Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi

James.

"Look at how wonderful and huge they are, James!" Becca exclaimed, causing me to smile. It was the day after our first engagement on the beach, and I was happy to relax. At the moment, we were looking at some giant tortoises with a deep sense of awe. She was right; they were the size of side tables. A guide handed Becca some lettuce, which she held out to the tortoise. She squealed with delight as the animal took a leaf from her and began munching, causing my smile to widen even further. I was so happy to be able to relax. Security had reported nothing odd happening, and they seemed to be having a ball as well. I was relieved, though I shouldn't have expected anything bad to happen. Not like the Cartwrights tracked our every

move.

At least, I hoped not. I shook that thought out of my mind as Becca continued to give a ton of attention to the tortoises. One of the security men walked over with a camera in his hand, beaming at us. "Let's get some pictures of you two," he said.

I chuckled and obliged, kneeling by one side of the tortoise while Becca took the other side. We gave gigantic grins as our pictures were taken, tossing in a goofy pose and expression for good measure as well.

When we finished, we visited the gift shop, where Becca examined hand-woven tortoise toys and let out a gasp of delight. "We should get a few of these for Alessandro and Dahlia! The new baby too, for when they are old enough! They'll love it!"

I agreed, looking toward a turtle-shaped lamp and saying, "We can use this in the playroom or the baby's room." Becca nodded in agreement, and soon we grabbed plenty of souvenirs. There had been an aviary at this spot as well, so we got plenty of bird-based souvenirs too.

I thought of the double date we'd be having with Neal and his lover, Mariano. Becca mentioned they had lunch by an aviary, something that was very sweet. I hoped that would go well, and was glad things between us were starting to mend. We returned to our little hotel, which was small but extremely luxurious. We were the only ones there since it was just a one-room spot by the beach. The room had an area that could open an entire wall facing the beach, which was intriguing. I was glad we could close it for the night, though, so we'd not deal with any pesky bugs. After a day of relaxing on the beach, touching tortoises, and watching birds, we turned in for the night at the hotel, ordering gourmet food that warmed our bellies.

Becca yawned as she took a bite of some fresh grilled fish, letting out a hum of satisfaction. "Oh, this is so good," she sighed, prompting me to try my dinner as well. The savory flavor filled my mouth, tropical spices and juices adding to the experience wonderfully.

I nodded, saying, "Everything here has been great, but it's been made perfect since I get to spend it with you, love." Becca blushed, letting out a happy sigh. Soon, we went to the bathroom so that we could shower together.

I massaged her as the warm water poured over us, relaxing right along with her as she let out a soft sigh. "That feels so good, thank you, James." She turned around and kissed me as warm water caressed us. I wrapped my arms around her, enjoying everything about her.

When we finished, we made our way to the bed, turning it in for the night and falling asleep in one another's arms. For the rest of the month, we spent time together, the locals treating us kindly and with plenty to do.

*****

All was well when we returned home. Dahlia and Alessandro were beyond delighted to see us. Dahlia was using more words, and squealed, "Mama! Dada! Mama!" Thankfully, she didn't say 'f*ck,, though I had a feeling that would be a matter of time.

"I am so glad you had a ball, darlings!" Madeline gushed. Currently, we were sitting in the nursery and describing our experience, which was completely positive. I held Alessandro in my arms, blowing a raspberry on his belly and causing him to giggle.

Becca said, "The only issue we ran into was a storm for three days, but during that time, I caught up on some reading and had a lot of fun with James." She winked, blushing a bit. Madeline chuckled and nodded.

"Glad that's the only problem you ran into! It sounds like a true tropical paradise. I'm so glad you got plenty of pictures! The kids will love this when they get older," she said. I smiled at Madeline and Becca's enthusiasm, sharing it myself. Becca said, "The honeymoon destination was so perfect. I missed the kids, though, and am glad to be back to see them." Her belly would soon start to show. There was a tiny, almost imperceptible bump where it had been flat before. She rubbed it, letting out a breath. "I can't wait to set up the kids' room."

