Lissy Romano

42| Godfather.

Vincenzo Romano

I walked into the nightclub with my brothers, immediately spotting Andrew standing protectively in front of Ava. She looked anxious—no surprise there.

Domenico headed over to the security guards to smooth things out. No one in their right mind wants trouble with us—the Romano family.

"Where are they?" Davide asked, scanning the room.

I nodded toward Andrew and Ava. Davide muttered something under his breath.

"What was that?" Giovanni asked, raising a brow at his brother.

The pounding music drowned out most sounds.

"Nothing," Davide replied, heading deeper into the nightclub.

He's always been comfortable here. Ever since he was a teenager, he snuck out to places like this—drinking, partying, hooking up. It's what he enjoys. Thankfully, over time, he's become more grounded, focusing on his education. Now, he's a lawyer. I'm proud of him. He's the one who pulls us out of legal trouble when we need it.

Giovanni and I approached Andrew, who had his back to us. From the way he was hunched over, it looked like he was trying to calm Ava down, but it wasn't working.

"Andrew!" Giovanni called over the blaring music.

Andrew turned, and the relief on his face was obvious. Ava glanced at us, her expression saying everything. Some idiot had upset her, and now Andrew was boiling over.

"Hey, man," Andrew said, hugging Giovanni before pulling me in for a firm embrace. He clapped my back.

"Good to have you back," I said.

He and Ava had been away for a while on vacation—partly because of work tension. In our world, everyone has a role. Andrew's responsibility is to stay ahead of our enemies. He always knows what they're planning before they act.

Giovanni took a seat next to Ava, striking up a conversation with her. He's good at talking—when he wants to be. But if he's nervous or upset, he lashes out. I've told him countless times: Control your emotions.

Andrew turned back to me, still fuming. "I was happy to be back... until some bastard touched Ava."

"We'll handle it," I said. "Do you want him dead, or would you rather have some fun first?"

Before Andrew could respond, Ava cut in, now standing behind him. I hadn't even noticed her move. Giovanni had wandered off to join Davide.

"Andrew, you promised," she said softly, her tone almost pleading.

"Hey, bunny," I greeted Ava with a smile.

We call her "bunny" because of how Andrew met her. It's a long story, but here's the gist: she used to be a good girl trying to play bad. One night, she made a deal with a nightclub manager to dance in lingerie for free vodka shots, calling herself "Bunny." But before she got onstage, Andrew stopped her. He bought her the shots, and the rest is history. Ava became the best thing that ever happened to him.

"Don't let my husband kill that guy," she said, her big brown eyes fixed on me.

"That wasn't a man, Ava. That was a fucking asshole," Andrew snapped.