Her eyes widened. “Please tell me your men have him?”
“They do,” he confirmed with satisfaction.
She looked puzzled. “Then why are you still here with me?”
“Because some things are more important to me than retaliation.” He hoped he wasn’t imagining the longing he saw flare briefly in Carla’s dark eyes. “You are more important to me than that,” he stated so there should be no misunderstanding as to his meaning.
Leon was unsure as to what his feelings for Carla actually were, except to know that he’d never felt this way about any woman before her. He also had no intention of leaving this apartment before things were more settled between the two of them. Not even to question Don Sebastian. There was no rush. Neither the older man nor any of his men were going anywhere in the foreseeable future.
“Carla?” he questioned uncertainly at her continued, and uncharacteristic, silence.
“We’re going back to bed.” She kept hold of one of his hands as she stood. “And not to sleep.”
“The injury to your head—”
“Is perfectly fine, thanks to the prompt attention of you and the doctor,” she dismissed.
Leon couldn’t think of another argument against that “going back to bed and not to sleep” plan.
Not that he tried very hard!
Even so… “Are you sure—”
“Very.”
“I may not want to let you go after.”
She smiled. “All the better. Now could we—” She broke off as Leon’s phone buzzed with an incoming text message. “You probably need to deal with that,” she encouraged gruffly when he hesitated.
“You won’t change your mind if I do?”
Leon knew that Carla, not being a part of his world, could have no idea how a situation could change on the balance of a single phone call. Or, in this case, text message. Especially when the situation in London was currently so incendiary.
“No, I won’t have changed my mind,” she assured him lightly.
Leon’s relief at that was short lived and he wanted to curse out loud after reading the message from Jericho. Kieran just texted to say he needs back-up at the warehouse.
Leon sent a quick text back, instructing Jericho to go and leave just Padraic standing guard outside Carla’s apartment building.
Jericho started to text back, no doubt with a refusal, but Leon got his message sent first. Just fucking do it! Nothing and no one was denying Leon this time with Carla.
“Everything okay?” She tilted her head in query as he slipped the cell phone back in his pocket.
“Fine.” Leon enjoyed her squeal, and the way her arms clung about his neck, after he swung her up in his arms and carried her into the bedroom.
Chapter Eleven
“There’s no way I can make love to a woman while she’s wearing a unicorn nightshirt,” Leon murmured as he stepped into the bedroom and put Carla back on her feet, enabling her to turn on the bedside lamp.
She chuckled. “Too much cute, hm?”
“Far too much, yes.” There might be eighteen years between them, but Carla was all woman, and he didn’t want anything or anyone to imply otherwise.
He grasped the bottom of the nightshirt and pulled it off over her head before throwing the nightshirt onto the bedroom chair and turning back to Carla.
He drew in a sharp breath as he looked at her wearing only the revealing red bra and panties. Her breasts were voluptuous in those lacy cups, her waist slender, her hips curvaceous, the red lace triangle covering her mound a seductive contrast to her golden skin.
“You’re so beautiful,” he groaned achingly as he bent to kiss her softly on the lips. “I like you very much, Carla Andretti,” he murmured against her throat.
Carla thought “like” was probably far too tame a description of what she felt for Leon. But it would do. For now.
“I like you too, Leonardo Brunelli,” she told him softly.
“And do you forgive me for my doubts earlier?”
“I forgive you.”
“Thank God!”
“I doubt that deity had anything to do with it.”
“You think I’m more in league with the devil?”
Carla pulled back enough to be able to look at him. “If I thought that, we wouldn’t be here together right now.” Her hands cradled each side of his face, the stubble on his jaw rough against her palms. “I believe we make our own destiny. I’m also not stupid or naïve, and be assured, I know exactly who and what you are. But I’ve also observed and listened to how people are toward you and what they have to say about you. As much as you’re able to be, you’re a good man.”
He gave a choked laugh. “I’m capo dei capi of the Italian Mafia.”
“You also love your daughter. You don’t have people murdered needlessly in order to prove to others how ruthless you are. You’re loyal to your men and your organization. In turn, they’re loyal to you.”
“Except Don Sebastian,” he reminded dryly.
“Yes. Well. He’s obviously deficient in some way.” She dismissed the traitor with a wave of her hand, causing Leon to chuckle again. “I have no doubt you’ll deal with him appropriately. I’ve heard that cement shoes used to be all the fashion.”
“Carla!” He stared at her incredulously.
She shrugged. “Hey, my Uncle Vinnie worked for Matteo’s father before Matteo took over.”
“Then your Uncle Vinnie needs to learn to keep his big mouth shut.”
She smiled at him. “And what I need is for the boss of all bosses to make love to me. You up for it, big man?”
He chuckled. “Please tell me that isn’t how you think a Mafia boss’s girlfriend should talk?”
“Ooh, is that what I am now?” Her eyes glowed with laughter. “Will I have to chew gum and blink my heavily mascaraed eyelashes a lot, while looking vacuous?”
“You obviously watched far too many old gangster movies as a child,” Leon muttered.
She giggled. “Well, my boyfriend is an old gangster. Get it?” She grinned. “It was a play on the
