LUCA
Alex lay across the bed on her stomach, staring at me without speaking. She had been acting strange all day, constantly fidgeting and avoiding my gaze whenever our eyes met.
“What’s going on, baby girl?”
“I have to tell you something.” She cleared her throat. “You won’t like it.”
I loosened my tie as I approached the bed. “What did you do?”
“I’m pregnant,” Alex whispered.
The entire world felt like it had stopped at her words.
My heart raced so fast I could hardly catch my breath.
She couldn’t be pregnant, not with our wedding this weekend.
Not with The Carver on his way. Drake had a lead on the man we believed was the real identity of The Carver.
He’d been following him for the past day, tracking his online activity, but he still had the advantage over us.
“Did you hear me?” Alex sat up and clapped her hands to snap my gaze back to her. “Say something, Luca. I’m freaking out and need you to say something. Tell me we will be okay.”
I stared at her, unblinking, shocked by her words. “Why wouldn’t we be okay?”
I sat on the bed beside her, attempting to steady my nerves. It felt as if someone punched through my back and ripped my heart out of my chest. With my enemies on the hunt for Alex, I was already working around the clock to eliminate the threats.
A baby? Of course, I had imagined us having a family, but not now. Not with all the bullshit we had endured in the past month.
“Are you sure?” I choked out.
She nodded. “I took three tests earlier with Kali.”
I removed my cell phone from the inner pocket of my suit jacket. “You need a blood test to confirm. An ultrasound to see how far you’re along.”
“You seem upset.” She stroked the top of my hand with her fingers. “I told Kali you wouldn’t be happy with me.”
“I’m not mad,” I said without hesitation. “No, baby, this is a good thing. I want nothing more than to have a family with you. I’m just worried about The Carver. I don’t know what to do… Maybe we should elope and get out of here for a while until shit calms down.”
She slid her fingers beneath my chin. “Luca, we are not running away. This isn’t you. You never make decisions out of fear.”
“I worry about keeping you safe. Now I have my child growing inside your belly.” Staring down at the bed, I laced my fingers between hers and studied the diamond on her finger. “We need more time to plan.”
“We have a plan,” she insisted. “I know you hate dangling me like a carrot in front of The Carver. I hate it, too, but we have no choice. If he wants me, then he better come and get me.”
“If something goes wrong… and he hurts you or the baby… I won’t be able to forgive myself.”
“This is our only chance to lure him out of hiding. Once he’s dead, we don’t have to worry about anyone coming to collect.”
I slid the pad of my thumb across her bottom lip. “What happened to your pills? We were so careful. I even checked to make sure you picked them up from the pharmacy. You’ve never missed a pill.”
Alex rolled her eyes, a smile in place. “You’re such a psychopath.”
“I’m your psychopath. Deal with it, baby.”
“I wouldn’t have you any other way.” She bit her lip. “There’s one more thing. Promise not to flip out on me.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “What?”
“This baby could be Marcello’s.”
My heart plummeted into my stomach. It felt like someone was stabbing my heart, ripping it to shreds.
“Fuck,” I groaned. “It was one time. I doubt this is Marcello’s baby.”
“It only takes one time.”
My nostrils flared at her confession. “Marcello knew before I did?”
Alex got on her knees and placed her hand on my shoulder. “Luca, you promised not to get angry with me.”
I breathed deeply, my eyes on the wall opposite the room. Focusing on the stolen Rembrandt painting, I took a few more breaths to calm myself down.
“Capture the Queen was your idea,” she continued, moving her hand to my thigh. “I thought he was you.”
“Please, Drea. I know you better than you know yourself. You wanted to fuck Marcello for years.”
“I’m attracted to your brother. But I love you.” She hopped onto my lap and straddled me with her sexy thighs. “My heart belongs to you. I’m marrying you.” Alex pressed her lips to mine. “I’m yours, Luca.”
“But there’s a chance you’re carrying my brother’s baby. The deal with The Founders Society…”
“I already talked to Marcello about this. If he’s the father, he’s okay with publicly saying the child is yours.”
“But I would know. So would the Knights. Do you know what this would mean for my son?”
She nodded. “Marcello explained it to me earlier.”
“Then you understand how this will affect us.”
“It would change nothing between us.” Alex sucked my lip into her mouth. “I will still be your wife, your queen. We will have children together, and they will have a claim to the Knights.”
