He looked at Mariko and then at Nicoletta. Clearly, Ricco and Taviano didn’t love their women any less. Stefano would never encourage him to put Emmanuelle’s life on the line. He would want her happiness. He knew her better than anyone else.
“We haven’t talked about her skills. I never asked her specific questions about what she could or couldn’t do. We were always very careful not to get into each other’s family’s business. I loved and wanted her for her. I know she loved me for me. I studied your family just as I do everyone coming in contact with us. I guessed at what you did, but I never asked her, and it seemed rather preposterous.”
“It does, doesn’t it?” Stefano said. “Emmanuelle will be an asset to you as a full partner, Val. She’s brilliant. She’s intensely loyal, and you can talk to her. She’ll see things you’ll miss, but if you try to relegate her to a place where she feels she’s nothing but a trophy on your arm, you will eventually find that she’s going to take you down faster than any of your enemies.”
“Emmanuelle is right here, in case anyone notices,” she said, looking up at Val. “I thought we discussed this. Are you having second thoughts? If you are, you should say so now, before we get married, not after. I mean it, honey. A full partnership is all I’m accepting.”
Valentino pulled her hand to his mouth, pressing her knuckles to his lips, and then scraped his teeth back and forth over her skin. His heart accelerated. He knew she was fully aware of it because they were so connected by the way their nervous systems were entwined together.
“I’m trying, Princess. The thought of anyone kidnapping you, putting a sniper’s bullet into you, or torturing you because of me makes me sick. I think I’m on board, and then it’s like my worst nightmare and I find myself backing away from the idea and wanting to wrap you up in a little cocoon somewhere safe.”
Val wasn’t even embarrassed to confess to her in front of her brother, not after seeing the man with Francesca. Val knew he sounded as raw and vulnerable as he felt.
She cupped the side of his face and looked into his eyes. His heart immediately had that curious melting sensation it sometimes did around her. It was the intensity of her blue eyes when she gazed into his. Her slow, sensual smile.
“I’m so in love with you, Valentino Saldi. I know you see me as gentle and soft. I’ve trained since I was two years old to be anything but. I’m good with any weapon. Hand to hand. I can fly helicopters, planes. I’m hell on wheels in a car, motorcycle, any land vehicle, boat, whatever you need. I can spot a tail and I can lose them. I can build a bomb or take one apart. I’m not as good at that as some of the others, but in a pinch, I can get it done. The point I’m making is, I’ll be a good partner. I know when to keep my mouth shut if you need candy on your arm. If you need a badass, I’m your girl. If you need someone watching from the shadows no one can detect, you have that, too. I can coordinate your safety with Dario and intend to whether you like it or not when you go to any meeting. I’m good, baby. Better than good. You hit the jackpot when you fell in love with me.”
“She’s right,” Stefano said before Val could reply. “You did hit the jackpot. Because aside from the fact that she’s not bragging—every single thing she stated is a fact—she’s our baby sister.” He swept his hand around to include his brothers.
They all looked up, alert.
“You’re Emmanuelle’s choice. She’s made that more than clear. I know she loves you and I can see very clearly that you love her for herself. So the biggest part of the jackpot is Emme and her abilities and how much she loves you, but the rest is her brothers and their women and how much we love her. That means we include you. We back your play and keep you alive. So she’s right: you did hit the jackpot. Don’t fuck it up by being overprotective.”
“What did he just say?” Francesca asked.
A ripple of laughter went around the plane. Stefano frowned at his brothers.
“He told Valentino not to fuck things up with Emme by being overprotective,” Vittorio said. “Great advice. I concur wholeheartedly.”
“You do?” Grace asked. She looked up at her husband as if she couldn’t quite understand what was being said. “You don’t think a man should be too protective of his wife? Is that what I’m hearing from the two of you?”
“Yes, do explain, Stefano, Vittorio,” Francesca said. She got up from her seat and began to make her way to the empty chair on the other side of Stefano.
The moment she was standing, nearly every man in the plane was up, reaching for her, as if she were fragile and needed help. She glared at them, but they ignored her. It was Giovanni who had his hands on his sister-in-law’s waist, guiding her to Stefano.
“You mean like that?” Francesca demanded as she took the seat beside her husband. “The kind of thing that makes a woman want to pull her hair out?”
“If there had been any kind of turbulence, you could have fallen,” Stefano said, leaning down to brush his mouth gently over hers. “Your brothers are just careful with you. Don’t be upset with them because they care.”
She rolled her eyes. “You told them I was pregnant again, didn’t you?”
Emmanuelle gasped and turned toward Francesca. “You are? How far along? What did the doctor say? Should you be on the plane? Stefano? Should she be on a plane?”
“I would never allow her on a plane if the doctor hadn’t given permission, Emmanuelle,” Stefano assured. “Seeing you married was important to Francesca, to all of us.”
“I’ve made it past the first trimester. I’m surprised you haven’t noticed I’m wearing looser clothing.”
“You still look thinner to me,” Sasha said with a little frown. “How can you be pregnant and lose weight, not gain it? I’m at your house nearly every day. How come I didn’t know?”
“I get sick. Sometimes I’m so sick the nurse comes and has to give me an IV with fluids. It’s really quite horrible, but at the same time, if that’s what it takes to have the baby, I’m willing to be sick,” Francesca said. “We didn’t tell anyone until it looked like I might be able to carry this one.”
“What did the doctor say about the delivery?” Vittorio asked. “Are you going to have to go on bed rest?”
Immediately, Valentino noticed the tension rise on the plane. Emmanuelle’s hand gripped his tightly. Already, he’d gleaned from the conversation that Stefano’s wife had lost at least one baby, most likely others, and that when she had delivered, it had been life-threatening. Why the hell had Stefano allowed her to get pregnant? Was he so determined to have heirs? Val would have to ask that question when he was alone with Emme. He could see Stefano loved his wife and wanted her safe, yet she was risking her life carrying a baby. There were surrogates. What the hell?
“He said maybe bed rest as the baby grows. We’re having a girl. I’m very excited about that. Stefano is sharpening all of his knives.”
A heavy sigh went around the plane.
“Stefano, really? You had to do that to us? A niece?” Ricco glared at his older brother. “More sons, yes; daughters, no. We all agreed on that. We don’t need more girls in the family. They’re stubborn and want equality.”