Ezabella Viper...I sat up on bed, a pillow proved behind me to support my back.I looked around the hospital room. Ella and Cilvia were both up, and after they tried to come to me to see if I was okay, they were instructed to sit back and rest by Elijah Smith. So, they, too, mirrored my sitting position, throwing their eyes around the hospital room.It seemed everyone had a single question, but no one wanted to bring it up first."Do you need anything?" My father asked, sitting at my bedside."No. I'm good." I replied, looking at him. Look at me with the it most worry in his eyes."When did you get here?" I asked."About an hour ago." He replied. "I came as soon as I heard about the incident." I nodded my head, feeling awkward as I once again looked at the other ladies."Your painting?" I asked Ella, and she shook her head."All gone." She whispered, and I saw her husband reaching out to her again, giving her hand a squeeze before pulling her into his arms.Where is my husband?
The setting could not be awkward and nerve-wracking anymore than it already is.My husband and my father were having a face off, standing freakishly close to each other as they exchanged words.My father wanted to take me back to Viper City, and Jacopo was not having any of it."Eza is my wife. My responsibility. She is staying here, where I am, and that is the end of this conversation." Jacopo snapped.My father stepped closer to Jacopo."Stop it, dad." I whispered, but of course, he wouldn't listen to me."Do you two need us to leave the room for you?" Dante asked, breaking the ice.My husband and father glared at Dante for his comment, yet he looked at them as if he meant what he said, and he did not apologize for it."Right." Dante continued. "If you two are done, we would like to discuss the matter at hand here. Shall we?" He said, staring at Jacopo as if he was waiting for him to continue.Instead of just jumping at the conversation and doing what Dante wanted him to do, Jacopo
The awkwardness in the room did not get any better after the comment Dante made, but it seemed Jacopo was not paying attention to any of them at all.His focus on me and me only, and I felt my cheeks heat under his eyes.Goodness. What is this man doing to be, being all worried and affectionate towards me in front of other people?I loved every bit of attention he gave me, but I just wished he didn't look like he was blaming himself for the accident."So, Victor Viper..." Dante called out, drawing the attention back to the conversation that was being had. "Tell me. What is this all about the Vipers still helping Elizabeth Williamson?" All eyes turned to my father, and he glared at each and every single one of us, even me, as if I too was accusing his people of helping a family member that tried to destroy his people."Do you honestly think any of us would help her?" He snapped."Alex Fimbar has no reason to lie to me." Dante commented. "He explained how some of the Vipers trapped him
My father stepped closer to me, sitting on the edge of the bed and giving his back to the rest of the room."Bella?" He softly called out, his voice low so the rest won't hear him. "This place is not safe for you anymore. I need to take you back home and...""Dad?" I called out as softly as I could. "I am not going anywhere but my home here. Safety is not guaranteed, whether it's here or in your city. But I'd rather be here.""Why, Bella?" He asked, desperation in his voice.I looked past his arm towards my husband, who had his eyes on my father and I. "I have a reason to stay and someone to stay with." I replied, my eyes still on Jacopo, my heart wildly beating at the realization of how much I enjoyed being here with that man despite the rocky start we had.My father remained silent for a few seconds, his eyes moving from left to right as if he was trying to think of what he would say to me next that would make me change my mind.My father glanced over his shoulder towards Jacopo an
"You said tomorrow night, Dante. Why the heck are you calling me now?" Jacopo snapped into the phone, pacing in front of me.I stared at him from my spot on the couch, and my cheeks flushed as I recalled how close his lips were to mine just a minute ago.Jacopo had leaned closer to me earlier, our lips almost touching, when his phone interrupted our moment. It was a shame.The annoyance on Jacopo's face was evident as he pulled away and slowly helped me sit down on the couch. He then pulled his phone out and answered the call.Clearly, it was Dante wanting to relay something to Jacopo that he couldn't have told him earlier when he was driving us to the apartment."Yes. Okay. Fine." He said before he hung up and glanced towards me.There was a short, awkward silence between us."Are you hungry?" He asked.I didn't get to answer his question before he continued."You have to eat. And drink a lot of water. We need to get your hydrated." He commented as he walked towards the open kitchen
I lay in bed next to Jacopo, staring at his side profile.Even after hours had passed from the passionate moment we had spent, my heart refused to settle down, and so did the butterflies swarming my stomach. I could still feel his lips pressed against my own. I could still feel his fingers brushing through the strands of my hair. I could still feel his strong arm wrapped around my waist.My goodness.The man succeeded in stealing my breath and my heart all at the same time. Those three short but big words were hanging from the tip of my tongue, and if Jacopo hadn't silenced me with the deep kiss that followed after each breath we took to feel our lungs with oxygen, I would have said them to him.By the time Jacopo groaned for the third time and I knew he was in pain, I finally pulled away. I could tell that Jacopo was exhausted down to the bone, and so was I. There was no need for either of us to go to my bedroom. So, we settled for Jacopo's room.It didn't take long for Jacopo to fa
