Page 29 of The Price of Power
“Mister Gabriel,” she called out in a gorgeously lyrical accented voice. “I wasn’t expecting you home so soon. Lunch won’t be ready for a while yet.”
“That’s fine, Letizia,” he said before sliding his arm around my waist. I did my best to keep myself from jumping at the intimate gesture, but I couldn’t stop every muscle in my body from tensing up at the feel of his touch. “I would like to introduce you to a friend of mine—Olivia Collins. She’s going to be staying with us for a while.”
The woman’s eyes went wide with surprise.
“That is good news,” the woman said, her thick square heels clicking across the stone floors as she rushed toward me. “Let me get a better look at her.”
“Liv, this is my housekeeper, Letizia Tarolli,” Gabriel said when she was right in front of me. “She’s been with my family since before I was born.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, putting out my palm to shake the woman’s hand. But the woman quickly swatted it to the side.
Instead, she cupped both her hands over my upper arms before boldly staring me right in the eye. I could only hold my breath and blink as she gave me a quick once-over.
“Not too tall. That’s nice. The last few girls have been too tall, like bean poles,” she commented off-handedly. “Such a pretty face, though a little pale, I think. Beautiful green eyes and red hair. Irish?”
It took me a second to realize she was asking me directly. “Uh…yeah,” I said. “On my dad’s side, but my mom is?—“
“I knew it,” she cut me off. After getting the answer she wanted, she clearly wasn’t interested in anything that might come after. I couldn’t help but wonder if she’d been the one Gabriel had picked that trick up from.
I didn’t spend much time thinking about it, though, because a second later, she pinched my arm—hard.
“Ow!” I cried out, more in surprise than actual pain.
The gray-haired woman shook her head in disappointment before shooting Gabriel a judgmental look. “She could stand to gain a few pounds, though.”
“And with you feeding her, I’m sure she will,” Gabriel said with laughter in his voice.
Her brows shot up. “Just how long will Miss Collins be staying?”
“Through the summer,” he answered.
Now, when the woman looked me over, her gaze was far more assessing. I wasn’t sure if I should have felt proud or offended when she started to nod approvingly. “How wonderful.”
Well, at least someone was happy about the situation.
“I need to show Liv the rest of the house,” he said before pressing a sweet kiss against the top of the housekeeper’s head. “But we’ll be down for lunch in a couple hours.”
After the terrifying discussion we’d just had, it was jarring to see such a kind, domestic gesture from Gabriel. The sight of him acting like a regular human being was at odds with the monster I’d made him into in my mind.
“Of course, Mister Gabriel.” Mrs Tarolli nodded before stepping back to cast him a stern look. “Though, if you want this one to stay all summer, you’ll need to treat her right. I can see right now she’s not like the other ragazze you bring home. This one is no troia.”
Even though I only caught some of that, I was pretty sure I understood the broader meaning, and a ray of hope lit up my heart, thinking that I might have an ally in this house.
“It’s all right, Letizia,” Gabriel said, already guiding me away from the housekeeper and out of the room. “I already know.”
The moment we left the kitchen, my tension came roaring back. It wasn’t the house’s fault, though.
The inside proved to be every bit as graceful and beautiful as the outside. Tall windows in every room we passed let in loads of natural light. Even though every space was luxuriously decorated, the high ceilings and flowing design kept the spaces from feeling cramped or claustrophobic. Every piece of furniture, every rug, every gilded mirror and original painting adorning the walls were refined and elegant. We even passed a room that looked like a dedicated library.
It was almost impossible to believe that this gorgeous, sophisticated home belonged to the city’s most feared mob boss.
I kept my mouth shut and my opinions to myself, though, as Gabriel led me up a flight of stairs. And then another one.
But as we headed up toward the third floor and I saw the face of the man standing at the top of the staircase waiting for us, I couldn’t stay silent.
“What the…”
I turned to look at Gabriel’s dark, brooding face right beside me...and then up at the exact same face staring down at us from the next story up.