247

ARIA I grabbed the wig and arranged it on my head.
It took me a couple of minutes to make it look natural.
I had chosen a hairstyle that would never be allowed because Luca would never accept me cutting or dying my hair. The wig was a dark brown bob that was longer in the front than in the back. After spending our second anniversary on the yacht in the Mediterranean, my skin was tanned enough that the dark hair color did not seem unnatural despite my blue eyes.
The wig completely changed my face, made me look more nervous, less sweet. I had chosen black skinny jeans with a tight black-and-white striped T-shirt and white sneakers.
I looked nothing like myself. It was the look of a college student and not a mob princess. I smiled, ridiculously happy.
I walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, where Luca was slipping a black shirt over his chest.
Luca stopped when he saw me, his eyes roaming the length of me.
I turned sharply. “So what? What do you think?”
“It’s not you,” he said.
“I know.” I smiled. “No one will recognize me like this.”
“You look happy,” Luca said softly as he strapped the gun holster to his chest.
“I am,” I admitted. I was finally going to college. I was going to pretend to be a normal woman, not the Chief’s wife. It was strange that I would be on my way to attend college while Luke would be out to deal with whatever problems the Family was facing.
He was still tense, so I walked up to him and touched his chest. “Everything will be fine. Romero will be by my side.”
Luca nodded. “You will have to keep your distance from time to time so as not to attract attention. You should blend in.”
“I will,” I said.
Luca touched my wig, his lips twitching. “I miss your hair.”
“It’s just for college,” I assured him. “I’ve been thinking about how to make sure the kids keep the distance you want .”
Luca’s eyes became alert.
“Romero could pretend to be my boyfriend. He’s only two years older than me.”
Luca did not seem convinced. “How could you pull that off ?” Jealousy resonated in his voice.
“We could hold hands. That would be enough because people will always see us together anyway.”
Luca nodded. “It could work. And I trust Romero with you. He will be respectful.”
I laughed. “He will refuse to hold hands, trust me.” I paused. “Don’t talk to him. I want to catch him off guard later.”
Luca smiled. “You are devious. Romero is loyal. He will lose his head if you try.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ll ask him to pretend, that’s all.” I tilted my head. “So is it okay if I hold Romero’s hand or if he puts his arm around my shoulder?” I wanted to make sure Luca could handle it and not make Romero’s life hell .
Luca kissed me possessively. “With anyone else, no, but with Romero, yes. He knows you are mine.”
Everyone in our world knew I was Luca’s.
I couldn’t stop staring at Romero. He looked like a college student in his dark jeans and plaid shirt. The girls would throw themselves at him. He took us in his car, a dark gray Dodge Charger.
Romero threw me a look. “I will attend as many classes as I can with you. We’ll have lunch together, and you won’t walk anywhere without me.”
I sighed. “Yes, I know. We’re practically attached at the hip.”
He parked the car, then got out, but it was too late to open the door for me. “Stop it,” I muttered. “Pretend you’re my boyfriend and not my bodyguard.”
Romero’s eyes went wide, he shook his head and stepped back respectfully.
I held out my hand to him. “I think that’s the best way to make men back off, Romero. You are intimidating. Don’t be a coward,” I said in a teasing tone, waving my fingers at him.
He looked at them as if they were poisonous snakes ready to attack.
I decided to cut it short, approached him before he had a chance to back away, grabbed his hand and pulled him toward me. Caught by surprise, he rocked forward and reared back with a hand on my hip.
My God. The expression on his face would get me through many dark hours in the future. I laughed and he withdrew his hand as if he had been burned. “Air,” he murmured pleadingly, pulling my hand away, but I did not let go.
“Calm down, Romero. People will become suspicious if you refuse to hold your girlfriend’s hand.”
Anger filled his eyes, and I felt guilty for making him think he was doing something Luca would not approve of.
I let go of his hand.
I sighed. “I talked to Luca about it. He thinks it’s a good idea if you pretend to be my boyfriend so other men back off.”
Surprise chased away the anger. “Did he say that?”
“Call him,” I urged him, and of course he did. After getting Luca’s okay, he visibly relaxed.
“I told you so,” I muttered.
“Luca is my Chief,” Romero said firmly. “I can’t go against him, especially when you’re involved.”
“I know,” I said, growing frustrated. “I know very well that I am your Chief’s property.”
“You are not Luca’s property. You are his.”
I wasn’t really sure there was a difference, and it wasn’t like it bothered me much yet. After two years of marriage, I had come to terms with Luca’s possessiveness. Romero held out his hand to me with a small smile. “Come on, Aria.”
I gave him a smile, deciding not to let anything ruin my day, and slipped my hand into his, then we headed for class. Even without my blond hair, several boys were staring at me. I hadn’t expected this.
