Blood Always

by Ramsower, Jill

  A ball of emotion lodged in my throat, leaving me unable to do anything but nod.

  “Good. Then I will see you Monday.” With a tilt of his chin, he did me the favor of leaving me to my thoughts. He could likely tell I’d reached my limit for sharing. Not that I wanted to be alone with my cesspool of emotions, but I also wasn’t interested in airing them out publicly.

  Instead, I took the out Tamir had provided and slipped silently from the studio. It was time to head home and work on pretending today had never happened.

  Chapter 4

  Matteo

  Present

  My chosen profession, and the secrets that went with it, had a way of complicating everything. Something as simple as a barbeque became a royal fucking gala. Aside from basics like the menu, linens, parking, seating, and servers, dealing with security issues alone was a full-time job. I’d hired an event planner to handle the boring crap, which left me with the rest.

  Between constant wariness over Fed operations, concerns about possible inter-family brawls, and the protection of my home from wayward guests, there were endless precautions to arrange and contingency plans to set in motion. If I had the slightest inkling something was amiss, my team was fully prepared.

  The one thing I couldn’t plan for was Maria.

  I had reached out via text a couple of times in the two weeks since we’d met but received paltry single-word replies in return. I had zero ability to predict her actions.

  Hell, I wasn’t even certain she’d show.

  “We only have about fifteen minutes until guests arrive.” I crossed the living room to where my brother was checking radio signals with his security team who were stationed in strategic locations throughout the property. “Who do you have assigned at the front for the collection?”

  There was a customary tradition at multi-family mafia gatherings of offering a weapon at the door as a token display of goodwill. No one was dumb enough to come with only one weapon, so it wouldn’t stop violence from breaking out, but it was a statement of intent.

  “I’ve got Tommy at the front. I wanted a capo to have eyes on the entrance.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “You ever hear back from Gabe?”

  “Yeah, he’s keeping his family home for this one. Tensions were still too high for his liking.” Gabe was the middle child. Where Filip and I couldn’t wait to follow in our father’s footsteps, Gabe didn’t want any part of the mafia lifestyle. Our mother’s death had been particularly hard on him. Instead of vengeance, he wanted out. He put himself through college, married a good woman, and now had three rambunctious kids. I respected his decision and appreciated that he hadn’t pushed us away along with the life. We were still family, but he kept himself distanced from anything mafia related. An event like a barbeque would be sufficiently benign if it weren’t the first multi-family gathering in more than a decade.

  Where Gabe was strait-laced, Filip saw no line that wasn’t worth crossing. I tried my best to keep him out of trouble by having him work closely with me, but even at twenty-eight, his wild-child streak had yet to burn itself out.

  “What about Maria? You hear from her?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but no.”

  “Of course, it’s my business. I never got to see my soon-to-be sister-in-law.” He fiddled with his walkie, eyes darting up at me mischievously. “If she hates your ass as much as you think, maybe I’ll want to swoop in and protect her from my monster of a brother.”

  He was teasing me. Trying to get a rise out of me.

  I knew that, but it made no difference. Nothing about Maria was a joking matter, and certainly not innuendo about him fucking her.

  My hand shot out and clenched his throat, backing him into the wall. “Don’t even fucking joke like that. I don’t care how gorgeous she is or how much she hates me—she is my woman, and you will fucking respect that. You understand me?”

  I hadn’t wanted to break his pretty boy face that bad since he drew the attention of local authorities, setting up an illegal fight club at his high school. Judging by the glint of humor in his eye, he’d known exactly what he was doing when he waved the red flag in my face.

  Dickhead was asking for a beat down.

  I released his neck with an extra shove for good measure. “Just do your job and stay the fuck away from Maria.” As far as she was concerned, I was fairly certain he was all talk, but his unpredictable track record was enough to nurse a sliver of doubt.

  As I walked away, he choked out a chuckle, but I didn’t turn back to acknowledge him. I had too much shit on my plate to let him steal my focus.

