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27

DANTE

“Y ou’re quiet,” said Grit, approaching me as I stood off to the side of the great room back at the Kane Mountain camp. “It’s a lot to take in.” His gaze spanned the room.

I nodded. The last few days had been a whirlwind of never-ending information coming at me from every direction.

Rocco Mazzeo had requested a plea deal in his first hour in custody, ready to spill the secrets of a family with no one left to prosecute. I had no idea what the outcome would be for him unless he had dirt on some of the other families, which I doubted.

The main takeaway from him was how his grandfather had learned that Summer Gregory had killed his son—in what turned out to be self-defense, resulting in no charges filed against her.

It seemed all kinds of lowlifes attempted to come out of the woodwork after the almighty Vincent Castellano’s arrest. Most hoped to cash in on whatever information they’d held onto over the years—just like the guy who’d gone to Dominic Mazzeo, saying he’d witnessed a woman stab Anthony. And what did he get for it? A bullet struck him in the head in what law enforcement was calling a drive-by shooting.

No one, them and myself included, had any doubt my brother was behind the murder, even though he remained in solitary confinement.

Tomorrow, my mother was scheduled to meet with him at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan. She asked if I wanted to go with her, and I responded truthfully that I did not. The closure I needed had come the day I met with him, asking for help finding my mother and Lark’s. I didn’t look at my brother any differently now than I did then.

Would I celebrate his passing if he was given the death penalty? I would not, in the same way I’d never celebrated anyone’s. My goal all along had been to put an end to the legacy of murders and destruction at the hands of the Castellano crime family. The day I decided to go undercover was the day I ceased to belong to a family I hadn’t been a part of anyway. Not that the Rossettis were any better.

Rachel McKinney had successfully coordinated raids on many of those who’d worked for Vincent. The asset freeze had certainly made those more successful, given those who might’ve had the means to flee weren’t able to.

Any worry I had about my mother’s and sister’s financial status, given my belief that Vincent’s dirty money had funded their lives for the last twenty-six-plus years, were put to rest thanks to Alice. She and Tex had confirmed my mother was worth millions that were inherited from her family in Italy, none of whom had any ties to organized crime.

I leaned against the wall and rolled my shoulders, not wanting to take a minute away from Lark, her mother, and grandmother, but still longing for time alone with her.

“Have you given any further thought to my proposal?” I opened my eyes and looked into those of my mom.

“I think you should do whatever you want with the compound. It’s yours.”

“As I’m aware, Sandro. Except it does affect you. And by that, I mean it affects Lark.”

The proposal my mother referred to was her suggestion that the Great Sacandaga Lake property be turned into a family compound. One where we all lived, at least part of the year. By “we all,” she meant herself, Chiara, Barbara, and Summer, along with Lark and me. I wasn’t for or against it.

As I’d told Lark, wherever she was, I would consider my home. Whether in the Adirondacks or anywhere else in the world.

“Look at the two of them,” my mother said, motioning to Grit, who stood talking to Chiara.

“What about them?” I asked.

She rolled her eyes.

“What?”

“You would think a man in love would recognize attraction when he saw it.”

My mouth hung open. “First of all, Grit is old enough to be her father. Second, they’ve known each other less than twenty-four hours.”

Based on the look on their faces, both Grit and Chiara had heard every word I said, and I didn’t give a shit.

“Your sister is the same age as Lark, Sandro, and Drake is younger than you are.”

Drake? Was that Grit’s name? I didn’t remember ever hearing it. And if I had, I wouldn’t have cared any more than I did right now.

“Ahem, actually, I’m older than your son, but only by a couple of years. I can understand why you’d think I was younger, given how much better looking I am.”

I rolled my eyes like my mom had.

My sister, who I’d known only a few hours longer than Drake had, stuck her tongue out at me before the two of them walked out to the deck.

“You’re surly.” My mother turned to look over at Lark, who sat beside her mom. “You’re used to having her all to yourself. In due time, my son. She has years to make up.”

As if she’d heard us, Lark put her hand on Summer’s arm, stood, and walked over to us.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Sandro needs attention.”

I scowled at my mother’s back as she walked away.

“There’s something I wanted to run by you,” said Lark, putting her hand on my arm.

I turned to face her, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Yes.”

She giggled. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard her do so since reuniting with her mother, and I had to admit there were only a handful of sounds she made that I liked better. All of which I’d heard when she and I were naked in each other’s arms. “I haven’t told you what it is yet.”

“It doesn’t matter. If there’s something you want or need, the answer will always be yes.”

“Good. Then, it’s settled.” She turned out of my arms, but I caught her before she got more than a foot away.

“Please tell me it doesn’t involve me being away from you for longer than, say, another hour?”

