Nino shook his head with a frown. “Ius primae nocti.”
I’d had enough Latin to know what that meant, and my expression slipped a moment. Remo Falcone’s name stirred fears in most people. Even a wife and beautiful children hadn’t changed that.
Diego lost his shit. “This isn’t a fucking joke. My sister is an honorable woman, and nobody should suggest that anyone but her husband touches her!” My heart skipped a beat. He had screamed not just at Savio but also at Nino and Remo.
Remo’s smile slipped off, and Diego fell silent. He took a deep breath. “I meant no disrespect, Capo, but I must protect my sister’s honor no matter the price.”
Savio seemed to pierce me with his eyes. “We will make the engagement official, and I will make it clear that Gemma is only mine. Nobody will touch her, not a single fucker, and most definitely not any of my brothers.”
He strode toward me and took my hand, regarding my knuckles closely. “This will have to heal before you can wear my engagement ring.” His voice was pure possession and sucked the air clean out of my lungs, making me feel light-headed. Then he looked up at me and the arrogant mischief was back. “I already know exactly what kind of ring to get you.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“She needs treatment for her knuckles,” Diego butted in, stepping up beside us, and eyeing Savio’s hand on mine critically. I could tell he wanted to shove him away. As if even hand-holding was too much before we were married. I almost rolled my eyes.
“So, when’s the engagement going to be?” I asked.
Savio exchanged a look with his brothers. “In two months. That way we have some time to prepare everything. How does that sound?”
For once, I managed to keep my cool. Anger still simmered under my skin, at Savio, at the situation, even at myself. “All right. Will it be a big feast?”
I’d never much cared about a huge engagement celebration, but now I felt the unreasonable urge to show the world that Savio was going to be mine, especially Noemi and all the other girls who’d taken a ride on his bull.
Savio smiled. “Wait and see. It’ll be a surprise like your ring.”
If that was supposed to reassure me, he failed.
“I won’t have a fucking party in my mansion,” Remo said.
“Our mansion,” corrected Nino as we entered the living area of the house where Serafina and Kiara were perched on the sofa watching over the kids playing on the floor. They turned to us.
Kiara got up, her face reflecting worry. “What’s the matter?”
“Savio wants to celebrate his engagement to Gemma in two months,” Nino said before he pressed a kiss to his wife’s mouth.
“You do?” Serafina asked, wide-eyed.
“I don’t really. But thanks to your husband, I have to.”
“Don’t blame this on me,” Remo said.
“You started the fucking ius primae nocti rumors,” I said, annoyed.
Remo smiled. “It’s always good to shroud yourself in mystery as a Capo.”
Serafina narrowed her eyes and slapped his shoulder hard. “I really can’t believe you’re allowing this kind of nonsense to make the rounds. Stop them.” My brother caught her hand and jerked her against him, trapping her against his body.
“I don’t take orders from anyone, angel,” he said in a low voice. He nipped her throat. “But maybe I’ll stop them as a gift to you. After all, I got your first night.”
Serafina huffed, but the way she hung in my brother’s hold didn’t suggest annoyance. I turned around, not in the mood to see them getting it on.
I stalked toward the kitchen, hoping for something sweet. Kiara hurried after me. “Do you need help with the party? Or the ring?”
Of course, she was excited about the prospect of the impending engagement. She’d practically organized Leona and Fabiano’s wedding and the twins’ second birthday by herself. Event planning was her obsession.
“I know exactly what kind of ring I want for Gemma,” I said.
Kiara eyed me in suspicion. “You’re not going to embarrass the girl, right?”
“Of course not. I only do what Diego asked for. Staking my claim for everyone to see.”
I was nervous. This was the first time I’d set foot into the Falcone mansion to officially meet everyone before the engagement in two days.
This was the place I’d spend my life in because Savio and his brothers would never live in separate homes, he’d made that clear. Not that I minded. I loved to live in a big family unit, loved the solidarity and that there was always someone around to talk to.
