I chew on my fork, not sure what to say. I knew he struggled with his injuries, but I didn’t realize how bad it was. I can’t imagine Fynn losing it like that—especially considering how he seems like he’s always in control, or at least struggling to maintain his composure. But the idea of him yelling, breaking things, hurting people, that seems so unlike the man I know.
“They all hide in plain sight but the pain’s always there,” Karah says quietly, staring at her plate. “It’s not just Fynn. I watch Gavino and Casso going through it too and wish I could do more to help them. Nico’s not as bad since he didn’t grow up with our father, but it’s just the way men are in this family. They have to be strong or else they’ll get a bullet in the head, or at least that’s what they think.”
“Casso talks about your father sometimes,” Olivia says, sounding hesitant. “About the way your father brought them up.” She seems nervous, and it must be since she’s the newest member of the family. Karah is Casso and Gavino and Fynn’s sister, and Elise married their father, but Olivia only joined the family a few months back when she married Casso.
“He expected a lot from Casso since he was the oldest, but Fynn and Gavino didn’t have it easy either.” Karah nudges her meal around, not eating, just staring into the distance like she’s remembering something awful. “I was mostly spared all that since I was beneath his attention for the most part. And because, well, I knew something about him. Anyway, it’s the past.”
“Fynn struggled more than the others,” Elise says, frowning at Karah. “It’s hard to describe the way your father pushed them. It was more overt with Casso, since he saw Casso as the heir, but Fynn and Gavino were trained too. They were taught how to behave, how to think, and I have a feeling it took root in them deeper than they realize.”
“Is that why Fynn’s a pushy asshole sometimes?” I ask, trying to lighten the mood.
Elise laughs softly and nods. “That, among other reasons.”
“The Bruno brothers are all a bunch of scarred and broken monsters,” Olivia says. “And we still love them anyway.”
“They’re my brothers.” Karah shrugs, grinning.
“And they’re like… well, I guess they’re like brothers to me, too,” Elise says, tapping her manicured nail on her wine glass. “My relationship to this family isn’t exactly clear.”
“That’s putting it mildly.” Karah laughs as Elise rolls her eyes, downs her drink, and pours another.
“What you’re all saying is Fynn’s never going to go easier on me, is he?”
“Pretty much no,” Olivia says, patting my arm. “Sorry, sweetie. And welcome to the family.”
“Oh, I’m not part of the family,” I say quickly but they ignore me and the conversation moves on again. I feel myself blushing and trying to imagine myself a part of this world, waking up day in and day out with these women, and it’s almost a nice thought. Not comforting, but I could see myself falling in love with this place.
Elise dominates the table, telling stories about her debutante friends and their misadventures in social media. It’s funny and she’s very charming, and I can tell that both Olivia and Karah love her a lot. I’m sucked into the banter and by the time we’re done, I have two glasses of wine in me and I’m feeling pretty good.
“Why don’t we go for a stroll?” Elise says, putting an arm across my shoulders. She teeters a bit as if drunk, and her breath smells like wine. “Come on, I want to show you something.”
“You two okay?” Karah asks, looking at her phone. “I should go check on Emilio.”
“And I should go lie down and sleep.” Olivia sighs and rubs her face. “Except I can’t get comfortable, and also can’t actually sleep, which isn’t going to change much when the baby comes. Oh, the pleasures of being pregnant.” Karah laughs and tosses an arm across her shoulder, hugging her as they leave together.
Elise waves them off and steers me away. She’s stumbling slightly, taking big steps, really laying it on thick. As soon as they’re out of sight, she seems to start walking normally, like the alcohol disappears. She squints at me, frowning a bit with a little smile on her lips, like she’s trying to take my stock.
“How much do you want to know about Fynn?”
I shake my head. “I don’t know, if I’m honest. We’re only working together and when my contract’s up, I’m going to head home. I don’t actually plan on staying here forever, you know.”
“Are you sure about that? Wait, no, don’t answer, I won’t believe you either way. Let’s go down here, maybe you’ll get something out of this. There’s a lot going on beneath the surface in this house, both literally and figuratively, and I think you should know what you’re getting into. When I was married to their father, I spent most of my time in Tuscany and Amsterdam and Hong Kong, basically anywhere that was as far from my husband and this house as possible. He wasn’t a pleasant man to be married to, especially considering what he did to his last wife.”