by S. M. Dapelo
“I’m getting real sick of the whole, ‘women should be seen and not heard’ crap,” I stared at him.
He put his hands up, “I know. But it’s also not like you’re asking to be actively involved in the business.” He paused a moment, then frowned, “Are you?”
I scrunched my nose at him, “I don’t think I’m intimidating enough to take over your job.”
“Thank God for minor miracles,” he smirked and kissed my head. “Now, let’s go put on a show.”
I heard raised voices as we approached the ballroom. “No one here hurt Luca,” someone was yelling.
“What have you done with Alessandra?”
“You will give her back.”
You could feel the anger pulsating from the room.
“Someone here attacked Luca yesterday evening,” I heard Marc growl. “Cosmo knows where his daughter is.”
“Alessandra was shot at yesterday at her gallery, along with Luca,” I heard my father announce. “I do not allow this. I want an answer from my men. Were any of you involved?” His voice boomed through the room.
Luc opened the door and led me through. Everyone’ backs were to us. Luc’s guys were scattered about the room, and Dad’s men looked either relaxed or nervous, depending on their age, with the younger group definitely sweating. Everyone was protesting their innocence.
“Who texted Luca earlier pretending to be me?” asked Marc, glaring around the room.
No one answered. Luc started pulling me through the crowd, “Well, someone had to,” Luc announced loudly as we approached my father. “Marco and Cosmo didn’t.” He turned to face everyone. “Anyone want to admit trying to kill me last night?”
I looked through the crowd, settling on one group who were looking anywhere but at the front of the room. Except one who was glaring. “Gianni, anything you want to tell the class?” I asked. The man who’d once took me to prom was turning red, a vein throbbing on the side of his neck, while the three men around him were looking anywhere but at us.
“Cosmo, you can’t think it was me? You had me take your daughter to her prom,” Gianni protested.
“That you promptly ditched me at and took off with one of my cousins,” I pointed out.
“You were a child,” he waved a hand. “The point is, I’d never shoot at you.”
I tilted my head to the side, “But would you hurt my husband?”
“You’re not married yet,” Gianni growled.
“Your father is in so much pain from Dominic’s death that he isn’t thinking right. Your engagement will be over before the week is out,” my Uncle spoke up. I glared at him.
“Well, technically it is over,” shrugged Luc. “We eloped last night.”
All hell broke loose. Gianni rushed the stage, while my uncle took a step back frowning. Before any of Luc’s men could get to him, an older man pulled a gun and pointed it at Gianni’s head. “Don’t even,” he growled.
“Rudy, what the hell?” Gianni stayed still.
“You’re such a narcissistic little punk,” he growled. “You thought Cosmo would let you court his daughter while you’re sleeping with Enzo’s. Cosmo’s thought everything through, he does what’s best for the family.”
“A Romano is best for the family?” I’ll give Gianni this, he didn’t back down. Even though he was sweating.
“Yes. You can’t remember when our families worked together, but us older ones do. It was peace, and we all made a ton of money.” He gave a disdainful sniff, “Well, except for Enzo.” Two of Luc’s guys grabbed Gianni and his guys. Rudy put the gun up. “Us older guys, we remember, and we welcome that back.”
“Rudy, thank you so much,” my father nodded at him.
“Are you kidding me? Your daughter has made my wife feel welcome. I’d have helped out anyway before, but since she’s made Cindy happy, I’ll do anything you ask,” he smiled.
“Oh, that’s Rudy,” Marc said under his breath.
“Best marksman around with the best gelato store in town,” I murmured back.
“You shot into my daughter’s gallery. You could have killed her. Did you kill Dom too?” Dad growled.
“No,” Gianni’s eyes got big. “I only took a shot at Luca last night. When he was approaching the restaurant. I didn’t shoot into the gallery or do anything against Dom. I wouldn’t.” He gave a quick glance at my uncle.
“Enzo, what about you?” Luc asked in a calm voice.
“I might not approve of this wedding, but I wouldn’t hurt my niece,” he sneered. Luc’s eyes narrowed.