“That’s not how it works,” I explained with irritation. “Marcello’s son would have the first claim to the Knights.”
“He would be my son, too. He would still be a Salvatore. That’s the only thing that matters.”
I hugged her against my chest, breathing in her sweet scent. “You’re right, baby. We’re a family.”
“All of us,” she added. “You, me, this baby, your brothers, the Knights.”
“I don’t want a paternity test.”
She lifted a surprised eyebrow. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I’d rather not know.”
“What about Marcello? I think he does.”
“I don’t care what he wants.”
“Luca,” she snapped. “Stop being so selfish. He’s your brother. Marcello, let me go so that you could have me.”
“And I saved him from my father,” I fired back without meaning to be so nasty. “You don’t understand the relationship between Marcello and me.”
“Yes, I do. Because Marcello told me everything.” She clutched my shoulders, staring into my eyes.
“He told me what you were like as a child, explained why you are so cold and cruel. He made me see past all of your flaws. When I wanted to give up on you, Marcello steered me in your direction. You should thank your brother for championing you. He loves you more than anyone, Luca. Why can’t you see that?
We all do. But you make it so hard for people to love you. ”
“I’m sorry, baby. I’m trying to be more open with you. I have a hard time expressing emotions.”
She snorted with laughter. “No shit.”
“I love you, Drea. I would rather die than live without you.” Her tears wet my cheek as she kissed me. “You know I won’t survive without you. I wouldn’t be here now if I hadn’t gotten you back from Il Circo. I would have jumped off the cliff without a second thought. That’s how much I love you.”
“You’re no Romeo,” she said with laughter. “But I believe you. I love you so much that I can’t breathe when you’re not around. I need to know the paternity of this child. We all deserve to know the truth.”
“I’m afraid,” I admitted.
“I know.” She shoved her fingers through my hair. “I am, too. So is Marcello. I will be a Salvatore. My child will be a Salvatore. Regardless of the outcome, I expect you to raise the child with me. I need you and Marcello in different ways. You understand that, right?”
I nodded in agreement. “After Marcello got shot, I was jealous. I didn’t want to share you with him. I didn’t realize you were so close. I was afraid I’d lost you to my brother, of all people. But now I see it. You love Marcello like a friend.”
“Exactly.” She glided her teeth across her lip.
“Marcello is the light to your dark. I need both halves in my life. You each balance me out. When you couldn’t reach me, Marcello was there.
He helped me through my nightmares and flashbacks.
Aiden would have filled that role if he hadn’t disappeared. And so Marcello became my person.”
I grabbed her ass and squeezed. “I want to be your person.”
“You are my person.” She squealed when I rubbed her pussy against my hard cock. “I can have more than one.”
I pried her lips apart with my tongue. She tasted like oranges and mint, good enough to eat. Her sweet perfume floated into my nostrils, masking her usual scent of acrylic paint.
My beautiful artist consumed me and completed me in every single way. I hadn’t planned to have children so soon, but nothing with us had ever gone according to plan. After the dust settled, we would have time to enjoy each other without the threat of my enemies.
“I’ll talk to the doctor about arranging a paternity test.”
She sighed. “Promise nothing will change between us if the baby is Marcello’s.”
“There’s a slim chance. It was one time.”
I pushed her back to the mattress and climbed on top of her. Pinning her arms above her head, I kissed her soft lips as my hands roamed over every part of her body. With each kiss I placed on her delicate skin, she moaned my name, begging for more.
Alex lay back, her thighs spread for me, her hair wild and fanned out across the bed. She looked up at me, panting, her lips parted and slick with my saliva.
Rolling her tongue across her lips, she grabbed my tie. “You’ve been working all day. I missed you.”
“I missed you, too, baby.”
“I think we should have the wedding ceremony on Thursday to throw off The Carver.”
I considered her brilliant idea.
Why didn’t I think of that?
“That could work.” I grazed her cheek with my fingers. “But is this what you want?”
“We’ve waited too long to have this lunatic ruin our wedding day.”
I nodded. “Just family and close friends at the ceremony.”
“That’s perfect. I prefer something more intimate, anyway.”
I sat up and straightened my tie. “We’ll continue this later. I have a new wedding to arrange.”
She tugged on my tie and groaned. “Luca, I’m so horny right now. Don’t go… Not yet. I need more time with you.”
