The Beginning (The Life 1)

These days he took the jet the forty-five minutes it took to get to New York when he was needed there. Otherwise, he ran his empire from right here in this little out-of-the-way town. The picturesque town that looked like a Rockwell painting and had a million secrets to tell.

Most of the people around here have no idea who we really are. They knew of the legitimate oil business and the fact that dad had built the local hospital and added a wing to the high school, but everything else was pretty much hidden from the locals.

They accepted that my brother and I were the products of privilege and could afford the cars and luxury we were known for that stood out like a sore thumb in a place like this.

And they’d had more than one demonstration of the Russo temper, especially from my little brother, but other than that, we were low-key.

Our family is extremely close-knit. Mom has a hard time letting go, and since her husband spoils her, we’re all pretty much under her thumb.

I knew she would be my biggest hurdle if I were going to do what I was contemplating, but for once, I wasn’t worried about going against mom. I felt as though in this one thing, I would defy everyone and everything to protect her.

“I’ll be right back, don’t move.” I grabbed a tee shirt and some pajama bottoms and headed for the bathroom, leaving the door slightly ajar as I got changed.

She’s probably going to have a heart attack when I get into bed with her, but that’s what she gets for pulling this stunt. Like I’m gonna trust her ass in bed alone again. And I’m damned if I’m sleeping on that uncomfortable ass chair.

I came back into the room, and her eyes followed me as I moved around the bed to the other side. By the look in her eye, I knew she knew what I was about to do.

I knew she was holding her breath in not exactly fear but deep apprehension. I ignored it and climbed into bed, keeping space between us. I was looking at her face in the semi-dark and saw her fighting sleep.

She was drawn tight; I could feel the tension from my side of the bed. I figured if we could get through tonight, it would be a huge step in the right direction.

“Go to sleep; you’re beat.” She could barely keep her eyes open. No wonder; she was probably emotionally drained after all the shit she’s had in her head all day.

I think it said a lot that with just one more sleepy look in my direction, she was able to settle down and rest. Little fool, who was going to take care of her out there? I don’t even want to imagine what the world would do to an innocent like her. The thought gave me chills.

I wondered at the feelings that came over me then as I looked down at her angelic beauty. The very beat of my heart had changed. I felt…that’s it, I felt. For the first time since gramps had been taken from me so ruthlessly, I actually felt something.

The realization had me reaching out to touch, but not wanting to spook her, I let my fingers just lightly trace her hair. “I think I love you,” I whispered the words to her sleeping form before turning over onto my back.

I closed my eyes as I gave thought to all that I had to do. It had been some time since there were any schisms in the family. No one had fucked with the Russos in a while. Now I was about to stir shit up on the home front.

DRACO

MONTHS LATER

“Push Sofia, come on, baby, you can do it.” The look she gave me was not one I’d expect from my sweet, demure wife. No, that was the look of someone about to commit murder. If my heart weren’t in my lungs, I would’ve laughed, but I was too scared for that.

She’d gone into labor at a very inopportune moment, if I do say so myself, one that had sent both of us scrambling to get decent while panicking about the birth of our first child.

I’d prepared everything weeks ago, but when her water broke, I couldn’t remember where my own feet were. She, on the other hand, was cool and composed. While I was running around getting things together after calling the hospital, she’d stood in the middle of the room rubbing her tummy and talking to our son; just another day in the life of a pampered princess.

In the six months since we’d eloped, she has been an enigma. The scared, frightened girl I had taken from my family home after mom and dad had lost their minds and forbidden me to marry the help was no more. In her place was a self-assured albeit shy young woman who knew her worth. It hadn’t been an easy road getting here, but I worked on her without let-up until she came to trust me.