She was an amazing mother, and called Alexis multiple times each day. Although it wasn’t necessary for us to have a child since Nick would inherit the family business, I found myself longing to share that with her. To see her hold our son to her breast as she gazed at me with her honey-brown eyes. Of course, it might not happen, considering our ages, but if it did, I’d be thrilled.
Each day, I worked quickly to bring Victor’s loyalists under my fold, or eliminate them completely. The small few who were willing to pledge their loyalty to me were put under watch by my best men to make sure they weren’t infiltrators still loyal to John and Simon. Unfortunately, most of Victor’s men refused to see reason, and I understood that I would eventually have to eliminate John and Simon to fully accomplish my goal.
The thought of ending lives, even those of my enemies, weighed heavily on me, but I also understood I had to act now toensure the future of all the men and families who worked for me and trusted me.
I remained in constant contact with Nick, and he assured me that he and Alexis were getting along, and that he felt she was beginning to trust him. Having her encrypted information would make things easier for me, but I also had other methods for rooting out the Eastern European trafficking contacts. Leo had been extremely helpful, and I continued to keep an eye out for any information that Marco Nunez was sniffing around my ports.
All in all, things were moving along with fairly uneventful regularity, which left an unsettled feeling in my gut. In my experience, taking on a rival family was rarely smooth, and I often worried that things might take a drastic turn that I couldn’t foresee.
And then, one cold early November morning as I sat in my SUV on the way to a meeting, I received a call that confirmed my worst fears.
“Yes,” I said, lifting the phone to my ear and scowling at the unknown number.
“Michael,” Leo’s voice said, full of worry. “I’m calling from a secure line and have to be quick, but I wanted to be the one to tell you.”
Dread filled my chest as I straightened. “What’s wrong?”
“Bianca’s been in a car accident. Victor’s men tried to kidnap her. She’s at Maimonides Hospital.”
I clutched my chest as I yelled to my driver, “Take me to Maimonides Hospital now!”
“Yes, sir.”
“Is she...”
“I don’t know, Michael,” Leo said. “I’m sorry I don’t have more information. I’ve got to go.”
The phone clicked off and I held my fist to my chin as I gazed out the window, terrified for Bianca. Why had she been in a car? What the hell had she been doing?
Closing my eyes, I prayed to a lord I’d forgotten long ago, begging him to make sure she was okay...pleading for him to save the woman I’d worked so hard to love and was desperate to never lose...
Chapter 23
Bianca
Considering the whirlwind of the past few weeks, I would’ve thought that I’d feel more discombobulated in my new life. Although I missed Alexis terribly, everything else had settled into a relatively stable pattern. I spent the days diving into my online classes, and also loved cooking dinner in Michael’s large kitchen.
Michael did his best to have dinner with me most nights, although sometimes business pulled him to the abandoned warehouses in Brooklyn for meetings, or to the ports to scout for information. I was terribly worried for his safety, but trusted that he was savvy enough to protect himself.
Each night, he would take me to bed and make love to me in ways I’d never imagined. Sometimes he was tender; others he was dominant and brash. Lord help me, but I loved both, and together we communicated through our lovemaking things that were difficult for me to verbalize.
Sometimes, when he looked deep in my eyes as he claimed me, I swore I saw a deep love blazing in his dark irises. And then, I would remind myself that fairy tales didn’t exist for forty-two-year-old mafia widows who married their husband’s greatest enemy...did they?
There were so many times when I held him close, stroking his thick hair and had the insane urge to tell him that I was falling in love with him. But I always held back, worried I would create an uncomfortable situation where he was forced to say it back. Afterall, we’d married for very specific reasons: protection, necessity, and to form a public alliance. Would I create an unneeded mess if I brought feelings into it? Sadly, I figured that was a possibility, so I remained silent, trying to process the confusing feelings.
Three weeks after the DeLorenzo wedding, I was working on my laptop in the office as Leticia and Carmen chatted outside.
“We’ll make a cake for Mr. Caruso,” Leticia said, her voice drifting into the office. “He’ll be forty-eight on Saturday.”
My head lifted and I grinned. It was Michael’s birthday and he hadn’t told me? Damnit. I wanted to do something special for him. He’d opened his home to me and been extremely generous. The least I could do was celebrate him on his birthday.
Rising, I strode through the house to find Burns.
“Burns?” I called, finding him in the greenhouse watering the plants. “Did you know that Saturday is Michael’s birthday?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And you didn’t tell me?” I asked, playfully exasperated.