  Minutes later, the front bell rang, signaling the arrival of our first guests. While Maria’s parents were among the first to arrive, she didn’t show up until a half hour later. Alone.

  She flaunted her independence and strength like most women flaunted a designer handbag. She was the queen of her own personal kingdom, and she wanted everyone to know. Dynamic and aloof, she bristled with power and warning.

  She wore a jumper like she had the first time we met, but this one had shorts instead of pants and was more suited to a beach than a boardroom. Her casual attire didn’t diminish her hypnotic effect in the slightest. She would be just as compelling in a prison jumper as she would be in a gown.

  Like her eyes, her presence was glacial. Almost gray in their translucence. In contrast, her thick hair was a rich dark chocolate wound atop her head and held in place with an ivory comb. The pièce de résistance, though, was her red-stained lips. Fuck, those lips. Naturally swollen and perfect for sucking a man’s cock.

  If I hadn’t known better, I would have said it was Halloween, and Maria Genovese had come to the party dressed as a fifties pinup model.

  She was fucking gorgeous and all mine.

  I wasn’t sure if I wanted to wrap her in blankets to keep her away from prying eyes or put her on my shoulder and parade her around the party like the Stanley Cup. Didn’t matter. Neither was an option. Instead, I parted the crowd like Moses in the Red Sea and stalked across the room until there were only inches between us. Each step I took, a current of electricity lured me closer.

  “Maria, it’s lovely to see you. I wasn’t sure you were coming.”

  “Is that your way of telling me I’m late?” she purred, eyes scanning the crowd. Just like before, her voice was liquid sensuality.

  Between her heady appearance and her unmistakable self-assurance, she had undoubtedly walked through life receiving all she desired. I felt the pull. The need to offer her the keys to the kingdom of heaven if I could. But she wasn’t the only one with inner strength. I wasn’t in the habit of bowing to anyone.

  “Not late, just rude. Returning my texts would have been helpful.”

  Her arctic eyes slid back to meet mine. “You shouldn’t pout, De Luca. It isn’t becoming.”

  “Neither is the silent treatment. I know you’re young, but you can at least attempt to act like an adult.”

  This time, my reprimand struck home, her jaw clenching with displeasure. Not wanting our private word to devolve into a public scene, I took her hand and raised it to my lips for a chaste kiss, my chest expanding at the sight of my ring on her finger.

  “Before you get defensive and this escalates any further, we have an announcement to make.”

  “Let’s get this over with,” she groused, then plastered a mesmerizing smile on her face. It was so beguiling, I wondered at the skill in her deception. The woman could put on a show, but was it a natural ability or a skillset she had acquired? Either way, it reinforced my growing respect for her and my need to know more.

  Keeping her hand in mine, I led us outside to where the majority of my guests had congregated. I caught Enzo’s eye and made for the microphone I’d set up just for this purpose. Nearly one hundred and fifty guests clustered in groups around the pool and at the dining tables provided. Families stuck together; occasional glances thrown over shoulders at neighboring groups. Until the
y knew one another better, they had no reason to cross family boundaries. Hopefully, the announcement I was about to make would help lead the way.

  I tapped the mic, ensuring the sound was on, then asked for everyone’s attention. Enzo stepped to my side, and the group quickly silenced, all eyes seeking me out, except for the children who continued playing in the background.

  “I want to welcome you to my home,” I offered warmly. “It’s been many years since we’ve had a gathering of this size, and it’s our hope that it will become a tradition again. We are all stronger united in friendship than when we are at each other’s throats. All of us should do our part to help align ourselves in this new movement toward harmony. It is in that vein that I would like to announce my engagement to the stunning Maria Genovese.” I held my hand out in her direction, pleased when she clasped mine in return and came to stand beside me.

  The crowd erupted in cheers. If Maria was uncomfortable with the attention, she didn’t show it. Her face lit with a beaming smile, her body listing just enough to lean into my side.

