Page 64 of Dante
Dante’s heart skipped a beat. “Y-You are?”
“Yes.” She cried glittering tears. “That’s why I’m crying.”
Throwing himself out of his chair, he practically ran over to his daughter and had to force himself to stop. “May I?” he asked, holding out his hand.
Maria stared at his tanned hand before taking it and placing it on her belly that was only just beginning to show. “It’s a girl,” she whispered through her tears.
Tears welled in his icy eyes. She could blame the tears on her pregnancy all she wanted, but he knew she was crying for the same reason he was, and she would soon find out …
Little girls will always stay your little girl.
Amo walked up to the girl holding the huge box that Nadia had pointed out. She looked like a fumbling box with a pair of legs as the only thing he could see of her was the short legs struggling to hold up the box she had just packed.
Ugh, he internally grumbled from having to be in here. He wished he were still in the car, just getting paid to watch Nadia, not getting paid to watch Nadia while actually having to do some work. Volunteering was something kids had to do to go tocollege, and even though Amo hadn’t graduated high school that long ago, his ass still hadn’t volunteered a day in his life because De Santis men didn’t go to college. They went into the mafia to become made and were always the bodyguards of the highest decree, being the ones to guard the Caruso boss for generations. His uncle Drago had been one of the best of the De Santis protectors, and Amo was following in his footsteps.
When he got closer to her, she was just about to run into him before Amo rolled his eyes and bent down to take the box from her.
“Oh!” the girl huffed as the weight of the box was released from her. “Thank you.”
“No problem,” he grumbled under his breath.
“It goes over there, against the wall with the others.”
Able to only see the top of her bright, orange hair, he sidestepped around her to move to the burgeoning pile of cardboard boxes.
“Wow, you’re big—” The words slipped from her mouth in astonishment. “I mean, strong.” She nervously laughed, correcting herself.
“Uh-huh,” Amo said dismissively, hoping the kid would stop following him.
The girl didn’t, however, clearly feeling the need to explain her choice of words to him. She followed right behind him as she continued to nervously explain herself. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to call you big. You’re just quite …”
Amo walked faster, hoping she would take the fucking hint.
“Tall,” she finally found the word. “Compared to me, is all.”
She didn’t, because weakening laughter still followed him.
“Because I’m, um …”
He rolled his eyes again.Short.
“Short …” she stated the obvious that clearly didn’t need to be said but didn’t know how stupid it sounded until she had said it. “I’m sorry. We should start again.”
You see, this is exactly why I hate being around little kids.He threw the box down onto the pile and began to turn …They’re fucking annoyi—
“I’m Winnie.”
Amo blinked at the girl smiling nervously up at him. Her voice had been so soft and sweet that he had thought she was just a little kid, but the girl didn’t look that far in age from himself. And she was right; she was just short.
Able to see more than just her bright, orange hair, he moved his eyes to her button nose and chubby cheeks that were both just as rosy and covered in freckles. She looked like a cute, chubby bunny, and he figured she was about as harmless, too. While Amo looked like a beast that would swallow her whole in comparison.
He told himself to walk away, but the beast inside kept him in place.
Cause, oh …
Did she look …
Delicious.
