: Chapter 71

Stefano makes quick work of freeing Nico and Dean from their bonds. Running straight to me, Nico wraps me in a hug.

“Lily Pad. What the fuck?” He squeezes me tight as Dean comes up behind me and does the same.

“Are you two okay?” I ask.

They step back. Nico nods but glares at Stefano. “Yeah, but what the hell, Doc?”

Stefano, or Doc as we’ve affectionately called him since we were innocent little kids and heard people refer to him as the surgeon, pats Nico on the back. “I’m sorry, boys, but I had to make it look real. Besides, I barely scratched either of you.”

Dean wipes a streak of blood from a cut above his eye. “Tell that to my face, Doc,” he says, but he’s grinning.

“So, we’re not twins?” Nico frowns. “Not even brother and sister?”

I shake my head. Smiling, I try to lighten the mood. “I was born two days before you, by the way. So I’m officially the oldest now.”

He looks down, sorrow clouding his handsome features.

I cup his face in my hands. “You’ll always be my brother, Nico. No matter what.”

Stefano wraps an arm around my shoulders and kisses the top of my head. “Can we save the family reunion for later? Ludovica has to get out of here before anyone notices she’s gone, and we need to deal with all this. Nico and I will let the men know the new order of things.”

“You think they’ll accept it?” I ask.

“They’ll have no choice.” He shrugs. “I’ll stay on as Nico’s adviser for a while, and once the dust settles, I can finally go home.”

The look he shares with my mom makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up, but the soft expression flickers on my mother’s face and disappears as quickly as it arrived. Clearing her throat, she turns her focus back to me. “Come to the hotel as soon as you can, Liliana. We have things to discuss.”

“I will.” Swallowing a sob, I watch her slip out the door.

Stefano nods down at Carmine’s body. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up and you out of here before the cops show up. And I’m sure those friends of yours from New York will be here soon too, Marshmallow.”

I shake my head. “I told them not to come. I’ll call them and let them know I’m safe.”

Nico and Dean share a strange look. “What?” I ask.

Nico wraps his arm around me. “Don’t forget that I met them, Lily Pad. I saw the way they all looked at you.” He chuckles. “I guarantee that they’re already on their way here.”

As much as I’d like to believe that they trust me enough to let me handle things myself, I know better. With a sigh, I hold out my hand. “I need to borrow your phone.”