Page 38 of Poison and Wine

“I thought I’d adhere to the old adage when in Rome. Or I suppose I should say Sicily,” he quipped.

“I prefer Irish, thank you very much.”

“Since your wife is Italian, I would think you should learn the language.”

I scowled around the mouth of my cup. “Caterina is Italian-American, and she speaks perfect English.”

“It might come in handy to learn a little.” He gave me a knowing look. “Especially when she’s conversing with her brothers.”

“Is this your way of telling me you’ve signed me up for an Italian language course?”

He grinned. “A private tutor would be more beneficial.”

“Is she young and sexy?”

“HE is middle-aged and balding.”

“You’re no fun,” I grumbled.

“When we get back to Boston, you’ll have a very young and very sexy wife at home, so you won’t need an attractive tutor.”

“An attractive tutor might be a lot more accommodating than my virgin bride.”

“It can be very pleasurable breaking them in,” Seamus argued with a gleam in his eye.

Groaning, I swept my hand over my face. “Can we not allude to your sex life, you dirty old bastard?”

Seamus chuckled. “Once again, I’m only forty-five. You act like I’m on a walker and wearing adult diapers.”

Since my cock didn’t want me focusing on breaking in Caterina, I decided to change the subject. “Did you have something to tell me besides the fact I’m about to learn Italian?”

“After the initial trouble of finding a local trustworthy priest, I finally resorted to flying one in from Belfast.”

“Which one?”

“Leahey from St. Benedicts.”

“I suppose he’ll do.”

“In the end, I think one of our own will be better. That way we don’t have to worry about anything being lost in translation with a Sicilian one.”

“That makes sense.”

“When will he arrive?”

“On the eleven a.m. plane. I’m sending Quinn with a bodyguard to collect him.”

I chuckled. “That’s quite a message sending the family enforcer.”

“While Leahy’s proven he’s trustworthy, it never hurts to give a reminder.”

With Leahy arriving, the proverbial noose tightened around my neck. “So today is my wedding day?”

“Aye. And a lovely one at that.”

“It might as well be storming,” I grumbled.

Shaking his head, Seamus countered, “It’s not as bad as all that.”