Page 23 of Hidden Ties (Made Men #11)

EIGHTEEN

A BATTLE OF BLOODY GUTS AND GLORY

W anting to cry at Sal’s past left Valerie heartbroken for him.

Even her own broken past seemed to pale in comparison to his.

She couldn’t imagine growing up homeless, only to find out a father didn’t want you but accepted his other legitimate children in his life, not to mention his mother’s tragic death, along with being taken in by his father’s enemy.

“I only told you all this ’cause I’ve looked at Sal as a brother since we grew up together.”

It made sense, the bickering not only between Sal and Maria, but with Lucca as well. They had all lived under the same roof officially since Sal was thirteen years old.

“I know he should have been the one to tell you, but I can tell you like him, and that he must like you on account of how badly he didn’t want me to meet you .

” She added that bit still annoyed but continued on, getting serious again.

“I just think you should know what you’re dealing with because out of all the years I’ve spent with him, he still doesn’t like to talk about it. ”

“Are you serious?” Valerie almost couldn’t believe it. At that rate, she’d be old and dead before he’d tell her anything. “Not to anyone?”

“I think he talks about it with my brother, but Lucca wouldn’t dare tell me anything that Sal told him in confidence.”

Wishing it had been Sal to be the one to tell her, she was still grateful Maria had.

Everything about Sal had clicked into place.

To say she had misjudged him was the understatement of the fucking century.

Valerie officially not only felt like the biggest idiot in the world, but the biggest bitch as well.

She couldn’t believe some of the thoughts and preconceived notions she’d had about him.

Sal hadn’t grown up rich with a stick up his ass; he had grown up with nothing and treasured the items he had, along with his privacy.

Regretting certain things she had said and done to him, she desperately wished she could take them all back.

But, in life, there were no do-overs. She would have to live with it forever.

It was truly no wonder why Sal hated her at first. She was just thankful for the fact that their relationship had blossomed into whatever the hell it was at the moment.

Feeling her heart skip a beat for the first time in her life, she found herself wanting a relationship, hoping that what was between her and Sal wouldn’t be fleeting and that when all her legal troubles were over, that maybe, just maybe, they could gain more out of each other than smart-witted comebacks and sex.

“Thank you for telling me, Maria,” she whispered. “I had no idea Sal and Lucca were even that close.”

“Oh yes, they are closer to brothers than probably Lucca’s blood brothers. There’s a bit of an age difference between them, so that’s mostly why,” Maria explained before laughing. “If I had been born a boy, I probably would have given Sal a run for his money as his favorite brother.”

“That reminds me …” Valerie pivoted the subject with hope in her eyes. “How exactly does a woman go about joining the mafia?”

A knock on the door had Sal jumping to his feet and almost killing himself to get down the steps.

Thank Go—Fuck! It was probably too late. Maria and Valerie were already talking in the kitchen for God knew how long.

“Who is it?” Maria asked, seeing him whizz by.

“Backup,” was his response, flinging open the door to see who it was. Of course, he had gotten here first.

Figures.

Watching Lucca Caruso walk into the room felt eerily strange.

No longer in his deadly all-black suit, he wore a sweatshirt and dark jeans.

It looked so informal on him but also so right.

Now she could start to understand why the other girls found him attractive.

He was no longer dressed as the Boogieman but himself, so his looks turned less sinister and more ruggedly handsome.

“Time to go, Chloe.” With a commanding voice, he waved for her to move.

Noticing the wedding band on his ring finger for the first time, Valerie’s mouth fell right down to the floor. He’s married to her !

Her mind was blown for the millionth time today. Never in all her life of playing video games could she have predicted that plot twist coming. How in the world a sweet and shy, scarred woman had ended up with the Boogieman would defy her imagination for the rest of her existence.

It was obvious Chloe didn’t want to go. “But Maria’s babysitter is watching the twins for the night, with Angelica. Can’t we stay for a bit longer?”

Jesus! They procreated?

Lucca shook his head more defiantly. “We’re leaving—now.”

The poor woman’s hair covered her face as she set the controller down in sadness, clearly having a good time. While all the girls’ faces were upset she was leaving, not one dared to question it, not even Maria.

Valerie’s heart sank for her, but before she could let the woman leave, she just couldn’t help herself and had to ask, “Chloe”—she stepped before the couple, who were complete opposites in every way, keeping them from leaving just yet—“would you mind giving me a picture of yourself?”

