“What about my father?” I slap him on the arm. “You can’t just start that sentence and stop talking, Rocco.”
He narrows his eyes. “It’s why your father tried to make that deal with Cappodamo in the first place. Yeah, he wanted to be on top again, but it was mainly to protect you and your mother. He was promised a shit ton of cash if it went through. And now?” He shakes his head. “Now we’re all on the fucking chopping block, and everyone is on edge.” After another long gulp of the Blue Moon, he leans back against the stool. “Except Carlo. He’s not on edge anymore.”
“So you’re saying we’re all screwed? Or is that just me?”
“I’m saying that there are a lot of people who want to pop your bubble. Can you blame Nico for wanting to keep you safe?”
“No.” I wrap a lock of hair around my pinkie and blow on my hot chocolate before taking a sip. I recoil when the hot liquid hits my lips, immediately scalding them. I place the mug back on the counter, considering my next words. He’s right. Nico is a fucking hot mess these days. It gets worse every day, and now with Carlo being beaten to death…I need to get through to him. I can help if he lets me in. But the poison just keeps seeping in deeper and deeper as each day passes. Pretty soon, what we have will be completely toxic. I know it’s because he’s torn. He wants to keep me safe, he needs to run the business, he has to take care of the family…all of this was just thrust upon him.
Nico needs to take action. Swift action. If he doesn’t, Luca Cappodamo will smell the weakness and blast him into another dimension. Because he is that dangerous and he has a fucking lot to lose now.
Poor Carlo was bait. Luca used the guy to call out Nico. But is Nico going to respond? Is he going to get into the ring with that lunatic and stake what’s his?
That’s what he needs to do. For the family, for himself, and for us.
It’s the only way to move forward.
The front door creaks open. I hop off the stool and run into the foyer to meet Nico as he pushes the door shut and flips the multiple locks to keep us safely tucked inside his penthouse apartment. He turns toward me, his eyes drawn and heavy, his lips stretched into a tight line.
I cross the floor and hurl myself into his arms. They wrap tight around me. He squeezes me like it’s the last time he’ll ever hug me, and while I love the comfort and the security of it all, I can feel the sorrow permeate the air between us.
“How did it go?” I whisper, but all I get is a quick head shake. He buries his face in my hair as I clutch his waist tighter, a sob rising in my throat. I’d always liked Carlo and his wife. A sharp pang in my chest reminds me that the kind of news Nico delivered tonight could have just as easily been delivered to another unsuspecting wife. It could have been delivered to my mother.
Nobody is ever really safe.
But these are the cards we have to play.
Rocco walks into the foyer to meet us, and I pull away to give Rocco a quick hug.
“Thank you,” I murmur. “Be safe.”
“Always. You good?” he says to Nico, who nods his head.
“Thanks for taking her back here.”
“Call Max. He’ll want to know she’s safe.”
“I will.”
Rocco releases the deadbolts and opens the door. “I’m staying in the city tonight. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Thanks.” Nico closes the door once Rocco leaves and he collapses against the back of it, facing me, the pained expression on his face squeezing my heart like a vise.
A sad smile lifts his lips. “Kitchen light is on. I guess you found the stash, huh?”
My throat tightens. “Yeah,” I rasp, the lump in my throat making it almost impossible to speak. “Nico—"
He shakes his head and pulls me close. “No talking,” he whispers. “Just let me hold you, okay? I really need to hold you right now.”
* * *
NICO
I runmy fingers through her soft hair and breathe in the scent of vanilla. I take in every bit that I can, allowing her to infuse my senses. She is part of me, always has been, and I’ll do anything I can to keep her safe.
Seeing Carlo’s wife fall to her knees when I delivered the news, weeping over her lost love…all I could think of was Shaye and how devastated I’d be if I lost her. I’m the reason Carlo is dead. Knowing that my actions might put her in the same danger scares the hell out of me.
Shaye’s heart beats in time with my own, faster with each passing second. Her hands slide up and down my back, as if to soothe me. But I’m beyond that…so far beyond it. I have Carlo’s blood on my hands now. There is no relief from knowing that my actions took a good man away from his family forever. He was one of the most loyal of my guys and always did right by the family. Loved his wife, loved his kids, and always managed to pull a half-dollar out of Lily’s ear whenever he saw her.