Behind the troop of thugs and wedding designers and planners, David shuffled along like a child bored out of his mind. Someone must have pointed out the frosting, for it was gone now.
“I’ll try to get what you want, Uncle Benny.” Dani’s voice came out quiet. She hated how scared she sounded, but anger wasn’t the way to go at the moment. She watched Luke stride in—she swore his clothes looked more rumpled before he’d left. Had he gotten into a fight in the bloomin’ bathroom?
“Where’s Samuel?” Benny asked Luke, peering over his shoulder, as though the bully boy were hiding there somewhere.
“He had to take a dump,” Luke said, walking straight over to her as if she were the only person in the room and kissing her soundly, whispering something against her lips.
Dani’s eyes widened. His hand rested on her chest, fingers splayed. Surely, he would be able to feel how hard her heart was pounding.
Benny chomped his cigar a moment, staring at Luke, and began to laugh.
And just like that Dani seemed to see things more clearly than ever. Benny, the smallest man she’d ever known, who used to be so grand to a small girl, she now saw was petty and weak. Her brother, who she’d protected and nurtured and cared for, had turned out to be petulant and sullen. And Luke, the quick fuck she’d jumped on for the hell of it... turned out to be someone who made her smile just by walking into a room. The image of him warmed her, even when Benny had chilled her to the bone.
She really did love him.
And, of course, he hated her.
LUKE CROSSED THE ROOM to where Dani was standing. The entire lot of people had been shuffling in the hallway, going back inside as he arrived. It was like a fire drill for idiots, everyone evacuating—but only to the hallway. He hurried his pace as he wondered if Dani was all right.
He wasn’t sure who all had been left in the room. But seeing that Dani and Benny were the only two people not finding seats or places to stand and glower, it looked like he’d come back at the tail end of a very private discussion. He strode directly to her and leaned over, the words “we need to talk” slipping out moments before he pressed his lips to hers and put his hand on the top of her chest.
Benny, for a wonder, was still laughing. He’d given a nod of his head and one of his men disappeared, probably to go check on Samuel. Good; maybe he could wake the creep up. Not his problem.
Luke kissed her long and deep, taking revenge in the form of a tender kiss. It was her fault they were in this mess. It was her family that kidnapped him. Her brother who had Luke beaten. If there was such a thing as revenge through a passionate kiss, he was going to take it. Right now, for this moment, she was his and he would do what he damn well pleased.
She bit his lip. Hard.
He pulled away and smiled at the anger in her expression. He turned to Benny as the man he’d sent to check on Samuel returned and whispered in Benny’s ear. Luke watched the older man’s face transform from amusement to anger, to something more along the lines of respect, and then back to amusement. The man had absolutely no poker face.
Maybe when you were Benny Bianchi you didn’t need a poker face. Who the hell would try to beat him at cards?
“I hear Samuel took a bad fall,” Benny said after a moment, puffing on his cigar.
“Bathrooms are the most dangerous room in any home. All that water everywhere,” Luke said, his gaze steady on Benny’s face. “I hope he’s not injured.”
Benny’s mouth lifted on one corner. “Cracked his head on the tile, so I’m told.”
“Oh good.” Luke seated himself, his eyes never leaving Benny’s. “I’m glad he didn’t injure anything important.”
Benny drew deeply on the cigar that flared bright red, fueling the temperament of the smoker. “I can see what she sees in you,” he said after a moment, using the soggy end of the cigar as a pointer.
Luke made a point of checking his fly. “Really? It’s all closed up.”
Benny fell into another paroxysm of laughter, and nudged the goon nearest him. “This guy’s good. He’s got a big mouth, but I like him.”
“Listen,” Luke said as they sat down again. He placed his hand on Dani’s knee in a familiar way. Dani stiffened under his touch, but kept still. Whether for his sake or Benny’s, he couldn’t tell. “Uncle Benny...” He let that linger. If he was to be married into the family, Benny would have to get used to it. Plus, he could play the game as well. He was no idiot. “You remember when you were young and in love with a goddess? We just need a little time together.”
“Maybe,” Benny said slowly, “maybe. But we’ve already kept these good people here long enough, I think. There’s a wedding to arrange and not enough time. You!” He turned and pointed to the nearest vendor, seemingly at random. “You’re up!”
The poor man fairly jumped out of his shoes, but ran to the book he had on display. Wedding cakes. Luke rolled his eyes, but waited patiently while the man tried to explain the virtues of icing and cake structures and... why the hell was David here? Luke looked at Dani’s brother, seeing the man for the first time, not liking that he was hovering over his left shoulder. He glanced at Benny and at Dani, but neither of them seemed to be concerned about David suddenly showing up like the ghost of Hamlet’s father.
Luke tried to concentrate again on the babbling man nervously fingering the laminated pages of his book of cakes. An assistant was fussing with sample cakes. Different cakes from what they’d seen before. Good grief, how many people were vying for the right to feed them at this farce of a wedding? He looked around the room, noting more cake bakers. Designers. Whatever the hell you called them. A half-dozen at least. Five of them would go away disappointed. What was the point of this whole thing anyway?
He glanced over at David, who was chatting up a photographer. He kept finding a reason to lay a hand somewhere on the tiny brunette. She kept finding excuses to duck out of his range. It was a warped and twisted dance that everyone seemed to ignore as if it weren’t happening. The brunette finally stomped on David’s instep, sending him leaping backwards with a howl that was lost in discussion of flower arrangements.
Dani never so much as looked up.
Was she still that blind in regard to her brother?
Stupid question. What the hell kind of family was this anyway? He watched as David retreated, his eyes stormy. The brunette started packing up her portfolio. Luke couldn’t blame her. Some things weren’t worth it no matter how much money was at stake.
The fear in her eyes, the wary glances she cast at David were almost impossible to ignore.
Except, somehow, Dani missed it all.