Well, now, anyway. Marco had always had it for Jenny since they were kids.
Diego didn't want a serious relationship. He was young- who could blame him?
Roman? I snickered.
That brother of mine had had a huge appetite for women.
Until Diego’s trial got to him first. Prepping for it had slowed his motor down.
Then Izzy.
Now, he wanted that ball and chain.
I thought about Cari as I washed the glass and placed it upside down to dry.
Where was she on the spectrum?
Did she eventually want to marry and have kids?
I was walking back through the living room when I saw it.
Rather, him.
Why hadn't I noticed it before now?
I walked over to the framed picture of a man. It was the only picture in the entirety of the house that didn't have Cari or Izzy in it.
He had blond hair and blue eyes, chiseled features, and a strong chin.
He looked nothing like Cari- so a familial relationship was not a possibility.
My heart skipped when I looked over and saw another framed picture of him hugging a smiling Cari.
I swallowed.
Were these new photos? I'd been to her house multiple times. Did I never bother to notice them before?
Who was he? Had he been the love of her life? Is that why she was so guarded?
Did she lose him?
A weight settled in my chest.
Was she still hung up on him? How long ago had she been with him?
The questions continued to churn in my head and gut.
Fuck man, I hated this shit. I'm not someone who lacked confidence, but Cari shook a lot of my traits up.
Standing at her room’s doorway, I watched her sleep peacefully. Her face looked serene, so unlike how it looked when she was awake.
Again, I thought about how alike she and Izzy were. I guess I hoped that if I analyzed the two, then saw Izzy interact with Roman, that I might get a clue about how to approach and pursue Cari. There had to be a silver bullet that would bypass her armor.
They were two birds of a feather, but the question is, was Cari worth the effort like Izzy had been for Roman?
And the answer is-
Fuck yes.
No doubt.
Cari was smart.
Funny.
Warm.
Giving.
Caring.
Hot as fuck.
My vibrating phone took me out of my thoughts. I hurried over to the annoying shit before it woke her up.
Marco.
By the time I felt I was away enough to not disturb her, my phone stopped vibrating.
Sighing, I closed my eyes.
Every day, my older brother was losing more of himself.
I wondered what was wrong now. I called him back.
“Yea.” I said when he picked up.
“Meet me at Ricky’s.”
My eyebrows scrunched. “The diner?”
He laughed. “Yea.”
Before I could even question anything else or point out the early time, he'd hung up.
Groaning, I scrubbed a hand down my face.
Was it important? It couldn't be. We can't discuss anything serious at a diner.
Unless it wasn't busy.
Because it was early.
I looked at my phone. It was 3:51AM now.
Worry warred with anger as I jerked my clothes on. My eyes stayed on Cari’s delicious sleeping form.
Should I wake her and let her know I was leaving?
Deciding she needed her sleep, I walked over to the side of her bed, leaned over, and kissed her forehead.
Walking towards her front door, I noticed that in all the excitement last night, her house alarm hadn't been armed. Completely irresponsible on our part.
We couldn't let our sex life affect her safety.
Because I didn't have a key, I pressed the STAY button, opened the door, locked the bottom lock, and closed it.
Now to see what the fuck my brother wanted before four in the morning.
11
Carlos
I heard my niece’s laughter before I found my brother in their booth.
Ariana was here?
I looked around and saw no guards. When I turned my head forward again, I saw the back of his.
His back to the door, too?
Naw.
Fuck that.
Before I could think better of it, my shoes made noise in the almost-empty diner as I marched over to my reckless brother.
Without turning around, he said, “Hey Los. Morning.”
As if it wasn't God-Awful o’clock in the morning.
A few extra steps put me in front of him next to the booth seat meant for me.
“Guards?”
He finished placing small cut fruit in front of Ari and looked up with a smirk.
“I'd take offense to that if it wasn't for the fact that you love her as much as I do.”
I crossed my arms. “Guards?”
The smile vanished so quickly from his face, I was momentarily stunned. It was replaced by feral, angry eyes. His jaw clenched.
“Fucking sit down. You think I'd take my baby out without guards?”
His unrecognizable eyes continued to stare a hole in me.
“Sit down and don't question my abilities as a father again.”
He raised two fingers from his right hand parallel to his head and swept them to the side angrily. Five huge men came out of different places inside the diner. Another one of them occupied a booth nearby.
“There are others outside.”
I nodded and my tension eased.
“You hired them?”
His head jerked. I'd ruffled his feathers.
“They're Shadow’s men. Highly recommended, and highly specialized. Highly. Fucking. Paid.”
His glittered gaze settled on mine again.
“Papa, pa pa.”
A softness I hadn't seen since Jenny was alive, a look that was solely produced by and given to, Ari, entered his gaze as his focus shifted to her.
“Si, mi princesa. Papá.”
She erupted into giggles. A look of adoration was in her eyes as she regarded her father.
“Papa…pa pa pa pa.”
Her adorable voice rose with each syllable.