Romero stiffened. “If they knew who you were, they wouldn’t look at you lewdly.”
“They don’t know, and that’s exactly what we want.”
I looked at them. “Your deadly looks will scare them off soon enough.”
He chuckled. “I have to do what Luca would do.”
My chest tightened. Sometimes I wondered what it would be like if Luca hadn’t been who he was and if I hadn’t been who I was. If we had been normal people, if we could walk these halls together like a normal couple. Tears stung my eyes because it would never have happened. Luca had never had the choice to go to college. Since the day he was born, his path had been marked, a path of darkness, full of enemies even among our own.
“Are you okay?” asked Romero, stopping a few steps from our classroom and letting go of my hand.
I shook my head. “I wish Luca was here.”
“We’re all tied to the path we were destined for.”
A group of boys my age walked by, and one of them turned and smiled at me. I was overwhelmed with surprise at his obvious flirtation.
“Okay. I don’t like that,” Romero growled.
“Then show them I’m your girlfriend. Trust me, they’ll back off if you give them that look. They’re full of themselves, but anyone with eyes in their head understands that you’re not a man to be trifled with.”
Romero hesitated.
“How would you treat me if I were your girlfriend?”
He frowned.
“Without kissing me,” I quickly added, blushing.
“Trust me, Aria, I would never dream of kissing you. You’re like a little sister.”
I smiled, because Romero was like an older brother I had never had.
He came closer and encircled my waist with his arm, his palm resting lightly on my hip. I stiffened at that unusual closeness.
Romero looked at me, murmuring, “Is that okay?”
“Yes. I’m not used to being this close to anyone but Luca,” I admitted, embarrassed.
He nodded, “I know. Are you ready to go in?”
I took a deep breath and together we strolled into my first classroom as a college student and, as I had predicted, the boys stepped back the moment they saw me with Romero.
I was elated when we were on our way home.
I couldn’t wait to tell Luca about my day. For the first time I had more to tell him than just my shopping adventures or the book I was reading.
Romero’s phone rang and he answered it after glancing at the screen. “Luca,” he said.
I turned around, curious.
Romero nodded, “I will. Yes, everything went well.”
“What did he want?”
“He is still in the Sphere. He wants me to take you there because he wants to take you to our dojo to train when he’s done.”
I opened my eyes wide. It had been a long time since Luca and I had trained, but the fact that I was going to college had obviously made him reconsider. It was unusual that Luca had told Romero to take me to the Sphere. I took off my wig and smoothed my hair. It was wilder than usual.
After getting our gym clothes, we headed to the Sphere and Romero parked his car right in front of the entrance.
This time he was quick enough to open the door for me and I glanced at him before heading to the entrance. It was only late afternoon, so the club was not yet open, but Jorge was still guarding the door. His dark face registered surprise when he saw me, mostly dressed in jeans and sneakers.
This was not my usual attire. He did not comment, however.
We entered the club, walked past the checkroom, then entered the main area. The dominant colors were blue, white and black . The bar counter looked like it was carved out of ice water, a pale fluorescent blue. “It’s new,” I said in surprise.
“Luca had it refurbished recently. To stay on top, we have to keep our clubs up to date.” My gaze was drawn to the platforms with poles in the center. “And lap dancers are a must for that?”
Romero shrugged. “They send the crowd into raptures.”
Luca hadn’t mentioned that he had remodeled his club. I wished he had shared more about his daily life with me. I should have talked to him about it, made him understand that to be partners all the way he needed to involve me more and not shield me from everything Family-related. Perhaps the fact that he had invited me was a start.
Romero led me to the back of the Sphere where there were several private rooms and then to some sort of office.
I vaguely remembered it from the incident on the roof. Luca and Matteo were both perched on the edge of the desk, deep in conversation. Luca looked at me when I entered, his eyes lingering on my hair, and a smug expression crossed his face.
“Gianna asked for you,” Matteo said to greet me. Guilt clutched my stomach for keeping my departure for college a secret, but Luca had insisted that we involve as few people as possible for as long as possible. He would find out soon, of course, because we usually spent every day together.
“He knows,” Luca said.
“You realize that the moment Gianna finds out you’re going to college, she’ll want the same thing,” Matteo muttered.
I shrugged my shoulders. “Then let her.” Luca gave me a warning look . I knew he still didn’t trust Gianna, but that was his problem.
“How did it go?” asked Luca as he walked toward me and pulled me to him for a possessive kiss. His eyes were drawn to Romero, not me.
“It went well,” I said. “Romero was the perfect boyfriend.”
Luca chuckled.
“Did Aria even come forward?” asked Matteo with a smile.