Today, I’d have dinner with the people who’d become part of my family in eighteen months. That, of course, required for the Falcone clan to accept me.
My stomach knotted itself tightly. What if they didn’t? For Savio, his brothers were everything. If they didn’t like me, what would that mean for our marriage?
I knew Remo, Nino and Adamo as well as you could know people you’d only exchanged a couple of sentences with. I liked Adamo, even if he was too volatile for my taste. Not to mention that I’d always stayed clear of the crowd he’d hung with at school. I’d never understood why people would put poison into their own bodies for a kick. Besides, Adamo was currently in New York and I wouldn’t even see him today.
I feared Nino and Remo. Some people, very few, very ignorant people thought they’d become more approachable, maybe even tamer since they had wives and children. These people had never paid close attention to their fights. I had because I wanted to improve and the only way to do that is to study the best in your profession. Remo and Nino had been the best for as long as I could remember, and Savio had joined them in their unchallenged prime spot a few years ago. When they fought, you saw what really lay beneath, and it wasn’t anything tame or less dangerous. These men, all of them, enjoyed inflicting pain, not just to win a fight. No, they loved the actual act of causing someone else agony, and even more than that: the kill.
No one had fought more death fights than Remo Falcone.
Little was known of what went on behind the walls of their mansion, how they treated their wives and children. They mostly stayed among themselves, so speculations always ran rampant.
Diego dropped me off in the driveway of the mansion. It was obvious that he didn’t like the idea of sending me off into the Falcone mansion alone, but he had to help Dad in the restaurant.
“Insisting on going with you would be like a slap in Remo’s face. I might as well shove a knife into my throat.”
“You really think he’d kill you for insulting him, and it wouldn’t even be a real insult, just overprotectiveness, and let’s be honest, you are terribly overprotective.”
Diego frowned. “I’m as protective as necessary given your looks.”
I rolled my eyes but then became insecure again. “Do I look okay for my first meeting with them?”
“Yeah.”
Mom and Dad had insisted that I wear one of my modest dresses to give the right impression. I had a feeling neither Falcone would judge me by my clothing. They were too cunning and attentive to take someone’s exterior as the reflection of their nature.
Diego gave me a tired smile. “You’ll be fine.”
I nodded, then got out of the car. Savio came out of the house and toward me.
“You look as if you’re going to puke any moment,” Savio said with a laugh, then he stopped, grabbed my wrist and tugged me closer. His fingers dug into my skin. “Are you scared of meeting my brothers? You’ve talked to them before, and I really would have thought you of all people would be braver.” Again that deep laugh before he kissed my temple, throwing me off completely. “There’s no reason for you to worry.”
My skin warmed and my pulse sped up even more. The spot where his lips had touched my skin tingled. How would it feel to have his lips on mine?
Savio regarded me closely and shook his head. He turned his face away as if he couldn’t bear looking at me a second longer. “Girls that know of their effect on men are dangerous, but you, Kitty, are killing me without even realizing it.” He chuckled, but it was a very dark, very sarcastic sound. His eyes slanted to me and he leaned down again, cupping my head. I froze. In the few days since Savio had become my fiancé, he’d touched me more often than in the years I’d known him before. None of these touches had been inappropriate, but they felt intimate and possessive, and my body’s reaction to them was far from innocent. “Sweet sixteen is mighty sexy and hella tempting when it comes in a package like yours. I’m glad you’re such a fucking good girl. Maybe I can keep my promise to your father after all.”
“Promise?” I said in a raw voice. His closeness was wreaking havoc with my body and mind.
“To keep my hands off you until you’re officially mine, before God and whoever else needs to give his approval.”
“You are touching me.” Why was my voice so low, so… sultry?
Savio took a deep breath, then he gave me that teasing smile. “Believe me, Kitty, the kind of touching I’m talking about will leave you hot and bothered, and even more breathless than you are now.”
I felt hot and bothered by his simple kiss to my temple and his closeness already.