Eric sat thoughtfully for a few minutes before he said, “If it’s the fact that you’re a priest that bothers you, over the fact that she’s your sister, then perhaps, you don’t need to talk after all.”
Dante frowned. “That...doesn’t make sense.”
Before he could question Eric more, Aiden joined them, and after a pause in which he looked both Dante and Eric over, he sat at the bar. “What’s happening with you two?”
“Eric’s decided to confess all his sins,” Dante said dryly.
Eric sputtered and narrowed his eyes at his brother, while Aiden laughed. “We all know you don’t have time to listen to them all.”
Eric punched Aiden on the arm. “You’ve probably got more sins than me with all the pussy that got thrown your way in Europe.”
“Can we talk about something else?” Dante moaned, knowing his brothers had only gotten started.
“As long as you’re not touching the pussy, what’s the problem?” Aiden grinned, and started laughing at the pissed look on Dante’s face.
“You two are being lousy brothers right now. I’m going to see who else I can find.”
Dante walked away and he could hear their laughter following him. Normally, he’d be able to laugh off the sexual innuendos and phrases his brothers liked to use, but lately, he found he couldn’t. He needed a distraction before he lost his mind.
“Oh, there’s the priest.”
The words grated on his nerves, more so because they’d come out of Caprice’s mouth, his brother Mateo’s fiancée. He was of the two minds to pretend he hadn’t heard the comment, but chances were his brother would be with her.
Then he heard, “Don’t be an insulting ass, Caprice,” coming out of Emelia’s mouth.
He couldn’t keep the grin off his face at Emelia’s words, when he turned and faced them. “Brothers,” he paused when his gaze rested on Emelia, and he couldn’t bring himself to call her sister, “Emelia...and Caprice.” His manners, when around others were usually something that his mother would have been proud of, but he was on a short fuse at the moment, and Caprice was about to push the limits.
Diego had his arm slung around Emelia’s neck while he whispered into her ear. If you had no idea who they were, you’d think they were lovers, but even though he knew that they were twins, he was jealous of how freely Diego got to touch his Emelia.
“You look different,” Caprice observed, which drew everyone’s eyes to him. “You don’t have that white thing around your neck or the dress on. You did that at the last wedding.”
Emelia broke away from Diego and spun toward Caprice. Her face was a mere inch from Caprice’s, and the way Emelia leaned in, eyes flashing as her arms flayed about, it was clear that she was furious with Mateo’s fiancée. “You are so rude,” she steamed, “and ignorant.”
Caprice gasped and backed into Mateo, who looked more amused than anything as he raised his brow. Dante glanced to Diego and realized his youngest brother was enjoying the show and that there wouldn’t be any help with Emelia from that direction.
“You need to apologize to Dante, right now,” Emelia demanded, her fists clenched at her sides.
He needed to do something to prevent a scene at Ramon and Noah’s wedding because it looked like Emelia was all fired up on his behalf.
If he wasn’t so in love with the stubborn woman, he’d find it amusing, but now he had to go and get up close and personal with her to calm her down.
“It’s a collar, and a cassock...not a white thing and dress,” Emelia continued as she lectured the woman.
His brothers watched him as he approached Emelia. They probably thought he’d be the one to get her wrath if he intervened, but only he knew otherwise.
“Emelia,” he called and saw her body grow still. “C’mon, let it go.” He stood directly behind her, and slid his arm around the front of her stomach so that he could move her away.
Be strong, he told himself as Emelia’s back became plastered against his front. His hand flexed on her stomach as he finally hauled her into his arms and away.
While his heart tried to beat out of his chest, Dante heard Caprice mumbling on and on to Mateo. Why didn’t he protect her? What kind of fiancé was he for letting his sister threaten her?
Caprice did have a point, but while he held Emelia against him, he didn’t want
to think about them, he wanted to enjoy the feel of the woman in his arms.
Emelia wiggled and rubbed against him, which brought utter delight and arousal to his groin area. An area, which lay dead until he let his thoughts drift…
It can’t happen. Let her go!