Page 51 of Capone
“I need a reason?” I smiled at him, hooking my arms around his neck.
He mirrored my smirk, gripping me tighter. “Not at all.” He stared at me, searching my eyes. His brows furrowed as he leaned his head to the side. “Is everything okay, Sugar?”
“For the first time in a long time, everything is just fine.”
Chapter Nineteen
CAPONE
Something poking my forehead woke me from my deep slumber. Cracking my eyes open, they locked with Gabi’s. She was kneeling beside me in my bed, watching me with bright eyes.
“Pony, get up. Mommy cook.” Taking her by surprise, I swooped her into my arms, cradling her. She shrieked when I began to tickle her stomach with no mercy. “P-po-pony, stoooop!” she shrieked through her giggles.
After a few more tickles, I relented, laughing right along with her. For over a week, this had been my life, and I couldn’t be happier.
I didn’t know what Giovanna’s mother had said to her on that patio, but I was forever grateful. The next morning when I woke up, Giovanna was packing more of her and Gabi’s clothes. She told me she was accepting the club offer to open a bakery. I didn’t want to get too excited because Giovanna had been known to get inside her head and change her mind. But when she contacted a realtor to sell her home, I wanted to jump for joy.
We ended up renting a portable storage so she could load up her and Gabi’s necessities. The next day, we hooked the storage up to her car and began our long drive back to Florida. Oncewe returned, I was bummed when she loaded most of her things in a storage unit she had rented. I assumed she and Gabi were moving in, but she said she felt that was too much too soon. She was actively looking for a house to rent.
Little did she know, I had no intention of letting her move out. We were basically living together now, and everything was going just fine. I didn’t see a point in changing that.
I brought Viper in to help assist me with keeping her too busy to fully commit to finding a place of her own. Every day, he sent her a list of things that needed to be done for the bakery. So, between that and staying in communication with the lawyer she hired for the custody battle, Giovanna barely had any free time on her hands.
“Okay, okay. I’ll stop. Did you brush your teeth yet, Lil Bit?” I asked her. Normally, as soon as Giovanna woke Gabi up, she would make a beeline for my room to wake me up.
Gabi shook her head no, confirming what I already knew. I got out of bed and nestled her in the crook of my arm. As I walked into my bathroom, I leaned down to grab the step stool I had for her in here. This was another morning ritual. We brushed our teeth together.
The first few times, Giovanna would try taking over, thinking I wasn’t in the mood to deal with Gabi’s bubbly personality so early. I knew that stemmed from her past with Derek. Slowly but surely, I was showing her I wasn’t him in any way. I cherished every moment with both of them. They both had my heart in an iron-clad grip.
After brushing our teeth, I grabbed a face rag and wiped Gabi’s face. Once I was satisfied, I did the same to myself before heading to the kitchen. The aroma floating through my home caused my stomach to growl. As I rounded the corner, I instantly got annoyed.
Much to my displeasure, Dice and Gunner were seated at the table with a cup of coffee, like they had every right to be here. They too had become used to having the girls around, especially with the way Giovanna always cooked. We still showed up to dinner at the clubhouse here and there, but for the most part, we ate at home.
“It's about time. Giovanna wouldn’t let us eat a thing until you got in here.” Dice huffed and rolled his eyes.
Giovanna walked over to the table and set down two platters that were loaded with waffles, bacon, eggs, and fruit. “My man. My house. My rules,” she said, her voice loaded with sass.
My heart sped up a beat. I didn’t even think she realized she claimed me and my home until it was out of her mouth. Her cheeks turned a fiery red before she dashed back into the kitchen.
“Well, I guess she told you.” Gunner snickered at the dumbfound look on Dice’s face.
“I guess so,” he mumbled as he started loading up his plate.
I placed Gabi in her booster seat next to me just as Giovanna came back from the kitchen with a plate assembled just for Gabi. Everything was already cut up in bite-sized pieces. As soon as Giovanna placed the plate in front of Gabi, she went for what she knew.
Before Giovanna could walk away, I snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her into me. She hesitated before staring me in the eyes. I could feel how tense she was, so I decided not to bring up her declaration. Instead, I gave her a few pecks on the lips. Whenever she was ready to accept what I already knew, I would be here waiting.
“Morning, Sugar.”
“Good morning,” she simpered as she melted against me.
“I told you, you don’t have to keep cooking for Dice and Gunner. They can carry their ass to the clubhouse if they’re hungry.”
“No, I can’t. The clubhouse is a bit of a war zone for me right now,” Dice said hastily. His eyes were wide as he looked between Giovanna and me, like he was silently begging us not to send him there.
I squinted at him. “What did you do?”
Dice looked away nervously and Gunner burst out in laughter. “Cara caught him eating her honeybuns.”
