Sold To the Grizzly Don (Alcee and Bruno) novel Chapter 80

Chapter 80

He wiggled his eyebrows “Alcee, admit it, you want to let your guard down. You want to fall in love with me. You want to think of having a big

family.”

“Big would be right.” She ignored the way the sun coming up was starting to light up his skin, illuminating him like an oversized angel, though admittedly likely one of death.

“Come on Alcee. Admit it. Admit you want to fall in love with me.”

“Fine!” she threw her hands up in exasperation as his feet leaned backwards. How could such a large man not battle gravity harder? “I do want to fall in love with you. I want to give Antero more siblings and 1 want your parents be my parents and your sister be my sister and I want to take family vacations with lots of laughter and heck,” she waved at Avalanche, “I even want to take Avalanche with us on vacation to the beach.”

“But?”

“I’m scared Torq. I’m scared and the idea of you breaking me heart scares me more than anything else I’ve ever experienced, and 1 once got thrown in a cell and tortured.”

He grinned at her. “You want to fall in love with me?”

“Yes.” She looked away from him as he started to step down towards her, “idiot. Trying to make Antero fatherless after he just got you. How would I explain it to him?”

At her words about Antero, he quirked an eyebrow and took a step backwards and then jumped and she screamed. Alcee lunged at him furiously, her fists pounding his chest as she realized there was another ledge behind him and he was standing on a wide ledge which went another seven or eight feet beyond where he was standing, the drop off being only an illusion.

He laughed as he grabbed her hands and pulled her to his chest. “Did I scare you my love?

“Terrified me. Don’t do that shit. Our lives have enough risk in them without you playing games with my fears,” she let him push her back onto

main roof and he hopped back up with her.

*You care for me. Admit it, Alcee. It’s more than about Antero.

“Okay, okay, I do.”

“Ganna love me someday?”

“Not if you keep pulling this shit.” She let him wrap her arms around her and rock him against his chest.

“I’m sorry for scaring you

“You’re lying because I can see you trying not to laugh.” The rumble of his laughter under her chest made her pout.

“I like knowing you care, Alcee. You’re a very guarded person and I want you to be more open with me. You tell me your thoughts, but you don’t tell me your feelings.” He kissed her mouth softly, “I want to be with you. I’m halfway to being in love with you already, Alcee. I care for you very much.”

“You do?”

“I do. I came to New York to remind the world Torquato Lozano is the boss they should fear but now, I want my purpose, my name to represent the place my woman comes to when she needs safety, love, security

She stared up at him and felt her heart racing at his words.

“Alcee, I want you to open your heart and to rely on me for you, not only for Antero.”

“And what about you then?” she asked quietly. “Will you rely on me?

“Yes, I will rely on you. Do you know how much it meant to me to come home to you this morning after doing what I do best and having you there to hold? I needed your arms this morning and it felt good to feel them around me.”

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Chapter 60

They stood embracing for a few moments,

“Is it hard?” she asked seriously. “To be The Grizzly. To lab people’s heads off.”

“Surprisingly no.” He admitted with a single shake of his head. “I don’t think I was much older than Antero the first time I saw someone die. 1 also found 1 really, really love when someone is scared of me. It’s a great feeling for me.”

“You get off on it.”

“I really do.” He smirked and then walked towards the grassy area, “Come play with Avalanche with me.”

“Why? She’s your dog.”

“Because she is part

of our family. You need to practice opening up and she is a good place to start.”

She followed him to the little grassy

ay area and watched him pick up a toy and squeeze it to make it squeak and Avalanche came barreling at him to try to rip it from Torq’s hand. They were soon engaged in a tug of war game, and Torq was laughing loudly. As Avalanche snapped and playfully snarled he wrestled with her and soon had her on her back rubbing her belly.

“How do you do that?”

“What?” he looked at her with a wide smile, a lock of hair curling over his forehead as he rough housed with the dog.

“You’re notorious and infamous for being cold and cruel. How do you shut it off and be like this?”

He heard the question in her voice and knew immediately she was asking for guidance. Perhaps his experiences would help. “Cicciu.”

Really?”

“He was, is a great father. My grandfather was an incredible man who taught me how to be the man I needed to be to run the family someday, but Cicciu taught me how to cun a family at home. A man cannot be only rage and brutality. Ciocia would work for my grandfather, but he would come home to my mother, and he would love her and treat her like she was the queen in his world. He would read us bedtime stories and help with bathtime and kick footballs around the yard. He would tell me to shower it off and to make sure I didn’t bring my darkness into my mother’s light. I learned to balance, and it made me a better man, or at least I like to think so. It helps with my relationships with Tito and Bastiano and my employees. I like to think it helps me with you and Antero. I want to have the life my mother and Cicciu have. The four walls of our home are our sanctuary where we can be free to feel love, safety, peace and the violence and anger can stay outside where it belongs.”

Alcee was starting to realize there were far more facets to the Don of the Loxano family than she ever considered. Perhaps she needed to, as Torq suggested, open her heart a little more. She gingerly got down on her kneehand gave Avalanche a helly rub not missing the wide beaming smile on Torq’s face.

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