Page 44 of Bellini Bound

Matteo snapped his fingers. “That’s right. Rebecca.” His head cocked to the side in mock contemplation. “You know, now that I think about it, wasn’t she wearing a massive diamond on her left hand the last time I saw her?”

Hanging his head, the lawyer confessed, “She left me. Months ago.”

An impressed hum sounded. “Always struck me as smart. What about your mistress, then? Her kids go to school with mine, and I know for a fact her husband is flush. Are you a good enough fuck to squeeze some dough out of her? You do know where the clit is located, correct? You’d be surprised how many men don’t.”

God, I loved the man. Playing with his food before he ate it.

Matteo stood, adjusting his cufflinks. “If not, your life being on the line should be enough of a motivator to step up your bedroom game.” The bastard smirked at his prey. “Pro tip: set up camp between a woman’s thighs and don’t come up for air until you’re on the verge of suffocation.”

Bishop turned green. Whether it was from the threat to his life or the idea of going down on a woman, I couldn’t be sure. Though if I had to guess, it was from the latter. He struck me as a selfish lover.

“Pl-please. There has to be another way.”

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Didn’t he know that the sniveling begging act only made him look weak? What he should have done was take accountability for his colossal mistake and face the repercussions like a man. Even if this was the end of the road, he could have gone out with some dignity.

“I regret to inform you that, as of this evening, our business relationship has been effectively terminated.”

Ooh, I was a sucker for a good play on words, and Matteo really teed that one up.

With a quick peek over his shoulder, he asked, “Cameras off?”

I dipped my chin. “Mm-hmm.”

“Good.” With practiced ease, he pulled the handgun from his holster and fired off a quick shot that went straight through the forehead of the idiot who’d bitten off more than he could chew. Entangling yourself with those in organized crime was always a gamble—one that Aaron Bishop had lost.

Matteo checked to ensure the target had indeed been eliminated, while I sent a quick text to our cleaning crew to scrub this room, leaving no evidence that we—or Bishop, for that matter—had been here tonight.

Rising from a crouch, my cousin grumbled. “Missed bedtime for this shit.”

The past twenty-four hours had been rough, a reminder that our family would constantly be under attack. And I’d never been more grateful that I’d made a conscious decision not to reproduce. Watching my cousin struggle to protect those he loved—sometimes failing, as in the case of hislate wife—was hard enough. I couldn’t imagine how stressful it had to be bringing an innocent life into this dark world, being responsible for their well-being while powerless to stop outside forces from trying to do them harm.

Nope. No thanks. Not for me.

Matteo’s shoulder brushed mine as he exited the corner office, and automatically, I fell into step beside him.

“Tell me one thing,” he breathed out when we reached the elevator bank. “Were there this many fires to put out when Gio was in charge?”

“No.”

My tenure as his older brother’s second had been remarkably peaceful. Well, at least until he went and stirred shit with the Russians, blaming them for his wife’s disappearance to avoid telling her powerful Irish mobster father that she’d run off instead. Once he kicked that hornet’s nest, all hell had broken loose. But of course, he chose that particular moment to skip town, leaving me and Matteo to deal with the fallout.

The sliding doors opened, and we stepped inside the lift.

Sagging against the brushed chrome wall, Matteo raked a hand through his hair. “Not sure how much longer I can keep doing this.”

Those quiet words caused a rush of panic to rise up my throat. If, God forbid, he bowed out, that would leave me at the helm. And if Matteo was floundering, I would fucking drown. I hadn’t been raised to take on a position of leadership, and I didn’t want it. Hanging in the shadows, doing the bidding of others, suited me just fine. Not to mention, it came with the added perk of not having a goddamn target on my back 24/7.

We’d taken out the Russians months ago, and marrying Allison tied up loose ends with Logan.

But I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that there was someone else out there, hiding in the shadows, watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

I was itching for the day when he—or she—stepped into the light so I could blow them out of the water.

Nobody fucked with my family and got away with it.

Chapter 13

Allie