“That was pro-level mind-fuckery.”
I grin into my glass. “You said, ‘gross him out’.”
“He’ll be traumatized for weeks.”
“Or...” Bianca points her finger at Violet, “...it’ll stir his competitive side, and as soon as that baby’s out, he’ll try it with you.”
“I wouldn’t mind trying. I hear orgasms help with cramps.”
They look at me for confirmation.
“They really do.”
Hailey sips her drink with a little clink, leaning over the bar. The shift invites the rest of us in, shoulders bumping, heads tilted close.
“Alright,” she says, her voice dropping into something more conspiratorial. “Carter doesn’t have a concrete plan yet. He’s been vetting allies, screening Octavius’s trying to figure out who might flip. But so far? It looks like an all-out war is unavoidable.”
The humor drains out of me in a flash.
“Yeah, I overhead Ryder on the phone the other day,” Bianca adds. “Don’t know who he was talking to, but there’s already an evacuation strategy. From what I gather, they’ll move us to a safe house straight after the Chicago meeting.”
“Chicago?” I question.
Violet nods, both hands resting on the swell of her belly. “With Dante Carrow. Carter was his right-hand before Ohio.”
I know that much. Aalyiah dragged me to Chicago not long after Carter moved there. She missed him and didn’t want to go alone when he invited her over for a weekend.
That’s when I met Dante. Just once, but once was plenty. The man’s quiet intensity was terrifying.
I was still a snotty teen too young to understand the full implications of it, but not too young to notice how different he was from other Mafioso. Dante was quiet. Composed. Dangerous in a way that was absolute.
“You think Dante will approve?” Bianca asks Hailey. “That he’ll help if things get heated?”
“I think so. He and Carter are close, they’re not just allies, they’re friends. And Dante’s wife adores Carter.”
“I don’t know...” I grab my drink, twirling the glass across the counter. “Octavius is well connected. He used Anton as his recruiter... and Anton didn’t negotiate. He earned allegiance with brute force. People serve Octavius out of fear, not loyalty.”
Violet caresses her belly absently, her smile brittle. “The problem is, everyone wants to see Dante Carrow fall, so if a war starts between Octavius and Carter, most will side with Octavius. Not out of loyalty, but for a chance to take down the king. Everyone knows Dante won’t stay neutral if Carter’s life’s threatened. He owes him for saving Layla.”
“And if Dante joins in...” A chill runs down my spine, “...everyone else will.”
Violet’s eyes glisten with fresh tears. “A war always means casualties...”
Bianca grabs her hand, squeezing hard. “Broadway’s a tough cookie. They all are. They’ll be okay, Violet. Don’t worry.”
25
Leilani
“Are you asleep?” Koby asks, pressing his lips to my temple.
I’m curled into his side on the couch, his arm heavy around my waist. He keeps dropping lazy kisses onto the crown of my head, absentmindedly, but each one creates something warm in my chest.
“No, I’m not.”
“Then what are you thinking about, hellcat?”
How peaceful life can be.
