by K. A. Ware
No, your father stole that from you.
My hand gripped the wine glass hard at that thought, but I was saved from my inner musings when Elena came in with the salads.
“So, I’m sure you have questions and I would be happy to answer them for you. All you need to do is ask. Of course there are some things about my business that I will not discuss but I will do my best to answer what I can,” Carlo prompted.
“I understand, I guess I just don’t know where to start. You said I watch too many movies, what did you mean by that?”
Carlo let out a relaxed laugh, “Ah, yes. You seem to be under the impression that I live a real-life version of The Godfather, yes?”
I nodded.
“In some sense I guess that is true, I am the Boss and not all of my businesses are exactly legitimate. However, the Italian Mafia as you know it to be depicted in movies is no longer. As I’m sure you know, the Mafia was far reaching and a powerful force until the mid-eighties. Now the organization is mostly contained to the east coast and Europe. I may be involved in organized crime but my ‘family’ as I like to call it doesn’t necessarily follow the old ways.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, for instance, in the Italian Mafia if you are not of Italian decent you are unable to move past the rank of associate to become a Made-Man. Also, women are not able to hold any sort of position within the organization and men were not allowed to grow facial hair.”
“So, you don’t follow those rules, but you’re still Mafia?”
“I am a modern man, Mia. I don’t care for the antiquated and prejudiced views of the men before me. First and foremost I am a businessman, making money is my goal, whether my men grow facial hair or not is of little concern to me. And while I don’t have many women working under me in my non-legitimate dealings I don’t discriminate. Besides there are just some jobs that a woman is much more suited for than a man.”
“But your men are still Italian, right?”
“I have a few men that are not of Italian decent but mostly, yes. What can I say, we stick to what we know. But that’s not just an Italian thing, most organized crime is run in the same way. You stick to the people you know and can trust, usually those people fall under the category of kin or countryman. It’s just the way it works.”
“You kill people.” I said. No shit, Sherlock. I had seen him murder my mother right in front of me just hours ago.
And you murdered your father.
Carlo regarded me carefully, he was solemn when he responded. “Yes, when necessary.”
I nodded again. There really wasn’t much to say after that. We finished our meal in silence, Carlo had given me something my father never had, honesty. While I may not be completely comfortable with what he did and how he did it, I was thankful that he trusted me enough to answer my questions without sugarcoating it. He didn’t treat me like a child, in fact he treated me like an equal, something I had never before experienced.
Chapter 3
Carlo
It had been a month since Mia came to live with me. I was able to obtain all the forged documents needed to give her a new identity as Mia Sophia DeLuca.
Since my father was extremely private during his life, and up until my mother’s death ten years ago she spent most of her time in Italy, all it took was a few doctored boarding school transcripts to explain her sudden appearance. Since she was no longer Mia Sophia Caruso I wouldn’t let her keep anything from her previous life, which she didn’t seem to mind. I offered to let her keep a picture of her parents but she declined.
I sent her out to Neiman Marcus armed with her very own Black Card and Elena by her side. The only instructions were to buy a complete wardrobe fit for a mob princess. Mia was uncomfortable with the idea of spending so much money, but she would just have to get used to it.
Since the shopping trip the first day she had been holed up in her room reading and watching movies. On the occasion of an unusually warm May afternoon, she would go out back for a swim but other than that she was a recluse. I was worried she was having issues dealing with her parent’s deaths but she assured me she was fine. Now we were eating Sunday dinner and while she was holding polite conversation, something was off.
“I’ll need to know which college you’ve chosen soon so I can get things arranged,” I said.
She looked up and gave me a thin smile, “Yes, of course,” she said, looking back down at her plate of lasagna. She had barely touched it. It was her favorite, I had learned that on the first night when Elena made it.
“Is everything okay Mia?” I asked using the last strand of patience I had.
“Everything is fine Carlo, thank you,” she gave me another polite smile. I was beginning to hate that smile.
“I want you to be happy here Mia. This is not a prison, you can come and go as you please.”
“Really Carlo, I’m fi—“
“Enough! You are not fine Mia!” I roared. “Tell me what the hell is the matter so I can fix it!” Instead of scaring her like my outburst would most grown men, I saw a flicker of annoyance in her eyes. She put her fork down and looked at me head on.
“Nothing is wrong Carlo. I like to read, so I do. I like to watch movies, so I do. I like to go swimming, so I do. You have given me everything I could possibly need and more, I’m content.”
“I want you to be happy Mia, not just content. You haven’t left the house in over three weeks, that’s not normal. You know you have full access to any car in the garage and a limitless credit card. You should be out doing normal things teenagers do. I was already working for my father when I was your age so I don’t exactly know what normal is, but I do know that it is not sitting in your room for weeks on end.”
“What do you want from me? You want me to go out and party with friends and go to the mall and spend money on things I don’t need just because I can? That’s not me.”
“Yes, no. Jesus Mia, I don’t know. I just want you to be young and enjoy it. Be happy.” I was never at a loss for words but I just didn’t know how to articulate what I was feeling and what I wanted, and on top of it all I was pissed because I didn’t know the first thing about teenage girls.
