“I’m not,” I lie.
“Yeah, okay. When are we taking care of the marriage license?”
“Friday.” I follow Bianca out of the corner of my eye. “I’m planning a small ceremony and dinner.”
Andrea’s brows jog up his forehead. “You’re serious?”
I pick at the buttons on my suit jacket. “Nothing big. Bianca enjoys sunsets. We’ll do it then. Keep it a secret.”
“What secret?” Bianca steps onto the back deck, sweat clinging to her brow.
“How deadly you are, cousin.” Andrea grins. He pulls a folder out of his bag. “I completed your profile. You’re from Richmond,Virginia, with rumored ties to big-name operations in the area we’ll call on if needed. People call you ‘The Consultant.’ Your negotiations end in death.”
“Sheesh.” Trouble frowns at her file. “How did you do all of this?”
“I went to school for computers.” He beams like an idiot.
“You’re a hacker?”
“Among other things. I’m still looking into organizations in the area that have ties to the Preda. For now, you’re good to go. Oh!” He snaps his fingers. “I almost forgot. You have a kink for roleplay, which explains why you were at Eden.”
“Right. That’s this one.” She points at me.
“We have a meeting with Renata at Eden tonight. You’re welcome to join,” I say.
“I happen to have plans tonight.” She grips my chin. “Behave. You don’t want to fuck with a don, Benny. I’ll make you disappear.”
My dick stirs at the promise of violence pooling in her stare. She smirks before dropping the folder onto the table to go back to the grove, twirling to wink at me on the way down a dirt path.
Andrea holds his stomach over his polo in a cackle. He wipes his eyes. “We still meeting Luiggi at Eden, Romeo?”
“Yes.” I pull my phone out to log into the program Andrea designed for my drones. He mumbles something about being whipped under his breath, which I ignore. Within seconds, four drones sprout from the ground near Bianca’s feet.
“What in the entire fuck?!” She jumps from foot to foot. “Benny, you dickhead!”
Trouble looks from me to the mangoes on the tree. My brow arches at her smile before she snatches a mango and hurls it at the drone above her head.
Andrea laughs. “Damn, her aim is good.”
“You owe me thirty million now.” The message casts through my phone to the drones still in the air. I remove my shoes and cuff my pants. “I’ll be ready in ten,” I tell Andrea.
Bianca takes off running once I’m off the porch. Her braids slap her back, slick with sweat. She hikes her sundress lined with dirt at the hem and cuts right.
She’s fast, but I’m faster.
I barrel into her and lift her off the ground. She’s weightless in my arms before I flip us to take the brunt of the fall. We land in a patch of grass that softens the impact but not the reminder that people approaching midlife crises have no business acting like fools.
“Are you out of your mind?” She chokes on a cough around the dirt seasoning the air. “It will be a miracle if my guts don’t spill through my ass!” Her attempts to wiggle free from my chest vibrating over her face fail.
I laugh. Hard. A full-bellied cackle that jiggles my Adam’s apple. I don’t laugh, I barely smile but ease into it more with Bianca.
The sun tips over her shoulder onto the smile that found its way through a frown when she tilts her head. Her brows ease, long lashes curtained over her eyes at rest as I roll her over into the crook of my arm. Goosebumps prick her skin from the feel of my fingertips.
“Bedda,“ I say across her temple.
My pulse trips at the breeze carrying her perfume with a braid I curl around my finger. One tug is all it takes for our mouths to meet. I lift her chin and hold the back of her neck to brush my lips over hers. She curls into me, massaging her tongue with mine. Kissing Bianca always feels like the first time.
“It’s time for me to leave, love.” I lick her lips and plant a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be out late.”