“We were here when it went down at the gallery,” one of the men who’d been next to him yelled. “Check the tapes. It wasn’t us.”
“Take them to the warehouse,” my father waved his hand.
“I’ll interrogate them shortly,” Luc said.
“No,” my father shook his head. “I have a third party that will run the interrogation. They’re very through and won’t be personally invested.”
“If you think that’s best,” Luc shrugged. “I didn’t want to leave Alley, anyway.”
“So,” Rudy started, rocking back and forth on his heals. “No wedding in a few weeks?”
“I fear nothing,” my father smiled, “except telling my wife she doesn’t get her party. We’re still having the formal wedding.”
The men all around chuckled except for my uncle. His eyes narrowed, then he noticed me watching him and made his face neutral and kept my gaze until someone finally walked between the two of us and a popping cork caught my attention. When I looked back, he was gone.
17
A side discussion between Luc and Dad was going on when Marc approached me. “Since all is well here, Luc’s going to take you back to his apartment. For the love of God, stay out of his file cabinet. We got the guy.”
I frowned, “Are you sure? They’re swearing they didn’t hurt Dom?”
He rolled his eyes, “Would you confess to hurting your boss’ heir? Or that you just tried to take out the guy marrying his daughter?”
“Isn’t Luc his heir now?”
Marc chewed the inside of his cheek, “Not to a lot of these guys, especially the younger ones. To them he’s the enemy.”
“You were never the enemy. Everyone worked in different areas,” I argued.
“Yeah.” He shrugged with a bored look, “They watched too many episodes of The Sopranos. Hell, most of our businesses are completely legal.”
“What?”
“All of our businesses are completely legal,” he amended without even pausing. “So are your dads.”
I rolled my eyes and walked toward Luc and Dad. They were speaking in rapid Italian again. Luc nodded, then turned toward me, “We’re headed to my place. The house won’t be ready for a few weeks.”
“We aren’t staying here?” I asked.
“No.” He shook his head, “At least not until we get answers from those animals. I need you to be safe in case there're any others working with Gianni.”
“You mean like Enzo? You noticed he took off?”
“I did. Your dad and Marc have people looking for him now,” Luc said.
“Alleys do as your husband says. It’s time for the two of you to be together, not working. No one wants to stay at their in-law’s house right after the wedding,” Dad gave a rare smile and kissed my cheek. “Enjoy the day with your husband. We’ll have breakfast together tomorrow.”
Luc gave a smirk and led me out of the house, into an SUV and in a short amount of time we were back at the apartment. “Your dad has the maids packing up some of our clothes. They should be here tomorrow, but I had Missy send some stuff here last time I talked to her.”
“You talk to her a lot,” I said as I walked into the bedroom, removing my shoes.
“That’s mostly because of Marc. Thank God I’m not his errand boy anymore.” He turned to me, “What do you want to do for the day?”
I smirked, “I have an idea or two.”
“Now that’s how to
spend a day,” Luc smiled before kissing my neck then leaning back to look into my eyes, “That was perfect.” He started kissing me again before pulling away, “But I’m starved.” He said with a bit of disgust.
“Me too,” I admitted, smiling. I got out of bed, throwing his shirt on, and buttoning it, “Why don’t I see what’s in the fridge?”
He pulled on a pair of jeans and that was all, “Sounds good.” Then frowned when there was a knock at the door. “Stay here,” he growled as he prowled toward the door. I couldn’t help smiling while I watched. Even with his scarred back, the man was beautiful.
After he opened the door, I heard voices murmuring, then raising. “Fine,” Luc said as he walked in. “Keep her under control.” Well, that made me frown.
Samantha walked in along with a man a few inches taller than her with sandy blond hair and gray eyes. He was wearing a deep blue shirt with black slacks. She was wearing almost the same as him, but her blue top was fitted to show off her figure. “This is on you, not me,” he smirked at Luca.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
Sam smiled, “We wanted to congratulate you. This is my husband, Ethan.”