“Carlo,” she groaned, “look, I don’t know anyone in this new life but you. I’m sure when I start school things will change, but until then…” she trailed off.
“What about Gina?” I asked, suddenly feeling triumphant. Why hadn’t I thought of this before? The only other thing she did was talk on the phone with Gina.
“What do you mean? Gina lives three and a half hours away, and I am supposed to have moved away I can’t exactly go for a visit.”
“She can come here then, stay for a few weeks.”
“She doesn’t have a car of her own, she can’t just take the family car on a road trip,” Mia sighed.
I could tell she was getting frustrated with this topic of conversation, but my mind had been made up. If Gina coming here would make her happy then I would make it happen.
“Then I’ll just send a car for her, I’ll call her father and work it out.”
There, fixed.
Mia looked up from her plate, the excitement mixed with trepidation shone in her eyes. “You’d do that? She could stay here, at the house? Carlo, you don’t let anyone come here.”
Ah, so that was what was holding her back. She was right of course, I had never let anyone but the house staff and a select few of my men come to my home. I kept an apartment in the city for when I needed to handle business but this was my home. Mia still seemed to have trouble realizing this is her home now.
“It’s true, I normally don’t invite people here, but that’s because I like to keep my business and personal life separate and I do not consider many people personal friends. Mia, this is your home too. Gina is your friend and therefore welcome in our home. Understood?”
Mia popped up from her chair so suddenly the legs scratched on the wood floor. She ran full boar around the table and practically to
ppled me over with a hug. She had never shown such affection towards me and for a moment I was too shocked to reciprocate. She seemed to notice my stiff posture and began to pull away, I didn’t want her to think that she had done something wrong so I quickly pulled her into my arms and kissed the top of her head. “I’ll take that as a thank you?” I said.
She pulled away and beamed at me, “Thank you so much!”
I chuckled, “You’re very welcome, now sit down so we can finish our dinner.” I couldn’t help but smile. In the weeks she had been here that was the most emotion I had seen from her. I was beginning to think that her parents had caused irreversible damage, but I was starting to see that she was just slow to trust, a trait that would do her well in the future.
Chapter 4
Mia
True to Carlo’s word Gina showed up a week later, bags in tow. I ran down the stairs to greet her in the foyer.
“You lucky bitch! This place is even bigger than you said!” she squealed as I cleared the last step and lunged for her. “I missed your face so bad,” she said as we embraced. We were simultaneously hugging, jumping up and down and squealing when Carlo walked in from the den.
“What in the hell is going on?” he called out, rounding corner. We immediately stopped and turned to face him. “Oh, sorry I thought someone was killing a wild animal or something.”
I laughed, “You wanted me to be a normal teenage girl. We scream, a lot.”
“Ah yes, well lesson learned, be careful what you ask for,” he deadpanned.
At that we all laughed, “Carlo, this is Gina. Gina, this is Carlo.” Carlo came towards us to shake Gina’s hand.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Gina,” he said politely.
“Oh no, the pleasure is all mine,” she said as she took his hand and looked him up and down. I smacked her arm and glared at her. “What?” she asked with fake innocence and wide eyes.
Carlo cleared his throat, obviously more than a little uncomfortable with a teenage girl leering at him. “Well then, I’ll leave you two to get settled. Be ready to leave for dinner at six, we’re going into the city.”
“Sounds good,” I said as he turned to walk back to the den.
“Girl you have been holding out on me, you didn’t tell me he was such a hottie!” Gina stage whispered to me.
I could feel my cheeks flame, “Shut up Gina, that’s my new brother you’re talking about!”
“I’m just saying in this case, I’m rooting for some incestual lovin’”
“Jesus, Gina!”
“Hey! Don’t hate me for saying what you’re already thinking.”
“Oh my God, come on you crazy bitch.” I hoped Carlo hadn’t heard too much of that conversation. “I’ll show you where to put your bags then we can go out to the pool.”
“Hell yeah! I need to work on my tan.” Gina said as we lugged her suitcases up the stairs
Chapter 5
Carlo
This is going to be a long two weeks, I thought to myself as I settled back down at my desk. Gina was a handful. From the looks of it Mia had been on her best behavior since she had been here, I had a feeling that was going to change. I certainly did not need Gina filling Mia’s head with any romantic notions of me. I was a 28 year old man, I had no business starring in any 17 year-old girl’s fantasy, or she in mine for that matter.
Sure there were plenty of men out there that would lavish in the attention of a barely-legal young woman, but I am not one of those men. Relationships are complicated, and getting involved with an underage girl that is supposed to be my sister or her obviously very willing friend, would be beyond complicated. Not that Mia wasn’t beautiful, she was, but she was still a child.
Yeah, keep telling yourself that.
I tried for a half hour to get some work done but I couldn’t focus. My thoughts kept drifting off to Mia. It’s not like I didn’t notice she was attractive. I’d noticed that right off the bat, but as soon as she’d taken that gun from my hand my view of her had changed. She had become a comrade, someone I could relate to.
What the hell did I get myself into?