Marco placed more fruit in front of the baby.
“She hasn't been sleeping well. The pediatrician said it was normal sleep regression.”
I studied my brother. “Looks like she's not the only one not getting any sleep.”
He snorted.
“Coming from someone without children, you wouldn't understand. Your sleeping luxuries end when they're born.”
As if just noticing her uncle, she screeched, “Tío!!! Tío, tío, tío!”
She was fond of repetition, I thought, as my eyes found hers.
She was a gorgeous baby. She'd inherited the Zambrano blue eyes. Her brown hair was getting long judging by her pigtails. The flush to her cheeks told me that she was enjoying her food.
“Belleza,” I said, reaching out to touch her soft, tiny arm. Her chubby rolls did me in every time.
She smacked her lips in a effort to send me a kiss, and damn if I didn't die a little.
She was a beautiful child.
When my eyes found Marco’s again, I saw that he was focused on a server.
A female server.
“Someone caught your interest?”
The surprise I felt bled a little into my tone.
Jenny had been the one for him. As in, any romantic inclinations died with her.
He had no intention or desire to ever have a romantic relationship again.
Marco’s gaze remained on the server as she took an order from a man who didn't look particularly pleasant. Her face was flushed and she was chewing on her lower lip.
“Just making sure there aren't any problems here.”
The server stepped awa
y and went to the kitchen.
And my brother’s eyes didn't stray until she was out of sight.
He turned his gaze to the gruff and irritable man, who looked up at the same time. They stared at each other for a moment before the man looked back down at his newspaper. It was then that Marco turned back to me.
“How long have you been coming here?”
He shrugged as he brought his coffee cup to his mouth.
“Cafe Americano? You don't like American coffee. You only drink Cuban coffee.”
The side of his mouth picked up as he placed his cup on the saucer. His eyes focused on me.
“She makes it special for me.”
I sat back and clicked my tongue.
“What?” he asked, eyes narrowing.
“You have something with that woman?”
His eyes became serious. “No.”
I left it alone for a moment, not wanting to stir his ire again. He was a live grenade ready to go off at any time.
“Fine. Back to why I'm here. Some of us need our sleep.”
He swept his hand dismissively. “There's no sleep when business comes up.”
“There's no discussion of business outside of Pop’s.”
With a twist of his lips, he said, “Look, Roman, it's ok. The place has been swept. Besides, it's not like we can't speak in code.”
I hated when he called me Roman. Roman worked hard to protect this family and it was as if Marco couldn't be bothered to show a modicum of restraint to aid in those efforts.
“I hit a nerve.”
He had a sarcastic light to his eyes.
“What the fuck do you have against him?”
Marco sighed. “Nothing. I love him. But you know, Carlos, when you've experienced what I have. When you've had your heart ripped from your chest and it hurts to have your lungs expand just to breathe, you find that very little matters.”
I thought about Cari for a moment and the feelings for her that had crept over me. I couldn't imagine anything happening to her. It would cut me.
I studied Marco, knowing that the feelings beginning in me for Cari were a mere percentage of what he'd felt for Jenny, his childhood sweetheart.
“How do you go on living?”
Marco exhaled, took a sip of his café, and sat back.
“My baby moves me forward, whether I want to or not. She is all I have left. Several times, I'd thought about following Jenny.”
My heart skipped a beat. The thought of losing my older brother was not something I wanted to entertain.
“Then I look at her and can't bear to make her an orphan. Losing both parents? I cannot.” He paused and wiped his mouth. When he moved the napkin back, there was a smirk on his face.
“Besides, Jenny would have my ass if I did that to Ari.”
I laughed, remembering my sister-in-law. She had been a great person. Loving. Smart. Generous. And more importantly, she put my brother in his place when he’d needed it.
“And your balls.”
Marco’s lips spread into a small smile. I hadn't seen it in so long, my heart ached at its reappearance.
“You got that right.”
“Can I get you anything?”
I looked up to my left and read the name tag.
Natasha.
She barely looked old enough to drink.
“Where’s Natascha?”
I looked at my brother with obvious confusion on my face. A vein was ticking in his jaw.
She must have seen my confusion.
“There are two of us with the same name, spelled differently. To avoid confusion, people just call me Natty.” She looked at Marco. “She’s taking her fifteen.”
“Difficult customer?”
She looked over her shoulder. “Yea. She's been getting a lot of them lately.”
Marco’s gaze snapped the man behind Natty. The cold anger in his eyes was telling.
She looked at me. “Need another moment?”
Shaking my head, I replied, “A café con leche and Cuban toast, please.”
She snapped her gum and laughed. “Special menu? I'm not the Natascha who makes them.”
I pursed my lips. I wanted strong Cuban espresso.
“What's good here?”
She shrugged, and popped her gum. “I mean, it's just an ordinary diner. Typical food.”
Nice. Hopefully she doesn't handle any marketing for the joint.
