Chapter Thirteen

~ Nico ~

I stretched my arms over my head as I woke up and then looked around the bedroom. I frowned and my joy of waking up dimmed when I found myself alone.

I had been hoping Luca would be here.

And then my eyes fell on a long stemmed red rose and the present with my name on it underneath it. I smiled as I scooted up into a sitting position and grabbed the box and rose.

I brought the rose to my nose and inhaled its sweet scent, my smile growing larger. I needed a vase for that.

I set the rose aside and opened the box. There was a small white envelope right on top. I grabbed it and opened it up, pulling the note inside out to read.

Cuore mio,

If you're reading this, I am probably down in my office. Take a soak in the tub, put on this outfit I got you, get something to eat, and then come find me. I have a wonderful day planned for us. If you have any questions, the cell phone I got you has my number programmed into it. Just dial one.

Love, Luca

Excitement filled me as I dug the cell phone out of the box and powered it on. It was the latest model and even had a cool gold colored case. I had never been allowed a cell phone of my own.

While it powered on, I set it aside and looked at what was left in the box. I gasped as I pulled it out. I set the box aside and jumped out of bed. I shook the black blazer out and held it up to my body. It wasn't a long blazer. In fact, it only went to my waist, but it had very fine lines. The slacks were the same, slim with fine lines.

The shirt threw me. It had a high collar that would wrap around my throat, but it was made of a gauzy material that was totally see-through.

Luca wanted me to wear this?

I mean, I suppose most of the shirt would be hidden by the blazer, but still, the thing was see-through.

The last thing in the box was a set of black silk boxers, black socks, and a fashionable pair of dress shoes.

Luca had gone all out.

I was excited to try it on, but I wanted a bath that Luca mentioned first. I carefully laid the suit out on the bed so it wouldn't wrinkle and then hurried into the bathroom.

There was an expensive bottle of bubble bath on the edge of the tub. I filled the tub with hot water and poured some in, inhaling deeply at the musky scent. It was the same scent I smelled on Luca from time to time.

I climbed in and then took the bath of my dreams.

I don't know how long I was in there, but it must have been awhile because when I climbed out, my skin was a little pruny. I dried off and then walked into the bedroom to put on the clothes Luca had picked out for me.

Once I was fully dressed, I went back into the bathroom and turned in a full circle in front of the floor length mirror hanging on the wall. I had to give it to Luca, he knew fashion.

The slacks hugged my waist and hips as if they were custom ordered for me. The jacket fell to my waist, bringing the eye to how slim I was. Considering how see-through the shirt was, I was surprised at how much I liked it.

The whole outfit made me feel sexy, something I had never felt before in my life.

I couldn't wait to show off for Luca.

I grabbed my new cell phone and slid it into the pocket of my suit jacket, and then headed for the door.

I let out a small cry of fear when I opened the door and saw someone standing in front of it. It wasn't until I recognized who it was that my heart stopped trying to beat out of my chest.

"Stefano."

Stefano bowed once. "Good morning, Mr. Nico."

"Boss wanted me to escort you to get something to eat when you woke up."

I smiled remembering the note he had left me. "Yeah, that's what he said."

Stefano gestured with his head so I started following him. I was still a little stunned that I lived in such an opulent place. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine this.

He led me down the stairs and through an archway to a very formal looking dining room. There was a large wooden table that could have easily fit twenty people. Several floor to ceiling windows covered two separate walls, letting in a lot of sunshine. Vases filled with roses covered several different side tables and crystal chandeliers hung over the table.

I was almost afraid to touch anything.

Was I supposed to eat in here?

Stefano nudged me and then pointed to a door on the far side of the room. "The smaller family dining room is through there."

Oh, thank god.

I followed Stefano through the door to find a much smaller and less ostentatious dining room. I was so relieved.

Before I could take a seat, another door opened and a woman walked in with a tray in her hands. She set it down on the table and then stepped back, smiling at me.

"If I can get you anything else, please let me know." She seemed a little nervous and shy. She wouldn't even look me in the face.

"Thank you," I said. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Maria, sir."

I sent her my brightest smile. "Please, call me Nico."

She shot me a little smile and said. "Mr. Nico."

Yeah, I was never going to get used to that.

I lifted the lid off the tray after she walked away. My eyes widened when I saw all the food, and I mean a lot of food. Sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, croissants, coffee, and orange juice.