I sat behind Jacopo's desk, on his chair, silently looking at the laptop. I'd been sitting there for about thirty minutes, or maybe even an entire hour, but I just couldn't make myself open it and insert the flash.It was too more courage than I thought it would. But all I had to do was think about Jacopo and the sacrificed he made to try and save me, and I found myself reaching out to open the laptop.Before I could change my mind, I opened it up and pushed the flash into the laptop.I clicked on the window that opened up and stared at the single video.I recalled how horrified I had been the first time I opened the flash and witnessed what was kept on it. And I never imagined I would find myself sitting in front of a laptop again with the video seconds away from playing. I took a deep breath it and opened it.The first thing I did was to make sure the voice was low, one, so that it wouldn't some how wake Jacopo up from his peaceful sleep, and two, so that it woukd decrease the odd
Jacopo Nicolo...I let out a soft groan, my body tense with pain. My eyes fluttered open, and damn it, I already needed to go back to sleep.The light was off, but I didn't have to have my vision to know that the spot where my Eza was sleeping was empty.I moved my hand over to her pillow and frowned when I felt how cold it was.I pushed myself up to a sitting position with a groan, feeling my wound stretch in the most uncomfortable way."Eza?" I called out, throwing my eyes around the room in hopes of finding her figure standing somewhere.I didn't get a reply, my call hanging in the air, making my heart a bit faster.I pushed myself to my feet before turning the light on.I glanced towards the bathroom in case she was in there. No luck.I walked out of my bedroom."Eza?" I called out again, reaching for her bedroom door and pushing it open. There was no sign of there in there as well."Eza?" My voice grew more and more desperate as I turned around and walked to my office.I was
Jacopo Nicolo...The conversation was getting out of hand.All we had to do was have a short talk about the recent findings. Dante had started to tell us about how the Only Girl's Motorcycle club was getting closer and closer to finding Attiwood. It amazed me how he still refuses to give Miles the assignment. I have no doubt in my mind that Miles would find that old witch within matters of hours, if not minutes. But no. Dante wants the club to figure it out, and there was no changing his mind.Cane had to join us to give Dante and Elijah updates about the recent distributions of the new weapons that were shipped in.The conversation was going fine, and we had spent maybe an hour and a half figuring out new routs since apparently the woman of the club want to tax the web for anything that crossed their front gets to make it into the city. But that was until Connor walked in, looking for his brother.It was such a normal conversation until Dante decided to bring up the deal that I
Elijah and Jacopo left us, going to the home office to work, while I stepped closer to Cilvia and started helping her with the little bows she wanted to make on the tiny candy baskets that would later be handed out as treats."These are adorable." I commented, smiling from ear to ear as I tied to small bows."Right? They are my idea, you know." Cilvia replied, proud of her creation."How are the twins?" I asked, glancing around in case I catch sight of them."They're taking a nap. They barely slept last night." Ella replied, looking around and taking inventory of everything they had prepared."Not anymore." Dalinda, the sweet old lady who is always dressed in pink, commented as she walked out of the house next to her husband, each of them holding one of the girls."Oh, my babies. Are you up from your nap?" Ella cooed as she reached out to gently pinch their cheeks, speaking with her lips pouted and her voice even softer.The girls giggled, and damn it, I got a baby fever. They are the
Ezabella Viper...I wake up every day with my husbamds arms comfortably wrapped around me. Each morning after the alarm blared and Jacopo shuts it off, I would feel his lips covering my bare shoulder with feathered kisses.The last four weeks have been absolutely perfect. I wake up each day with Jacopo sleeping behind me and go to sleep with Jacopo's arms around me.The two of us had been intimate with each other for the first time four weeks ago on the sixth month of our wedding day, and it sure as heck was not the last.It's true when they say the right person will make you feel at home, and even your body will allow their closeness.I couldn't even imagine touching another human being, let alone being intimate to that level, but that night with Jacopo just felt right. It felt like a blessing to be in his arms and to be so comfortable with him the way he was comfortable with me.I laid my all to Jacopo, and I felt he did the same with me.I couldn't ask more for our marriage, a
