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Alessandro disagrees. “No, this isn’t him. It’s like Evelyn said, the Dons don’t miss. Besides, he wants to use me as a bridge between the De Luca Family and the Montegna. I don’t think he wants my services as a lawyer. He just needs me to be an ally. This is something different. Something else is at play here. Suit up, Ren, and get my clean-up crew on standby. We’re going out to get some answers.”
“What can I do?” I ask him. Alessandro grabs his plate to load it in the dishwasher before hooking a finger under my chin. A soft kiss between us slows my pulse as if my body knows before I do. I’m safe in his arms.
“Stay put, please. No one knows you’re back in here. I need you safe while we work this thing out. Get some rest, too. From the way Jenkins looked, you’re going to feel that accident over the next few days, maybe beyond. I’ll check in on you and get you whatever you need.”
“Okay, Alessandro.”
“Good girl.” He kisses me one more time as Lorenzo comes downstairs with a large black duffle bag.
Over the next three weeks, Alessandro comes and goes at all hours of the day and night. My body aches from every side possible, and every couple of days or so, Lorenzo is burning things in the backyard. My dad ends up sending my mother and the kids away for a few weeks while Shana is able to stay in solitary confinement until she heals.
According to the news, the hospital shooting was a result of “gang” crossfire, but no suspects are in custody. The police did talk to us, but after seeing the condition I’m in, they decide to leave us alone as victims, despite Alessandro’s ties to the Mafia.
On the twenty-fifth day after being slammed into a concrete divider, my body finally feels normal. The aches are sparing me. I want to see my husband. Healed or not, I use the elevator to go downstairs and knock on his office door.
“Come in.” His voice is powerful, stern, and less than welcome. The furrow across his thick eyebrows softens when he sees me step through the door. “Mio dolce. Feeling like yourself?”
“Yes. I’m thinking of homemade pizza.” I begin talking to him, but something catches my eye on the shelf behind him. “What if it’s one of your clients?”
“Huh?” He turns around to see what I’m looking at, but it’s nothing in particular.
“You’re a lawyer, right? Fixing a bunch of rich people’s problems. What if one of the problems you fixed has an axe to grind?” I ask him.
“The only person I’m working with right now is Dimitri Vassa. His case is all but wrapped up. Still, it’s not a bad idea to look into it. He actually invited us—well, you—to come to a dungeon night.”
“What happens at a dungeon night? I’m not into sharing, Alessandro. No orgies or anything freaky like that.”
He chuckles, pushing himself away from his desk to come around it, facing me. “Don’t kink shame, mio dolce. Aren’t you the same woman who gets turned on by the tip of a blade running down her body?”
Goosebumps burst in a trail that follows his finger down the side of my ribs, sending shockwaves of lust and anticipation to my center.
“I’m open to just about anything except for sharing, and I’m sure you feel the same way. Right? You don’t want to picture another man?—”
“Don’t.” He silences me with a finger to my lips, reminding me of our wedding day. “I’ve been the Butcher of Howard Beach, and I don’t want to chase imaginary men who’ve touched you.”
“Have you found everyone you were looking for?” I ask him.
“Some questions have been answered, but I haven’t pursued your angle yet. Let’s go to Kings and have some fun. I can ask Dimitri about a few things, but mostly, you can let your hair down and get a glimpse into another side of me.”
The way my nerves tingle as he pulls me in close, nuzzling against my neck, has my mind imagining a myriad of ways for my husband to enjoy me, devour me, release a side of me too scared to be seen by the light of day.
21
ALESSANDRO
Devastating beauty is all I can think about when Evelyn descends the stares in a black floor-length gown with a high slit, allowing me a glimpse of her milky thigh. Delectable. Kissable.
The bruises from her accident are long gone, and I can’t stop wondering how many ways I can fuck her with this dress on. She’s the calm in the storm that rages inside me. There’s no better woman to stand beside me as I take the reins as the new Don of the De Luca Family. It comes to me clearly. Evelyn at my side, Lorenzo watching my back, my father retired and happy, and Oz? Well, he can do whatever he likes so long as he stays in line.
Lorenzo has a way with the capos of the De Luca and Rossi organization, beefing up security around the city for strategic locations. They’ve all fallen in line after the rampage we went on trying to find out who hit Evelyn and Jenkins. By the time we caught up to the driver, the only name he gave up was Montegna.
The problem with that is Montegna doesn’t get his hands dirty. If he truthfully wanted me dead, he’d hire somebody to hire somebody who would hire the driver behind the accident. The fact that he’s sent Evelyn flowers for her recovery also speaks volumes. He's not into elaborate sabotage. He’s a brute force.
Someone’s setting it up to have Don Montegna at the end of a meat hook in my butcher shop. I don’t like the attempts to manipulate me. I push the thoughts out of my head to enjoy the night with my love.
Security is tight at Kings when we arrive with Dimitri’s personnel wanding everyone, but I stop them from patting Evelyn down. Dimitri appears at the door, stopping the ensuing battle I’m ready to unleash on any man touching the woman who belongs to me.
“It’s okay, Ivan.” Dimitri grins and taps the guy on the shoulder. “These are my special friends. Welcome, Mrs. De Luca. I’ve been excited to meet the woman who makes Less want more.”