I wasn't sure I could eat all of this. There were going to be leftovers for sure. By the time I sat back in my seat and patted my full tummy, there was still half the food left.

I didn't like tossing perfectly good food. It was a waste. Having gone hungry more than once, it didn't sit well with me.

I put the lid back on the tray, picked it up, and carried it through the door Maria had gone through, walking into a chef's dream of a kitchen. It was on par with every room I'd seen so far in this place...huge.

I didn't see anyone in the kitchen except for an old lady with grey hair in a bun at the base of her neck mixing something in a bowl.

I walked over to her and respectfully asked, "Ma'am, I have a lot of leftovers here. Do you have any containers so I can put it in the fridge?"

I could always eat it for breakfast tomorrow.

The woman glanced at the tray before pointing to one of the cupboards. I set the tray on the counter and then walked over to the cupboard. I found a container big enough to hold all the food and then carried it back. It took just a moment to transfer the food.

I wished I had a pen and a piece of paper so I could leave my name on it, but I could always talk to Luca about it later.

I put the food in the fridge and then carried the dishes over to the sink to wash them before setting them in the dish drain.

When I turned to leave the kitchen, I saw the older woman trying to reach for something on a shelf above her head. I hurried over to her side.

"What are you reaching for?" I asked. "Let me get it for you."

She pointed to a white bowl. I grabbed it and set it on the counter. "Is there anything else I can get for you?"

"You're Nicolas, aren't you?"

I froze, dread pooling in my gut. "Yes, ma'am."

I swallowed tightly when she looked me up and down.

"You're a little skinny."

My face was cold, but I still felt the flush of embarrassment. "Yes, ma'am."

The old woman clucked her tongue before walking over to a cookie jar on the counter by the fridge. She pulled the lid and grabbed something from inside. When she came back, she handed me two cookies.

"Eat these."

"Yes, ma'am." As full as I was, I was afraid not to.

My first bite was like biting into heaven. I groaned and quickly took another bite. I'd had chocolate chip cookies before, and I'd even helped the family cook make them, but I'd never had anything like this in my life.

"Did you make these?" I asked her.

The old woman eyed me. "I did."

"Is there cinnamon in here?"

Her eyes rounded in surprise. "You can taste the cinnamon?"

"Was I not supposed to?" I asked.

"Most people don't."

"Oh." I shrugged as I took another bite. "My parents' cook taught me how to cook when I was younger. She always said that I needed to know every spice and how it could enhance or ruin a recipe."

"Smart woman."

I'd also thought so.

Out of everyone, I missed Mrs. Beckerman the most. She'd been the one to kiss my booboos and teach me the difference between right and wrong. Her husband, who was the family butler, had taught me all I needed to know to be a man.

I missed them both.

"Did she teach you how to make bread?"

I nodded.

"Would you like to make bread with me?"

"Huh..." I glanced down at the fancy suit Luca had purchased for me.

"Take your jacket off and roll up your sleeve. I have an apron you can use."

I tucked in my lips, my face flushing.

The old woman narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"My shirt is...um...it's kind of see-through."

The woman snorted and pointed. "There's a slip-over apron in the pantry."

I walked into the pantry and found the apron. I took off my fancy blazer and slipped the apron on and then hurried back to help the woman make bread.

"My name is Nico." It was polite to introduce myself even if she already seemed to know my name.

"I am Elena."

I smiled at her. "It's nice to meet you, Elena."

She nodded at me before gesturing to the dough in the bowl I'd pulled down for her. "That needs to be kneaded and these old hands don't work like they used to."

I'd already stuck my hands in the bowl and grabbed the dough. I set it on the cutting board and started kneading it. "I have a recipe for some ointment that can help. I used to make it for the cook all the time. I can easily make it for you. It helps with the swelling caused by arthritis and takes away some of the pain."

I leaned closer to her as if I had a secret to tell her. "It also smells good, not like that chemical stuff they sell you across the counter."

She eyed me with hawk like eyes that reminded me of Luca and asked, "How do you make it?"

I listed off the ingredients, their amounts, and what to do with the ointment. "I know it works. Mrs. Beckerman used it all the time and it decreased the swelling and gave her better range of motion."

"Maybe you can make me some."