I grabbed her shoulder and pushed her onto the mattress. She smiled up at me as I shoved her skirt up to her thighs, revealing her lacy panties.
“Spread your legs wider, my queen.” She shivered as I slid my hand up her inner thigh. “I can make you come in the next five minutes.”
The following night, I found Alex in my mother’s studio. As usual, she sat on the floor and dipped her brush into a golden paint. It was like she was allergic to painting in a chair. Most of the time, she lifted the canvas off the easel and laid it on a tarp.
Alex looked up from the canvas when I stopped in front of her. “Is something wrong?”
I shook my head. “Can’t a man stare at his wife without something wrong?”
She twirled a paintbrush between her fingers and chuckled. “I thought you were finalizing the new wedding plans.”
I dropped to the floor beside her on one knee. “All done.” I extended my hand. “There’s something I want to show you.”
She wet her lips with her tongue, a seductive look in her eyes. “Yeah, that’s what you said last night.”
“This is different.” I winked. “A surprise.”
Alex placed her hand in mine, and I helped her to her feet. “Do I get a hint?”
“Nope.”
I led her across the room, my hand on her lower back.
“You’re making me nervous,” she muttered.
“This is a good surprise, baby. You have nothing to worry about.”
We climbed the stairs to the fourth floor. Marcello and my father had rooms at opposite ends. I had saved one room for Alex a long time ago, waiting until the day she became my wife.
At the end of the hallway, I stopped at a set of double doors and handed Alex a gold skeleton key dangling from a silky red string.
Alex’s eyes widened as she grabbed it. “What’s inside?”
I tipped my head toward the doors. “See for yourself.”
Apprehensive, she turned her back to me and shoved the key into the lock. I hit the light switch on the wall, and Alex gasped.
Her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, my God, Luca.” She spoke between her fingers. “You did this for me?”
I guided her into the room by her hip. “Everything I do is for you. Don’t you know that by now?”
She angled her body to look at me. “I knew you bought the paintings from my first exhibit. But I made sure no one could ever buy my paintings anonymously. How did you get these?”
“Please, I have my ways. I made deals with art collectors to get the rest of your pieces.”
Her eyes darted around the expanse of the room.
It was a replica of my mother’s studio with hardwood floors and the same domed ceiling.
Except this one was free of my mother’s influence.
This studio belonged to Alex. Every painting in the Many Faces of the Devil series hung on the walls, and photos of Alex from every exhibit and her sketches were framed.
“You can paint your own fresco.” I waved my hand around the room. “The walls and ceiling are your canvas.”
Her eyes watered as she looked at me. “I can’t believe you’ve kept this from me for all these years.”
“I was waiting for the perfect moment.”
She wiped away her happy tears and sighed. “You are such a psycho, Luca.”
I inched toward her like a hunter sizing up his prey. “A psycho in love is more dangerous than a man in love. Remember that the next time you test me.”
“No kidding,” she quipped. “I wish I could say I’m surprised you went to such lengths to keep tabs on me. But I always knew you were never far. I could always sense your presence, even when we were apart.”
“I have everything you ever painted.” I pointed at the drawings on the wall. “Even the sketches you threw out.”
Her mouth widened. “You went through my trash?”
“There was never a time I didn’t have someone watch over you. You are too important to me.” I motioned toward the framed papers on the wall. “I asked your brother to make a collage of your scrapped designs. I thought maybe one day you could use them as inspiration.”
She laughed. “You’re anything but predictable, Luca.”
“Do you like your new studio?”
The corners of her mouth turned up into a smile. “No, I love it.”
I slipped my fingers through her curls. “This room is yours to do with as you wish. You’re going to be my wife. It’s not right that you have to live in my mother’s shadow. This house is yours, too. Whatever you want, it’s yours.”
She threw her arms around my neck and kissed my lips. “I love you so much, you crazy lunatic. Thank you, Luca. Thank you for protecting me, even when I didn’t know I needed your protection. For loving me in your way.”
“My methods were unconventional, but there is no line I wouldn’t cross for you.”
“I love it,” she whispered. “This is the best gift you’ve ever given me.”
We kissed until both of us were gasping for air. And when our lips separated, I looked into Alex’s eyes, brushing her hair behind her ear.
“After the wedding, I want to paint you and the Knights in my new gallery. It’s the final piece in my collection for Tate Modern.”
I lifted her hand to my mouth and kissed her skin. “As you wish, my queen.”