Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 61672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 308(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 308(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
“That’s my family’s emblem,” Matteo says. “You like it?”
“Yeah.” Again, Jack nods enthusiastically. “Shiny.”
Matteo laughs. “Yeah. It is shiny. You can get them in all kinds of shapes. Cars. Airplanes. Ice cream.”
“Ice cream?” Jack asks, obviously awed.
With silly grins on both their faces, I can’t help but notice the resemblance. The dark hair. The sly glimmer in their eyes.
To be honest, I’ve imagined this scene before, hundreds of times. But I never thought Jack’s father was Matteo Guerriero, the mafia prince I was supposed to marry.
“Jack, go back inside,” I say tersely, ignoring the guilt constricting my lungs.
Ever since that phone call I made to Matteo four years ago, I’ve been second-guessing my decision to hide Jack from his own father.
I thought Matteo wouldn’t want anything to do with the grandson of a mobster, especially when he was on the brink of building his own family with another woman. But all my assumptions have turned out to be wrong.
Still, I’m not ready to share Jack with Matteo. I don’t know what to do. There’s no one I can ask for advice. Lily’s my only friend here, and she doesn’t know anything about my history. She doesn’t even know my real name.
The longer Matteo spends with Jack, the higher the risk he’ll realize I’ve been raising his son in secret. And who knows what will happen after that?
If Matteo sues for custody, God knows I don’t have any money to contest—not unless I go crawling back to my family.
Or he could just kidnap Jack—with or without me. He said he’d leave me alone if I want him to, but it’s unlikely he’d ever knowingly let go of his son.
Either way, if Matteo finds out about Jack, my life as I know it is over.
I look back over my shoulder and find Lily. Catching my gaze, she hurries out to take Jack inside the house with her.
“You never told me you had a kid,” Matteo says, getting up to his feet.
“You never told me your dad knew all along about me.”
Matteo huffs a deep sigh. “You’re right. He knows I’ve been looking for you. But he doesn’t know I’ve found you.”
Does he really expect me to believe that?
“I understand you’re suspicious of me, and now I know why. You have that kid to think of.” For a split second, I catch a gleam of pain in his dark eyes. “Is his father in the picture?”
I shake my head. “No. And this is how I like it. Just me and Jack.”
“I find that hard to believe, seeing as you signed up to a dating agency.”
“That was just because Lil—” Wait a minute. I don’t have to make excuses to Matteo. “What does it matter? Tell me the truth. Does your family know I’m here?”
“No, kitten. Nobody knows. I told you, you’re my secret.” Matteo gazes straight into my eyes. I don’t know how I know, but there’s no doubt in my mind he’s telling the truth.
A sigh escapes from my lungs, and I suddenly realize I’d been holding in my breath. My muscles relax. “Does he know where you are, though?”
“He does,” Matteo says. “But I’ve spent the past four years going all over the country, looking for you. He thinks I’m wasting my time. He truly believes you will never be found.”
“Are you going to tell him?”
“Eventually he’ll find out, when I bring you home with me.” Matteo reaches out to stroke my cheek with his warm fingers.
That’s when it dawns on me. “You’re not really going to just leave me alone, are you?”
“No,” he answers without missing a beat.
“Why?” I ask. “Why are you so hell-bent on finding me?”
His gaze softens. “Why are you so hell-bent on losing me?”
“I told you I’ve built a life here. I have Jack to think about. I can’t just uproot everything and go home like these four years have never happened.”
“Why not?” he asks. “You know what the odds are of us meeting like that at the club? And you know what the odds are of me finding you again, after all these years?”
I stare at him. “And your point is . . .?”
“Don’t you believe in fate, kitten? We’re supposed to be together.”
I laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“You’re just too scared to admit it to yourself,” he says. “So what if you have a son? I don’t care. We’ll raise him together.”
“You just want me to go home to end the war.” A familiar rage burns in my belly.
I was born to fulfill a purpose—to be used as a pawn in my dad’s dangerous game. But I’ve always hated that role. I wouldn’t have chosen it for myself. So screw fate.
“And what’s wrong with that?” Matteo asks, his thick eyebrows knitting together. His voice grows in volume. “Do you have any idea how many people have died in the war? On both sides? Are you so self-centered that you’d sacrifice all those lives just so you can keep running away from your responsibilities?”