I ran a hand down my face, I just needed to work some frustration out, and it had been too long. Maybe I would call one of my regular girls when we were in the city tonight, get rid of this tension. In the meantime my concentration was shot, a few laps in the pool might help clear my head.
I heard the music as soon as I walked through the patio doors, the outdoor stereo system had been turned on and was currently playing Work it, by Missy Elliot. I looked up and stopped dead in my tracks. Mia was laying out by the pool. I knew Gina was there too but I didn’t see her because my eyes were stuck on Mia. She was wearing a tiny white bikini, a stark contrast to her olive skin. I had never seen this much of Mia, she wore modest clothes and every time I had glanced out the window when she was using the pool she was in the water. I had been way off, she was all woman. She was dancing in her lounge chair, arms above her head, back arched, wiggling her hips to the music and singing along to the song. I felt my swim trunks start to tighten.
I am so fucked.
Chapter 6
Mia
Gina and I were set up by the pool jamming out to one of our favorite mixes and soaking up the sun. “I’m so glad you’re here, we’re going to have so much fun,” I said without opening my eyes.
“Damn girl, if that is the view you get every day I may never leave,” Gina said to me, then raised her voice, “You coming out for a swim?”
I opened my eyes and looked in the direction she was speaking. Carlo had come out of the house in nothing but swim trunks. Wow. A shirtless Carlo was a sight to be seen. He had broad shoulders, washboard abs and the V. The tattoo spanning the front of his chest from shoulder to shoulder caught my attention; one word, Omertá. He had other tattoos as well. From this distance I couldn’t really make them out, what looked like some sort of script on his left ribcage and possibly a dragon or some other animal starting on the middle of his right side and dipping below his low-slung trunks. I unconsciously licked my lips.
Carlo cleared his throat, “Yeah, I was coming out to do a few laps, if you don’t mind.”
He started walking towards the edge of the pool, still on the opposite side. I watched him from behind my sunglasses. He moved quickly, throwing his towel on a lounge chair and diving into the deep end.
“Dude,” Gina said.
“Yeah, I know.”
I am so fucked.
Chapter 7
Carlo
She licked her fucking lips.
After an hour of laps I was still thinking about it. I tried to busy myself for the rest of the afternoon, get some work done, distract my mind, but nothing was working.
That mouth, fuck!
Yeah, I was definitely going to need to call one of my girls while we were in the city.
Chapter 8
Mia
I was mentally thanking Elena for making me buy a couple of cocktail dresses on our shopping spree a few weeks ago as Gina and I got ready in my room. I hadn’t thought I would ever really have the need for such fancy clothes but obviously I had been wrong. Carlo was taking us to the five-star hotel he owned. Where he told me he kept an apartment in the hotel for when he was in the city and we would be staying there for the weekend.
“Holy fucking shit, this dress is bananas!” Gina squealed as she took a turn in one of the full length mirrors in my closet. Gina’s boobs were bigger than mine but other than that we were about the same size so I lent her some of my new clothes for the weekend.
“You look great, sweetie,” I said with a laugh. Gina had an incredibly interesting vocabulary. She was wearing a tight black tube dress with lace covered cut-outs on the sides, it was pretty short but she rocked it.
I had chosen a white pencil dress with a sweetheart neckline and cap sleeves, pretty modest next to Gina’s getup but still sexy as hell. I decided to go retro and paired it with blood red peep-toe pumps, lips to match an
d thick winged black eyeliner.
“And you, damn girl, that boy isn’t going to know what hit him.”
“Gina, stop. I am not going to try to seduce Carlo. I’m pretty sure he is like, un-seducible. He is way too old, and I’m just barely out of high school, and Jesus it’s not like I have any family or anyone to take care of me. What if he got pissed and threw me out? I would have nothing. I’d have to forgo college and get some crappy job and I still couldn’t afford an apartment by myself so I would have to get a craigslist roommate and what if they turned out to be a total creeper? And now I’m rambling, God!”
“Whoa there tiger, calm down. I was just teasing, I know you would never try anything with McHottie,” Gina said coming over to rub my back while I regulated my breathing. I was having a total freak-out moment and I had no clue why.
Get a freaking grip Mia.
“I’m good, sorry. I don’t want to talk about Carlo like that, okay?”
“No problem babe, mums the word if you’re going to go all crazy on me like that,” Gina said stepping around to face me head on she grabbed my shoulders. “Okay, so I have an extremely serious question to ask you.”
“Okay,” I said a bit worried with where she was going with this.
“Are you ready to PAR-TAY?!” she screamed right in my face. God I loved this girl.
“YES!” I screamed with just as much enthusiasm and we burst into a fit of giggles. It was good to act normal again. Even though I only acted this way when I was with Gina before, I had missed it.
“Okay,” I said, “We better get downstairs, it’s almost time to leave.”
“Hell yes! Let’s make this night our bitch!”
Chapter 9
Carlo
I was just putting on my coat in the foyer when I heard the girls come down the stairs, I turned around to greet them and nearly fell over from the immediate lack of blood flow to my head. She was in white again, God that was a good color against her bronze skin, and she was done up like a 50’s pinup.