Page 31 of A Capo’s Love: Featuring A Don’s Love

“Damn right.” Troy smirked over at me just as the door opened before we reached it. “Nine on my hip.” He tapped his side. “Today I went light with a deuce deuce in my ass.” He winked.

“Freaked out ponks.” I giggled.

“That’s right!” They both sung out in union.

Soon as we stepped inside, the AC smacked us dead in the face. By now, I wasn’t new to this. I was used to the new elegancy in here. I never asked Balani about what all he had going on in this place after he made it clear the underage girls that Lennox had working here had been saved and uprooted.

The men that I eyed in passing didn’t look like the men that Lennox had here. Grown women accompanied these men like pieces of art, waiting on their men to hit big at the cards tables. There were slot machines in the far corners with older men sitting with cigars tucked in the side of their mouths.

A few heads turned as we passed in acknowledgment of security trailing closely behind me. Balani’s men had me feeling like the president walking on expensive marble floors. The deeper we walked, the louder the casino got. I hadn’t explored every part of this place and didn’t care to since gambling wasn’t my thing.

We took an elevator down to the lower level and the moment we stepped off and inside of Balani’s space, everything turned white. Right in the center of the room sat Balani. I stopped walking and didn’t check to see where Troy and Nookie was at because I was sure in the next couple of seconds they would be right by their man’s side.

Balani was super dramatic the more I got to know him. He loved being catered to, like now. He was laid back in a wide white leather chair fit for a king. Two men knelt at his feet, massaging them like they were working out knots from a long day of him standing when I knew he probably hadn’t stood past an hour today. Another man stood behind him, gently working oil into his hands. The man blew hot breath in the palm of his hands then placed them on Balani’s shoulders.

“You can’t be serious.” I laughed.

Balani kept his eyes closed for a while and hummed.

“I am always serious, Honey Boo.” He rolled his neck and moaned lowly as the man behind him worked his shoulders with perfect precision.

“If you’d like, I can have them run you a nice bubble bath then give you one of those pregnant women massages,” he offered.

He opened his eyes and smiled. For a minute I got lost in his ocean blue eyes and just the beauty of him. He grew his hair out, and now soft curls framed his face. The tips of his curls were a copper brown color that complemented his pale face. Balani looked ethereal as always. Like a beautiful vampire with perfect white aligned teeth, almost too real to stand close to and witness.

“No thank you,” I scoffed and dropped into the chair across from him like I wasn’t impressed.

He laughed softly while one of the men finished massaging his hands and stepped back. My eyes scanned the room, and that’s when it dawned on me that Nookie and Troy must have been mad at Balani about something. Normally, they did not let Balani breathe, now they had disappeared soon as I stepped inside.

“Leave us,” Balani demanded.

As if he snapped his fingers, everyone efficiently moved out quickly.

“A problem for you has come to my attention.” He wasted no time saying. He leaned forward in his seat then picked up a cherry, popping it in his mouth.

My stomach dropped the longer I studied him. I started to feel uneasy at once.

“What’s the problem?” I asked carefully, feeling my hands shake.

Balani didn’t speak right away, that’s how I knew this meeting wasn’t going to go how I thought it would. He leaned back slowly in his seat, fingers steepled together under his chin. His cold blue eyes studied me in a way that made my stomach tighten again before he even opened his mouth.

“I understand distance,” he said finally.

“From what?” I frowned, shutting my eyes.

“From him.”

My eyes popped opened, mouth instantly going dry. I batted my eyes in confusion, wondering what exactly brought us to this conversation. Balani kept a straight face, indicating no apparent direction he was getting ready to take this. I released a weary sigh followed by my shoulders dropping in despair. I didn’t need him to say Luca’s name. I could already feel it sitting inside the room with us.

“You don’t tell me your personal business,” he continued calmly. “You tell me what you want, I respect that.”

“Then respect it,” I replied quickly.

Balani hadn’t dropped the bomb of why he decided to bring Luca up randomly. To be honest, I was scared shitless. Suddenly, I had a strong urge to hop up as fast as I could, run to my camper, and get gone.

“I do.” His angelic voice cut through my chaotic thoughts.

“Then there is no need to bring him up.”