Page 22 of Love & Power

Laughing, I slid off Hound’s lap to sit next to him, making it easier to resist temptation.

“You can come in now, it’s safe,” Jace announced, leaning forward to watch the entrance to the living room.

ten

Catching Ryker’s gaze, I raised a questioning brow. He gave me a smile that would make the Cheshire Cat proud before he mouthed one word— Grandfather. Of course, he would walk in while I was making out with one of my guys. Isn’t that how it always works? Then again, I suppose not really having a parent present in my life, I was spared these moments for many years. It would seem I was playing catch-up on these experiences later in life.

When Frediano entered, the guys shifted to sit with me, leaving the other for him. Not having enough room for all of them, Braxton sat between my legs. Subtly, he curled a hand around my ankle as he rested his head on my knee. It was such a simple gesture, but it made me feel so loved. I couldn’t help but comb my fingers through his hair, something I knew Braxton enjoyed.

“I apologize for intruding,” Frediano said, clearing his throat as he took a moment to adjust his shirtsleeves. “You’ll have to forgive me. I’m not used to having young love in the house. Next time, I’ll make sure to announce myself before entering the room.”

“I’ll forgive you if you forgive me. The eight of us are still in the honeymoon stage of our relationship and need to work on how to adapt when we aren’t in our own home,” I explained. “That, and Ralph is really great at either warning us someone is coming or preventing them from entering the room. For a man that I’m not dating, he really does spoil me.”

“Speaking of Boykov, he should be here by dinner,” Ryker added. “He said to inform you that Thad is also with him, and I quote, ‘he doesn’t want to hear shit about it.’ ”

“Oh, Ralphy-Ralph, how I’ve missed thee,” I sighed. “I suppose I should be grateful he’s only forcing one new bodyguard on me. Wait, does he know about Gemma and Beatrice?”

“Yeah, he asked if there was adequate protection for you, so I mentioned them,” Ryker answered. “Why?”

“He’s been on my ass to add more people to my personal protection since he needs to sleep or something,” I grumbled. “Thad is his first addition, but I’m sure he plans to add more. My money’s on him planning to test out the girls since I haven’t rejected them yet.”

“You only have one bodyguard?” Frediano asked, his face betraying how idiotic he found that.

I held my hands up, stopping all comments. “Hold up, everyone. First of all, Ralph isn’t my only bodyguard. I have the seven of you. Unless you’ve all forgotten that you’re my lieutenants as well as my lovers. There is hardly a time when I’m not with one of you in addition to Ralph, so don’t make it sound worse than it is. Secondly, I spent my entire life being trained into a lethal weapon that could hold her own in the mafia world. Yes, I need protection… yes, I know I’m not invincible… and yes, I understand I have trust issues the size of Mount Everest. It’s just going to take time for me to feel comfortable with someone new who I’m supposed to rely on putting my life above theirs. Now I’m done talking about this, and I’m fairly certain this wasn’t what you came in here to discuss, Gramps.” Ryker chose the smart move and let the matter drop, which was a big step for him.

Frediano spotted my scotch glass and pointed to it. “I think I’m going to grab a glass, care for a refill?”

“Yes, that would be nice. Scotch neat, please,” I answered, feeling that both of us needed to take the edge off our similar personalities.

I haven’t a clue how I hadn’t realized the similarities before Liu pointed them out, but now that it had been brought to my attention, it was obvious. Frediano and I were proud, independent, stubborn people who didn’t know how to trust. What I found interesting is that so many have said I’m just like my father, painting a picture of what it must have been like between Daddy and Frediano.

“I’m a dark rum man, myself, but I do enjoy a good scotch in the evening with a cigar,” Frediano shared as he poured the drinks. “Anything for you boys?”

They all passed on the offer which surprised me, but then again, it could be they didn’t want him to have to make it for them. I accepted the glass he offered before taking his seat across from me. Frediano took a gulp of his rum, making me wonder if I needed to keep an eye on how much he was drinking. Going through a breakup, no matter if it needed to happen or not, wasn’t easy. Not to mention I knew how deeply my grandfather loved Renato.

“Earlier, you mentioned something about an agreement with the De Santis boy, Domenico. Would you be willing to share with me how that came about?” Frediano asked in a shockingly humble and respectful manner.

Had I been looking at this all wrong? Could it be that Frediano had to give up his power and title for him to let me take the lead? Thinking back on what I knew of my great-grandfather, he hadn’t been head of the Family for long before an illness cut his life short. They never determined what exactly he’d been sick with, and some called foul play. Either way, Frediano took over running the Family at nineteen, meaning he’s been Don of the Raffa Family for almost sixty years.

“In the process of getting Luca out of jail, I made a new friend. Actually, you might have heard of her… goes by the name Ivy Foxxx,” I shared, taking a sip of my drink.

Frediano’s brows shot up. “As a matter of fact, I do know that name. She’s quite the notorious assassin and spy who’s managed to stay a free agent. Most of the time, a person like that will be hunted by a larger criminal organization and forced to work for them after getting caught in a trap. It’s rather remarkable that she’s sought you out.”

“Truthfully, she’s worked with Liu and my father on a few occasions, but I’m not sure my father knew she was the source,” I shared, glancing at Liu.

“He did not. It was one of the conditions of her working with me,” Liu added. “I wouldn’t have ever revealed her to you, Astin, but Ivy made it clear she wanted a face-to-face meeting with you.”

Smiling, I replayed that coffee-shop encounter, remembering how impressed I was with my new best friend forever. “Yes, well, you can’t ask someone you’ve never met to be your best gal pal over the phone or text. Whatever her reasons are for choosing me to be her friend, I feel like I’ve gotten the better end of the deal.”

“I’m sorry… gal pal?” Frediano questioned. “She risked her freedom and exposed herself just to ask if you would be her friend?”

“Yes, but she also had information for us on the judge and gave me a heads-up about who the puppet masters were pulling the strings on all the attacks against me,” I explained. “Honestly, I think Ivy had been on her own, running to keep ahead of the danger, that she got lonely. We share many of the same ideals, neither of us is big into drama, and I think she realized I needed a female friend too. Without her help, I’m not sure things would have gone as smoothly as they did.”

Intrigued, Frediano leaned forward as he asked his next question. “So how did this friendship bring about an alliance with Domenico De Santis?”

“One day, we were dress shopping for a gala we were going to attend as part of our plan, and in walked the man. I had no idea who he was, but it was obvious he knew Ivy, and they had a history. Ivy had manipulated us both into being at the same place and time, in a manner that didn’t draw any attention. There couldn’t have been a more innocent run-in than that lunch. Of course, after she introduced us to each other, it was clear why Ivy had put in the effort,” I said, swirling my drink absently.

“The part that’s crazy about all this is Domenico asked me one question. That’s it, just one simple question, and he was in. Yet, as with anything in our world, there’s always a catch. Lucky for me, his terms were something I was more than willing to agree to. I help him oust old man De Santis and take over as head of the Family, then he will publicly announce an alliance with me,” I reveled, smiling as I took another sip of my drink.