#4 Chapter 17
AriannaCòntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org
Every single day this week, more than once a day, we’ve fallen into bed with each other.
Bed.
Sofa.
Kitchen counter.
Any surface that had never experienced wild sex before in this house certainly has now. I can’t keep my hands off Carmine, or my eyes, though sometimes it is nice just to settle down together and cuddle.
We leave my bed unmade so that anyone who comes over thinks I’m sleeping there. Carmine has always been known as a neat freak, so they would never question why his is always made.
Every time Dominic has come over, I’ve been nothing short of a feisty saint of a sister he loves very much. Carmine has mentioned that Dominic has asked again if there’s something between us. While I’m concerned he suspects something, it doesn’t really deter me from throwing my legs open and welcoming Carmine’s pulsating dick into me.
Seven days later, and I’m not tired of him. Many people talk about the honeymoon phase, but I feel like we’ve always been in that phase. We were just too chicken to do anything about it.
As this brand-new week starts, I stir sleepily in Carmine’s arms.
“No, it’s too early,” he mumbles.
“Dominic will be here in an hour,” I mumble back, just as sleepily, checking my watch. “Get up.”
I slide out of bed and pad to my room, pulling out some clothes and getting dressed for the day. I feel like I’m still half asleep as I go to the kitchen to put the coffee pot on.
As Carmine comes in, his phone chimes, which means there’s a security alert. “He’s early,” I comment.
“I know,” he says, glancing at me. “I’ll go to the living room.”
He leaves, and the room feels empty. It’s about five minutes later when the door gives a small squeak open and then a small thud shut. My brother is trying to be sneaky, apparently. I roll my eyes. Whatever he thinks we’re doing, we’re doing it, but we’re not dumb enough to let him catch us.
I am, however, surprised to see Alessandro come into the kitchen.
“Hello, Cup Cake,” he says with a grin. “Where’s Carmine?”
“I don’t know,” I say. “But I’m surprised you’re here.”
“I know. I wanted to surprise you. It’s been forever since we’ve seen each other. Is that coffee fresh?”
“Just made it. Here, I’ll fix you a cup.” I put together a cup of coffee for my brother and take it to him.
“Thanks, smells delicious. Oh, Carmine, I was just wondering where you were,” he says as Carmine enters from the door.
“Hey, Don Alessandro,” he says respectfully. “I’m so pleased to see you alive and well.”
“Thank you, yes, we’re still trying to figure out which family is behind it, but once we do, you can extract your pound of flesh.” Alessandro downs his hot coffee. He’s always been like that. He turns to me. “Well, you better get packed up. We have a new estate that we’re moving into. Everything that survived is already there.”
“Did my cars survive?” I ask instantly.
“A few dents and scratches, but nothing the family can’t sort out for you,” he says, grinning and putting an arm around my shoulder. “Pack what you need, and Carmine can bring you in a few hours. Carmine, I need to speak to you.” He lets me go, and Carmine and Alessandro leave the room to talk privately.
I’m a bit nervous, but I’m ninety-nine percent sure he wants to talk to Carmine about the family business. There’s no reason for him to suspect anything between us. Thank God we had the warning, or he might have caught us in bed together. Carmine would be a dead man instantly. I’d be locked away in a tower for sure.
I hear the front door shut, and Carmine comes back after a while. “You need to get packed up. We’ve decided to go back sooner rather than later.”
I pout. “What about us?”
Carmine gives me a sad smile. “They can never find out about us, Ari,” he says softly, kissing my forehead.
“I know, but we’ll still make a plan to see each other, right?” I ask. “You’re not going to ditch me for an easier girl now?”
“Ari, you are anything but easy,” he laughs. “If I wanted easy, I’d date one of your cousins.”
I smack him. “Don’t think I don’t know about the ones you have dated.”
He grins and kisses me deeply. “We’ll find a way to be together, I promise.”
I leave and pack what I want to take with me. The drive to the new estate is tense and quiet, as though we know what risk we are taking playing this game. No one ever won against the Sorvinos or lived to talk about it. Carmine himself had seen to that many times.
The estate is on the opposite side of New York from where we were staying. When Carmine pulls into the driveway, we’re stopped by four guards who confirm our identities before letting us in. Men patrol every inch of the area, and I realize how difficult it will be to find time alone with Carmine.
“There’s a beautiful orchard,” he comments, motioning to behind the house.
I nod, but I’m not happy.
I lead Carmine into our new house and pause in the entrance hall, unsure where my room is. People are moving quickly about, moving things into place and cleaning.
“Cup Cake!” I hear my father call from the upstairs landing. I smile and drop my things, meeting him at the bottom of the stairs with a huge hug. “Papa! I’m so glad that you’re okay.”
“I’m glad you’re okay, too,” he chuckles. “I believe Carmine has taken excellent care of you.”
“Oh, he has,” I can’t help but giggle, “very good care of me. I even got him to beat him at monopoly.”
If my father picked up on my suggestive tone, he doesn’t show it. Instead, he lets me go to shake Carmine’s hand. “Are you well, son?”
“Yes, Pa,” Carmine says with a grin, it’s weird that he sees my father as his own, but at the same time, it’s not.
“Cup Cake, I’ll show you to your room. Carmine, you’re downstairs,” he points to the back left. “Down that hallway, none of the rooms have been assigned yet.”
“Thank you, sir,” Carmine says, picking up his stuff and heading that way without question.
I gather my things, and I’m about to head upstairs when I see Alessandro. “Hey! I’m home!”
Alessandro gives me a sad smile, and I know he’s got bad news, so I instantly ask, “What now?”
He sighs. “Arianna, I don’t want you going out late and racing around New York. It isn’t safe at the moment. You need to stay close to home.”
I frown. “I am not a five-year-old child, Alessandro.”
“Believe me, I know. Katya chewed me out as well, but I want you to stay at home.”
“No, this is fucking bullshit,” I say.
My father instantly steps in, “Arianna, mind your language with your brother.”
“No, I’m tired of being bossed around about what I can and can’t do. I’m not a child, and I’m certainly not Alessandro’s child. I will do whatever I like. Don’t worry about showing me my room, Papa. I’ll find it myself.”
As I storm upstairs, I hear my father call me back, but I’m too angry to stop.