Caruso stares at me. “Torture? No. I hadn’t decided between a quick death or sending her off to one of my men. After some training, she could make a satisfactory wife, I think.” He stops.His mouth twitches. “Though I’m starting to think she might be too stubborn for that.”
“No. That’s unacceptable. You’re not hurting her. You’re not sending her off to some abusive stranger. Sofia is staying with me.”
“An eye for an eye,” he retorts. “She did?—”
“No.” I use that same commanding tone I did in the Army. “Sofia was trying to help a woman get back her stolen jewelry. She did nothing wrong.” When Sofia moves to get around me, I clamp my arm around her waist and hold her still. “You’re going to leave her alone. For good.”
“Oh, really?” Caruso shoots me a skeptical look. “And I’m going to agree to that, why?”
“Because you know who I am. You know what my company does. And I can offer you valuable services in exchange for you ending the contract on Sofia.”
“Nico, no,” Sofia whispers. “I won’t let you.”
“Nothing illegal,” I continue. “I’m not subjecting my employees to that. But there are things I can provide. Cybersecurity. Risk assessment. Highly trained bodyguards. Think you have a traitor in your organization? I can investigate it. I can do all of those things for you. And in return, you leave her alone.”
“And if you don’t,” Wraith adds. “I have connections. Ones you’ll never see coming. You’ll think everything’s just fine, and then—” He snaps his fingers. “Maybe it’ll be you that dies. Maybe one ofyourloved ones. Maybe a valued member of the family.”
“We all have his back,” Knight says. “And that means we have Sofia’s, too. So if you don’t take this deal, you’re going to leave with a giant target on your back.” Knight pins Caruso with a glare. “And trust me, money is no object.”
After nearly a minute of silence, Caruso nods at his guards. “Stand down.” Then he walks towards me. He holds his handout. As I eye it with suspicion, he asks, “You really love her, don’t you?”
It’s so far from what I expected him to say, I’m stunned into silence for a second. But then I look him in the eye and reply, “Yes. I do. And I will doanythingto keep her safe.”
A thoughtful expression softens his hard features. “I have someone like that. And I respect it. I respect what both of you are willing to do for each other. So. You have a deal. I’ll make sure everyone knows Sofia is off-limits. And in return, when I need your services?—”
“Legalservices,” I remind him.
“Legal,” he agrees with a smirk. “When I need them, you’ll be there.”
Before I take his hand, I add, “Not just Sofia. I don’t want to hear about anyone coming after these guys in retribution.”
“Done.”
Just as I’m taking his hand to shake it, Sofia slips out from behind me and clamps her hand over mine. “And Nico.” Her tone is fierce. “He’s off limits, too.”
Caruso looks at her. “Fair enough, stubborn Sofia.” His lip quirk. “Your man is off-limits as well.”
“Do you promise?” she presses. “I’ll help them take you down if you break it. And I’ll actually try this time.”
He covers her hand with his. Then he gives all three of our hands a shake. “I promise.”
It’s something I never could have dreamed of doing. Making a deal with the head of the Cosa Nostra. But I don’t regret it for a second.
“Very well.” He releases our hands. “Then I think we’re done here.” He nods at his guards, then to the men on the floor. “Get them out of here.” To me, he says, “I’ll handle them from here. I don’t think the police need to be involved, do you?”
“Not at all,” I agree. Because I’m confident whatever Caruso does to them will be far worse than anything the police will do.
So we watch as the guards drag the men out of the condo. Caruso gathers their things and shoves them in his coat pockets. Before he leaves, he turns back to look at us. With a genuine smile, he says, “I expect to be invited to the wedding. That’s non-negotiable.”
I just nod, more than ready to see the back of him.
Although, if Sofia ever agrees to marry me, which is highly unlikely after this clusterfuck of a night, I think an elopement might be a better idea.
Once the door closes, Knight asks, “Do you want to stay here tonight? We can secure everything.”
“No,” I tell him. “We’ll go to Fox & Falcon. If you can just stay here while we pack some things…”
He nods. “Of course.”
