Arianna
I lie here, wide awake. There’s nothing I can do, no position where I’m comfortable enough to let go of my fear and fall asleep. I’m exhausted, but every time I close my eyes, I jolt awake, thinking someone is in the room.
It’s too much for me to handle, and there’s no point staying in bed if I’m going to stare at the ceiling all night.
I slide out of bed, fixing my tank top and pajama shorts that I found in the cupboard. Apparently, in every safe house, there are supplies for me-Alessandro thinks ahead.
I walk to the living room. I don’t turn the main light on because I don’t want to disturb Carmine. I close the door as quietly as possible and open a curtain to let in the moonlight. I can more or less determine where everything is, so I grab the remote and flip the television on.
I feel like my eyes are seared as the bright light fills the room. Thankfully the sound is muted, and I can raise the volume slowly.
The news channel speaks to me softly about an explosion that rocked a quiet neighborhood earlier. I look at the burning picture of my home, and I shiver, sitting on the sofa to watch.
The door opens, and I jump, snapping my neck to see Carmine walk in. He gives me a sad smile. “Can’t sleep either?” he asks.
It’s rhetorical, but I answer anyway, “Nope. They really did a number on our house,” I say, gesturing toward the screen.
He walks in and stands two feet away from me, just in his briefs, and he watches the news. “It was calculated and planned. Alessandro never shared the house plans with anyone and didn’t even update them at town hall. He paid someone off to ignore the alterations.”
“You know a lot about the estate,” I murmur.
“I was part of security. It was my job to know a lot about the estate.” He looks at me curiously. “Watching this isn’t going to set you at ease, and it’s not going to help you sleep.”
“What do you suggest then?” I sit back, watching him.
He holds his hand out for the remote, and I pass it to him. He sits on the sofa beside me, his bare leg brushing against mine. He flips through channels, pausing on each one until he finally finds a movie.
“It’s not great, but if you like chick flicks, you’ll enjoy this.”
I smile. It’s the Hallmark channel. Bless this man’s heart for thinking I’m a chick flick, Christmastime, loveydovey kind of girl.
Still, I settle down to watch. He stands. “I’ll get you a blanket and something warm to drink. Tea, maybe,” he offers. “It’s what Mom would make me….”
“When we couldn’t sleep,” I finish with a grin. “I know.
I’m her kid too.”
He chuckles and leaves the room, and I realize that when he entered, the fear I had dissipated at the sight of him. Having him near me is so comforting. I forget for a moment that men tried to kill my entire family with a bomb and guns.
Now that he is gone, that fear creeps back in again. What if they attack here? What if he is in the kitchen when they attack? I feel a panic building up inside me, a panic I’m not used to. I wasn’t even this scared when I aquaplaned for the first time.
I take several deep breaths and try to focus on the movie. It’s a cheesy holiday movie, and I run a hand through my hair and tuck it behind my ear.
It feels like he takes forever, but Carmine returns with a blanket tucked under his arm and two cups of tea in his hands. He sets the tea down on the coffee table and shakes the blanket, covering me with it.
“Thank you,” I whisper in a soft tone. I startle myself at the softness in my voice.
Carmine has noticed, too. He’s looking at me with worried eyes. “You don’t have to be scared. I will protect you no matter what happens.”
I look away, scared I’ll start crying if I think about it too much.
Carmine picks up a cup of tea and holds it out to me.
“Here, sip this.”
I take it, blowing on the top of the liquid as Mother showed me all those years ago. I sip it and watch as he sits beside me with his tea. We both turn our attention to the movie as we drink.
I finish my sweet tea slowly, then put the cup on the side table. I curl my legs under me and wait for Carmine to put his cup down.
“Get under,” I say, tugging at the blanket. “I’m uncomfortable.”
He doesn’t argue with me. Instead, he gets up, climbs under the warm blanket, and sits beside me. I lift his arm and place it around my shoulders so I can rest my head against his chest. We watch the movie together, and slowly, my eyes close.
“What the actual fuck?” My brother, Dominic’s shout, jolts me awake, and I panic that we’re being attacked again.
