Page 16 of Vincenzo (The DiMaggio Crime Family #3)

VINCENZO

M y brother sends a hook to my ribs that catches me so off guard I have to suck in a sharp breath as the pain radiates into my chest.

“Fuck,” I hiss out, leaning over.

“Shit, you okay, man?” Teo asks.

Maybe asking him to spar today was a bad idea.

“Yeah,” I grunt out with a cough, then wave him off. “Just give me a second.” I walk off the mat and grab my water off the bench.

“You realize you’re the one who asked me to spar today, right?” Teo says.

I gulp down the water and let out a breath. “Yeah, and?”

“So, why’d you want to do that when you’re clearly distracted? Your head’s not in it at all.”

“I’m not distracted,” I state, knowing full well it’s a lie. I’m distracted as fuck. I’ve been distracted ever since Amalia Velasco showed up in my life, and after last night, she really is the only thing taking up space in my head.

Teo narrows his gaze on me. “I rarely get hits on you, and that’s the third one already this session. What’s wrong with you?”

“Why do you assume something’s wrong with me?” I take another swig of water.

“Come on, Enzo. I know you better than anyone. You’re distracted, which means something’s bothering you. If we keep sparring, at this point, you’re going to end up in a body bag.”

I scoff and set my water back down on the bench. “Please, you think you can take me?” I step back onto the mat and lift my gloves in front of my face.

My brother shakes his head and takes off his gear.

“What’re you doing?” I ask, dropping my hands to my sides.

“I’m not fighting you like this. It’s pointless for me. If I wanted a punching bag, I’d just use the one over there.” He nods to the corner of the gym where the bags are set up.

Well, that’s fucking rude… but he’s not wrong. I came over to spar with Teo, hoping it would help relieve some of the tension coursing through my body, but it seems I can’t even fucking focus on one of the things I do best.

Witnessing Amalia and Carlos last night got under my skin way more than I want to admit.

Being attracted to a woman is one thing but letting that attraction dictate the way I act is a whole fucking other thing.

That little hellion is starting to take over my life, and I’m not fucking happy about it.

“Come on,” Teo says. “There’s clearly something on your mind, so let’s talk about it.”

I start taking off my gear, knowing I won’t be able to salvage this workout session. “There’s really nothing bothering me, Teo.”

“Is it the workload? You need me take back some?—”

“No, it’s not the workload.”

“Is it Velasco and Montoya?”

Taking in a deep breath, I let out a sigh. “It’s not them either,” I say, then step off the mat and walk back to the bench.

Teo’s footsteps sound from behind me, and when I turn around to sit on the bench, he’s right there with me, taking a seat.

“You haven’t given me much of an update on them lately,” he says, and I detect a hint of suspicion in his tone.

“Not much has been happening. They’re still in the city.” My response is short and vague, but I don’t want to tell Teo what I’ve learned about their plan, and I absolutely cannot fucking tell him about my run-in with Amalia last night.

“And you still haven’t been able to figure out what they’re going to do?”

That hint of suspicion is now blaring in his tone. I turn to look at him. “Oh, I’m sorry, am I not working fast enough for you?”

Maybe if I can turn this around on him, he’ll back the fuck off me.

“Why are you so defensive today?”

“Well, first you call me a punching bag, and now you’re saying I’m not doing my job quick enough for you.”

“Hey, you and I both know you’re better than this. Your sparring has been fucking shit today, and it’s been how long since Velasco and Montoya stepped foot in our city, and you still have nothing to give me? Usually, you would’ve had them long gone by now.”

“I told you, I’m working on it,” I grind out, facing forward. If he reads my expression, I know he’ll figure it out.

“There’s something going on with you, and you’re going to tell me.” A few silent moments pass between us before he finally says, “Is it Velasco?”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath, then let it out.

This is exactly why I came here to spar and not talk.

Everything is getting fucked up with that girl in my head, and this was supposed to help me blow off some steam.

But instead, I’ve been punched in the fucking ribs, and now I’m getting interrogated by my far-too-observant brother.

“No,” I say sternly, hoping it’ll silence his questions. “And look, I gotta get going.” I rise from the bench and head for the door. “There’s some shit I need to get done at the club, so I’ll talk to you later.”

“Enzo,” he calls out after me, but I ignore him and exit the gym, hoping he’ll get the hint that I’m not ready to talk.

I don’t think I’ll ever be fucking ready to talk about this.