“W-Why?” she asked nervously, making Valerie hate herself for asking it that way before explaining.

Even the way Lucca was staring at her, while in a curious way, was making her uncomfortable, as it was obvious his protective instincts were coming out.

Hell, the whole room had fallen silent, as everyone had heard her and was too curious as to what kind of question that was.

She had seen this whole interaction go differently in her head. Sometimes, she really hated her big mouth but just had to go with it at this point.

“Well, I’ve been working on a video game, and if you don’t mind, I’d love to model one of my female characters after you?”

“Oh … wow,” Chloe said. Taken aback, it took her a moment before she brushed the hair behind her ears, proudly displaying her scars. “Sure.”

With Lucca relaxing his grip on his wife’s hand, he let her go. “We can stay a bit longer.”

“Hell yeah!” Kat cried gleefully, holding the controller back out for her. “We get another rematch.”

When Chloe returned to the game with a smile, Lucca gave Valerie an approving look. “Sal …”

Getting a bit choked up at that kind interaction, he bit down the emotion welling in his throat. The action had made not only Sal grow fond of her in an instant, but Lucca Caruso himself. And Valerie didn’t have a clue what she had just accomplished.

“Yeah?” he asked, already dreading what might come next.

“You find her a job yet?”

“Not exactly.” He ran his fingers through his hair, knowing his boss wasn’t going to be happy. “It’s been a bit difficult to place her. She—”

“Try harder, then,” Lucca cut him off.

Sal could only nod his head, accepting the order.

Christ , for better or for worse, he was stuck with Valerie’s antics now.

It shocked him to find that he was surprisingly happy about it, too.

Once you gained Lucca’s favor, especially through the way of his wife, he did everything in his power to make sure you were cared for.

If Kent Bryant didn’t find a way to get her charges dropped, and soon , the lawyer was going to have hell to pay.

“Give her whatever job she wants,” Lucca said before ending the conversation to go sit beside his wife.

Instinctively knowing Valerie’s big mouth was about to ruin the moment, he reached out to grab her hand and stop her from going after Lucca.

“Don’t press your luck,” he told Valerie quietly, hoping she’d take the hint.

“Fine ,” she finally grumbled, “I won’t ask him if I can join the family.”

Only when she made him a promise that she wouldn’t did Sal let her go, somewhat satisfied.

“I’d be staking my claim if I were you …” a taunting female voice from behind him said, as if she knew he had just called in the cavalry. “Before the ones who aren’t married get here.”

Dammit . He hated when Maria made perfect sense.

He moved to a closet and took out the clothes he had hidden, along with her bat, in case Valerie became inclined to use it on any of the guests about to walk in. She did have the boss’ permission, after all.

“Why are you giving me these now?” she asked after he handed them to her.

“Because I need you to change—”

Suddenly, her usual attire was perfect for her. Hell, he loved it. The more hideous and baggy the clothes she wore, the better as far as he was concerned. If it could ward off any of the men who were about to walk through the door, it would save him from a fight.

“ Now .” He tried his best to sound as commanding as Lucca had with his woman, because Sal’s mind had been made up within an instant.

Valerie Monroe was his.

When more men came barreling through, Valerie’s mouth dropped farther and farther open. The Caruso-Luciano gene pool was unmatched.

Nero Caruso, who was Elle’s boyfriend, was a mix of his siblings Maria and Lucca, if that gave you an idea on how good-looking he was.

Which brought her to the next guest being Dominic Luciano, who was the only one capable of rivaling Lucca’s presence.

Badass motherfucker was what came to her mind upon seeing him show up in a leather coat with fur around the collar.

His brother, Angel Luciano, who was dating Adalyn, was covered head to toe in tattoos. She desperately needed to ask him to model for a character in her game as well.

Then, when a piercing blue-eyed blond walked in, she could see the hint of redness in his eyes. Like he had been crying. His name was Vincent, and he was quiet as he took a seat beside Lake. Valerie wondered what it was he had been upset about.

By the time Amo tried barreling through, Sal had worked himself up into a jealous fit that she thought was kind of cute. Valerie didn’t even think he realized he was the jealous type yet. She knew why he had given her her clothes back, but she didn’t mind, happy to feel like herself again.