Carmine removes his protective arm from around me and stands up. “Dominic, it’s nothing, man.”
“Nothing? You cuddling with my fucking sister is nothing?” my brother demands to know.
I step toward him. “I asked him to stay with me because I was scared,” I snarl. “We didn’t do anything.”
Dominic looks like he wants to shoot both of us. He glares at Carmine. “You’re my best friend, Carmine, but stay the fuck away from my sister. You may be like family to us, but you will never be good enough for her.”
I can’t believe what I’m hearing. My brother is being the biggest dick in the world right now.
Carmine looks furious, but he holds his hands up. “I wasn’t making a move on Arianna. I was comforting her.”
“And even if he wanted to,” I snap, “it’s none of your fucking business.”
Dominic glares at me and comes close to my face. I can see the anger set in his eyes. “Stop acting like a fucking slut, cuddling up to whatever man pays you attention.”
I’m not just anyone. I’m his sister. I slap his face before he can say another word, and I know he’s stunned because I’ve never raised my hands to my brother before. It’s always been about respect, pleasing, and falling into line.
Dominic touches a hand to his reddening cheek, but I don’t care. I push past him and walk out of the room. I hear him yelling at Carmine, and a pang of guilt hits me in the gut like a sucker punch. I can’t do anything about Carmine, but if Dominic hurts him, I’ll be having a very unpleasant conversation with Alessandro. Dominic is way out of line. I know they want to protect me, but so does Carmine. I don’t understand why they can’t see that Carmine is literally willing to lay his life down on the line to keep me safe.
Something needs to change in this family, something needs to give, or I’m going to be alone for the rest of my life because no one will ever be good enough for the innocent and pretty little Sorvino’s family princess.
I wait until I hear Dominic leave before I come back downstairs. I look in the living room but don’t see Carmine there. A sweet aroma reaches me, and I head to the kitchen. Carmine is dressed now, with an apron over his clothes, cooking.
Carmine
I am so fucked off with Dominic.
Not good enough?
Not good enough!
Since I was orphaned, I have run after the Sorvino boys cleaning up their problems. I was raised as part of the family. I spent schoolyard days protecting Frankie, avenging Alessandro, and kicking ass with Dominic. Any kids they asked me to, even if it meant I’d get my ass handed to me.
I joined elite ops for the family. I learned to kill for the family. I’ve never once turned my back on them.
Dominic is acting as though I’m just a random someone who joined the family and not someone who ate at their table for the last twenty-odd years. Someone who watched them grow, who helped them play chess against the other families, figuratively speaking.
Yes, I get it. I was a player in my early twenties, but that ended years ago. As my best friend and my closest brother, Dominic should have noticed that. He should see that I have settled down and that I don’t treat women like they are disposable.
I don’t understand why he hasn’t seen that and how he can think I’m not good enough for Arianna. I’m practically a Sorvino in everything except name.
Jesus Christ.
I try and contain my anger. I get dressed, and I go downstairs to the kitchen. Arianna has been in her room for a while, and I know she hasn’t had breakfast. It’s halfway to lunch, so I decide to cook her something.
I throw on some bacon in one pan and sausages in another. I get the ingredients out for an omelet. I whisk the eggs, set them aside, and grate some cheese. I dice some tomatoes. All goods Dominic had brought on Alessandro’s instructions.
Alessandro.
Dominic is probably running his mouth off about me now to the Don. He might not be as restrained as Dominic. Alessandro isn’t known for his rational thinking when it comes to the people he cares about.
“Smells good?” I glance up at Arianna standing in the doorway. “What are you making?”
“Toast, omelets, bacon, sausage, and all with some fresh orange juice,” I comment. “Your brother brought extra food. It’s why he was here.”
“My brother,” she says curtly. “So when he agrees with you, he’s your best friend, but when he’s pissed you off, he’s my brother.”
I’m about to say something when I see the teasing smile on her face and relax. “Yeah, well, he’s always your brother. I’m just collateral.”
