“I missed you too, baby. Now let me get some more sleep. You drained me dry, baby girl.”
She sighs and rests her head on my thighs. Micah and Kane sigh and lift her up. “You can’t sleep with your pussy on his face, baby.”
“I don’t mind,” I say.
Both of them laugh and turn her so that she’s cradled on my chest. Micah gets up and sighs. “I’ve got to get ready for work, lazybones. I’ve got a Saturday appointment today.”
He slips out and we all go to sleep, content, sated.
I’m finally home. I’ve got a family of my own. Other than my sister who has her own family I’ve never had anyone.
I smile and cradle my sleeping queen. My eyes close and I sigh, sliding under again.
CHAPTER10
Kane
Groaning,I slip out of bed and head to the bathroom. Fifteen minutes later, I slip out of the brownstone and head to the restaurant.
It’s a cool weekend morning and the city is just waking slowly. I like these early mornings before the restaurant opens. I can relax and enjoy the surprising success I’ve made of the restaurant since it opened.
I unlock the door and walk inside, my head full of all the things that I need to do instead of on my surroundings. I know better. And it doesn’t take long to bite me in the ass.
The bell tinkles on the door and I swear, turning. I forgot to lock the goddamned door after myself. Stupid mistake.
I groan when I see my brother’s right-hand man in the doorway, eyeing the bright, chic interior.
“Constantine. What the hell are you doing here?”
“Your brother wanted me to come and check in on you.”
“Why would that be? I don’t need him. And I sure as hell don’t need y’all showing up in my restaurant.”
“Harsh, Kane. You’ve gotten a little uppity since you left Detroit.” He strolls inside the door and checks out the dining room, wandering close to the register. His sharp eyes cover everything.
“You can head back and tell my brother and my cousin that I’m not interested in talking to you guys. I have a new life and I already told my brother that I’m out. I’m not in the mob anymore. I never was. I just happened to be with my brother most of the time. So I’m done. I’m not doing it anymore.”
Blazing brown eyes stare at me. “You don’t get to make that decision. Nobody leaves the family unless we want them to.” His head moves side to side and he touches the soft tablecloths, running his finger across the china hidden behind the counter. “This is a nice place. Your brother and cousin are thinking this place might make a nice investment to move into a new city.”
Rage blazes in my chest, overwhelming my usual caution. “This is my place. It has nothing to do with you people. I don’t want you anywhere near it. Ever. You stay in your city and I’ll stay in mine.”
He shakes his big head sadly. “Touchy, touchy. The family knows about your unique relationship with the pretty little teacher. We can make that story known to her work. I imagine there might be something in her contract about sleeping and living with multiple men. Not to mention, she might find herself in some trouble if your brother doesn’t keep her safe.”
Ice trickles down my spine, making me growl under my breath. “Get out of here, Constantine. And don’t come back. I have a new family now. And all of us will protect each other against anything that threatens any of us. I don’t know if you’ve looked into them but my boys are not someone to mess with. One of them is a well-heeled doctor who knows very important people and the other one knows how to get to people who think they’re above the law. You wanna jump into this fight with me? Go ahead. I’ve got support this time.”
He nods his big head warily but there’s a smile on his face that makes me think he isn’t listening half as well as I wish he was. He creeps out of the door and then watches me from outside. My heart rate kicks in my chest. I pull out my phone and call Micah.
“Man, we’ve got a problem.”
“What’s wrong? Something happen in the restaurant?” He sounds distracted and his deep voice sounds like he’s pacing back and forth.
“No. My brother’s second was here when I got to Cantina.”
“Your brother’s…wait. One of your family members was waiting to talk to you? What the hell did they want?”
“They think they can use my restaurant to launder money I imagine. It’s doing so well that I guess it’s caught their attention.”
“Is that what he said? Who was it?” I hear a keyboard clicking and I know he’s looking something up. “Constantine Fredo.”