I pull myself out of the shower a ridiculously long time later, only really leaving because the water that was falling on my shoulders had grown colder and colder until I was shivering. I towel myself off, shaking my head a little to consider that while I’m all cried out, my tears didn’t bring the r
My mouth is still hanging open when I see Kent’s dark head and broad shoulders ducking through the open door of my tiny wardrobe. I’m still staring when he turns to glare at me. “Are you happy now, Fay?” Kent asks, stern and clearly pissed off. And that makes me snap my mouth shut as I narrow
It’s a gamble, those words. Because he’s never said more – has never told me, explicitly, that he feels anything more for me than just the mistress he signed up for with that stupid contract. But I know. I know it in my bones. And right now? He’s either going to admit it, or he’s going to lose m
I stare too long at Kent in surprise and he rolls his eyes at me before shifting to reach over me towards the light, his body brushing against mine. “Hey!” I snap, smacking at him and making him flinch back. “What?” he asks, glaring at me again. “No touching!” I say, pushing him back to the ot
“But I do need to know it –“ “You don’t!” “Kent!” I interrupt, frustrated again, smacking my hand against his stomach to make him listen to me. “Something is going down! Someone is trying to kill you, to kill us! And I want to help –“ “Fay,” Kent sighs. “There’s nothing you can do to help – I’
“And I’m still giving everything to the Bianci,” Kent sighs, completely unaware of how jealous I am at the mere mention of his wife. “Twenty years – twenty years of building everything. And I swear to god – I’m almost out. I’ve almost paid my tab, I can feel it. Just…a little bit more, and then I’ll
I pull back then, looking him in the face, meeting his eyes as best I can in the dark. “Have you killed anyone, Kent?” I ask quietly. “Yes,” he whispers instantly, giving me his honest confession. “More than you’d probably want to know, Fay. Innocent men as well as real scum bags. Cops, bosses, bo
I wake up blinking to the chirping sound of Kent’s phone and I groan a little as I turn over in Kent’s arms. But when I look at his face, I grin to see that he hasn’t woken up yet. Apparently he really does need his wake-the-dead alarm clock to get him up in the mornings, especially after a night
My dad greets him with such genuine joy and excitement that it makes my heart swell with joy. They talk for a few minutes about Dominic’s day before dad gives him a little nudge back towards the gate where Kent and I are waiting. Dominic gives dad a kiss before running ahead again. My dad waves to
“Papa!” Dominic shouts, startling me out of my reverie as he drops my hand and darts down the road. I look up, a huge smile breaking out on my face again as I see Kent on the sidewalk just ahead. His back is to us as he speaks companionably with the butcher, a heavy bag of his purchases already hung
As I walk down the street towards the little Italian kindergarten, the whispers start around me, as they always do. I listen to all of them, a big German Shepherd padding quietly at my heels. “Is that her?” “Yes, that’s the one – I heard she was her husband’s mistress before he married her – tha
Both Kent and I laugh, but Don Bianci – across the baptismal font from us – snaps his eyes up, perhaps not liking the joke as much as we do. But I just ignore it, because dad’s right, frankly – and it’s too happy a day to care. After the final blessing everyone applauds Dominic – he likes that, bl
“Well, it didn’t seem to affect your first very badly,” Ivan says with a shrug, peering around Kent to where Daniel is laughing with an arm around Jerome’s shoulders. “So…maybe keep it up.” I smirk, squeezing Ivan’s hand once more before standing and moving to Kent’s side, tucking myself against h
“Hey, gorgeous,” Ivan says, his mouth turned up in a smirk as I cross the churchyard, beaming at him. “Look who’s talking,” I say, laughing and reaching for him when I come close enough. Ivan wraps me in a hug, dropping a kiss to my cheek as I hold Dominic a bit to the side so he doesn’t get squis
He laughs, smiling at me genuinely. “Do I make you nervous?” he asks, blunt. I laugh, unable to help it. “Has no one bothered to tell you, in all these years, that you’re a little terrifying, Don Bianci?” He grins and shakes his head at me. “Well, considering what you accomplished, young lady, I
Two months later, we’re all gathered together again. And it is only with frustration that I see Gio and Janeen standing so close together that their arms nearly brush, even though they’re still not together. I roll my eyes, dismissing the problem for a moment as I move my eyes down to Dominic and
It's an incredible night. Kent didn’t lie, not at all, about the food either. I’m shocked by the mountains of dishes that continue to follow each other, one after another, long into the night. After a few hours of it I just mournfully watch the waiters go by because I couldn’t eat another bite if I