Gemma’s POV

I adored Carmen and Vincenzo with all my heart. When Nadia mentioned her desire to accompany Gerard on a business trip to the family’s territories in Chicago, I immediately jumped at the opportunity to offer my help. "Go handle the family affairs," I told her. "Dominic and I will take care of the kids." The look of gratitude on her face was worth everything.

That’s why I paid extra to have the furniture delivered ahead of schedule. Every penny spent was an investment in creating a perfect environment for the children. I also requested a few days off from Don Caleb’s legitimate operations, which he granted without hesitation. This would be wonderful - I needed this peaceful break from the constant tension of family business, and I was eager to see Dominic interact with his niece and nephew. After all, we were building our life together now within the Thorne family structure.

Dominic’s reaction when he discovered the children would be staying with us was priceless. His expression fluctuated between laughter and panic. I decided to reveal the details gradually, savoring each change in his facial expressions. I secretly took photos of every reaction, capturing moments he wasn’t even aware of.

When he frantically climbed the stairs after learning the kids would be with us for several days, I nearly collapsed with laughter. But the absolute highlight was his face when I presented him with "The Simpsons" pajamas that matched mine and the children’s - that expression was worth framing! Even a feared Capo could be reduced to stunned silence by cartoon sleepwear.

The children doubled over with laughter when they saw their dangerous uncle in the matching pajamas. I kept snapping pictures of everything. After the surprise reunion he orchestrated for us following our reconciliation, I decided to create a lifelong album of our moments together. I was certain I would spend my entire future with him in this world of shadows and power, so I began capturing every significant and mundane moment, often when he wasn’t looking.

We watched a hilarious comedy together, and the kids teased their uncle endlessly. By the end of the night, Dominic was thoroughly enjoying himself. I witnessed the tenderness with which he said goodnight to Carmen and the camaraderie he developed with Vincenzo. This man would someday be the father of my children - granted, I still needed to convince him to have kids in this dangerous world we inhabited, but regardless, I felt secure in my choice.

The following morning when we entered the kitchen, the kids were already waiting for us. Vincenzo, with his outgoing and spontaneous personality, was entertaining Maia and Carmen with a story about one of the family’s legitimate business deals that had them both laughing.

"Good morning, kids!" I greeted as I walked in, and they rushed to embrace me. "Good morning, Maia."

As we settled down for breakfast, I noticed Carmen couldn’t take her eyes off Dominic, studying him with the calculating gaze that seemed to run in the Frost bloodline.

"Alright, Carmen, just say whatever’s on your mind because your staring is making me uncomfortable," Dominic commented while enjoying a bite of his omelet, his voice carrying that edge that made grown men in the organization tremble.

"How do you know I want to talk to you?" Carmen narrowed her eyes suspiciously, completely unimpressed by her uncle’s reputation.

"Because you’re exactly like your mother - when you want to say something, you stare at people until they acknowledge you," Dominic explained matter-of-factly, his tone softer than when he dealt with family business.

"Mom totally does that. Dad says it’s super annoying when she’s planning family strategy," Vincenzo laughed, and Dominic made a gesture confirming the sentiment.

"We have business matters to discuss, Frost!" Carmen declared, adopting the serious posture of someone who had grown up around power negotiations, which made Vincenzo laugh even harder.

"What are you laughing at?" Dominic turned to him with genuine curiosity.

"Uncle, you know the saying about debts in our world? Well, it’s even worse when the creditor is Carmen - owing her anything means she’ll collect with the persistence of a loan shark," Vincenzo explained through his laughter.

"But I don’t owe you anything, Carmen," Dominic replied, genuinely confused about what family obligation he might have overlooked.

"You made a promise, Frost! And I haven’t seen any results," Carmen complained firmly, her tone reminding me exactly of the way Don Caleb addressed subordinates who failed to deliver.

The scene was absolutely comical - Carmen with her serious business demeanor, Dominic utterly confused despite his reputation for strategic thinking, and Vincenzo howling with laughter. I couldn’t help joining in, knowing this was the kind of normalcy we rarely experienced in our world.

"Refresh my memory, dear niece," Dominic set down his fork and gave Carmen his full attention, treating her with the same respect he showed to family associates.

"A dog. A cute, furry, four-legged creature. I’m still waiting for one to appear at my house," Carmen replied with perfect sarcasm that would make any Frost proud.

"Hmph," Dominic grunted. "Carmen, our arrangement didn’t exactly work out as planned due to certain family complications."

"It’s not my fault if you’re incompetent at keeping promises. I did everything you asked me to do during the situation with Gemma," Carmen crossed her delicate arms defiantly.

"Don’t you think you’re being a bit disrespectful to a Capo?" Dominic narrowed his eyes at her, though his tone remained playful.

"I think sooner or later you’ll need my help again, and being in debt to me won’t help you secure my cooperation," Carmen calmly sipped her juice with the composure of someone born into this life. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"I think you should honor your debts, Dominic!" I teased him, knowing family loyalty extended to keeping promises to children.

"Yeah, uncle, the worst part is that with your talent for creating complicated situations, you’ll need our assistance again very soon," Vincenzo joined in.

"Et tu, Gemma?" Dominic looked at me with surprise. "And I don’t see how this involves you, Vincenzo."

"Well, if Mom lets Carmen have a dog, maybe she’ll let me have a drum set for when I’m old enough to join family operations," Vincenzo looked up hopefully.

"You kids are going to drive your parents to madness!" Dominic shook his head in disbelief. "Carmen, when your parents return from Chicago, I’ll speak with your mom about the dog situation."

"No way, Frost! Time has passed and you’ve done nothing," Carmen objected seriously. "Mom’s going to call us soon for the daily check-in, so you can talk to her then and convince her - I want to see some genuine effort from you."

"My God, you’re even more persistent than Vincenzo when he wants something!" Dominic gazed at his niece in astonishment.

"We made a deal and you’re breaking our agreement," Carmen replied with the conviction of a future family negotiator.

"I’m starting to regret everything about that promise," Dominic lamented dramatically.

"Should I be worried about my own commitments?" I suddenly remembered my own promise to Carmen during our bonding time.

"Are you considering backing out of what you promised me?" Carmen fixed her serious gaze on me with the intensity of a born Frost.

"Absolutely not! The pajama party is happening on Wednesday as planned," I assured her with a smile.

"Then you have nothing to worry about!" Carmen declared triumphantly.

"Pajama party?" Dominic looked at me in confusion. "More matching pajamas and family bonding?"

"Uncle, on Wednesday you’ll be wishing we were just wearing matching pajamas!" Vincenzo commented knowingly, causing Dominic to look at me with genuine alarm despite all the dangerous situations he faced in family business.