  “Thank you, thank you. We hope to ring in a new era of prosperity and peace among us all. Please, enjoy the party and thank you again for coming.” I raised the mic as if in toast to our guests, and they all cheered again as they turned back to their neighbors, no doubt to discuss what they’d just learned. Too busy in their efforts to gossip, they didn’t see Maria yank her hand from mine the second attention was diverted elsewhere.

  I kept the smile on my face and turned to my fiancée. She no longer resembled the vivacious woman who had joined me on our makeshift stage seconds before. The blood had almost entirely drained from her face, her skin ashen and lips parted, as she took in shallow panting breaths. Her stare was unwavering, but when I tried to decipher what she might have been looking at, all I could see were children playing in the lawn just past the tables.

  Stepping in front of her, I seized her gaze. “What’s wrong?”

  “I … I need to go. I need to get out of here.” Her voice was frantic, waves of panic wafting from her.

  I wasn’t sure what the hell had happened, but I wasn’t going to push for answers in the middle of the party. Taking her hand again, I led her back inside and down a hallway to my office, closing the door behind us.

  Maria walked to the leather sofa and withdrew into it like a crab tucking inside its shell.

  I allowed her some space, going to the crystal decanter set and pouring us each a couple fingers of scotch. She readily accepted my offering, downing the amber liquid as if it was apple juice.

  “Care to tell me what that was all about?” I kept any judgment or accusation from my question, hoping to get answers rather than anger.

  The color was returning to her face, but her eyes refused to meet mine. “There was … it was …” She paused and collected her thoughts, shaking her head as if debating with herself. “It just hit me that all this is real, that’s all.” Her voice was lifeless and gravelly from the burn of the liquor.

  “If it’s so upsetting to you, why did you agree to it in the first place?” The question wasn’t antagonistic. I truly was curious why she had agreed to the marriage.

  At last, her spite-filled eyes found mine. “Because I’m loyal. Because I would do anything for my family.” Finding herself again, her voice regained some of its iron toughness.

  “Do you believe our marriage challenges your loyalties?”

  “No. I am a Genovese and a Lucciano.”

  “Until we marry. Then you’ll be a De Luca and a Gallo.”

  She made no reply, but her steadfast gaze answered for her. She would sooner die than be either of those things.

  I shouldn’t have cared how she felt. It was irrelevant to my plans and the future of my family, but that didn’t seem to matter. The stirrings of a serpentine anger slithered deep in my gut. I tightened my fists, refraining from grabbing her and shaking sense into her stubborn brain.

  What exactly was it I wanted her to understand? That she wanted me? That there were worse things in life than calling herself mine? It hit me like a freight train that I wanted, no … needed, to get under her skin and crumble her brick wall of resolve. I needed to see her come undone and offer herself to me like a sacrificial lamb. I needed to make her so thoroughly mine that she saw me when she looked in the mirror.

  I closed the distance between us, caging her against the back of the couch.

  Her eyes widened with alarm, but she didn’t fight against me, despite what had to be a feral gleam in my eyes. I eased onto one knee beside her and lowered my face to glide my lips along the shell of her ear. Her breathing shuddered.

  “You think I’m the worst thing that could happen to you? I promise you could have done a lot worse.” When I pulled back and met her eyes, her customary fire had returned.

  She slammed her hands against my chest, shoving me away, then stood toe-to-toe with me. “I’m well aware of just how vile you men can be.”

  “You men? So, it’s not just me, it’s the entire gender?”

  “What does it matter to you? I thought this was business?” she spat, eyes blazing.

  “The arrangement is business, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to fuck you. I know you want to fuck me, too, regardless of how much you fight against it.”

  “You seem to know everything, don’t you?” she spat condescendingly.

  “I know you.”

  Her posture relaxed, and a vicious smile lit her face. “That’s the one thing you’ll never know. Whether we have sex or not, you’ll never truly know me.”

  Her certainty took me aback. I scoured her features and could discern nothing but absolute confidence. She had no intention of letting me in. Ever. Why did that bother me so much? Like she’d said, this was supposed to be business.

