Chapter 27

LUCA

Once he knew she was asleep, he slipped out quietly, heading downstairs for a drink. He found Filippo and Grazia sitting on the sofa whispering, but they stopped when he walked in.

Grazia stood to face him. “I’m so sorry to hear about what happened to Robin. I do hope she will be all right, and the baby—congratulations.”

“Thank you, Grazia, but do you really mean that?” Luca asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve made it clear you don’t like her and have been wanting to get rid of her. I think that hit-and-run was no accident, and someone was out to kill her. Maybe it was you.

“Who did you hire to do it? Tell me now, and I promise I’ll go easy on you.”

Grazia’s face turned red, her hands clenched by her side. “I had nothing to do with that accident. Sure, I didn’t want her here and with you, but I would never do anything to have her physically harmed.”

She rubbed her temple. “You’ve got to believe me.”

“Luca, she would never do that, nor would I. You know I’m fond of Robin. I suggest you hire another bodyguard and have your security upgraded around here,” Filippo said, handing him a drink.

Luca chewed on his bottom lip, staring at his cousin. He still wasn’t convinced she was innocent.

“Okay, Filippo, make the call. I want cameras installed everywhere throughout the castle and more guards around. If anything else happens to Robin, heads will roll.”

“I’ve got a splitting headache. I’m going to bed.” Grazia looked at Luca. “I didn’t do anything, and I am happy that you are going to be a father. But don’t expect me to do any babysitting.”

She turned to walk away.

“No worries there, Grazia.”

After finishing his drink, he sat the glass down. “Make those arrangements ASAP. I’m going back to Robin.” He left the room, leaving Filippo to make the call.

***

Robin stirred when he sat on the bed, pulling the covers over her. “Luca, my head is pounding,” she said, sitting up.

He reached into his pocket and took out a small bottle of pills. He took two out and handed them to her. “Here, take these, it will help,” he said, handing her a glass of water.

She looked at the pills in her hand, biting her lip. “I don’t know. What about the baby?”

“The doctor gave them to me. He assured me they are safe to take and won’t harm our baby,” he said, stroking her chin.

He knew she was going to be a wonderful mother; her willingness to suffer to protect the child in her womb told him as much. She gave him a smile that melted his heart, and he forgot his anger toward Grazia.

“I trust you, Luca,” she said, swallowing the pills and lying back down. “Will you come to bed now? I need your arms around me.”

Smiling, he started removing his clothes and climbed in next to her, his arms going around her and his hand touching her stomach. “Is it possible that you have become more beautiful since being pregnant?”

“Oh, stop, Luca, you will not think so once I become huge. Now let me sleep.”

“You’ll always be beautiful.” He kissed the top of her head and went to sleep.

***

Luca stayed by her side for two days, never leaving. On the third day, he put on his suit. He went over to the bed and touched her arm, the one with the cast. She opened her eyes.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“I thought that since you are feeling better, I’d go see how Shane is doing.”

“I’ll go with you,” she said. She tried getting up, but he put his hands on her shoulders and laid her back down.

“You’re not going anywhere, you need more rest.”

“Luca, please.” She tried begging with her words and eyes.

“No, don’t do that, you can give me those eyes all you want, but it won’t work, not this time. I have to go, but I promise I won’t be long.”

“You jerk!” She pouted, crossing her arms.

“I may be a jerk, but you love me. See you soon.”

With her good arm, she threw a pillow at his back, and he walked away with a smile on his face.

**

Shane was eating when Luca walked into his room. “That looks disgusting,” Luca said as he went over to the bed.

“It is,” Shane replied.

“I’ll have some food catered in for you. Will be better than that,” he said, pointing to the plate of mush.

“Boss, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. That car belongs to a man called Slime. That’s his nickname, people call him that because the slime ball will do anything for a few bucks, and I mean anything.”

“What’s his real name?” Luca felt his anger rising.

“That I don’t know, but he works at a garage called Walters. I don’t know if he was the one driving, but it was his car.”

“Thanks, Shane, I have to go.” Storming out of the room, he made a call and headed to the address he had been given.

***

He arrived at the address an hour later with two men. The garage was a run-down hole; there were three cars inside the building, and one man was working on one of the cars. He was alone.

“I’m looking for a man called Slime,” Luca barked as the two men stood behind him.

“Who the fuck’s looking?” he answered without looking up.

Luca went over and pulled the man away from the vehicle and had him pinned against the car, his forearm over Slime’s neck, cutting off his air.

“Listen, you little piece of shit. You ran down my wife a few days ago. Why? Tell me or I’ll let my men break every bone in your body.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Slime choked out.

Luca pressed his arm tighter into his throat.

Slime held up his hands. “Okay, I’ll tell you, just let me go.” Coughing, he rubbed his throat. “Someone paid me five grand to run her down; they wanted her dead.”