Work has been silent lately. It was too good to be true.The casino was running perfectly smooth the past week, and so was the work Attiwood left behind at my family's company.Things in the web have been quite as well. The dinner parties were safe, the gatherings were fine, and the meetings were smooth. New members joined in, and old members died. Attiwood was still not found.No more words came from the Viper city after Victor Viper killed all of the people the biker named, which led to the bikers' death. My life at home was better than perfect. Eza and I could not be happier and closer. I look forward to the day to end just so I can go home and see her.We weren't just physically close to each other. The emotional connection was growing as well. I feel attacked to her in a way I have never felt towards anyone else.And then there is my mother. Eza and I tried our best to convince her to move in with us. She refused. So we had to settle for the next best thing, which was to convinc
Jacopo Nicolo...I awkwardly stated at my mother as she slid under the covers of my old bed, the one in the master bedroom.She propped her pillow up and settled down before she looked up at me.I could see her heart breaking as she looked up at me, her eyes shining hurt.Seeing her today, or ever for that matter, was not what I had expected for the day to go. Even while seeing her sit back on the bed, I would think she'd disappear if I blinked too much.All the hate I had in my heart for her caused by the way she abandoned me ended up a shield I used to protect myself from how I truly felt.I missed her.I missed her to the point that I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me when I saw her in the kitchen. I was afraid she would disappear if I didn't grab her in the next few seconds. The thought terrified me to the point that I had to run to her.Even after hugging her, even after feeling her motherly arms wrap around me, even after I felt her hands touching my scarred face,
Jacopo and Vanessa sat on the couch. He was looking at her like he had seen a mystical creature, completely awe and happy.The two had cried in each other's arms for a few more minutes in the kitchen. Jacopo could hardly believe his mother was really with us. Once he pulled away from her, he took her hand and led her to the couch. He'd sat her down before he too sat on the edge and just stared at her.Vanessa couldn't stop crying, looking at her sons scars. "Where have you been?" Jacopo has whispered, looking at her with bloodshot eyes.I wanted to give them space and let them freely talk with each other. So I silently moved to the kitchen and stood behind the counter, still happily keeping my eyes on them.I watched them interact with each other.To say Jacopo was happy to finally reunite with his mother would be an understatement. He spoke to her softly, his eyes once in a while watering. I watched his blink his tears away several times as he listened to her speak.They hugged e
Vanessa and I sat on the couch in the living room, the apartment slightly awkward and silent. I'd kept my promise and waited for Vanessa to finish working on her last clients hair, and Cilvia waited with me. Once she was done, she grabbed her things, and off we went to the apartment building.Cilvia was absolutely sweet, driving us back even though she didn't have to. On the drive back home, Vanessa ended up telling us a bit about how her life turned out once she ran away.Before she ran away, her husband was already cheating. She said she was delusional enough to look past the beating at some point, but finding out that her husband was trying to get with another woman made her realize that he would truly kill her. And then, he did try to kill her. The scar running up her neck and stopping at the point of her chin was proof of that.She then explained how she ran away.Vanessa's story was well known in the city by those who were in the underground business. Even though the Nicolos wer
"You don't have to stay here, you know." I commented as I glanced at Cilvia."And end up getting myself on Nicolo's death note? No thanks." Cilvia replied. "Besides, I'm invested in this story. I want to see if she'll listen to you." She added.I let out a sigh, looking at Vanessa work on her clients hair with the utmost care.She glanced at us for the third time since we walked in and sat by the waiting area.The lady who always worked on Cilvia's hair was surprised to see us back again, and when she asked if we were going to get our hairs done, Cilvia said yes, but we were waiting for Vivian's chair.The lady didn't mind, claiming that her hands were full today and told us to wait until Vivian's finishes with her client.It was obvious that Vanessa did not want to talk to us again, and while I realized that we were being a bit pushy, I was not going to back down when there was an opportunity to make Jacopos happy and have him reunti with his mother after a long time.We waited for V
Cilvia and I awkwardly sat next to each other in the little cozy cafe located across the street from the hair salon. Vivian sat across from us, looking down into her tea cup as if it was the most fascinating thing she had ever seen in her entire life.I wasn't sure how to address her yet. Was I supposed to call her Vivian or Venassa? I mean, which one would me be more respectful and make her comfortable with me?She is my mother-in-law, after all, and Jacopo had spoken so fond of her that U know having a good relationship with her was possible."You know the first time I saw you, I knew you were familiar. It bothered me the entire day. I hate it when my mind is reminding me of my age because clearly I'm becoming more forgetful if I can't remember you." Cilvia commented, breaking the awkward silence.Vanessa looked up at Cilvia and then me, slowly nodding her head and looking back down again.I glanced at Cilvia, wondering how well she knew Jacopo's mother even though the Nicolo's we