“You okay?”
I nodded and exhaled.
“Yes.”
He narrowed his eyes at his brother.
“Not cool, big brother.”
“I kept you from making a scene.”
“I wasn’t going to make a scene,” Tony ground out. “I was checking on my wife.”
“Your wife just needed a moment,” I answered him with a glare. I guess I wasn’t going to have a chance to get myself together. “Let’s go back out there.”
“Only to say goodbye,” he said, glaring right back at me.
“Goodbye? We haven’t had the cake yet!”
“Down, Little Brother,” Vincent said mildly. His tone might be light, but it was also the final word. You could hear it. I saw Antonio bristle, his spine straightening. “Wait until it’s the right time.”
The two brothers exchanged a glance. I ignored them.
“I’m going back out. Thanks for checking up on me,” I said sarcastically. I was not in the mood for their macho bullshit. I was going to eat a slice of my wedding cake!
Antonio’s eyebrows shot right up. I didn’t care. Even if I couldn’t really talk to her, I wanted to be with my mother a little longer. I wasn’t going upstairs this early in the day!
I was stomping down the hallway when I realized why Antonio wanted to go upstairs. It wasn’t just to avoid his father.
It was because he wanted to have sex. In broad daylight! He wasn’t willing to wait until dark, or even until the guests had left. He must be . . . more eager than I realized.
I shivered at the thought.
Chapter 33
Antonio
“Open wide,” I said grimly to my bride. My smile was tight as I stared at her, a piece of our wedding cake speared on my fork. She was going to be difficult about the baby thing, I could tell.
Damn my father to hell, I thought acidly. If I had been on the fence about putting the old man through the grinder before, I had no doubt now.
He had deliberately fucked with my wedding night.
Wedding afternoon, if I had anything to say about it.
Her gorgeous lips opened sweetly. Anyone watching the charming tradition would have thought my new wife was docile. Submissive. A blushing bride. But when she lifted her eyes to mine, there was a challenge there.
Her gorgeous green eyes had a touch of steel. More than a touch, I was realizing. Evie had enough steel to build a goddamn skyscraper.
My wife was no pushover, that was for sure. But she would toe the line. She would give me a baby. Two, at least. Maybe three.
Hell, if they looked anything like her, I wanted five.
My gaze was just as steely as I enjoyed the sight of those plump, gorgeous lips closing over the fork and the pink tongue that swept out to clear a stray crumb.
She took the fork from me and cut me a bite, holding it up to my mouth with a wary look. I held her eyes as I pulled the fork into my mouth, savoring the taste of the cake and frosting, all the while imagining it was something much, much sweeter.
Her.
She knew what I was thinking, too.
My bride was blushing hot pink as she carried a piece of cake to her mother, then sat beside her, speaking in low voices.
I sat back down at the communal table, watching her and slowly eating my cake. Finally, when I couldn’t take any more, I noisily started to make my goodbyes. I went around the table until I came to Evie and her mom. Bless her, the woman knew how to take a hint.
“Thank you . . . for inviting me here,” she said without warmth. She was worried about me. I didn’t blame her.
We both knew I wasn’t good enough for her precious baby girl. Didn’t matter. The deed was done.
Evie was mine.
I’d won, so it was easy to be gracious.
“Please, come back soon,” I said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She didn’t exactly return the sentiment, but she didn’t run away screaming, either.
So, I considered that a win.
I took my wife’s arm and guided her back into the house.
“Does this mean I can have my phone back?”
I gave my wife an amused glance as we took the stairs. So, she was going to start making demands, was she? I could use that to my advantage. Anything she asked for would make an excellent bargaining chip.
“We’ll see.”
She made a soft sound of disapproval. This marriage was not off to a good start. I needed to get her in a more amenable mood. It was almost like her fear was gone. Not that I wanted to bring it back, but I wasn’t used to the subtly brazen little woman walking beside me.
Seduce her, Antonio. She’s a virgin. Play her gorgeous body like a fiddle.
As much as I wanted to just relax and enjoy my wedding day, breaking Evie down wouldn’t exactly be a hardship. So what if I had an agenda? She was still mine. I just had to prove it to her.