“Ha!” Emmanuelle narrowed her eyes and glared at Dario. “What makes you think you would win if you tried to strangle me? I’d kick your scrawny butt.”
Dario was anything but scrawny. He was a man with wide shoulders, and muscles on his muscles. He didn’t look bulky but he looked ripped—definitely able to handle himself.
“I did consider that,” Dario said. “Or that if I managed to strangle you, I’d get back my status as the number one wanted man on your family’s hit list.” He poured satisfaction into his voice.
“I’d have to think that over,” Stefano interrupted. “My brothers would want to vote. I do love my sister, but she’s a pain in the ass. We want to strangle her six times a day, too. And you’re family, Dario. Putting you back onto the list would be considered very poor taste, especially in the number one position.”
“I earned that spot,” Dario said.
“Wait a minute,” Emmanuelle complained, throwing a dark pillow at her oldest brother. “I absolutely forbid you to humor Dario. He’s probably really thought about strangling me.”
Stefano picked the pillow out of the air, his face totally expressionless as he shot the pillow back at her. “Honey, every single person in this room has thought about strangling you, including your husband at one time or another.”
Elie erupted into laughter with her brothers. A smirk flitted across Dario’s face and was gone. Elie knew Dario loved two people in the world—Valentino and Emmanuelle. He would give his life for Emmanuelle Ferraro Saldi whether he occasionally thought about strangling her or not.
Emmanuelle caught the pillow to her with a little pleased grin. “If that’s true, then my mission in life is going very well. I wouldn’t want any of you to be complacent and think you’re getting everything your own way.”
The Ferraro brothers laughed uproariously and Valentino joined them. A look of amusement flashed into Dario’s dark eyes. Elie couldn’t help wishing Brielle was there watching the way the family interacted. Like him, she didn’t have the best model with her family, and seeing the Ferraros together always made him realize what he wanted for his wife and children.
Elie had made it a point to study Stefano and the way he treated his siblings, his wife and his children. Elie hoped both Valentino and Dario did the same. Neither man had much in the way of example of a really good, loving relationship. He knew Giuseppi, Valentino’s adoptive father, had loved his wife, but he also loved his business and ruled with an iron fist. Val had grown up with the old-school ways of running the family business. Elie knew Val didn’t run the business the same way, although Val was quite capable of ruthless behavior if it was needed. Dario certainly could—and did—handle that end. Now that Dario was running his own territory, Elie was trying to keep a closer eye on him, worried that his way of handling anyone stepping out of line might be more like Giuseppi’s.
Elie didn’t want Emmanuelle’s loyalty ever to be caught between her family and her husband’s family. He was absolutely certain Valentino would never place her in that position. He knew Dario loved her and was protective of her, but Dario was the most ruthless man he’d ever come across. He wasn’t as certain of Dario as he’d like to be, but then he didn’t know him as well. Val believed in him implicitly and that carried a lot of weight both with Elie and Stefano. At the same time, Elie wasn’t a trusting man and neither was Stefano. Until they knew Dario as well as Val, they would hold back just a bit and watch him. Dario was a shrewd man and easily read body language as well as registered every inflection and expression. Elie had no doubt that Dario was aware the Ferraros and Elie watched him carefully.
“I have to hand it to you, Dario,” Vittorio said, “this is a great office. The space alone is amazing.”
Taviano nodded and went straight to the double doors. “I like the balcony. Your view is incredible. I do my best thinking outside.” He glanced back at Dario, seeking permission, and at Dario’s nod, opened the doors. At once a cool breeze entered the room.
The flames in the fireplace flared so that the wood crackled behind the heavy chain screen. Taviano stepped outside. Dario and Elie followed him. On the balcony, Dario had two very comfortable chairs made of dark wicker with thick cushions in a chocolate-and-white stripe. Elie was coming to believe the color scheme reflected who Dario was. The chairs looked inviting. Certainly, the view was incredible.
Below, wild lavender grew in long rows over one section of the rolling hills. An emerald lawn rolled down the hill; lavender plants in rustic wood planter boxes framed the pathway leading the way to the lake. White sand covered the beach leading up to the water. Two boats sat in a covered boathouse situated between two long docks that jutted out into the lake.