“Yeah, if Ronnie hadn’t called me, we wouldn’t have known that you were married,” he raised a brow toward Luc.
“You invited the kids that drive you nuts, but not us,” growled Sam.
“It was done in a rush,” Luc got in her space. “I tried calling the two of you when I was in the air. Ronnie was already in town. I had need of her skills, so she had to know.”
“Wait until Lyssa finds out,” Sam didn’t back down.
“Whose Lyssa?” I asked glaring at Luc. “Is she an old girlfriend?”
Sam snorted, “He doesn’t do girlfriends. Lyssa is my little sister.” She turned and glared, “His baby cousin.”
Luc waved a hand, “I can buy her off and you know it.” Ethan shrugged in agreement.
“While that’s true with Lyssa, you hurt Sam’s feelings.” He frowned, “And mine.” He made a face at his own statement.
“You don’t have feelings,” Luc answered.
“Apparently I do,” Ethan blinked.
Sam was glaring at Ethan now, “Says the man who tells me he loves me all the time.”
“Of course, I have feelings for you,” he rolled his eyes. “But it’s well known that you’re the only person I have feelings for.”
“And Ronnie,” added Luc.
“I’m her guardian,” Ethan waved him away.
“And me,” smiled Luc. Ethan only growled.
“I’m confused,” I admitted.
“Sam’s father,” he growled that out, “was my mother’s brother, my uncle. Us kids were always together until I was about twelve. Her brother was there when you jumped from the damn jungle gym and dislocated my shoulder.”
Samantha frowned, “Really?”
“Really.” Luc growled at her. “Now is there anything else? I’d like to get back to my honeymoon.”
“Yes,” Ethan moved forward into the room. “Answer your phone and you’d know. While Gianni was involved in your shooting last night…”
“Thanks for telling us about that too,” Sam pouted.
Ethan sighed. “He’s fine,” he said to her. “While Gianni was involved in your shooting last night, he had nothing to do with the gallery or Dom’s shooting.”
“Like that makes it better,” I muttered.
Luc frowned, “You’re sure?”
Ethan shrugged, “Of course.”
“Fuck,” Luc muttered. Then grabbing his hair and pulling it, he screamed, “FUCK!” He glanced over at me, “We’re getting you out of town. We’ll set you up in San Francisco with the kids.” He turned to Ethan, “She’ll be safe with Dillon.”
I crossed my arms, “No.”
His brows went up, “No?”
“No.”
He stalked toward me, his face a neutral mask. “Button, I think you’re forgetting what I’m capable of.”
“I think you’re forgetting about my mom.” That stopped him.
Sam smirked and Ethan rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ve got a few rods in the fire. I’ll double surveillance on our main suspects, you triple the bodyguards,” Ethan said.
“I say it’s Enzo,” shrugged Sam. We all turned to stare at her. “Follow the money,” she shrugged. “He assumed that he’d be taking over everything and didn’t want to wait.”
Ethan frowned, “You need to interview him, but it’s iffy. He’s older than Coz and a lot less…” he struggled with the last word.
“Intelligent,” I finished for him. “He’d lose control of the area within a year if he took over. Hell, that’s if Rudy didn’t take him out. He hates Uncle Enzo.”
“Just because he’s not smart enough to hold something doesn’t mean he’s smart enough to realize it,” Sam said. She turned to Luc, “Sometimes something’s right in front of you and you’re too stupid to realize it.”
Luc’s eyes narrowed, “And sometimes you do.” She smirked and nodded at him.
“Why don’t you hit the cabin?” Ethan asked.
“Because we’re not leaving my mother,” I growled at him. “Am I going to like you? Because I’m leaning toward no.”
He winked at me, “You’ll adore me.” He pursed his lips, “But with your mom being out of town right now, I have something you can do.”
“Ethan…” growled Luc.
“You’ll be back before she gets home,” he smiled. “I’ve heard that you’re good at finding forgeries. I’m worried that Veronica’s art collection might have been compromised. Any chance the two of you could head to New York? Her mom’s in the Maldives, I have the codes for the main penthouse. It’ll give the two of you a short honeymoon and no one will expect you there.”
