“Your brother is back in the picture.”
Nikki’s eyes widen. “Massimo?” She steps backward into the desk, and Dante guides her to sit in his chair.
I watch with fascination how he treats her, like a queen.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Nikki seems to forget that I’m in the room, or maybe she doesn’t care.
“I didn’t think you wanted to know.” Dante’s eyes flinch, and I suspect he’s lying.
“You didn’t want me to know.” Nikki shakes her head. “How does this have anything to do with our son?”
“I wasn’t sure who was behind the smuggling operation. I had my suspicions it was tied to the DeLucas, but I wasn’t expecting it to be your brother.”
“Once you found out it was, you should have come to me!” Nikki stands and heads for the door.
Dante is right there, blocking her way, pulling her into his arms.
Manipulative savage.
“We only know it’s Massimo because of Luca.”
She huffs and untangles from his embrace. “That doesn’t make me feel better.”
I sit at the edge of the leather chair, engrossed, and surprised Dante hasn’t kicked me out of his office.
He probably forgot about me, or rather, I’m a minuscule problem compared to his wife.
“You know I always send teams out in pairs. Ashton and Luca did a little surveillance work; it just … got dicey.”
“What does that even mean?” Nikki steps forward, invading Dante’s personal space.
He’s silent, choosing not to speak.
Nikki answers for him. “It means Luca came home with bruises on his chest and broken ribs last spring.”
“I gave him time to heal.” Dante offers a smile.
“That’s why my son hasn’t been here all summer? And here I thought you were actually letting him spend some time with his family!” She smacks his arm. “Jerk. You never should have lied to me.”
Dante runs his hands up and down Nikki’s arms, attempting to soothe her. “I didn’t lie, kitten, I just refrained from sharing the whole story with you.”
“Same fucking difference,” she bites out. “Where is our son now?”
Dante glances from Nikki to me. “This time, I sent Luca and Ashton with Halsey and his team.”
“Wait—” Nikki holds up a hand. “You sent the boys on their own last time? What the hell were you thinking? Were you trying to get my son killed?”
“He’s our son,” he bites out defensively.
“And you still put him in danger!” Nikki’s fuming and her cheeks redden.
Dante looks a bit uncomfortable. “I was thinking that they wouldn’t be recognizable and would keep a safe distance. Clearly, I was wrong. I won’t make that mistake again.”
“Damn right, you won’t. If you’re expecting our son to take over the family business one day, you’d better make sure to keep him alive.” Nikki smacks his arm again and then retreats back to his leather chair.
Dante watches her closely, smiling. There’s a hum of electricity in the room, a heat sizzling between the two of them.
Nikki glances up at me. It’s the first time she’s paid me any attention since she had me strip down to nothing. “Harper, you’re dismissed.”