Page 177 of Savage Don

Aiden does just that, and I join him at the bar.

“We’ve accomplished more together than I could have ever dreamed,” Aiden says, handing me my glass. “Our influence reaches all across this country. Hell, with the Black Delphi on our side, we’re international.”

“That’s a lot of ground to cover,” I grumble, taking a sip of the spicy yet sweet liquor.

“Precisely,” Aiden nods. “Thankfully, we have enough loyal men to watch over it all.”

Something tugs at my heart, and suddenly I realize where this is going.

“Now, it’s time to send them off to watch over the far corners of the empire,” I say.

“You know, you’re smarter than you look,” Aiden jokes.

“Where are you sending me?”

“California.”

“Are the Greeks not doing an adequate job of ruling there?”

“They’re doing a fine job,” Aiden says, taking another sip from his glass. “But they’re just one faction of our family. Sophia has been tirelessly travelling back and forth across the country, making sure everything is running smoothly. But it’s taking a toll on her and Leonid.”

“So, you’re going to send me over there to take their place?”

“No. You won’t be replacing anybody. I’ve already talked to Leonid and Sophia. Those two are moving out to the west coast as well. So are Roman and Mary. I figured the two brothers would want to be together.”

“Those are two big boys, “ I point out, taking a second sip from my whiskey glass. “And Sophia and Mary aren’t exactly slouches either. Are you telling me that you don’t think they’ll be able to handle shit out there?”

“Not quite,” Aiden says, running a hand through his dirty blonde hair. “As much as I love and trust those four, it’s not enough to have our west coast faction overseen entirely by Russians and Greeks. Our underlings need to be reminded that the Irish are in charge of this all. And if they don’t see us for years at a time, they might start to forget.”

“… So, I’ll be the Irish presence on the west coast…”

“The Irish king. You’ll be to California what I am to New York,” Aiden says. “It’s a title you deserve. It’s a position you’ve earned.”

“And I’m going to have to uproot my entire life to take advantage of it.”

“I told you it was bittersweet.”

“You were right.”

With one last deep sip, I finish off my glass of whiskey and place it back down on the counter.

“Francesca’s never even been past New Jersey before,” I mention.

“You don’t think she’d like to explore the world?”

“She would love to travel. And that’s exactly what we plan to do after our wedding,” reaching into my pocket I pull out the opulent diamond ring I just picked up. “But travelling is different than moving.”

“Damn, that’s impressive,” Aiden says, nodding in approval as his blue eyes wander over the symbol of my love. “I’m sure she’ll be happy, no matter where she ends up. As long as it’s with you.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

Really, I don’t, but between our long winded-recoveries, our constant check-up meetings with the Sabatino and Camporese families, and everything else that’s going on in our lives right now, we haven’t really had time to breathe and just enjoy each other.

Moving across the country is just going to add another layer onto that. And it won’t just be the move. When we get to California, we’ll have to make ourselves known. We’ll have to make it clear who is king and who is queen.

We’ll have to create a new life from scratch.

After all we’ve worked for here, after all we’ve accomplished, we would truly be starting all over again.