Luc narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you serious?”
Ethan nodded his head. “I’ll call in a couple of people to work on Dom’s murder. You can stay at the place I have in New York, and if this works out how I expect it too, it’ll keep Veronica safe.”
“Is she in danger?” I looked at the three of them. The men looked uneasy, and Samantha had her head tilted to the side, like she was considering something.
“She’s worth a lot of money. I mean a lot,” Luc winced. “The kid’s been in danger since the day she was born.”
“Well, Dillon’s headed off one threat already,” Ethan said. “I signed a bunch of papers earlier so she’s staying in San Francisco for now.”
“Wait,” I shook my head, trying to clear it. “You’re her guardian? Does that even count if she’s over eighteen?”
Luc winced as Ethan stared at me with dispassionate eyes. “Exactly how old do you think she and Feddi are?”
“First or second year of college,” I glanced between the two of them. “Right?”
“No,” Ethan shook his head. “Veronica’s seventeen and…” he frowned harder “Feddi is just eighteen. He’s still in high school.”
I blinked, trying to reason everything I saw in Vegas. “So, when she said they had to get back to school, she meant high school?” Ethan nodded. I turned to Luca, “No wonder you were trying to keep her away from them.” Something hit me, “She said they’re engaged.”
“They’ve been promised to each other since they she was seven,” Ethan said. “Luckily, they’re best friends and he’s totally smitten with her. He always has been.”
Luca slowly turned to look at Ethan, “Smitten?” He glared at Sam, “Are you letting him watch the Hallmark Channel?”
She rolled her eyes, “No.” She rubbed her forehead, “He’s focused on Emma. He’s been watching every version he can find.”
Luc frowned, “Headache?”
Ethan’s head swung toward her and he was by her side immediately. “Sugar, you okay?”
She nodded, “I will be.” She turned to me, “In case you hadn’t caught on, my husband is behind on his pop culture.”
“And you don’t need a heada
che,” he glared at her. Then turned to Luc just as his phone rang. The three of them frowned at it. Luc sighed and answered. “Yeah?” He sighed, “Not again. Look, it’s complected and you’re in… Where?… I was headed there to check out… will you stop interrupting me?… So… Fine.” He growled as he hit end on his phone. “Lyssa wanted us to know that all the artwork is currently missing from the Penthouse,” he glared at Ethan. “I don’t like it.”
“If her mother’s out of town, she might have sent it to an appraiser,” I said as everyone stared at me. “What? It’s the perfect time to do it.”
Ethan slowly nodded, “It’s a sound reason. I’ll make some calls. With Alice, we automatically assume the worst.”
I raised a brow, “Should you?”
“Yes,” all three answered. They stared at each other a minute, then Luc said, “Get out. I’m enjoying the rest of the day with my wife.”
They chuckled and left, and I quickly made us a meal, consisting of what I could find in the refrigerator. It was obvious he had existed on takeout. “How did you survive without me?” I asked him as we washed the dishes.
He squinted as he thought. “I was a lot lonelier, that’s for sure. Even with everyone around me. I threw myself into my work and took up hobbies. I have a lot of hobbies.”
“Like what?”
“Poker, chess, rebuilding muscle cars,” he shrugged. “I work out a lot too.”
“Well, that’s obvious,” I said before thinking. Then winced as my face grew hot. He only smirked. “So, no former flames I need to worry about?”
“No,” he shook his head. “There were two I was taken with, but one was happily married, almost sickeningly so. It was totally unrequited. The second was…” his jaw ticked. “She was FBI, and I didn’t realize she was using me until it was almost too late. That was about five years ago, before anything about us was even talked about.” He bit the inside of his lip, “I should warn you she’s currently on your dad’s case.”
I bit my lip and looked down, “So she was using you to get to Marc and thinks she might use you to get to Dad?”
“Something like that,” he muttered.
“We’ll deal with it when it’s time.” I winced, “I must look so… stupid compared to what you’re used to.”