Through it all, she felt his rage, and it felt so personal, not just for her but for him as well. As if when their shadows twisted together, everything that happened had been shared, or he felt it, because he was shaking just as much as she was. There were beads of sweat on his forehead. One trickled down the side of his face she knew he was unaware of.
Taviano looked at Stefano. “She never asked for anything for herself. Not one single thing. I knew the consequences. I was willing to pay them, Stefano. Those men were the ones who wanted to take her back to what her step-uncles had done to her. They had her friends and might already be raping them. She couldn’t have that in her mind. I knew that. I knew what was going on in her head. How could she not be thinking of what they’d done to her and what might be happening to her friends? When she insisted on being with me, I wanted to give that to her. I needed to give her that.”
“More than you needed to protect her?” Stefano asked.
Nicoletta gasped. She nearly came off the couch, both hands curling into tight fists. “He did protect me. All the time. He didn’t let me do anything at all. I wanted to do more than watch, believe me, but he refused to allow it. I sat in the shadow while he took all the risks.”
Stefano pinned her with his dark eyes, clearly bent on intimidating her, which might have worked if she wasn’t so angry with him for continually implying Taviano wasn’t looking after her.
Taviano hid a small grin, but his eyes were laughing. “Piccola, he’s just doing his job. I put Nicoletta’s protection above all else. I was concerned with her traveling in the shadows so much. It was unprecedented for someone untrained to go that many times, and the first couple of times were hard on her body, but she learned fast. She has an extremely fast learning curve. She got better and better at it.”
Stefano sat back in his chair, shaking his head. “Everything about you, Nicoletta, is unprecedented. You make this very difficult.”
Nicoletta glanced around the room. It was the first time she’d forced herself to look up in a while. Taviano’s family were all exchanging those small smiles again. Relief spread through her. She knew immediately they wouldn’t be doing that if it wasn’t going to be all right.
“Nicoletta is going to be trained, Taviano,” Stefano announced. “Thoroughly trained. She won’t be on rotation with you as your partner until I okay it. I don’t care if she stands in front of you and cries her heart out.” He paused and turned to her. “We’re stepping up your training. If you thought it was tough before, think again.”
She had thought it was tough before. She nodded. “I understand.”
“Before anything else, you have to ask Grace and Francesca to plan your wedding immediately. Lucia, Amo and Francesca are going to be so upset that they weren’t there. They deserve to see both of you walk down that aisle, and they’re going to get that.”
It was a decree, nothing less. If that was the price Taviano had to pay in order to remain a rider, it was clear he was willing to pay it. He gripped her hand, his finger sliding over the twin rings on her hand, the beautiful indigo diamond and the plain alloy band with the inscription in Italian: Amore Eterno.
Nicoletta wasn’t certain how she could get through another wedding, especially with Lucia and Amo watching, not dressed in a gown she knew Lucia would want her to wear, with Taviano waiting at the end of the altar. She briefly closed her eyes and willed herself not to cry. She was too emotional.
“Are we finished? Is everything all right? I thought I could go home and you all could plan the war or whatever. I want to spend time with Lucia and Amo.”
There was a small silence. She hadn’t meant for anyone else to hear her, but it was evident they had. Taviano brought her left hand up to his mouth and he kissed her wedding rings. “Lucia and Amo have been taken to a safe house, tesoro, just in case Valdez gets someone into our territory without our knowledge. It’s highly unlikely, but it could happen. We want them safe. Grace and Francesca will consult with Lucia to make certain to incorporate whatever she prefers into the wedding details along with whatever you want.”
“I want to talk to Lucia.” Nicoletta found herself glaring at Stefano, as if he were personally keeping Lucia and Amo from her. She felt that streak of stubbornness that had always benefited her when she needed it most rising swiftly. It was what had kept her alive in the worst of circumstances. She refused to give in. Refused to give up.