Page 78 of Surprise Twins for the Mafia Prince
Turning off the car, I sit there for a moment, battling the self-doubt screaming inside me, telling me I deserve this. I should’ve learned my lesson a long time ago. I might not stutter anymore, but I carry the shame of those years like a second skin. I try to hide it, but there’s a part of me that believes the insecurity that lingers can be sensed by any woman who gets too close.
Forcing down feelings of indecisiveness and foolishness, I cling to anger as I get out of the car and head inside. Luca is sitting on the couch, and he gets to his feet as he sees me. There’s a look in his eyes that I recognize. He’s pissed and prepared to do something about it.
But I’d never let him hurt Paige. I couldn’t stomach it. Not her. Not the mother of my children. Not the woman who’s crawled under my skin and made a home there.
“Go,” I say in a low voice as I spot Paige standing in the kitchen, watching us. “I’ll take care of this.”
“Are you sure?” Luca’s eyes are cold, calculating. In them, I see our father—the man who solves problems with permanent solutions.
I nod. “And keep this between us for now.”
Luca is one of the few people I know will keep his mouth shut if I ask, even keeping something from our father. I’m not ready forhim to know about this. I need to figure out what’s going on first. I need to hear it from her own lips.
My brother leaves a moment later, and I’m alone with her.
She stands at the kitchen island, beautiful even as she wrings her hands together. Seeing her there, belly full with my sons, stirs up a tangle of emotions so tight it’s choking me—love, anger, fear all fighting for space.
“Dario…is everything okay?” she asks. “First Luca was distant and weird, and now you seem…off.”
I chuckle, the sound scraping out of my throat like gravel. She has no idea that Luca saw her, and the sweet confusion on her face nearly cuts through my anger.
I can’t let it.
I need to stay furious, because the alternative is feeling hurt, and Dario Andretti doesn’t do hurt.
“Tell me something, Paige. Why the hell are you talking to the FBI?”
Her jaw drops, and I watch as her mind processes my words. “I-I’m not.”
“Don’t lie to me,” I snap. I’m standing in front of her now, only a few feet of space between us. I immediately regret getting so close. My fingers itch with the urge to touch her. I shove my hands into my pockets before they betray me. “Luca saw you at the restaurant.”
“That guy approached me…”
“That’s convenient,” I snap.
“Not really.” Her eyes blaze with indignation.
I should’ve known she’d react this way. Most people cower under the force of my angry gaze, but Paige isn’t like most people. Her spine straightens as she stares me down, unafraid.
I’m pissed when my cock reacts by growing hard at the sight of her defiance. The thought of bending her over the island flashes in my mind, and I hate myself for it. It doesn’t seem to matter that I’m enraged and dealing with the sting of betrayal—I still want her. Maybe more than ever.
“Was this your plan all along?” I ask, glaring at her. “Have you been working with them from the beginning? Was it even a coincidence that we met in the club that night?”
“Are you insane?” She’s almost yelling, and I don’t know how this shifted so quickly to her being mad at me.She’sthe one that did something wrong. “You know me. YouknowI’m not working with the FBI.”
“They’ve been trying to pin something on me and my family for as long as I can remember. We’ve always managed to stay one step ahead, and sending someone into my home is the perfect way to finally get us.”
“Maybe it is, but I’m not associated with the FBI,” she retorts, defiance still etched across her face.
The way she folds her arms over her chest and juts her chin out speaks of her stubbornness, and I grind my teeth together in response. She’s all fire and fury, refusing to back down even when faced with my worst.
“Why would I believe you?”
Hurt flashes across her face, and my erection disappears like it was never there. “Whywouldn’tyou believe me? I’ve never lied to you.”
“How do I know that?” The words are cutting their way out of me now, each one sharper than the last. “Are the babies really mine?”
Those early doubts have crept back in since Luca sent me that picture, but I regret the words as soon as they leave my mouth. Paige gasps and covers her belly with both hands, like she’s trying to shield our sons from hearing their father’s doubt. She stares at me with anguish as tears fill her eyes, and for a moment I hate myself more than I’ve ever hated anyone.
