Chapter 29

AVERY

Avery woke up late the next morning to some hushed conversation on the other side of the room. She slowly opened her eyes, blinking back the sunlight and realizing she felt like shit.

She turned to see Tina talking with Uncle Gio. She wondered why they were still in contact, but they looked like they were still pretty close.

Avery sat up, and Tina turned to her at once. “Avery, honey. You’re awake. How are you feeling?”

Avery shrugged. “What are you doing here, Uncle Gio?”

“Oh, my piccolo fiore! I’m so sorry!” he said, coming over and holding her tightly.

Avery couldn’t help but start crying again. She desperately wanted to be mad at him, to scream and rant and show him how upset she was.

But she couldn’t when he held her like this, like he loved her and wanted to keep her safe. Like her father used to. Like Justin did.

Gio mumbled Italian terms to her—some she recognized, some she didn’t. He never stopped rocking her and holding her; he was just there for her.

Once room service had delivered breakfast, he made her a plate and sat right next to her as she ate some toast, eggs, and tea. When she was done, he had her turn and look at him.

She saw his tanned, handsome face and his salt-and-pepper hair. On some men, it would make them look old, but on him, he looked distinguished and dashing.

And then when he smiled, she knew he had charmed many, many women. Just like someone else she knew...

“Piccolo fiore, I want to start by saying how sorry I am for everything. I never meant—we never meant for this to happen. When your dad and I talked about this, we just wanted to keep you safe.

“I promise if we would have known what pain this would cause, we would have changed our minds. I know it’s too raw now, but do you think you can ever forgive us?” Gio asked hopefully.

Avery sighed. “Uncle Gio, I am just so confused. All of this…this information is just swirling in my head, and I don’t know which way is up!

“Mafia, dirty cops, hits, motorcycle clubs—this is Hollywood movie type shit! How the hell am I supposed to make sense of all this?”

“I know, piccolo fiore, I know,” he said soothingly. “What can I do to make this better? You name it and it’s yours!” Gio declared.

“I don’t want you to buy me anything, Uncle Gio. I just want to live my life!” Avery yelled.

“I have lost the man that I love because of all of the lies and secrets. They think I was purposely hiding all this crap from them or getting info to set them up.”

Gio looked wounded and vowed, “I will make it right for you, Avery. I promise!”

Avery wiped her eyes again and nodded. “No more lies, Uncle Gio. NONE! If it involves me, I need to know.”

Gio nodded, but before he could answer, Tina cleared her throat. “There is one more thing, Av…”

Avery looked up at her and watched as her aunt looked at Gio and his eyebrow raised in question. She saw Tina nod her head subtly and then looked at Avery.

“There is one more piece of info you need to know... Gio and I are together,” Tina said.

Avery’s jaw dropped. “WHAT?”

“Yes, we are together, Avery. I told you we had an affair before you were born but ended it. Gio moved on and I met Tom and we got married.

“I found out I couldn’t have kids and we didn’t last long after,” Tina explained. “Gio and I ran into each other at a restaurant a few years later and started our relationship again.

“I didn’t want to get remarried, so Gio and I kept it under wraps. The only ones who know are Matteo, Luca, and your dad.”

Avery looked from one to the other and back again. Completely stunned, she sat back down and watched as Gio took Tina’s hand and kissed it, smiling softly at her.

She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths before she said, “I can’t really process this right now. I’m going to go home, take a shower, and think.”

“Okay, piccolo fiore, that sounds good. Can I take you and Tina out to dinner before I go?” he asked carefully.

Avery stood up. “Sure, Uncle Gio. Text me where and what time.” She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

She grabbed her stuff and went back to her car, driving home to try to make sense of her life and the new alterations to it.

She couldn’t believe that literally everything she thought about her life was a total lie. It was a bitter pill to swallow.

She held her head under the water as she showered, hoping it would clear it out and make her see things more quickly.

But when the water turned cold, her head was still a mess, and she had no idea what to do.

JUSTIN

Justin was miserable. It had been five days since the fateful meeting with Avery, and he was no closer to knowing what to do.

The guys felt bad that he had been taken advantage of, but they had all warned him that she wasn’t one of them.

He didn’t want to give up hope that Avery was telling the truth and she knew nothing about Bianchi’s operations.

He was waiting for Hank to get him a contact number so he could talk to the players involved and clear this up.

He still loved and wanted Avery with every fiber of his being and just wasn’t ready to give up his dream of getting married and her being a mom to Lexi.

He wanted to go and see her, but he knew that wouldn’t help the situation with her or with his club, and he couldn’t make things worse on either front. He rubbed his hands over his face in frustration.

He jumped when he heard a knock on his office door and saw his sister standing at the door.

“What’s up, Kiks?” he asked with a sigh.

Kiki walked in and sat across from him. “You doing okay, Jussy?”

He scoffed. “Yeah, sure, just dandy, sis. I mean, it’s not like my life has blown up and I lost the only woman I have ever loved.”

“Justin, I am so sorry that this played out. I really am. I like Avery, she is a nice lady. She makes you happy and Lex talks about her all the time—and she doesn’t even know that you are dating her.”

“Well, I guess I dodged a bullet not introducing them, huh,” he replied sarcastically.

Kiki sighed. “Please don’t be like that!”

“Like what?! Like I am fucking heartbroken and my life sucks? How should I be acting, sis? Huh?!” Justin asked, yelling by the end.

Kiki wiped a few tears that had escaped as she watched him. “I’m sorry, Justin. I really am. I don’t know how to make it better for you, and if I could, I would. I really would, Justin…”

Justin smiled sadly, knowing that she was telling the truth, and leaned back in his chair. “I know… Thanks, Kiki…”

Kiki nodded. “I just wanted to let you know that I just got back from the doctor... Justin, I’m pregnant!”

Justin was stunned. “What? Are you saying that crazy in vitro shit worked?”

Kiki chuckled. “Yeah, it worked. It’s still really early, so don’t say anything to anyone, especially Lex. Only you and Mitch know as of now, but I’ll let you know when it’s safe.”

Justin got up and pulled her up from the chair she was in. He hugged her tightly, kissing the top of her head.

“I’m really happy for you, Kiki. You take all the time you need; I’ll take care of everything.”

They hugged for a few more minutes, then she left, promising to take it easy.

Justin sat back in his chair and sighed again, thinking that while he was thrilled for his sister, he was jealous. For the first time in his life, he was jealous of someone else.

He wanted so desperately for it to be Avery telling him that she was pregnant. But that wasn’t how his life was going to go, and now he didn’t know if that was something he would ever have.

He decided he needed to talk with his dad and planned to go tomorrow morning before their run.

The opening of the coffee shop had gone well the day before, and he felt much better about the legit money they would be making.

But now, he just needed his dad, something he hadn’t needed in years. He just needed to be near him, hear his advice, and feel his support.