Chapter 25
“He’s incredible,” Torq said as they closed the door to the bedroom where Antero was finally asleep after his third story. “I could read to him all night.”
“He enjoyed it.” She gave Torq a nervous glance. “You really fell right into this fatherhood thing like you didn’t miss a trick.”
“I have an extended family with lots of little ones around. I like kids. They don’t usually like me as much.”
“Why?”
“I’m as big as the ogres in the fairy tales they read.”
“Oh.”
“I also carry a gun, wear a suit most of the time and their parents probably talk shit about me when I’m not around.”
“There are a lot of rumors about you. For example, there is one which says a huge scar covers your face from a knife fight.”
“Tito made it up. Thought it was funny. We never corrected it.”
“Plastic surgery didn’t fix it?”
“Babe, if I were going to invest in plastic surgery, do you think I would leave my nose this crooked? Its been broken four times.”
“You’re not good at fighting huh?” she teased unable to help herself and ignoring the babe comment. She tried not to stiffen as he draped his arm over her shoulders again and led her towards the living area of the condo. She’d expected he’d pick a place where it was opulent and reminiscent of the billions of dollars he possessed, but it was actually a very cozy, warm, and inviting space. Nothing was stark or too straight lined. The furniture was plush, soft materials and in earthy tones.
“I am exceptionally good at fighting. What I am not good at,” he grinned, “is ducking. I broke my nose twice walking into low hanging shit, once was the exit from an airplane and I got myself good and the other was ducking into room in a basement where we were keeping someone. I bled a lot but the guy I was holding bled more. The other two times I got hit in the face, once with a piece of rebar during a fight and the other was an accident where Bastiano threw a football at me thinking I was paying attention, but I wasn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because while I was the goalie in our football practice, the girls were practicing at the other end of the field and one of them was showing off
the cutest ass.”
She laughed at his words. “You were distracted by girls.”
“I was fourteen. What did I know?”
”
He lead her to the overstuffed sofa, which Antero jumped on for at least half an hour. When she’d worried he’d fall off, Torq simply pushed the coffee table out of the way and threw the cushions from the matching chair next to the sofa on the floor and told Antero to go nuts. Then he’d gotten back to following Alcee’s recipe for cookies while she worked on making dinner.
She was surprised by how well they worked together in the kitchen, and it wasn’t long before they were feeding a sweaty and happy Antero at the breakfast table of the kitchen. Torq complained the dining room was too big and formal for only the three of them and when there were guests, they could eat at the big table but when it was only them, the breakfast area worked.
She sat nervously on the sofa, and he smiled at her.
“Wine?”
The question startled her. “What?”
Wine. Would you like a glass of wine while we wind down for the evening? I left all of the business in the hands of my very capable staff. I do not foresee any interruptions for the rest of the evening. In the event something catastrophic happens, the guys know how to reach me, but I would very much like to relax with you. So, I ask again, wine?”
“I would love a glass of wine.”
Red or white?”
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Chapter 25
“Red.”
“I can offer a merlot or a cabernet.”
“Merlot, please.”
She watched as he moved towards the kitchen and pulled open a door she’d not noticed earlier, assuming it was part of the cabinetry. She was startled to see the number of wine bottles in a hidden rack and bar.
“This door, if you hadn’t noticed, has the latch up quite high so Antero shouldn’t be able to reach it,” he grinned over his shoulder, “for at least
another six months.”
She giggled at the comment, “he’s been the biggest kid in every situation.”
“How much did he weigh at birth?”
“Nine pounds and eleven ounces. He canie fast too. Split me wide open. I didn’t even get time for an out with nothing more than some laughing gas and a lot of screaming.”
He stared at her, “you joke.”
epidural. I pushed his big watermelon head
“I wish. Nobody prepares you for what happens to your body during childbirth and in the aftermath. I cried for weeks each time I peed.”
He set a bottle of wine on the counter and regarded her seriously, “you cried from urinating?”
“Your big–headed son tore me in ways which should be outlawed. I suffered something called a third–degree tear. If you’re ever feeling the need to be squeamish, do an internet search. Susana did and stupidly watched a video of a surgical repair and vomited. They stitched me back up with so many sutures fairly sure multiple spools of thread were used.” She was enjoying the horror on his face,
“No!”
“Yes. My doctor at the time of delivery suggested if I ever birth more children to book c–sections or to ensure the baby’s father was not the bastard ogre of a man I declared him to be while I cursed him during delivery.”
“Bastard ogre huh?” he gave a sad smile, “I wish I’d been there to hear the insult in person.”
“Me too.” She didn’t lie.
He carried the opened wine bottle along with two glasses to the coffee table and sat down beside her.
“You do?”
“Yes. I was scared, Torq. I was a single mother. My entire family were, still are, against me. I was under protection of one of the bosses your family used here in Tyrell because he felt sorry for me. He retired back to Sicily, but he still sends me and Antero birthday cards and Christmas cards,” she smiled, “always loaded with cash.”
He laughed, “Tyrell is a good guy.”
“He is.” She watched him pour her wine into the glass. “Though I once watched him kill a man in cold blood for breaking into our building. Maybe good is subjective.”
“Maybe it is.”
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