The uncertainty of the situation brought tears to Rheas eyes, and she came off the bed quickly. I love you, too. Ive always wanted a sister, and youve been that to me. Thank you for accepting me into your home, Elena.
Oh, Rhea. Suddenly Elena rushed back and threw herself into Rheas arms. If you need me, Im here. Dont forget that. Dont forget me.
The drive to the airport was hampered by heavy rain. When Rhea boarded the plane it was in a downpour, the wind so savage that she was glad she had worn jeans and her brown suede jacket.
When the plane was finally airborne, she pulled the silver cross from her pocket and stared down at it. Unbidden, the image of Joey, half naked, wearing the silver cross nestled against the black hair on his chest materialized, and with it a fierce longing that had her feeling anxious as well as frightened.
Three years hadnt dimmed his powerful image or the emotions that had kept the memories alive. If anything, the years had sharpened the picture in her minds eye, and strengthened her belief that for a brief moment in time she had experienced heaven on earth.
It rained throughout the night. All the way through Florida and Georgia. Hours later, Rhea changed flights in Nashville, and as she watched the dawn of a new day from her seat among the clouds, a small private aircraft made its final descent onto a runway at Chicagos OHare International. And like the tough Sicilian heritage Niccolo Joseph Masado had been born into, the black-haired two-year-old boy asleep in his fathers arms never fussed or blinked an eye as his uncle Tomas landed the sleek white Cessna in a rush of speed, tires squealing on black tarmac.
As choices went, this one had been easy. There had been risks involved, but then, Joey Masado was used to taking risks. He was a suit-and-tie businessman, considered the best moneyman in Chicago. But tonight, unshaven, wearing jeans and a sweater, hed been simply a father on a mission to claim what was rightfully his.
Joey reached out and straightened the blanket that covered his sleeping son. He was smaller than hed expected. He couldnt help but worry about that. What if the boy was ill, or had been born
sickly?
When hed learned he had a sona son he hadnt known existed until his brother had waltzed into his office three days ago and slapped the proof down on his deskhe hadnt believed it was possible. But the proof was no longer just a glossy photo, a flat image of a black-haired little boy walking on the beach hand-in-hand with his mother. The boy was flesh and blood.
His flesh and blood.
If the boys mother had been anyone other than Rhea Williams, Joey would have refused to believe the child was his. He had always been careful when hed climbed into a womans bed. Hed never lost his head or forgotten himself. That is, not until hed laid eyes on the sexy blond with the sad blue eyes.
No, Niccolo was definitely his son. He was as certain of that as he was of why Rhea had run away from Chicago three years ago. He had always thought she had vanished out of fear of her ex-husband. But now he knew that wasnt the case. Pregnant with his childa Masado childshe had run to escape him and what their son would surely become if she stayed.
As hard as it was to accept, the proof was asleep in front of himthe proof of Rheas betrayal.
He looks just like the pictures of you hanging on the wall in the old house. I remember thinking that, the day I photographed him on the beach with Rhea.
Thats what Jacky said, too. The picture, I mean. Joey turned to his brother, who stood in the doorway leaning heavily into the jamb. Jacky just left. But for the past hour, hes been sitting here staring at Niccolo and shaking his head.
The likeness is amazing, Tomas agreed.
Joey studied his brother. Tomass eyes were bloodshot, which meant his back pain was giving him hell again, which meant hed been drinking to compensate. He hated to see his brother drinking so much. Hed survived a serious beating a few months earlier. Hospitalized, hed lost a kidney in his fight to survive. He had been cheating death since he was fourteen, a streak that had earned Tomas the nickname Nine-Lives-Lucky. Eventually it had been shortened to just Lucky.
Joey glanced back at Niccolo. I never realized how small a two-year-old is. He looked bigger in the picture.
Lucky grinned. Hes going to take some work. You up for that, or do you want to take him back, fratello? Have you changed your mind?
Joey admitted he didnt know the first thing about raising his son, but the boy was his. Thats all hed been thinking about for three days. And all hed had on his mind when they had slipped into Santa Palazzo under the cover of darkness.
His brother had told him in the plane that he would back him in whatever decision he made concerning Niccolo. Hed said, Ill be behind you or in front of you. Walking in the front door, or going in through a window. Two of the guards on the estate are mine. I put them in place before I flew back here. We should be able to enter the grounds without any trouble. Then again, if you want to make trouble, I brought along the lupara. Capiche?