Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 91389 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91389 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
“Is she working now?”
Rodrigo nods. “She’s upstairs.”
“I appreciate that. Good work.”
I head up to the third floor. It’s much quieter up here. The music is only a dull thump in the carpet, and I spot Simon sitting alone and sipping a whiskey. A few of his bodyguards are scattered around the room, keeping a close watch on him, while a few of the red-wristband girls lurk at the chairs and couches right behind him. Probably waiting for his attention.
But they’ll have to wait a long time. My brother’s deeply in love with his wife. Apparently, that’s a new Bianco family trait these days.
“You realize you have everyone all freaked out, right?” I sit down next to Simon and ask for a beer.
“What, the Don can’t unwind at a bar these days?” He shrugs at me, hiding a smile. “Did they call you in a panic?”
“No, I just happened to be heading over anyway. What are you doing here, Simon?”
“Just thought I’d check out how things were going. Seems like you’ve got it under control.”
I do a shitty job of hiding my annoyance, but it only makes Simon grin bigger. I drink some beer and glare at my hands, picturing them wrapped around Simon’s stinking neck, before giving him a noncommittal grunt.
“Cage is going to be fine,” I say.
He accepts that without argument. “Davide called me right before you showed up.”
“You guys talk too much.”
“He’s just concerned about you, that’s all.”
“Well, don’t be. I’m fine.”
“I agree, I think you’re fine, too.”
I open my mouth to tell him to fuck off, but it dies on my tongue. “You do?”
“I told Davide that even if you are distracted by your new girl, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. You’ve been a little too focused on getting revenge, and I think it’ll be good to have a distraction.”
I let that rattle around my brain. “It’s fucking weird how much you guys are talking about my love life.”
Simon laughs and elbows my shoulder. “You’re still our brother. We’re just looking out for you.”
“You don’t need to worry. I’m being cautious, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
Simon nods to himself and gets serious as he swirls his drink. “Look, I should be straight up with you. Tommy didn’t only fuck you over. He fucked me and the Famiglia, and that’s a real problem. The only reason I haven’t given the order to storm that shop and take Tommy down is out of respect for you.”
I know he’s right. It pisses me off, but he’s right. Tommy can’t be left alone for much longer, not if the Famiglia has a chance to save some face. Simon needs to make an example of him, and right now, I’m holding everything up because I’m worried about Serena. Some random addict girl is keeping the most powerful crime family from gutting a traitorous fuck.
“There’s someone I want to talk to, then we’ll decide where to go.” I finish my beer and get up from the bar. “I appreciate that you’re in a tough position, and all I need is a little more time.”
“It can’t be forever,” Simon says as I walk away.
He’s damn right. As much as I’m falling for Claudia, I still despise Tommy with every inch of my body, and I will see him dead for what he did to me. And if I’m lucky, he’ll suffer first.
But for now, I ask around until I find Ivona in one of the back bedrooms. She’s cleaning up, making the bed and straightening, and doesn’t seem surprised when I shut the door behind me.
“Rodrigo said you’d want to speak with me.” She glances over and her eyes are hard. They’re brown with flecks of gold, and her thick auburn hair hangs in rings around her shoulders. She’s dressed in a tight black outfit, hugging her athletic, curvy frame, and I’d guess she’s no older than nineteen at most. Except her face looks like a woman that’s been through much more.
“He tells me you’re friendly with our former boss. Although not that friendly if you’re still around.”
She snorts, sits on the edge of the bed, and crosses her legs. She adjusts her dress, tugging it lower so that it doesn’t ride up and show her underwear, though it’s not leaving much to the imagination already.
“Tommy liked me,” she says, tilting her head to the side almost in a challenge. When I say nothing, she continues. “He fucked me sometimes when his other woman was too busy getting high.” She looks at her nails, and the way she’s talking makes it sound like she’s ordering groceries. “He liked me because I’m discreet, I keep my mouth shut, and I speak Serbian.”
That last part gets my interest. “Why would he care about you speaking Serbian?”
“Sometimes, Tommy entertains certain men. Drug dealers, mostly. Thugs and pimps. You know the kind.” Her eyebrows raise. If she’s insinuating that I’m a drug dealer, a thug, and a pimp, she’s not all that wrong. “A few times, after fucking me, he’d bring me along to a party and make me translate for him. I’d sit by his side all night pretending to be madly in love with him while I whispered in his ear what his drunken idiot friends were saying.”