  I hadn’t gotten where I was in life without a relentless ambition to win. If she was going to pit us against one another, my competitive nature had no choice but to prove her wrong. Maybe if she hadn’t been so goddamn sexy, I could have walked away from the challenge. But as it stood, I was ready to go down with the ship if necessary. I would fight until the end—rip open her layers, until all her pretty secrets were scattered at my feet.

  Gripping her arms, I spun Maria around and pulled her back to my chest. Her muscles tensed, but she didn’t pull away. I lowered my mouth and nipped at her neck, coaxing a shaky breath from her.

  “Challenge accepted.”

  Chapter 5

  Maria

  Shit. Shit. Shit. What have I done?

  “This isn’t a game, De Luca.” I tried to turn and face him, but he held me firmly in place.

  “Everything is a game, and I’m very good at winning.” His hands finally eased their grip, allowing me to pull away.

  Without a glance in his direction, I went for the scotch, pouring myself a splash. I didn’t want to end up drunk, but between this conversation and my earlier breakdown, I needed another drink.

  “I hope you like solitaire because you’ll be playing your games alone. I wasn’t issuing a challenge; I was stating fact. You can’t know what I don’t tell you, and I don’t share my secrets. Not with you. Not with anyone. I’ve been that way my whole life, and I’m not changing anytime soon. The faster you realize that and focus on something else, the happier we’ll both be.”

  He was quiet for a minute. I didn’t want to look his way, but eventually caved to the pressure. I needed to know that he’d truly heard me. What I saw raised an army of goosebumps from my shoulders to my wrists. Matteo looked like the cat who’d swallowed the canary.

  “August tenth. How does that sound?”

  What? Does he have ADHD? Or is he just ignoring me? “What are you talking about?”

  “Our wedding date. Will August tenth give you enough time to plan?” He joined me by the buffet piece where the scotch rested and poured himself another glass.

  Apparently, our discussion was over. Fine. It was pointless anyway. “We could just elope for all I ca
re.”

  “Don’t all women dream of planning their weddings?”

  “Not me. I hate weddings.” My words were rife with disdain.

  Matteo’s green eyes studied my puzzle pieces, attempting to see the picture. “Did someone leave you at the altar or something?”

  I laughed. I couldn’t help it. The concept was totally preposterous. “No, De Luca. This is my first time to be engaged, so no runaway grooms for me.”

  His lips twitched. “Well, eloping doesn’t work. We need everyone to see us get married. August tenth gives you just over a month to plan. Will that be enough?”

  Enough for what? To organize the event? Sure. To come to terms with the end of my freedom? Maybe. To prepare myself for a host of guests clinking glasses in celebration of my marriage. Never.

  “My mother can plan it. She lives for that shit. I would think she can throw it together in a month. How hard can it be?”

  “Then it’s settled. August tenth, you become Mrs. Matteo De Luca.”

  I grimaced. My stomach churned, and I wondered if the second glass of scotch had been a bad idea. “I won’t wear a white gown—is that a problem?”

  “Depends. I’d rather not have a goth bride. Did you have an alternative color in mind?”

  “Maybe gold, I don’t know. I’d never really thought about it, except that I don’t want a white wedding.”

  “As long as it’s respectable, do whatever you want. Now, we’ve been missing for too long. It’s time to get back to our guests.” He lifted his elbow as an offered escort, and after only a second of hesitation, I placed my arm in his, sealing my fate.

  ***

  “Have you lost your damn mind?” my mother yelled over the phone. “You want me to plan the wedding of the decade—a ceremony uniting the Gallos and the Luccianos—in a month?”

  “Mom, your blood pressure. Calm—”

  “Don’t you dare tell me to calm down Maria Antonia Ilaria Genovese. You signed me up for an impossible task without even asking me. How the hell did you expect me to react?” Her Jersey accent had gone from alarmed to supersonic in five seconds flat.