Twisted Bonds (The Camorra Chronicles 4)

That was likely the truth, but he was lying now anyway. He had taken something.

“Adamo, your brothers love you.” I rose and touched his arm. “Don’t let what happened break you. Don’t let it change you. You are the kindest man I know.”

“I’m not kind!” He grasped my upper arms in a tight grip, his eyes flashing with despair even as they went out of focus. If he didn’t get drugs from the Camorra, the only other options were the Bratva, the Cartel or a local MC, and that was utter insanity. Las Vegas was firmly in Camorra hands.

It meant he had to get his supplies when he was allowed to race in other states.

“I’m not kind,” he repeated, his fingers tightening further.

“You’re hurting me.”

Adamo’s gaze darted to his hands and he jerked away from me, shaking his head over and over again. “I’m sorry. I’m messing everything up.” He backed away slowly, a look of plain guilt on his face and then he turned, ran away and disappeared around the corner of the house.

I’d sworn to Adamo that our conversations would stay confidential. It was why he’d opened up to me at all. Could I keep this from his brothers and everyone else? Should I?

I closed my eyes. I’d wait a few days before I made a decision.

The next day I was on my way to my swim but froze in the threshold to the communal space, surprised to find Nino in the gaming room with the twins. I thought he was already swimming his laps. Maybe Serafina had asked him to watch the twins while she got ready. I paused in the doorway. He sat on the sofa with Nevio beside him. Greta stumbled closer, her dark eyes fixing on the book in Nino’s lap. She held on to his knee, still not as steady on her legs as her twin. Nevio had already lost interest in the pages and was palming Nino’s tattoos again, babbling in obvious delight.

Nino watched Greta closely. She tried to catch a glimpse at the book but was too small until Nino lifted the book in her direction which in turn made Nevio unhappy, resulting in a warning cry that could very well lead to a full-blown screaming session.

“If I pick you up, you and Nevio can both see the book,” Nino explained calmly. Greta peered at him with those huge eyes, melting my heart with her adorableness.

Nino lowered his arms, moving slowly to give her time before he slid one hand under her nappy-clad bum while the other steadied her back. He lifted her off the floor, eyes focused on her face as if he worried she’d start bawling any moment. For a long time Remo had been the only one she accepted. Now that Savio had been allowed to hold her, it seemed that she’d grown to trust the men in this family. She remained quiet and her expression made it clear that she wasn’t too enthused about the situation yet. Nino cradled her in his arm and pointed at the book. Of course, Nevio immediately climbed on top of him as well, and as I watched eventually both Greta and Nevio settled on Nino’s lap while he quietly explained the images to them. My heart felt so full, I wasn’t sure how it didn’t burst, and soon traitorous tears gathered in my eyes.

Serafina appeared beside me and hugged me. “You’ll have this soon too. You and Nino deserve to be parents.”

I nodded and didn’t dare to say anything from fear of bawling. Maybe it was time to stop pretending everything would be fine and make a doctor’s appointment. For some reason I was scared of finding out what was wrong, if something was wrong. The idea that it had something to do with my past terrified me.

I came out of the bathroom, ready for bed where Nino was already waiting for me.

“Kiara.”

Nino’s voice was off and made me turn around to him. He sat up slowly in bed, his eyes flickering with something fierce and harsh, something terrifying. I followed his keen eyes to my upper arms and felt the color drain from my face.

Adamo must have gripped me even harder than I thought, considering the bluish fingerprints blooming on my skin.

Nino got out of bed, his body tense and predatory as he stalked toward me. He traced my bruises with his fingertips, making me wonder how his touch could be this gentle when there was murder in his eyes. “Who did this?”

“Nino,” I began, unsure what to tell him, how to tell him anything without breaking Adamo’s trust, and wondering if maybe there was no other way to save the youngest Falcone brother.

“Who hurt you?” Nino rasped, and the fury in his eyes, albeit not directed at me, sent a stab of fear through me.