Romero laughed.
Luca smiled, then lowered his dominant gaze on me.
Mine, his eyes said.
Romero joined Luca and me in the gymnasium, but there were also other soldiers there when we entered the old warehouse.
Before I joined Luca in the ring, Romero whispered. “Use your speed. Luca will never be able to move as fast as you with your small body.”
I sent him a smile before stepping into the ring. Luca had not bothered to wear a shirt this time and was wearing only combat shorts. My eyes slid over his sculpted abdomen, his pecs, his broad shoulders. Looking at him, I was reminded of many things I would rather do than fight. Luca’s answering smile made it clear that he knew exactly what I was thinking.
Even my speed was not enough to outsmart Luca. He seemed to guess my every move, and when I landed on my back for what seemed like the hundredth time with him crouching over me, I let out an exasperated sigh.
Luca’s eyes were commanding but sweet as they looked down on me.
Then I heard one of the teenage boys, who was doing bench press stretches, say something along the lines that he wouldn’t mind fighting me, and my body stiffened at Luca’s expression.
He stood up and pulled me with him.
It was as if a switch had been flipped as he faced the group of three boys. They were perhaps sixteen or seventeen years old, and their faces flashed with fear as they realized that Luca had heard them.
I lightly touched Luca’s wrist. “Luca, they are boys.”
His eyes settled on the boys, ignoring me. “They are my soldiers.”
Romero moved toward the ring and opened the ropes for me. “Come on, Aria.” I let him help me out of the ring.
Luca signaled for the boys to come closer. “Let me see your tattoos,” he ordered.
One by one the boys pulled their shirts over their heads, revealing the Family tattoo on their hearts. They were more muscular than I had thought.
Luke pointed to the tallest one, and the boy did not hesitate to step into the ring even though he looked like he was going to wet himself. He was tall but only reached Luca’s nose.
“It won’t hurt him, will it?” asked Romero, who had his arms crossed over his muscular chest and was watching mercilessly.
“They are his soldiers.”
As if that answered my question. “They are boys.”
“They stopped being boys when they were introduced to the Family.”
“You wanted to fight,” Luca said coldly. “Now fight with me, Demetrius.”
The boy hesitated only a second before attacking. Luca dodged the attack, grabbed the boy and threw him against the ropes. Demetrio tried to stem the fall but Luca hit him in the ribs. The boy fell to his knees with a gasp of pain, but Luca knew no mercy. He grabbed the boy by the throat and struck him in the stomach. Demetrius fell to his knees, panting. Luca stood behind the boy and wrapped an arm around his throat with a look that made me shudder . I gasped when he tightened his grip until the boy’s head turned red. Romero grabbed my wrist because I had made a move to interfere. Was he going to kill the boy?
Luca stepped back, loosening his grip, and Demetrio fell forward, coughing. For several moments, he lay on the ring floor, then Luca held out his hand and Demetrio took it. Luca pulled him to his feet and released him. The boy climbed out of the ring. Luca pointed to the next boy. “Orpheus.”
The boy bowed his head and climbed into the ring. I turned and went back to the locker room. Luca had to make sure his soldiers respected him, but it was hard to see him behaving like that. They were boys. I was not naive; I knew that boys in our world were raised from an early age to be tough. They had to be to become honorable men, but I couldn’t help but wonder if Luca would have been the same with a son. My father had always been tough on Fabi, and I doubted he had changed since I had moved to New York.
I took a quick shower, always uncomfortable in the locker room because I knew I was blocking it for everyone else as long as I was in there. I slipped into my clothes when the door opened. I didn’t have to look up to know who it was. When I looked up, Luke was standing in front of me, his chest covered in sweat and blood, but his expression had lost its brutality. I climbed onto the wooden bench between us to bring us to eye level.
Luca’s gaze flashed with questions. I ran my fingers from his temple down his cheek to his throat. A second monster, the next loving husband. I would never understand Luca.
He touched my waist. “They needed to be taught a lesson. They are young, but that won’t stop them from being killed.”
I said nothing, and Luca’s eyebrows came together.
“Aria?”
“I can’t stop wondering how you will treat a son someday.”
He stiffened. “I don’t want children.”
I opened my eyes wide. We had never talked about having children.
I had simply assumed that sooner or later we would have them; after all, Luke needed an heir.
He shook his head. “Now,” he corrected himself. “Or in the next ten years.”
Ten years? I would have been in my thirties then, I wasn’t old yet, but I had thought we might start a family before then. “Oh,” was all I could say.
Luca peered into my eyes. “Do you want children before then?”
“Well, not right away, but maybe in five years?”
He said nothing, and I decided not to press the issue now. We could still have bridged the subject when the time was right.