Page 186 of Mafia Billionaire's Surprise Baby

We have to call in multiple Zia’s and Nonna’s for backup, and still, these babies run us like we’re a military regiment.

No one talks about Gia.

However, I know that I’m not the only one who feels her absence everywhere.

Everyone does.

Luna, true to form, is the most direct about it. She asks for Zia Gia all the time. She’s taken to sitting in Gia’s room in the house, writing her letters and notes and sprinkling them around like some kind of summoning spell.

It doesn’t work, of course.

None of us have the heart to tell her that it won’t bring Gia back to us.

I don’t know if she’s married by now. It’s been two weeks since I came back with Caterina from Italy, and none of us have heard anything.

She probably is married.

She’s probably somehow managed to convince Liam that the baby…

My eyes shut.

I can’t think about our baby. It’s an area of me that hurts so badly, I can’t even reach for it.

Caterina knows.

But she promised not to tell anyone.

I know she’ll keep my secret. There’s no point, not really.

Gia made her choice. She chose to make the alliance for the organization, for the family.

She chose Liam.

And she chose Liam for both of them.

One day, I’m just coming off of baby duty, heading to the garden of the house. I need a minute to catch my breath, to breathe in the dusk, and to just be outside. Elio and Caterina have kept a nice garden, which is unusual for the somewhat suburban home that he’s purchased for them in upstate New York. I’m just coming around the hedge of roses that Caterina is so proud of, heading toward the cement benches that border a fountain, when I run into Elio in the garden.

He shoots me a guilty look, leaning back against the concrete bench. “Apologies. I needed a moment to breathe and enjoy the silence.”

I laugh. “Yeah. I get that. I thought that Luna had a set of lungs as a baby, but she’s got nothing on your two.”

He wrinkles his nose. “I think that they try to out-compete each other in terms of the decibel levels of their cries.”

“Possibly,” I nod. “Either way, it’s damn impressive that two people who are so small and so helpless can be so powerful.”

Elio quirks a small smile at that. “They are fierce,” he says in an approving voice. “Just like their mother.”

Only time will tell if they’re fierce like their Zia Gia as well.

I don’t respond. After a while, Elio nods at me. “Caterina has the babies then?”

“Yeah, but they’re sleeping,” I say. “Put them down just now.”

“Good. And Dino’s coming to take over?”

“On his way now.”

Elio sighs. “I am glad Dino has this chance to redeem himself.”