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He edged closer to Rafe.  I-It s all right.
His grandmother tottered to her feet.  L aloe raffredderà il
dolore.
Rafe looked down at him.  She says 
 The aloe will cool my pain. Seth awkwardly nodded his
head to Rafe s grandmother.  Grazie, siete molto gentili.
The old woman raised an eyebrow, then smiled.  You will
call me Teresa, yes? she asked, her thick Italian accent
coloring her words.
Seth remembered what Rafe had said about her eyes being
sharp, so he dropped his gaze.  Thank you, Teresa.
Maria laughed.  I can see why my son has taken to you.
She looped her arm around her mother s shoulders and led her
toward another room.  Let s get some aloe for our guest. She
winked at Rafe.  I ll tell everyone you re here.
 Thanks, Mom.
When they disappeared from sight, Rafe leaned down and
gently grasped Seth s face with both hands.  Damn. That s
one hell of a burn, there.
His chest hitched.  You protected me.
 Protected you? If you ask me, I dropped the ball just now.
Does it hurt?
Silver was the worst pain imaginable to Nightkin.  Yes.
 Why isn t it healing?
 Wounds inflicted by silver take much longer to heal.
Weeks, if at all.
Rafe hissed, tilting Seth s head to the side. He blew a soft,
cool stream of air across the raw skin.  Does that feel better?
Never in his life had he been treated this way. Seth turned,
touched a light kiss to his mouth.  Tender Rafe, he
whispered.
Surprise flickered across his features before he smiled.
 Thanks.
 Wash your mother s necklace, but don t touch it until it s
clean. Nightkin blood on silver is very dangerous.
 Shh. Don t worry. I ll take care of it.
Rafe always took care of him. So noble. So kind.  I m too
much trouble.
 You re not. It could have happened to anyone. He
paused, chuckled.  All right, probably only to you. But it s
okay.
 I should have 
 I didn t know you spoke Italian.
The silver burn still biting into him had been worth it. To
have Rafe trying so hard to ease his pain& He wanted this
soft, gentle moment to last forever.  I started teaching myself
the first time you told me about your family.
 Why?
His brow furrowed.  I m not sure. I wanted& I wanted& 
Rafe caressed his uninjured cheek.  To be closer to me?
Seth stared up into those sapphire eyes, nodded.
 Well, look at that. His mouth crooked.  There might be
hope for us after all.
Hope. Rafe was honest, so if he said such a thing existed, it
must. Seth gripped his shoulders, leaning forward to nuzzle his
chest.
 Big brother!
Seth hopped back just as a tall girl with short black hair
hurled herself into Rafe s arms.
He laughed and spun her in a circle before setting her
down.  Sera! How was Paris?
Locked in his embrace, she smiled up at him.  Amazing,
but I still say Italian is more romantic than French, any day of
the week.
A man, almost as tall as Rafe, walked in from an adjoining
room. Seth caught the scent of simmering garlic and tomatoes,
so he thought it must be the kitchen.  You got it wrong, sis.
French is plenty romantic, and that s okay. Italian has all the
passion.
Rafe finally released his sister to clasp the other man s
hand.  Gabe! Where are those wild kids of yours?
 Upstairs. Frowning, he glanced up.  And suspiciously
quiet.
As if on cue, something large crashed on the floor above,
rattling the light fixtures.
Gabe sighed.  Ah, that s more like it.
Yet another man ran in from yet another room and jumped
onto his back.
Instinct hunched Seth s shoulders. Shift. Protect Rafe.
But Rafe didn t need protection.
Reaching behind him, he grabbed hold of the other man
and tossed him forward.  You must be losing your touch,
Mike. Heard you coming a mile away.
 Please, smirked the man.  If I d meant to take you down,
you would have gone down.
Seth straightened, his gaze darting from one member of the
Dirisio family to the other. So many in one room, and they
were all so& so energetic.
Maria, Teresa, and a woman holding a toddler in her arms
entered the room. Maria went straight to Seth, a small stalk of
aloe vera in her hand.
 I m sorry I took so long, sweetie. She broke the stalk in
half and squeezed the clear gel onto her finger.  The marinara
sauce needed stirring.
 No it didn t, said the woman with the child.  Honestly,
Mom, you should have more faith in me.
Rafe broke from his brothers to kiss her forehead.  Hey,
Angie. He tweaked the child s nose.  Hi, Sophie.
The little girl giggled.
Seth watched the exchange with a stunned sort of
fascination. Every single member of Rafe s family had jet-
black hair, varying shades of blue eyes. He d known that
he d seen the pictures but it was quite another thing to
witness it firsthand, to see how they interacted with each
other.
Maria slicked the cooling aloe over his burn.  Is this
helping, dear?
He nodded.
Mike elbowed Rafe in the stomach.  So this is the guy,
huh?
Rafe rolled his eyes.  This is Seth, if that s what you
mean. Seth, this is my big brother, Mike.
His  big brother was about four inches shorter than Rafe,
and not nearly as broad.  How do you do?
Gabe, the other brother, raised his eyebrows.  Gee, he s
polite. I wonder what he sees in you?
Instead of getting angry, Rafe laughed.  The one with the
mouth is Gabe. He s the oldest of the three of us.
Gabe was bigger and taller than Mike. All three of them
stood together, and Rafe dwarfed them all. What was that
like? Being the youngest, and yet the strongest?
Rafe leaned forward, pointing to the women.  Angie s my
older sister, and Sera s the baby.
Sera hopped toward Seth and took his hands. The  baby
was at least five inches taller than him.  Oh! You re
adorable!
Seth blushed crimson.
Angie laughed.  He really is. I m with Gabe What the
heck does he see in you, Rafe?
 Rafe is brave, Seth said softly,  and noble, and good,
and kind.
Rafe glanced down at him, his lips parting.
The women in the room cooed in delight.
 Great, said Gabe.  Now they re all going to want one.
Mike snorted.  Good thing your wife got called to the
hospital, or she d be in love with him, too.
 Rose isn t here? asked Rafe. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]