Page 45 of Explosive Union
But damn, why the hell do I find that sexy?
“Jade,” Viviana says as she reaches for my hand. “You’ll sit beside me. I want to hear all about your family. Mamma says it’s huge.”
I laugh at her innocence. “It is, although I only have two brothers.”
Her brows furrow. “Brothers are jerks,” she snaps, and I’m wondering which one of them has pissed her off.
“Vivi.” The warning in Aldo’s tone is unmissable, and his little girl stands straighter. “Jade, please take a seat,” he says, and I see his gaze is on his daughter's hand, which is currently holding mine.
Does he think I’d hurt her?
“Ignore Papa,” Viviana tells me as she pulls me to my seat. “He’s been like this a lot lately.”
Once I’ve taken my seat, I gaze across at Aldo and finally see what I’ve been missing since I was released from prison. In the past five years, he’s lost weight and not in a healthy way. His eyes are bloodshot and his skin pale. The man is sick, and I have my suspicions that his family don’t know.
“Your father,” Dario says, spitting his words, “has a lot to answer for.”
I merely raise a brow. “Oh, and why is that?”
“Undercutting our product,” he snarls.
“Dario,” Rocco snaps. “We do not talk about work at the table.”
I snicker at his words. “Surely you should have said that you do not talk about work around women.”
His gaze is hard as he turns to me. “Unlike the Irish, we prefer to keep our women out of harm’s way.”
I smile sweetly at him. “Sure,” I reply sarcastically. The Famiglia couldn’t give a fuck what happens to their women once they’re married off.
“Jade,” Adelina says, speaking for the first time since I’ve arrived. “Is it true that not only does Hayden fight at the Cage, but you do too?”
Oh, now that little tidbit has everyone’s attention. All the men are looking at me with a ‘yeah right’ look on their faces, whereas Viviana is watching me with awe in her eyes.
“I haven’t in a while,” I reply, holding back my smile. “Being in prison kind of puts a damper on my hobbies.”
“Hobbies?” Viviana breathes. “You can fight?”
I shrug. “Sure. Every Gallagher knows how to fight.” It’s actually clever as hell. Being in the family that we are, it means we have targets on our backs constantly, and being able to fight has come in useful on more than one occasion.
“Why?” Adelina asks. She’s no longer got the angry scowl on her face. Instead, she seems genuinely curious.
“The men because they’d be a part of the life. The women… well, when Makenna almost died, Uncle Seamus thought it would be best to show her how to take care of herself. It worked, and now she’s one of the best fighters the Clann has.”
Adelina nods. “They decided to show you, so you’d be prepared?” she surmises.
Natalia walks in with a glass of wine for me, Rocco’s granny shuffling in behind her, beaming at me. “Here you go, bella.”
“Thank you,” I say, taking a sip of the crisp white wine. “And to answer your question, Adelina, no, I wasn’t taught because of what happened to my cousin. I was taught because when I was seven, I was kidnapped.”
“I remember,” Aldo says, his eyes hard and angry. “I thought your dad was going to set the city alight to find you.”
I shrug. “He would have, had I not pissed the guys off. They ended up leaving me in the warehouse and calling in a tip.”
“You said that Makenna’s one of the best in the Clann at fighting. Who’s the best?” Adelina questions.
“Hayden,” I reply without thinking, and see her blanch. “It’s his job. Who he is,” I explain to her. There’s so much about Hayden that the world sees, and none of it good. But I see the best in him. Always have and always will.
“Where do you come then?” Elio smirks, and I laugh. He’s a damn flirt, and he’s skating with danger.