawns on him, he laughs. It starts with a low chuckle, then grows into a roar of laughter. He’s incredibly handsome when he laughs. His eyes light up, and he looks relaxed and happy.

Raffaele and Ivo take off as soon as Adriana and I arrive to sit with Evangeline. I bring her some crackers. “Nibble on them slowly. It will help settle your stomach.” I leave Adriana to sit on the floor working on her puzzle while I start the chicken stock.

By the time I make it back to the girls, the doctor is ringing the doorbell. Twenty minutes later, the doctor has come to the same conclusion, although he won’t conclusively state it without the results of the blood test, which are being expedited.

Evangeline’s face is priceless when the doctor tells her she might be pregnant. She gently places a hand on her belly, looking bewildered, and a sweet smile crosses her face. “Can you imagine Raffaele as a father?” she says with a giggle.

“I wish I could be here when you tell him.” I laugh along with her. “You’re going to have to give me a play-by-play account. Lie back and rest. Adriana’s going to help me make our biscuits, and I’ll bring a tray out to you.”

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