Page 219 of Dante
I pull away before he can feel me tense.
"How's the wound?" he asks.
"Healing."
"Marchetti said you're lucky to be alive."
"Marchetti says that every time."
Lorenzo almost smiles. Almost. But his eyes stay sharp, searching my face for something I'm not giving him.
"Everything okay?"
The question hangs between us.
"Everything's fine," I say.
The lie comes easy. Too easy. Twenty years of lying for this family, and now I'm lying to them.
Lorenzo studies me for a long moment. I keep my face blank. Give him nothing.
Finally, he nods.
"Come on. We need to talk."
He turns and walks into the house. I follow.
The game starts now.
No one in this house will be unaffected.
That's how life is.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Marina
Ipromised Sophia. I promised Dante. Breakfast with the family. Normal. Civilised. Just people eating eggs and drinking coffee.
Dante walks beside me. His hand brushes mine but doesn't hold it. He's been doing that lately. Touching me just enough to remind me he's there, but never quite connecting.
"You ready?" he asks.
"No."
"Neither am I."
We reach the dining room doors. Voices drift through.
I take a breath.
Dante pushes the door open.
The room falls quiet for half a second. Just long enough for everyone to register our entrance.
Sophia stands immediately. Her smile is warm but her eyes are checking on me, scanning for signs of panic.
"Marina." She crosses to me and takes my arm. "Come. Let me introduce you properly."
