Page 79 of Bellini Bound
Summer snickered. Glad someone was amused because I sure as shit was not.
“What is the deal with you two?” Allie pointed between me and Gabi.
Tossing the curtain of dark hair over her shoulder, Gabi fixed me with a cat-who-ate-the-canary grin as she spoke to my wife. “Oh, he’s just pissy that I call him out for being an overgrown, overpaid lackey.”
“Enforcer,” I huffed out the correction.
Her tone grew placating. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, big guy.”
“I’ll take being called a lackey over being an entitled little brat who acts ashamed of her family,” I shot back.
Gabi straightened, getting defensive. “Who says I’m ashamed?”
“You know what, maybe I’m confused, and it was another best friend of Summer’s named Gabi who couldn’t stand the thought of her getting involved with Matteo.”
Red-faced, she shoved off her stool. “I was trying to protect her!”
“That’s not your job,” I countered.
“Well, excuuuuuuuse me for being concerned, but it’s not like this family has the greatest track record when it comes to keeping their women safe.” Allie stiffened beside me as Gabi kept rolling, using her fingers to tick off our failings when it came to women with the last name Bellini. “Roryran off, Allegra’s dead, and Gemma went into hiding. Is it any wonder that I was scared for Summer, who is more like a sister to me than a best friend?”
I scoffed. “Where was all this concern when you knowingly sent her to lifeguard a mafia princess’s birthday party in your place, huh?”
My words achieved their intended purpose—a shot to the heart—and Gabi stumbled back, clutching a hand to her chest.
There was no denying that Gabi was the sole reason Summer had found herself directly in Matteo’s path. If she hadn’t begged her bestie to cover for her as a lifeguard at Bianca’s birthday party a little over a year ago, the two of them would have never met.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Summer declared, placing her body between the two of us. “Gabi, I love that you love me enough to want the best for me, but I don’t have any regrets about the turn my life has taken since meeting Matteo. How can I when it gave me my daughters and the love of my life?”
Gabi softened, agreeing, “Those little munchkins are pretty damn cute.”
“And theylovetheir Aunt Gabi.”
I bristled. “Not more than they love their Uncle Enzo.”
“Get real.” Gabi rolled her eyes. “I’m the one who gives them at-home spa treatments, and you’re the one who shows up to break all their toys. It’s no contest.”
“How are you guys related again?” Allie elected to speak after being a mostly silent observer of our exchange to this point.
“Third cousins,” Gabi and I said at the exact same time.
Allie’s brow wrinkled. “Uh . . .”
I broke it down so it was easier to understand. “Our grandparents were first cousins. We share the same great-great-grandparents.”
My wife’s eyes widened. “You guys can trace back your ancestry that far?”
“It’s kinda necessary when your lineage dictates who will be the head of the family and run the organization.”
Allie laughed, and that sweet sound had the power to light up my soul. “You guys are like a fucked-up version of a royal family, you know that?”
“She’s not wrong.” Summer’s voice was laced with amusement. “Especially with the stupid rule that says only boys can be in charge.”
“Seriously?” Allie asked. “What century is this?”
I lifted both hands in surrender. “I don’t make the rules. I only live by them.”
“Easy to do when they benefit you,” Gabi muttered under her breath.
