I kiss him one more time. “Then nothing else matters… Just…give me one thing?”
“What’s that?”
“Don’t marry him.”
“Tennant…”
“Let me be selfish, Topolino… Please.”
Benjamin heaves for air and I can see his throat move as he swallows. He doesn’t answer one way or another, and I don’t push him for one. I know I’m being unfair, but after everything…the possessive monster inside me, who wants to lock Benjamin up, and I are in agreement. Ignacio can have Benjamin, and Roman, all he wants, but at the end of the day, they’re both mine.
“It’s okay, Topolino… You’re mine either way. It’s okay.”
A few tears escape his eyes and I lick them away. “It’s okay. Whatever happens or doesn’t…you’ll always be mine.”
I let him bury his face in my throat as I hold him close, murmuring soft, soothing words to him.
I won’t take what I said back. I can’t. It’s not in my nature to not say what I mean, and he’d know if I was lying. It’s out there now, and whatever happens, no one will take him away from me. I’d die before they ever got the chance.
Thanks to Hollis, my mind is clearer. The way he takes control…fuck. It’s exactly what I needed. The nerves going into this Council meeting are far less than the first time around, even if it’s still odd to be here not only as a Boss, but claiming my Irish roots. I wonder what my father would think of his territory being resurrected by one of his bastards…
I force myself to sit down in Roman’s hospital room. It was hard enough to wrangle him back here, but Dr. Ranlen pretty much threatened his—and our—lives if he didn’t behave. Carter joins us almost immediately, reaching out to grasp Roman’s hand for a moment. That connection…my heart twinges with something like jealousy, but I force it away. Even with what Hollis gave me, I still feel adrift.
Clearing my throat, I interject, “Who would like to start?”
Roman lets go of his father’s hand and adjusts himself so he’s sitting taller. “When I was visiting Ignacio, we had Ely and Daniel from the west side gang stop by. They gave us some concerning information.”
“I have a feeling I don’t want to know,” I mutter.
My friend flashes me a sympathetic smile before he continues. “They received three phone calls. One to Ely from Il Padrone, which she declined as she’d already spoken to Marcus. The other two were to Daniel. One claimed to be Il Padrone, but obviously wasn’t. They essentially tried to put hits on all of us.”
“What the fuck?!” Mine and Carter’s exclamations overlap, but Roman holds up his hand so that we subside. I grip the arms of the seat to stop myself from standing and pacing. Taking a deep breath, I wait for Roman to continue with whatever fuckery Ely and Daniel dropped on him.
“Daniel also received a call from an unknown man, who apparently is making inroads on taking over. Supposedly, there’s a connection to Il Padrone’s cousin, and he’s the one running the LEOs. Daniel said that unless there was a meet, he wouldn’t go against us. The man hung up, and they haven’t heard anything further.”
“Hmm. If there’s a connection to Sergio, then that’s a question for Luca. And, uh, I may not be the best to discuss it with him.” I wince, knowing the last interaction I had with Luca, at least before rescuing him, wasn’t exactly positive. Agreeing with him being stabbed probably didn’t endear me to him, and that’s on top of the issues we already had. Although, me breaking up with Il Padrone may make him friendlier toward me.
Roman snorts. “Not according to Doc. It seems Luca has had quite the change of heart. Hollis was able to confirm. He bugged a phone that was given to Luca.”
I stare at Roman in shock. “Are you sure this is Luca we’re talking about? Bane of my existence. Asshole. That guy?”
Roman cracks up, wincing as he holds his ribs. He manages to subside at Carter’s stern glare, but he tenderly shrugs one shoulder. “Hollis has a couple of recordings. Maybe ask him to listen to them. It promises to be amusing, if nothing else.”
“Alright, well, I guess we’ll put that on the list, especially if we have a number for him.” I bite my thumbnail, wondering if I can have one of them initiate the call or if that makes me seem too weak. “If we can get information about who is potentially in charge of this shit, it’ll be a major help. Although that won’t help with the issue of who is calling out hits. Do you think Hollis can look into that?”
“I’ve already put in that request.” I roll my eyes at Roman’s smug grin, but it’s well deserved.
“There’s another issue,” Carter breaks in. “Marcus believes we should meet with Cristian and Allesandro.”
“Fuck, no!” Roman explodes, his face flushing crimson. “I have nothing to say to my father.”
Carter opens his mouth, but quickly closes it, as if he's unable to provide a counter argument. Unfortunately, I know Marcus’s mind too well. If he’s giving it as an opinion, there’s a strategic reason for it.
Taking a deep breath, I blow out slowly, trying to find calmness in the chaos of my mind. Staring at Carter, I ask, “Why did Marcus ask for that?”
“He believes that we need to force them to acknowledge us as Bosses. He also stated that while Allesandro gave them a solid list of people to investigate, he didn’t give any reasoning. It’s his belief that by meeting with them as Bosses, we may be able to exchange information.” Carter pauses, before carefully saying, “I don’t want to make assumptions about what may have happened between you and Allesandro…but if he hurt you, I don’t want you near him.”
I smile at Carter, even if it doesn’t reach my eyes. His kindness is so contrary to his husband’s fucking cruelty that it shocks me they were married. Shaking my head, I reassure him. “I’m far stronger than I seem. If Marcus feels this is the right pathway to take, I’d concur. He knows Allesandro better than I do, and he knows what information we may need. However, I can’t see Allesandro parting with that information easily. Did he have a suggestion?”
