Page 195 of The Italian Obsession

My heart constricts as I watch him, so detached and cold. “Is that why you have so much security?” I ask.

“Yes.”

“Are you in danger?”

He clenches his jaw but stays silent. I can see his answer as clear as day in his eyes.

That means yes.

My eyes well with tears again. Damn these hormones. Why am I such a crybaby today?

“What did you want to show me, Olivia?”

“I wanted to take you to a little one-bedroom apartment with no fancy furnishings, no staff, and nobody around. I wanted to show you that our love was enough. That that’s all we need.”

His eyes search mine. “I already know that, my love,” he whispers sadly.

“You scare me.”

He gives my hand a reassuring squeeze.

“I know how our story ends, Rici,” I whisper.

“How?”

“You’re either going to be arrested and put in jail… or you will be killed.”

Our eyes are locked.

“Either way, we don’t get a happy ending… do we?”

He drops his head, saddened by my epiphany. “I’m not going anywhere, Olivia. This is who I am, though, and you need to get your head around that. I’ve tried to protect you as much as I can from my working life at Ferrara.”

“I know,” I mutter.

“I just need you to love me—to not ask questions. Let me handle business, and you handle our relationship. Keep me in check when I’m working too much.” He smiles softly. “Keep the two things separate. When I come home, I just want to be happy with my family and forget everything else.”

“How can I keep it separate when we do nothing else?”

He frowns. “What do you mean?”

“We have no friends outside of Ferrara. Your staff are everywhere I look. I just want a normal Saturday-night date with friends and to…” I shrug. God, I don’t even know what I want. “I just want you to be a boring old delivery person and for us to live completely alone.”

He chuckles. “Okay.”

“Okay?” I frown.

“Let’s go and stay in Milan at my apartment for a few days. It’s a lot more private there. I’ll speak to the staff about being more discreet for when we come back home to Lake Como. You have to remember, I have never had a partner. They aren’t used to keeping my woman happy.”

I smile over at him. “Thank you.”

“But I don’t want you worrying yourself sick over me.”

“I can’t help it.”

“You need to stop, Olivia. If you begin to think negatively about my line of work, you will drive yourself insane. I am a Ferrara. I can’t change it. I wouldn’t even if I could. This is your life now, and you need to adjust.”

I nod as his words sink in. “I know.”