“Little early for us,” Luca says.
“Of course, of course.”
I’m busy wandering around the place, unabashedly checking things out. “Nice,” I say, looking back to Luca. “I want one, baby.”
“A penthouse?”
“A casino. If we’re staying in Vegas much longer, I’ll needsomethingto keep me occupied.”
Sonny laughs like it’s the funniest thing he’s heard all week.
“Please, sit down, sit down. Make yourselves at home.”
We go to the sitting area he motions at, side by side on the small sofa to enjoy the view. Sonny finishes his potion-making, pours himself a bright red drink, and swizzles it with celery.
“I never get up before noon, so this is my breakfast of champions,” he says. “Can't beat a kick of vodka and tomato juice to start the day right, and I always add in a raw egg for the protein.”
“Delicious,” I say.
“Thank you for agreeing to see us,” Lucas says, before Sonny can figure out whether I'm being sarcastic or not. “And thank you, of course, for taking us in.”
“Nothing to thank me for,” Sonny says, and takes a big swig of his drink. “The way I see it you guys are refugees right now, looking for a new place to start—or at least hide out for a while. I do you a favor now…” He sets the glass down on the coffee table and gives an expressive shrug. “Maybe you do me a favor later down the line.”
“I'll be very happy to help you out however I can.”
“So things aren't great in the Big Apple,” Sonny says, and he comes over to sit with us, slinging one ankle up on the other knee. He's wearing silver cowboy boots. I want to ask where he got them. “I can't say it came as a total surprise to any of us out here in the West. After Chicago, well.” He looks at me, and gives me a wink.
“My husband is well aware of what happened in Chicago. I don't hide anything from him about our business.”
If there's one thing I appreciate about Luca it's that he's never belittled me or cut me out of the business in front of other people. Even if, technically, what he said isn't entirely true. Or at least, I had to work pretty hard to get the information out of him.
Sonny is nodding. “Must be different when you're both guys. I'd never tell my old lady anything. She’d only blab it to the girls.”
I wonder whether Amanda is this old lady, and how she’d feel about being described thus.
“Still,” Sonny continues. “I'm surprised you had the balls to jump on a plane here after only meeting me once.”
“I appreciated what you said in Chicago, and I like to follow my intuition when it speaks to me. You don't seem to be a fan of the Clemenzas; neither am I. I figured maybe we had some things in common.”
Sonny leans forward to pick up his drink, and has another big gulp. We wait for him to finish his drink, and for once I keep my mouth shut. Eventually, he starts talking again.
“I can see how you might have thought that at the time. But see, when you skipped out on your initiation, it made me wonder what sort of man you really are.”
On my knee, Luca’s hand curls into a fist.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Finch
Ijump in before Luca can say anything.
“Don Morelli is loyal,” I say. “He’s the kind of man who puts family first. The only reason he left Chicago was to be with me at my father's funeral.” I reach over to take Luca’s hand, and thread my fingers through his, twisting his hand so Sonny gets an eyeful of that Morelli ring.
For the first time, Sonny really looks at me. “I know all about Howard Donovan's funeral. You know, some of the old guard still thought it was disrespectful, your man running out on the Family to be withyourfamily, if you catch my drift.”
Still Luca says nothing, and his hand gives mine a warning squeeze when he hears me take a breath to keep talking.
Okay. Fine. I’ll shut up.
