Page 167 of Mafia And Maid
“Stop looking at the clock.” Juliana grins from where she lounges, reading a book. “Won’t make it go faster.”
“Don’t you have something to do?”
“Nope.” She pops the ‘p’ at the end, giving me a wide smile.
I mutter a curse under my breath. “Can you all wait somewhere else, then?”
“Someone needs to make sure you don’t fuck it up between now and when you pick her up,” Marco says, fiddling with the buttons on his shirt sleeve.
I roll my eyes. “Your confidence in me is heartwarming, really. I’m touched. But I’ve got this. So, please, can you kindly fuck off?”
Marco looks at me carefully. “Are you sure, Millo? I cleared my diary for this afternoon so that I could drive you to the Davis mansion.”
I give him a grateful nod. “Thanks, but I’m sure.”
Marco pulls his wife up, and they make to leave. “Okay, we’ll find something else to do. But just call if you need me.”
Juliana gives my shoulder a quick squeeze as she passes, and I listen as they make their way upstairs—no doubt to fuck.
The sudden emptiness of the room is unbearable. I drag a hand through my hair, pulling it up, then down, then back up before I start to pace the room.
The paperwork from our lawyer sits on the table. It’s not ironclad, but it’s a start, and that’s all that matters. She asked me to find another way…to be the better man. And I’m trying.
Grayden might have power through his wealth, but if there’s anything I’ve learned over the last few days, I’m going to stop at nothing to show him what genuine power looks like.
At 4 p.m., I pull up outside the Davis mansion and make my way inside. A maid directs me to where everyone is.
I stride into the garden, rubbing at my jaw, my heart lurching into my throat. Wiping my palms on my jeans, I try to will myself to calm the fuck down. Panic swells through my body, and I feel like I’ve lost every brain cell I own.
Consulting the seating plan, I find who I’m looking for. And when I see Rosa and Ethan, I lose the ability to breathe.
Her beautiful eyes lock onto me. I freeze mid step. Every muscle seizes up, and I forget how to function. The white noise in my brain is drowning me. And also anger—because I can’t help but notice that Rosa and Ethan have been seated in the furthest corner, out of the way as if her mother is ashamed of them.
“Fuck it,” I mutter, striding toward her. As she takes a few steps forward, I pull her close to me, any resolve to let her dictate this flying out the window.
The smell of her, roses and sweetness, fills my nose and every empty part of my body that’s been bleeding since the funeral. It feels like fucking home.
I look down at her. Her chest labors in the T-shirt she’s wearing—my T-shirt—with each second that passes.
My hand cups her cheek, thumb stroking her smooth skin. So much for taking it slow. “I’ve missed you… Both of you.”
“Are we still in trouble?” a voice pipes up from lower down.
A startled chuckle leaves me as I kneel. Ethan stands tucked against Rosa’s leg. He looks smaller than he is, different. My chest pounds with anger.What the fuck did they do to my boy?“You weren’t ever in trouble, buddy.”
“But—”
“I messed up, Ethan. I did something wrong. Not you or your mom. I didn’t know how to handle everything. I need to work on that. And I’mgoing to work on it—for you and for your mom. So, it’s on me. And I’m sorry.” I look up at Rosa. “I’m really sorry. My home is your home. And it’s been your home for a while now. If you want it...”
Rosa’s sharp intake of air has me stilling. Have I already messed this up? Have I already overstepped?
Shit. Shit. Okay. Backtrack. I can fix this. “What I mean is... I mean you guys are, uh...” I take a deep breath, keeping my gaze fixed on Rosa. This is not going as I planned. Words aren’t a strong suit of mine.
But I need her, them both, to know just what I feel like without them.And that what I need is them.“If you want to stay with me forever, you can. Please stay.”
“Can…we really stay?” The hesitancy of Ethan’s question breaks my heart.
Both of us look up at Rosa.