In his anger, Luca grabbed the man and punched him in the mouth. “You motherfucker! Who paid you? Tell me now or I swear I’ll kill you.”

“I don’t know, man, it was done over the phone. Whoever it was said they would leave the money in my mailbox. I never saw who it was.”

“Was it a man or a woman?” Luca barked.

“I don’t know,” he said, groaning when Luca kicked him hard in the balls. “I swear I don’t know. Their voice was disguised, all jumbled like they were talking into something.”

“You didn’t succeed,” Luca said as he yanked the man to his feet.

“I was to try again once things calmed down.”

This set his blood boiling, and he let his rage fly as he started beating the man until the other two stopped him.

Now he was glad he had left Robin with a bodyguard outside her door before he left her. “Take this slimy bastard to the police and give them this recording of him confessing.”

After wiping his hands clean of Slime’s blood, he headed home. He was still no further ahead than he was before; all he knew for sure was that Robin was still in danger.

ELEONORA

Eleonora picked up her phone and had to hold it away from her ear as the person on the other end started yelling.

“You stupid bitch, do you have any idea what you’ve done?” the voice on the other end snapped.

“Oh, what are you going on about?” she answered back.

“You had someone try to run Robin down. The girl is pregnant. I told you to just sit tight and wait, but no, you had to take matters into your own hands.”

The caller kept yelling at her. “Luca will never let her out of his sight, not without a guard being glued to her side.”

“What makes you think I had anything to do with the hit-and-run?” Eleonora snapped back.

“I know it was you. I’m going to tell you this one last time, stay out of it and just wait till the baby is close to being born.

“Then we’ll put the rest of the plan into action; let Luca and Robin enjoy what time they have left together in peace.”

The caller slammed the phone down.

Eleonora was getting tired of being treated this way, and she had no plan on waiting eight or nine months.

Pulling out a syringe, she laughed. Once Robin was far enough along and it was safe for the baby, she would induce her labor. First, she would have to do some checking to see when that would be.

LUCA

Luca was in a foul mood when he returned home, stopping to tell the new bodyguard to leave. He told him to keep an eye on Grazia and Filippo, and if he saw them doing anything suspicious, he was to let him know right away.

ROBIN

Robin came from the bathroom and went over to give him a kiss, but he didn’t return the kiss. “What’s wrong, Luca?”

“Nothing,” he snapped at her. “Why aren’t you in bed?”

This mood of his made her blood boil. “I don’t know what happened today, but don’t you dare talk to me in that tone. I will not stay in bed when I feel perfectly fine.”

Turning, she walked away only to be held back by a pair of strong arms. “Get your damn hands off me,” she said, pushing him away.

Being careful not to hurt her sore arm, he pinned her against his chest. “Fuck, you get me so hot when you’re angry.”

His mouth came down hard on hers, and he untied the belt on her robe. He smiled when he felt she was naked underneath.

“You beast, you’ll not have me after treating me the way you just did,” she hissed when she was able to break free of his lips.

Laughing, he pulled her robe off, and she was pulled back into his arms as he kissed her, his hand moving down till he reached in between her legs and put a finger inside her wet pussy.

“You say I won’t have you, yet you are so wet for me. I will have you; it’s been too long.”

His caresses and lips felt so good, and it had been a couple of days since they made love; she could never resist him. She wrapped her arms around him, returned his kiss, and helped him shed his clothes.

His arm went under her knees and the other one around her back. He lifted her up and laid her down on the bed. He let out a gurgled moan when she took his erection in her hand and guided it inside her.

LUCA

A smile crossed his face, knowing she couldn’t wait as she arched her back, raised her hips, and started grinding into him.

Her moans and ragged breathing encouraged him to keep going, giving her what they both wanted.

One orgasm was never enough for him; turning her around, he raised her hips as he kneeled behind her. Going slowly, he heard her cry out for him to go faster as he entered her.

“Oh my god, Luca, that feels so good…um, yeah, like that, keep going.”

His smile widened when he heard his once-virgin bride so brazenly begging him for more; she had come out of her shell in a short time, and he loved her all the more for it.

Both satisfied, he laid her down next to him, cradling her head against his chest, being gentle so as not to hurt her arm.

“Luca, is it okay to have sex while I’m pregnant? Will it not harm the baby?”

He chuckled as he held her tighter. “No, my love, women can have sex right up to near the end as long as it’s not painful for them.”

“Um, good,” she purred. Her eyes widened when she noticed his bruised knuckles. “Luca, your hand, what happened?”

“It’s nothing, go to sleep.”

“Luca, I’m your wife. I have a right to know what’s going on. Please don’t shut me out,” she said, her eyes filling with tears.