Undressed By The Mafia God

"Wouldn’t expect you to." Luca said. "Just be beautiful, pregnant and entirely mine. Donna." he winked.

Vee pinched the bridge of her nose. "Did you at least buy the supplies for the barbecue?"

Luca went still. Her hand dropped. The silence answered before he did.

"Luca."

"Shit," he said with a wince. "I forgot."

"That was the whole point of you leaving home. You left this house with one mission. One. Food for the barbecue. And you came back with a truck full of purple baby furniture?"

"It was on the way."

"The baby store was on the way to the butcher?"

"I got excited."

"What am I going to do with you?" she asked.

Luca stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Love me?"

She jabbed a finger into his chest. "I love that you are excited, but when I ask you to pick shit up, you pick that shit up," Vee said.

"Language, babe," Luca said.

Veronica turned her head slowly towards him. There were many looks a wife could give her husband. This particular one was the look of a pregnant woman who was seconds away from stuffing her husband’s head beneath the truck he came home with. "Are you fucking with me right now?" she asked.

Luca lifted both hands. "No."

Her eyes narrowed.

"I am simply saying we should watch the forks and spoons around the baby."

Vee maintained the you must be stupid look. Luca recognised the look.

"I’ll go get the stuff," he said quickly.

"That would be wise."

He leaned in and kissed her. His hand brushed briefly over her stomach, a soft little touch. Vee’s irritation wavered because he kept doing that now. Touching her like the baby was already someone he knew. Someone he would burn cities for. He slid back into his car and drove off, leaving Veronica to supervise the shitstorm of baby furniture and equipment he had just loaded into their home.

By the time Luca finally returned, the house looked like a baby shop. Marco and Valentina had arrived.

They were in the courtyard setting up the barbecue grill. Matteo sat in a high chair near the shaded side of the courtyard, holding a bright toy and banging it against the tray.

Luca pulled the shopping bags from the car and carried them towards the courtyard.

"Hey, Luca!" Val called.

He looked up. She had a knife in one hand and a tomato in the other.

"I hear you can’t get anything done," she said.

Vee did not even look ashamed of spreading the report.

Luca chuckled. "Yeah, yeah, blame the delay on me. I’m just one man."

Val laughed softly and went back to helping her sister with the vegetables.

He handed the bags to Marco. "Here. Before my wife accuses me of ruining her event."

"You did almost ruin it," Marco said, taking the bags.

"People are very ungrateful today."

Vee lifted her head. "I heard that."

"I said grateful."

Matteo squealed when Luca approached him. Luca crouched in front of the high chair and smiled.

"Hey, nephew. How are you doing?"

Matteo slapped the tray in response.

Luca leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Any girls you want to talk to your uncle about?"

"Somebody get Luca away from that baby!" Vee yelled.

Val burst out laughing. Luca moved towards the barbecue grill beside Marco, grinning.

"What is wrong with a little man-to-man conversation, uhn?" he asked.

Marco placed a piece of meat on the grill, smoke curling around them. "Your wife’s pregnancy hormones this time is different," Marco said.

"Oh, you noticed that too, uhn?" Luca said, gesturing towards his head. "Woman’s crazy."

Veronica picked up an apple from the bowl beside her and aimed it directly at his head. Luca caught it in the air.

He turned the apple in his hand, glanced at Marco, and shrugged. "Case in point."

Vee narrowed her eyes. "Keep talking."

"Your aim has gotten incredibly admirable." he said in response. That was the trick. Smother her with compliments whenever her anger was flaring.

Marco laughed under his breath and turned back to the grill. For a while, the afternoon continued like that, wrapped in chatter, sunlight, and the scent of food.

Valentina moved beside Veronica, passing plates, arranging vegetables, laughing when Vee complained. Marco handled the grill. Matteo sat in his high chair.

Luca stood at the grill with Marco, sleeves rolled up, turning a piece of chicken he had placed there for himself beside the meat.

"You are burning that," Marco said.

"I need the burned flavour."

Marco tsked and glanced at his wife. They were better today. Their bodies had stopped avoiding each other. Val’s eyes found her husband more often.

"I instructed the men at the SoHo warehouse to have the place packed up by tomorrow night." Luca said, drawing Marco’s attention.

Luca rarely brought business home. So, If Luca was speaking about work then it meant he was concerned about something.

"Winn’s visit rattled you?" Marco asked.

"No. It is better to be safe than sorry."

"That sounds like rattled."

"I’m being cautious."

Winn’s warning had not left him. And he must be right because whoever dug the Kanes name out knew more than they should.

"You need me to go over there and help them?" Marco asked.

Luca’s gaze slid towards Valentina. She was pouring juice into a sippy cup for Matteo, smiling faintly as the baby tried to grab the cup.

"No," Luca said at last. "It is alright. I am sure they can handle it."

Soon, everything was ready. They gathered around the table, and for a while, they looked almost normal. Plates filled. Drinks passed.

Luca glanced around his family. Marco looked tired but present. Valentina was smiling. Matteo sat with mashed potatoes smeared across his cheek. Veronica leaned back in her chair, her eyes warm when they met his. His wife was happy.

For that, Luca would have burned the world. But beneath the laughter, his instincts remained awake.

He knew that this time, the enemy was closer to home than ever.

(Powered by 100 power stones)

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!