Page 14 of Light It Up Red

Sweet Lili:

My father doesn’t love anyone who isn’t family. LOL.

Me:

I’d win him over, eventually…

How did we go from talking about hooking up tonight to discussing meeting the family? And why the fuck am I not running scared at the thought of this whole thing developing into something more serious?

Chapter Seven

She’s late, but I’m not surprised. My younger cousin is never on time. Aurora lives by her own set of rules. I should find out what my Zia Savvy ate when she was pregnant with that girl and avoid whatever it is whenever I decide to have kids of my own. Because the world doesn’t need more offspring like my cousin. At just eighteen, she’s seen more trouble than all of us put together. And there are a lot of us.

I scroll through my phone, mindlessly looking at my social feeds to pass the time. Aurora will be here soon. She may be late, but she always shows.

“Shit, have you been waiting long? I’m sorry,” she says, as if on cue.

“Not long. What held you up?”

“You don’t want to know.” Aurora gives me that devilish smirk she’s mastered.

“Tell me the oldies aren’t about to bust in any moment because you’ve done something reckless again?” I plead with her. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“They’re not. Don’t be so dramatic, Lil. I covered my tracks.” She shrugs, and I huff out a sigh.

“I have plans after dinner and I really don’t have time to be saving you from your parents,” I tell her.

“Pfft, as if I need anyone to save me.” She laughs before quickly changing the subject. “So plans, huh? What are they? And can you order me a cosmo?” She bats her eyelashes at me.

“Nothing, and no.” I pick up my glass of wine and sip at it just to annoy her. She’s eighteen, but no stranger to alcohol. Even so, I refuse to buy it for her, and anyone who knows what’s good for them won’t either. Which only makes it more of a wonder as to how she always seems to have a stash of liquor somewhere in her bedroom.

“Fine,” she grunts.

“I’m assuming there’s a reason for this impromptu dinner?” I ask, trying to get right to the point.

“Can’t I just want to have dinner with my cousin for the sake of having dinner?”

“You can, but it’s you, and you don’t do anything without an agenda.”

“I think Nonno is getting ready to hand over the reins to Zio Theo,” she says bluntly.

My glass pauses midair. This is huge. “What makes you think that?”

“I overheard Nonno and Nonna talking about it.” Aurora lifts a single shoulder.

“You mean you eavesdropped on what I’m assuming was a private conversation?”

“Same thing.”

“Nonno isn’t even that old yet,” I say. “You don’t think he’s sick, do you?”

Aurora shakes her head. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Why would he be handing things over so early, then?”

“No idea, but it’s what I heard.”

If what she says is true, my world is about to be turned upside down when my father becomes the Don. He’s the current underboss, so it’s only one step up. But it’s still a huge change. I wonder if he’s ready for it. Especially so soon.