I said, "I missed them deeply too. Thank you for watching them. They seem happy as ever, and I'm also very happy they enjoy the little toys we got." I beamed, watching Alessandro wave one of the little turtle toys we brought back. "Yes, they're perfect, darlings! You know just the thing to get for these perfect angels. Oh, Becca! The shower plans with Sophia are going wonderfully! Are you still all right with the date we set?" she asked. Becca nodded, clapping her hands.

"Yes! What we discussed sounds perfect!" she said. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and took it out, glancing down to see a text from my cousin. Madeline and Becca could chat about that for a bit, so I dismissed myself to the other room. I'd spend a few hours with the kids later, and in fact, was looking forward to it. After texting Giovani to ask if he was alright with a call, I moved into my office and took a seat in my chair, leaning back.

The phone rang a few times until he picked up. "Hello?" Giovani asked.

"Hey, Gio. How are you? The honeymoon was perfect, we didn't run into any problems. Thank you for taking care of things for me. The process of the Don is all situated. Congratulations," I said. I was both completely relieved and happy for him. Much less to worry about now.

Giovani said enthusiastically, "Perfect. Thank you very much, James. I am honored. I will wear the title with pride, and I won't let our family down. I am so happy to hear about the honeymoon, you deserve peace."

"You're telling me," I chuckled, letting out a soft sigh. "How have things been since we've been gone? Any more news on the Cartwrights? I know you have been looking into them since the incident with the wedding."

My cousin chuckled, causing me to raise a brow. What was he up to? I didn't think he was going against me in any way, but I knew he had creative ways of getting things done. The death of that asshole butler came to mind. Not that such a thing had been much of a loss.

"Check your email, James. I sent a very interesting article from the United States to your inbox just now. I had a feeling you were going to ask me about it. Let me know when you do," he said. "I'll wait."

He was never straightforward with this sort of thing. It should drive me nuts, but honestly, it was endearing. That mysterious side to him was a big hit with many people, I was sure. After a chuckle, I obliged his request.

It took a few minutes for my computer to start up, as I called Giovani shortly after settling back in with Becca, and we'd not returned to working on things involving the computer since we got back. When everything was updated, I navigated to my email. Just as Giovani had said, there was an email there from him that I opened up. I widened my eyes, feeling my heart pound when I read the article's headline. 'Murder-Suicide: Quadriplegic Man Kills Several in Family.'

What?!

My breath hitched, and I heard Giovani chuckle. "Yes, by the way, the Cartwrights have been taken care of. Not something you ever have to worry about again. What a very tragic tale that is, huh?" he asked, sarcastically, of course. "How?" I finally asked, feeling even more relief wash over me. I wasn't alarmed, at all, about the death. Giovani encouraged me to read more into the article, which I did. Apparently, Chad had poisoned his entire family, leading to their deaths. Ironic, given the cake incident, and how they tried to off us in the same way. I couldn't help but grin at this. Especially when I read it had been poisoned frosting from a birthday cake at a party they'd been trying to celebrate as a family. Thankfully, no kids had been present; it was an adults-only party. Giovani wasn't that cold-blooded, which was good. He needed to have morals as a Don, ironic as that statement was. I licked my lips in satisfaction at this development. "This 'celebration' was your doing, I assume?" I asked. Once again, my cousin chuckled. I could tell he was enthusiastic about my reaction.

"Perhaps," he mused. "All you need to worry about is that they are gone, swimming with the fishes and rotting as they should be. You have even less from your past that you now have to worry about."

"You make a merciless Don," I said. "But that's a good thing. Sometimes you can't hold back. Good riddance to them. I hope they felt it on the way out, after what they were trying to do to us." Our kids would have died as well, in a horrible way.

"I made sure to use the good stuff," Giovani said. "Otherwise, there haven't been many mind-blowing developments on my end. Just taking care of business for you so you don't have to worry about this sh*t and can spend time with your family."

"With all of my heart, thank you, Giovani. I sincerely owe you so much, cousin. You have made my life so much better and taken a huge burden off of me. Becca doesn't suspect anything and can continue to rest easy."

"You owe me nothing, James," Giovani said firmly. "You are a good family man, and you deserve happiness. I'm proud to call you my cousin. Go spend some time with your kids for me, how's that? They're wonderful." "I will," I said with a chuckle. The call ended, and I felt even lighter than I did before. Everything was going to be just fine.