“Come over here.” She took my hand, led me to a window, and pointed. “See that cabin right over there?”

“Yes.”

“That’s where you and I will be staying for the rest of our time here.”

My eyes opened wider. “Who else is staying there?”

“No one. Oh, and your mom and mine offered to help Gram make her sauce for dinner tonight. I think they’re going to teach Chiara how to make it too.”

“Yeah? What about you?”

“I’ll be busy.” She motioned with her head. “Over there. In the cabin. With you.”

“It’s called a camp,” said Alice, bumping Lark with her hip as she passed by. “Or, in your case, we might rename it the love shack .”

“When can we leave?” I asked, pulling her body flush with mine.

“As soon as you pack your things.”

I raised a brow. “I can be ready in under five minutes. What about you?”

“See those bags by the door?”

I looked in that direction. “Yeah?”

“Those are mine.”

I leaned forward, kissed her, then raced upstairs to throw what little I’d unpacked into my bag after brushing my teeth. I thought about changing my shirt but doubted I’d be wearing it much longer anyway. At least I hoped not.

“It looks like someone lit a fire,” I said, noticing the smoke coming out of the chimney as we walked down the path.

“You can thank Alice tomorrow. She also made sure we had plenty of food, along with coffee and tea.”

“I love Alice,” I said, nuzzling her neck. “But nowhere near as much as I love you.”

She gave me a quick kiss, then unlocked the door.

“Um, how long until I can get you naked?” I asked the second I closed it behind me.

Her response was to take off her sweater, toss it on the floor with the jacket she’d already removed, then unfastened her jeans. I was torn as to whether I should help or strip myself. I went with the latter.

It wasn’t like Lark and I hadn’t spent the last three nights in each other’s arms, making love more than sleeping. Four, if I counted the first night, which meant just as much, since it was the first time I’d slept with her next to me.

This was different, though. We were alone, and that meant we could have sex out in the living room if we wanted to. And in the kitchen. And wherever we chose, we could make as much noise as we wanted to. I longed to hear Lark shout out my name, even scream it, every time I made her come.

“It’s like you can read my mind,” I said when she spread a blanket on the floor in front of the fire and lay down, tucking a pillow behind her head.

“Yeah? What about you? Can you read mine?”

“Definitely,” I said, lowering myself on top of her after spreading her legs. “You’re wondering if I remembered the condoms.” I tore the one I had in my palm open, sheathed myself with one hand, and fingered her pussy with the other. “Are you ready for me, cuore mio ?”

Her back arched, and she writhed beneath me. “You know I am.”

Lark wrapped her legs around my waist, and I filled her. “God, you feel good,” I said, drawing my cock out, then thrusting back in, repeating the motion until I felt her pussy clenching me. “Say my name,” I demanded.

“Alessandro,” she moaned.

“Louder.” I thrust harder, then held myself still.

Her fingers dug into my flesh when, like I’d hoped, she screamed it. Only then did I let myself go deeper, harder, until I came too.

We lay side by side, stroking each other’s skin, kissing every place we’d touched, and talking, not worrying about the time or who might be waiting on the other side of the door, in a bedroom we were no longer in.

“If it was just like this every day, for the rest of our lives, I’d be the happiest man on earth.”

“Just like this? Naked, on the floor?”

“Fine by me. What about you?”

“Hmm. Maybe if we were in Florence…”

“All over the world, Lark. Wherever you want to go, I’ll take you.”

“There’s just one thing.”

I propped myself up on my elbow. “What?”

“I think you should marry me first.”

“How’s tomorrow?”

Lark giggled. “To get married?”

I nodded. “There are a few judges Vincent probably paid off who I could get to waive the twenty-four-hour waiting period and come here to perform the ceremony.”

She laughed out loud. “No way. I’m not becoming your wife, standing in front of a bribed judge.”

“Then, the next day. Or the day after that. Or next month, if you want time to plan an actual wedding. Or next year. I don’t care when it is as long as between now and then, we’re together every possible minute.”

The smile left her face, but the love didn’t. “I don’t need an ‘actual’ wedding, whatever that even means. All I need is you.”

“Same. There is one other thing I’d really like, though, when I become your husband.”

Lark propped herself up like I had. “What?”

“I want you to dance with me. More than once.”

“Like, all night?”

“Um, sure. Except…”

“Go on, say whatever it is.”

“I mean, not all night.”

She pushed me onto my back and straddled me. “Even if we’re dancing like this?”

I put my hands on her waist, keeping her still as I thrust into her, stopping when I realized I hadn’t put on another condom. “I need a sec, Lark.”

She eased off me, grabbed the foil packet from the table, and tore it open. “Can you teach me how to do it?”

I smiled up at her. “Thankfully, it’s much easier than making Matcha.”