“Alright. We’ll be there soon.” I hung up.

“And?” Lily asked hopefully.

“Luca doesn’t have any information about your brother yet, but he and Aria are trying to contact Valentina.”

“Do you really think Val will react to Aria’s calls? She’s Dante’s wife and now that there’s war between New York and Chicago, she’d risk a lot by getting into contact with Aria.”

Romero touched my cheek. “We’ll find out about your brother, Lily, I promise.”

We showered quickly before we headed for Aria’s apartment. When we stepped into the penthouse, Gianna and Matteo were already there despite it being only seven in the morning. The scent of freshly made coffee greeted me and Danishes waited on the kitchen counter. My sisters were standing and talking and I steered toward them while Romero walked up to Luca and Matteo who sat on the stools at the kitchen island.

Aria put her arm around me. “How are you Lily?”

“Okay. I didn’t sleep much but I’m just happy to be here with you and Romero.”

“Of course, you are,” Gianna said. “I’m so glad Romero got rid of that sick bastard Benito.”

An image of Benito’s blood covered body popped into my head but I pushed it aside. I didn’t want to think of him anymore. He wasn’t part of my life anymore.

Aria handed me a cup of coffee. “Here, you look like you need it. And you should eat something.”

“Mother hen mode active,” Gianna teased but then she too fixed me with a worried look. “And? How was your first night with Romero?”

“Gianna,” Aria warned. “Lily has gone through a lot.”

“It’s okay. I loved spending the night in Romero’s arms without being afraid of getting caught. For the first time we could watch the sunset together.”

“I’m so glad you are happy,” Aria said.

I nodded. “But I can’t stop worrying about Fabi. I want to know if he’s okay.”

“I’ve left two voicemails on Val’s phone. I really hope she’ll call me back.”

“Even if she does,” Matteo said. “We don’t know her motives. She might be doing it on Dante’s orders and be looking for information.”

“Val wouldn’t do that,” Aria said uncertainly.

“She’s the wife of the Boss. The Outfit is with where her loyalties lie. You are part of the Famiglia and that makes you the enemy,” Luca said.

I glanced at Romero. All this because I loved a man I wasn’t supposed to love, and because I wanted to be with him. Was I a selfish bitch? Romero met my gaze. I wished I could say I wouldn’t do it again but looking at him now, I knew I’d stab Benito again to save myself from a horrible marriage and be with the guy I was supposed to spend my life with.

I was a selfish bitch.

“Hey,” Aria said gently. “Don’t look so sad.”

I turned back to her. “You and Val got along so well. I know you talked on the phone often and now you can’t because of the mess I caused.”

“You are my sister Lily, and seeing you happy and having you in New York with us is more important than my friendship with Val. And maybe Luca can negotiate another truce with Dante. Dante is a pragmatic man.”

“Not as long as your father is Consigliere. It would be like a slap in the face for your father if Dante didn’t seek revenge,” Romero said.

“I hate this revenge crap,” Gianna muttered. Matteo stood from his stool, went over to her and pulled her against him with a grin. “I know you do, but it’s how things are.”

Gianna rolled her eyes but let Matteo kiss her. In the past that would have sent a stab of envy through me, but now I walked over to Romero and leaned against him. His arm came around my shoulder and he kissed my temple. “We’ve been at war with the Outfit before. We’ll handle this.”

“I don’t want people to die because of me.”

“Romero is right. We will get through this. And I don’t think Dante will kill one of ours. The Russian threat is still too strong. He can’t risk his soldiers’ lives in a war with us.”

“Nor can we,” added Matteo.

A phone rang, making us all jump. Aria snatched her phone off the counter and peered down at the screen, then she raised her head with wide eyes. “It’s Val.”

Luca got up. “Don’t let anything slip that Fabi helped us and be careful.”

Aria nodded, then she lifted her phone to her ear. “Hello?” She paused. “I’m so glad you called. Can you talk?” Aria listened for a few seconds, her expression dropping. “I know. I only wanted to ask about Fabi. He got shot when he tried to stop us and I’m just so worried about him. He’s so young. He shouldn’t have been involved in this. Can you tell me how he’s doing?”

Aria released a breath. “So he’s okay? He’ll be able to use his arm like he used to?”

I slumped against Romero in relief, but at Aria’s next words I tensed again. “Is he in huge trouble because he wasn’t able to stop us?” Aria nodded, then gave us a thumbs-up. She was silent for a long time after that, listening to Val.

“Okay, I will tell him. Thank you so much, Val. I won’t forget it. I hope our men figure something out soon. I’ll miss talking to you. Bye.”

“So?” I asked, the moment she had hung up.