Page 33 of King of Temptation

The corners of Salvatore's mouth dipped down into a frown. “What do you know of it?”

“I make it my job to know,” Goldie answered with a shrug. Which was at least not an outright lie, and since she was doing a decent job of making his case for him, Brody let her speak. “The Russians are newer players. They’ve only been here, what? Twenty-five, maybe thirty years? Which means they’re trying to gain ground where you and the O’Rourkes have been established for generations. Williams, well, I don’t even know who he is so I’m assuming he’s even more of a newcomer. The DeLucas and the O’Rourkes, though? You’re as much a part of Charleston as Rainbow Row. Sure, you fight occasionally, but clearly those bonds run deep since you’re here, having this lovely dinner with my Brody.”

My Brody. Fucking hell, it shouldn’t make his dick twitch to hear her refer to him that way.

“The only people who gain anything from the two oldest, most established players being at each others’ throats are the newcomers. Williams, and the Russians. So you have to ask yourself… Why are you so willing to believe the people who stand to gain literally everything from a falling out between you and the O’Rourkes?”

Sitting back, Salvatore swirled his cocktail, his gaze sliding from Goldie to Brody and back again. “Your girl is rather plugged into our world.”

“She’s a nosy brat, is what she is,” Brody answered with a dismissive laugh. Because as much as he appreciated the assist, Salvatore was eyeing Goldie with far too much interest for Brody’s comfort.

“Ah.” Surprisingly, a wide grin stretched across the other man’s face. “I know the type. Still, she makes a good point. And just between you and I, my brother is having… second thoughts about his relationship with the Russians.”

That was good news. Better than he’d hoped to hear, if he was being honest. “I see.”

“At the same time, your family has made life rather difficult for us. Lorenzo has been contemplating his revenge, but if I were to bring an offer home, I might be able to stay his hand.”

Contemplating. So not executed just yet. Which meant it likely wasn’t the Italians fucking with them. “There are a few assets I know for a fact Killian hasn’t liquidated yet. Perhaps I could convince him to return them to their rightful owners, in exchange for some promises.”

Salvatore nodded slowly. “I’m listening.”

Chapter 12

Goldie

This was, quite possibly, the most surreal and enlightening night of her entire life. It was one thing to study the mafia, to know the history of the different groups in different areas of the country.

But it was another thing entirely to sit and listen to two of the most dangerous men in her city come to what sounded to her to be a very shaky truce.

They’d been at it for nearly an hour when Salvatore made a show of checking his watch and sighing. “I should get home. I’ll speak with Lorenzo, have him reach out to Killian to finalize things. But I think he’ll be amenable to your cousin’s terms.”

“Good. We look forward to hearing from you.”

Salvatore hesitated, clearly weighing something in his mind. “Look, I shouldn’t be telling you this, but you have a mole.”

Beside her, Brody stiffened. “And what makes you say that?”

“Williams. He came over for drinks after Killian’s takedown of our finances and offered to help. Lorenzo slipped a little something in his drink that made him… chattier than usual. And he admitted he has someone on the inside. He claims it’s someone close to Killian, but that could have been him exaggerating for Lorenzo’s sake. But if we’re going to mend our bridges, I thought you should know.”

“Thank you. I’ll make sure Killian’s made aware of your cooperation.”

Could Salvatore hear the fury rippling beneath Brody’s outward calm? Or was that something only she was clued in enough to pick up on?

If he could hear it, he did a good job of hiding it, the expression on his face never faltering as he inclined his head toward Brody.

“Appreciate it.” Rising from his seat, Salvatore paused beside the table, close enough to make Goldie’s skin crawl as he stared down at her. “It was lovely meeting you, dear. Clearly Brody is quite taken with you, which is not an easy feat with a man like that. But if you ever get bored of the Irish, I’d be happy to show you a far more… interesting time.”

“Boring is not an adjective I’d use to describe the O’Rourkes, Mr. DeLuca.”

The smug smile he’d been wearing most of the night spread, turning wolfish. “I’m sure you wouldn’t. Ah, well. Perhaps I’ll see you again soon, either way.”

With that, he strode unhurriedly from the restaurant, as if he hadn’t just spent an hour discussing the fate of his family with one of their mortal enemies.

As soon as he was out of sight, she let out a shaky breath, finally letting some of the nerves she’d been feeling all evening show. “Holy shit, that was intense.”

“What the hell were you thinking, little girl?”

The growled question had her tensing beneath Brody’s hand, which hadn’t left the back of her neck the entire meal. Even when he’d been eating, he’d kept his hand right there.