I give her my biggest grin. “Thanks for the pussy and the food, princess.”
I say it like a joke, casual, like I’m not already planning what I’m going to do to her tonight when I show up at 8 and she’s still cooking and I have to wait until 9 to taste her food and another hour before I can taste her.
She just smiles back, soft and knowing, like she can see right through me. Like she knows I’m fucked, too.
17
Vin
Ipull up to the Edge, our underground warehouse where we handle the messy shit, and my brothers are already there. The way Tommy and Matti are both silently watching me approach, stone-faced and tense, tells me this conversation is going to ruin my fucking day.
“We got a name,” Matti says without preamble, his jaw locked tight.
I light a cigarette, taking a long drag. “Yeah? Who set us up?”
“Bellamorte.”
My cigarette freezes halfway to my mouth.
“All the Bellamortes are dead,” I say slowly, my brain already racing ahead, connecting the dots. “Except Siena, who’s not a Bellamorte once she marries you. Unless you’re telling me my soon-to-be sister-in-law is making moves against us?”
Matti’s expression darkens. “Not Siena. Her uncle, Salvatore Bellamorte.”
The ground shifts beneath my feet. Salvatore. Sophie’s father.
“Remember Silk Alessi, one of the fake cops at the party?” Tommy asks, watching my face. “Took him apart piece by piece until he gave us a name. Salvatore Bellamorte made the call, leaked the location, coordinated with Aurelio’s crew, the works.”
My mind is spinning, a tornado of rage and something that feels way too close to panic.
Sophie’s face flashes through my mind. Those big brown eyes looking up at me while she took my cock in her mouth and fell asleep, trusting and soft. The breakfast she made this morning, the lunch she packed, the dinner she promised tonight.
La mia regina.
“Why?” The word comes out rough. “Why the fuck would he work with Aurelio?”
Matti runs a hand through his hair, looking uncomfortable. “Salvatore’s been dormant since Aurelio killed his brother, Siena’s father, more than 20 years ago. They had a truce. He stayed out of the life, Aurelio left him and his family alone. But now…” He trails off, glancing at Tommy.
“Now Siena’s with you,” I finish, my voice flat. “And Sophie—”
“Sophie spends time with Siena,” Tommy says quietly. “A lot of time. Salvatore’s protective of his daughter. Word is, he’s terrified that being around us puts her in danger from Aurelio.”
The irony would be funny if it wasn’t so fucked. “So hecallsAurelio? That’s the worst fucking thing he could do. Aurelio lives to do the exact opposite of what people want. Now he’s put a target on her back.”
Matti nods in agreement. “But Salvatore’s been out of the game too long. He might think he can appease Aurelio by helping him to neutralize you. He doesn’t realize that we’re onlyone crucial step away from winning this war, which puts him in even deeper shit with us.”
“But you’re not even in the Demonio family anymore,” I snap, my anger flaring hot and sharp. “Not in its current state. You won’t be until I take over officially and it’s the Brotherhood.”
“He doesn’t know that,” Matti says evenly. “Not many people do. To the outside world, we’re still Demonios. We’re still Aurelio’s sons. And Aurelio killed his brother, and both of Siena’s siblings are dead because of us. It’s not crazy that Salvatore is concerned that Sophie could be next.”
“A) All that shit went down because Aurelio is a fuck nut. B) Siena killed Franco herself,” I snarl. “Becausehekilled her sister, Emily. It’s settled.”
“Not to Salvatore.” Tommy points out. “He sees his brother dead, his niece and nephew dead, and his surviving niece married into the family that destroyed them all. Then his daughter starts hanging around that same family. Can you blame him?”
Yes. Yes, I can fucking blame him. Because he tried to have me killed. Because he put Sophie in danger at the party. Because he might have just handed his daughter to Aurelio on a silver fucking platter.
But from their silence, I can tell there’s more.
Fuck.
