Chapter Fourteen: The Rival
Vincenzo was a man in his fifties.
Silver-streaked dark hair.
A face creased with years of hard living.
He spotted them almost immediately.
A predatory smile spread across his face.
He made his way toward them.
“Russo.”
He greeted.
His accent heavier than Alessio’s.
“What a pleasure.”
His eyes shifted to Harper.
Roaming over her body in a way that made her skin crawl.
“And who is this exquisite creature?”
“Harper Wilson.”
Alessio said before she could speak.
His voice carrying a warning note.
“My companion for the evening.”
Vincenzo took her hand.
Raised it to his lips.
An old-world gesture that managed to feel both courtly and threatening.
“Enchanted, Ms. Wilson. Truly enchanted.”
The two men exchanged pleasantries.
But they were anything but pleasant.
Each word weighted with subtext Harper couldn’t fully understand.
But could certainly feel.
When Vincenzo finally moved on, she released a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.
“I’d like to leave.”
She said quietly.
“Please.”
Alessio studied her face.
Then nodded.
“We’ve made our appearance. It’s enough.”
In the car on the way home, she finally asked.
“What was that about with Vincenzo?”
“Politics.”
Alessio replied vaguely.
Loosening his tie.
“Territorial disputes.”
“He looked at me like I was a prize to be stolen.”
Alessio’s expression darkened.
“You noticed that, did you?”
“I’m naive, not blind.”
She turned to face him fully.
“Is that why you brought me tonight? To use me as a pawn in whatever game you’re playing with that man?”
“No.”
His answer was swift and certain.
“Though I should have anticipated his interest.”
He sighed.
Rubbing a hand over his face.
A rare gesture of weariness.
“Vincenzo has been trying to undermine me for years. He takes a particular pleasure in acquiring things that matter to me.”
The implication sent a chill through her.
“And now he thinks I matter to you.”
Alessio’s eyes met hers in the dimness of the car.
“You do.”
The simple statement hung between them.
Charged with meanings she wasn’t ready to examine.
“Because I’m Lily’s mother.”
She clarified.
“Because she’s your family.”
“Yes.”
He agreed after a moment’s hesitation.
“Because of that.”
But something in his tone.
In the intensity of his gaze.
Suggested there was more to it.
A complication neither of them had anticipated.
When she’d collapsed outside that restaurant all those weeks ago.
The days following the fundraiser brought subtle but significant changes.
Security around the estate doubled.
New men patrolling the perimeter day and night.
Alessio canceled a business trip.
Choosing instead to work from his home office.
He spent more time with Lily and Harper.
Joining them for walks in the garden.
Appearing in the nursery at unexpected moments.
She wasn’t naive about the reason for these changes.
Vincenzo had identified them as potential weaknesses in Alessio’s armor.
And Alessio was closing ranks in response.
“You don’t need to hover.”
She told him one afternoon.
They were by the garden fountain.
Lily was splashing her hands in the water.
Delighted by the spray.
“We’re safe here, aren’t we?”
“Of course.”
He replied.
Though his eyes continued to scan their surroundings.
“It’s just a precaution.”
“Because of Vincenzo?”
She kept her voice light.
Not wanting to frighten Lily.
Alessio’s jaw tightened.
“Among other concerns.”
“I wish you’d be honest with me.”
She said quietly.
“If we’re in danger—”
“You’re not.”
He interrupted firmly.
“Not as long as you’re under my protection.”
He reached down to stroke Lily’s dark curls.
His expression softening as she beamed up at him.
“I won’t let anything happen to either of you.”
His protective intensity should have reassured her.
Instead, it highlighted the precariousness of their position.
They were safe only because of Alessio’s power.
His wealth.
His willingness to shield them.
If anything happened to him.
Or if he decided they were no longer worth protecting.