“Don’t say that.” She walks closer to me. “You matter as much as any Sorvino son.”
I give her a half-hearted smile and turn back to start on the omelet. “You pour the juice.”
She gets out two glasses, and I turn my back on her while I work. It’s a moment before she says, “I’m sorry my brother had a go at you. He isn’t right, you know, you are good enough for me. More than good enough.”
I swallow hard. This isn’t a conversation I want to have with her after I promised Dominic nothing was happening between us.
“It’s just how things are,” I say quietly, and we fall silent. I prepare the food and set it out on the table. We sit opposite each other, and she smiles. “Looks great.”
I grin and let her dish up first before I help myself. “If you want another omelet, I can make one.”
She shakes her head. “No, I’m good.”
We eat in silence, just enjoying each other’s company. Arianna glances out of the window. “I guess we can’t go out, right?”
“You’re right. It’s too dangerous,” I say. “We should lay low for now.”
“Dominic is driving around,” she points out, lazily stabbing a piece of omelet with her fork.
I roll my eyes. “You don’t know what he’s capable of.”
“I’m well aware of what my brothers do,” she says, looking at me with narrowed eyes.
I shake my head. “You might think you do, but trust me, your mind is romanticizing it. It’s worse in real life.”
“So what do we do if we can’t go out?”
“Well, we stock safe houses like these for situations like this, so we probably have a few board games stashed, and we can play those and watch movies to pass the time.” I push my plate away, clean.
Once I’ve cleared away the dishes, I come back to the dining room to find Arianna setting up a game of monopoly, and I grin. “Oh, you’re in for trouble now. This is my best game.”
“Well then, consider yourself challenged because I rock monopoly.” Arianna smiles at me. “I’m the car.”
“I’m the hat,” I say, picking up my piece and placing it on the board.
I settle down and say, “Ladies go first. You’ll need the head start.”
“No, we roll for it. The highest number goes first, fair and square.” She shakes the dice in her hand and releases them onto the board. “Nine!”
I scoop up the dice and shake them in my hands, making a show of blowing on them in my closed fist and rolling them on the board. She squeals, “Six, me first.”
As she scoops the dice up again, my phone rings. I pull it out of my pocket and look at the screen. “It’s your brother, Alessandro. I won’t be a minute, don’t play without me.”
“It’s not like I can cheat,” she scolds me but gets up.
“I’ll go get us something to drink.”
“Don Alessandro,” I say respectfully as I answer the phone.
“Is Arianna okay?” Alessandro asks me.
“Yes, sir, we’re just sitting down to play a board game to pass the time,” I say honestly.
Alessandro pauses and then says, “Well, keep her at the safe house and keep her safe until we can rebuild and improve security. I don’t know how the fuckers got a hold of the layout of the house, but when I find that rat, I’m going to drown him personally.”
“Noted, boss,” I say, not wanting to incur his wrath.
There’s another pause, and I hesitantly ask, “Is there something wrong?”
“Carmine, I’m going to be candid with you. Dominic was here and said he was worried that you might be making moves on Arianna. I want you to tell me if it’s true. Are you making moves on my baby sister?”
I don’t hesitate to answer; there can be no hesitation, “I’m not. I’ve assured Dominic of that. I was comforting
Arianna last night, and we fell asleep. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing better happen,” he says, and I hear the threat in his voice. “We go way back. You’re like a baby brother to me. But she’s my only baby sister, Carmine.”
“Dominic made it very clear that I will never be good enough for her,” I say coldly.
Another pause.
“He’s right. No one is good enough for Arianna until I say they are good enough. I know you’re loyal to the family, but this is not the life I want for her,” he sighs. “Keep me updated if anything happens. We’ll get another security detail to you as soon as possible so you can relax a little.”
He rings off, and I sigh, setting my phone down. I look up and see Arianna standing in the doorway, holding two sodas. “It’s not up to them to decide who is good enough for me,” she says.
“I know,” I say, and I mean it. “For now, though, let me kick your ass at this board game.”
She smiles appreciatively and sits down again, handing me a soda.