“Eggs over easy, home fries, and three sides of bacon, then.”
“Wow,” she popped her gum again. “Hungry, eh?”
I shook my head. “That's light. Who the hell eats only one order of bacon? That's like two slices?”
She nodded.
“That's not even a snack for me.”
Natty laughed. “Coffee?”
I looked at Marco, who smirked. I wanted a large colada like I needed air to breathe.
“Any chance I can get a large Cuban coffee?”
“You too?”
Just what the fuck was this shit?
I was beginning to get peeved, and I was the patient Zambrano.
Marco smirked.
Natty sighed. “I'll let her know.”
Before I could say anything, she huffed a breath out and turned to go to the back.
“I'm sure she earns great tips.”
Marco’s lips twitched.
While Natty was doing whatever she was doing, we were finally alone again. As alone as we could be with guards surrounding us and the disgruntled customer.
“Fruta!”
My eyes returned to Ari. She loved her fruit. Marco began cutting them into small pieces again.
“Alright, Marco. If I’d wanted quality time with you both, I'd do it at your home and not some diner. What's up?”
“Tony. Todavía vive.”
He was alive?
“What? How the fuck do you know?”
He placed more cantaloupe in front of Ari.
“Fruuuuta!”
She began devouring it faster than it had taken Marco to cut it up.
“I received a part of him.”
My eyes widened.
“Exactly which part?”
He shrugged. “His right hand.”
“A message?”
He shrugged again. “Perhaps. He wasn't our right hand, but he was apart of the business.”
“Maybe it was done a while back and they sent it now.”
He shook his head. “No. It was a fresh sample.”
The way my brother phrased it made me snicker.
“We gotta find him.”
I nodded. “I'll ask Roman to ask Marcelo for info.”
“BFFs are they now?” Marco asked, setting more fruit in front of Ari.
“They have something very important in common. They both love Izzy and would do anything for her.”
“Then ask away. I trust he’ll maintain confidences, even as a Fiore?”
“Marcelo is pissed at his father since he found out about Izzy’s past. Actually, Roman said it goes further back. Marcelo always suspected something and resented their father for trying to force Izzy into the marriage with the bastard. Let's just say, Marcelo is operating his own group without any Papa Fiore input.”
Marco sucked his teeth. “Bad shit.”
“You've no idea. Roman said Marcelo was furious.”
Marco nodded. “Then ask.”
“Will do.”
Natascha, according to her name tag, came out then with a tray. So this was the other one.
She stopped at our table.
“Hello.”
Her voice was guarded but light. Her friendly smile didn't reach her eyes. I felt like I was in a cemetery lately. Every person’s eyes that I encountered had demons haunting them.
“Natascha, this is my brother, Carlos.”
Her smile widened a bit. Her beautiful nearly translucent aqua eyes landed on me again. She was probably in her late 20s or early 30s, if I had to wager a guess. It wasn't because of how she l
ooked but rather the number of ghosts in her eyes.
“Nice to meet you, Carlos.”
I took her proffered hand and shook it lightly, surprised at her grip.
Good.
She wasn't a wilting daisy. She might look haunted but her grip told me she was a fighter.
“He giving you problem?”
Her smile did nothing to mask the stress coming off her.
Or ease the tension rolling off my brother.
Well, well, well.
I sat back and watched their exchange.
“Nothing I can't handle.”
She finished setting down my plates and looked at me when she set down a little metal ‘creamer pitcher’ where Cuban coffee was typically served. She smiled.
“Here you go.”
I smiled back at her. “The stuff of life. Gracias. I'm in your debt.”
Her laugh was soft and I looked at my brother as he watched her. He was curious, I could see. That and something else.
Enamored?
Besotted?
I wouldn't push it. It was obviously something he didn't want to talk about and I couldn't blame him.
Jenny had been everything to him.
“Con gusto.” She surprised me. I hadn't expected Spanish from her lips.
More like Russian.
She had high cheekbones, pouty full lips, and light to medium brown hair.
She was gorgeous.
“Fruuuuta!”
Natascha laughed, turned, and bent down to Ari.
“Quieres más?” She asked my niece if she wanted more.
“Si, si, si. Fruuuuta.”
She inclined her head to us, and with that, she turned away.
My face must have mirrored my surprise.
Marco laughed. “Same reaction I had. She doesn't look like she'd speak Spanish but she is fluent and speaks it perfectly.”
“Like Izzy.”
He didn't comment. Instead, Marco watched as she stopped at the other customer’s table with a plate of eggs, toast, and bacon. He dipped down to smell it and then grabbed his fork. Natascha was just turning away when the disgruntled ass spit out the food and growled.
“Fucking cold!”
Startled, Natascha turned back to him, holding the tray before her as if it would shield her from him.
“I’m sorry, sir. I'll take that back and have the cook-”
The chair the customer sat in fell backwards as he stood up. Natascha stepped back, obviously scared. Marco was already standing.
Carlos: A Zambrano Family Novel Page 7