“Oh, she was just saying how nice it is that everyone’s getting married and having kids. I think she feels a little left out.”
Fynn nods seriously and looks over to where Olivia and Elise are laughing together. Elise is drinking for the both of them. “She’ll always have a place here in our family. No matter what she does, even if she chooses to leave and marry someone else. She’ll always be a Bruno.”
I reach out on impulse and touch his chest. It’s an intimate gesture—and if I spent one second thinking about it, I wouldn’t have done it in front of everyone. As it stands, nobody’s looking, at least I don’t think so, and I move a little bit closer to Fynn. He’s so big, so breathtaking. I stare up into his eyes.
“You’re not such a bad man, you know,” I say quietly. “The way you all treat Elise is really nice.”
“Fuck being nice. I may be a bastard, but I take care of my own, and Elise is one of us.”
“That’s what I mean. You’re a dick, but you’re loyal.”
He looks down at me and gently takes my hands between his, holding them up to his lips. He kisses my fingertips softly. “What else is there in life? If you can’t be loyal to those you love, what’s the point of breathing?”
I feel a thrill run down my spine as he releases my hands and I pull them away, shaking slightly. I glance around to see if anyone noticed that, but we’re still alone on the edge of the gathering.
“Fynn, I need to tell you something.” I chew on my inner cheek hard, wondering if I’m making the right decision, but I’d hate myself if I kept this from him much longer. After everything, I feel like I owe him the truth at the very least.
“If you need to tell me how handsome you think I am and how much you love it when I pin you down and—”
I shake my head quickly. “No, seriously, Fynn. I need to tell you something that happened at the meeting earlier today.”
He frowns at me and glances at the rest of the gathering. They’re sitting down to eat as staff members bring out platters of food. He grabs my arm and tugs me after him, and we disappear inside as he waves to Casso and says to get started without us. Casso laughs and says, “We already are.”
Inside, the house is quiet. He brings me into the game room, flips the lights on, and crosses his arms. The bar is empty and the pool tables are still, and it smells like whiskey and freshly cleaned felt.
“All right, we’re alone. What happened? Are you okay?”
I take a deep breath and nod. “My father found me.”
He doesn’t react. He only stares at me, not moving a muscle. “Your father found you,” he repeats.
I tell him everything I can and relate as much of what my father said as possible. It was all jumbled and vague though, and as I finish Fynn looks more confused than angry, and he begins to pace back and forth, limping the whole time.
“The damn guards must’ve been too busy watching me to keep an eye on the kitchen. I’ll have a word with my men about this.”
“Fynn, don’t get anyone in trouble, please.”
He waves me off. “This is how the Famiglia works. Failure will not be tolerated.”
“This isn’t about my dad sneaking in. This is about what he said. What the hell was he talking about?”
“I don’t know,” he admits and stops pacing. His eyes are troubled as he turns to me. “But I want to find out. Should I bring him in to be questioned?”
I take a step back and bump up against the bar behind me. Fear slithers along my chest and my heart palpitates wildly. “Will you bring him into that room down below the basement? The one with the drain?”
His nostrils flare. “How do you know about that?” he asks slowly.
“Elise took me there. She showed it to me. That’s where you take people when you need to get answers from them, isn’t it?”
He comes closer now, pinning me back against the bar tighter. His hand moves up and palms my hair, pulling it tightly, and I let out a gasp of pain and terror. He wants to torture my father, and now he’s got me trapped in this room with him, and I can see the anger written on every muscle in his massive frame. He’s rippling with rage, practically seething with it. I look into his eyes and I want to scream but something makes me stop.
He’s angry, yes, but he’s not angry with me. It’s something deeper. Something harder to articulate.
“What you saw down there is private,” he says quietly and leans forward, pressing his forehead against mine. “That’s meant to be for family only. Elise never should’ve shown you.”