Chapter 162: She’s Going To Be Pissed

"You’re talking about wiping out the Romano family."

"If necessary. Yes." Dimitri leaned back. "I can’t afford to look weak, Mike. Not now. Not when I’m positioning to challenge my father. Every family in Italy is watching. If they see the Romanos ambush me and live, they’ll all try. But if they see the Romanos ambush me and die to the last man....."

"They’ll think twice."

"Exactly."

Mike was quiet for a moment, processing.

"What do you need from me?"

"Information first. Find out everything about the Romano family. Who’s in charge now that Sal’s dead. Where they operate. What their operations are. Weaknesses we can exploit."

"And then?"

"Then we decide. Maybe we hit them directly, send soldiers to Naples, kill the leadership, scatter the organization. Or maybe we do it quietly.....poison their operations, turn their allies, strangle them economically until they collapse." Dimitri’s eyes were calculating. "I want options, Mike. I want to choose how they die."

"On it. I’ll have intel by tomorrow."

They spent the next thirty minutes going through Marcelo’s information, the details of Antonio’s Rome operations, the opportunities for expansion, the weak points they could exploit.

Dimitri felt the pain building with every minute, but he pushed through it.

This was more important than comfort.

This was the foundation of everything.

A knock on the door interrupted them.

"Come in," Dimitri called.

Eve opened the door, still in her pajamas.....one of his t-shirts that hung to mid-thigh, her hair messy from sleep.

She looked beautiful.

She smiled when she saw him, moved around the desk without hesitation.

"Morning," she said, leaning down to kiss him. ℴ

Dimitri turned his head slightly so her kiss landed on his lips instead of near his wounded shoulder.....

.....and the movement jarred something.

He winced. Couldn’t hide it.

Eve pulled back immediately, her eyes searching his face. "Are you...."

Dimitri reached up with his good hand, cupped the back of her head, and pulled her down into a kiss that was deep and claiming and designed to make her forget she’d seen anything.

She melted into him, her hands bracing on the arms of his chair, kissing him back with the easy intimacy of two people who knew each other’s bodies perfectly.

When he finally released her, she was breathless and flushed.

"Go join Nonna in the kitchen," he murmured against her mouth. "I’ll be done here soon."

Eve looked at him, really looked at him....and he could see her mind working.

Something was off. She knew it.

But she also knew him well enough to know when to push and when to wait.

She glanced at Mike, who gave her a slight smile and a nod.

Then she leaned down, kissed Dimitri again, softer this time, almost questioning....and left the office.

Silence settled for a long moment after the door closed.

"You know you can’t keep this from her, right?" Mike said quietly.

"I know." Dimitri closed his eyes. "I’ll tell her later. After I’ve had time to heal a bit. After I can show her I’m fine and she doesn’t need to worry."

"She’s going to be pissed."

"Probably. But she’ll understand why I did it."

"Will she?"

Dimitri didn’t answer.

Because honestly? He wasn’t sure.

Eve had been clear about wanting partnership. About being included. About not being protected from the truth.

And here he was, hiding bullet wounds and planning retaliation and keeping her ignorant of how close he’d come to dying yesterday.

But what was the alternative?

Tell her the truth? Watch her face drain of color? See the fear in her eyes every time he left for a business trip?

No.

This was better.

This protected her from the weight he carried.

Even if it meant lying to her face.

***

Eve found Nonna in the kitchen, preparing breakfast....eggs, bacon, fresh bread from the bakery down the street.

"Buongiorno, cara." Nonna looked up, smiled. "You are awake early."

"Dimitri’s in his office with Mike. I think they’re having a serious conversation." Eve poured herself coffee. "Something’s wrong. I can feel it."

"Why do you think something is wrong?"

"Because he winced when I kissed him. Like he was in pain. And then he kissed me so hard I forgot to ask about it." Eve sat at the island. "He’s hiding something, Nonna. I don’t know what, but something happened in Italy that he’s not telling me about."

Nonna was quiet for a moment, her hands working the dough for fresh pasta.

"Men like Dimitri....men who carry the weight of empires....they hide things to protect the people they love. Not because they don’t trust you. Because they don’t want you to carry the darkness with them."

"But I told him I want partnership. I want to know everything."

"And he heard you. But cara...." Nonna stopped working, looked at Eve directly. "There are some things that knowing doesn’t help. Some burdens that sharing only makes heavier. Trust that when he is ready, when he has processed whatever happened, he will tell you."

"How do I know he’ll tell me? How do I know this won’t just be another secret he keeps forever?"

"Because you know him. You know his heart. And you know he loves you more than he loves his secrets." Nonna’s smile was gentle. "Give him time. Let him come to you. And when he does, listen without judgment."

Eve wanted to argue.

Wanted to march back to that office and demand the truth.

But Nonna was right.

Dimitri would tell her when he was ready.

She just had to trust him.

Even when every instinct told her something was very, very wrong.

***

Eve went to the office that morning, Phoenix Talent had client meetings scheduled, contracts to review, normal business that continued regardless of her personal drama.

But she couldn’t focus.

Kept thinking about Dimitri’s wince. The way he’d kissed her to distract her. The careful way he’d moved when he thought she wasn’t watching.

Melissa knocked on her door at 2 PM.

"Eve? You okay? You’ve been staring at that contract for twenty minutes without turning a page."

"Yeah. Sorry. Just distracted." Eve closed the folder. "Actually, can you handle the rest of today’s meetings? I need to go home."