"Sure." I nodded toward the dough. "Just let me finish with this and I'll make you up a batch. Shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Do you know if you have all the ingredients?"

"I believe so," she replied. "I'll get the ingredients out for you while you finish with that dough."

By the time I put the dough back into the bowl and covered it with a dishtowel, Elena had gathered all the ingredients I'd need to make the ointment.

I quickly cleaned off the cutting board and then washed my hands before grabbing another bowl and beginning to add the ingredients. I had made it enough times that I knew the amounts I'd need of each by heart.

When I was all done, I brought the bowl over to Elena. "Give me your hand."

Once she did, I rubbed the ointment over her swollen knuckled and then her hand all the way up to her wrist. I did the same to the other hand, making sure I rubbed the ointment in until her hands no longer had a slippery feel to them.

"If you rub this on once a day, you should see some improvement within a week. The occasional heating pad helps, too."

Elena lifted her hand to her nose and took a sniff. "It does smell nice."

"Yeah, that was one of the reasons Mrs. Beckerman created this ointment. She hated the chemical smell the drug store ointments had. She said it was almost as bad as the pain."

Elena lifted her head and gave me the first smile I'd seen on her face since I walked into the kitchen. "Would you like to have some tea with me?"

"I'd love to," I replied. "But you just sit here. I'll make it."

I hurried over to the stove for the teapot. I filled it with water and then set it back on the stove. While it was heating, I cleaned up the mess from making the ointment and put all the ingredients back where Elena told me they went.

"Tea?"

"Cupboard to the left of the stove."

When I opened the cupboard, my eyes widened. There was a lot of tea in there. "Is there a specific type that you'd like?"

"There's a nice oolong tea in there. My husband had it brought in from China."

Oh, nice.

I grabbed the teabags and two cups, carrying both over to the table.

"There's sugar on the counter over there and creamer in the fridge."

"Do you take lemon or honey?"

Elena shook her head. "Not with oolong."

Made sense.

I gathered everything up and carried it back to the table. When the water was hot, I grabbed a pot holder and carried the teapot over to the table. Elena had put a teabag in each of our cups so I poured the water in and then put the teapot back on the stove.

"Grab a couple more of those cookies," Elena directed.

I grabbed enough for both of us, put them on a small plate, and then went back to the table and sat down. After letting it seep for a couple of minutes, I doctored my tea and then slowly took a sip.

I smiled at the taste. Maybe I'd find out where Elena's husband got the tea and see if I could get some. It was really good.

"So, tell me about yourself," Elena said.

"Oh, um..." Man, that would be a long story. "Well, I was born in New York City and lived there my entire life until Luca came for me."

"Luca?"

My face flushed as I smiled. "My husband."

I'd never said that before. It felt really good.

"You said he came for you?"

"Yes." My smile grew bigger. "He rescued me from my parents."

Elena's eyes widened. "He rescued you?"

I gave Elena a brief rundown of what had happened with my parents, not delving too deeply into the actual facts, just the glossed over version.

"You sound like you care about him a lot."

"I love him." That was easy to admit. "I was five years old the day we met, twelve when I figured out that I was going to love him for the rest of my life. When I turned sixteen, he gave me my first kiss, and then my world ended."

Elena laid her hand over the top of mine when tears sprouted to my eyes. "What happened?"

I explained about my parents catching us kissing and then accusing Luca of raping me, how no one would listen to me when I said it didn't happen, and then how Luca had been sent off to prison.

"I never believed the things people had said about him. He is not the bad guy everyone seems to think he is. I've seen his heart and it's made of pure gold."

"You think the heart of a mafia don is made of pure gold?"

"I don't know anything about the mafia part, but I know Luca's heart, and it is made of pure gold."

"You really believe that."

"I know that," I said. "Luca is the best the world has to offer. I don't care what other people say. He has never done anything except love me."

Elena smiled and patted my hand. "You'll do, my dear."

"Huh?"

What the hell did that mean?

"Mrs. Sabatino," Maria said as she walked into the kitchen. "Did you want me to start preparing things for lunch?"

The blood drained from my face as I turned to face Elena. "Mrs. Sabatino? As in Luca's grandmother?"

Oh, the things I had said to this woman.

She smiled as she wagged her eyebrows. "Surprise."

Maybe I could climb into the cookie jar.