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Chapter 1
Luciano
THERE WAS NO escape from death, it was everywhere. I’d become well acquainted with my own mortality a few months ago, when I took a bullet to the chest while accompanying Gabe’s girlfriend—now wife—Cate, to her friends’ house. I hadn’t been expecting trouble, but having served in the military as a Navy SEAL for eight years, I should have known better than to let my guard down.
We weren’t two feet in the house before the son of a bitch tased me, knocking me down, but not out. Unfortunately, I wasn’t nearly as lucky when he pointed a gun at my chest and pulled the trigger. Thankfully, the guy was a lousy shot, or I never would have had the opportunity to lay my eyes on the goddess I was currently staring at from the other side of Ma and Pop’s living room.
We’d gathered to celebrate the life and sacrifice of River’s mom, Betsy. A woman none of us had ever met, yet most felt a certain connection with. Probably due to the fact she’d raised an incredible daughter, despite essentially being held against her will in a community full of misogynistic assholes.
River, my youngest brother Rico’s woman, had been through some serious shit in her life. Quattro Security only added to it with the discovery of her mother’s death. She’d taken the news remarkably well, however there were still a few things she needed to learn about family…the del Toros in particular. Family stood next to you through whatever you were dealing with; be it good or bad or in between. Until recently, the only person who’d ever protected River was her mom, but now she had my brother, and by extension, the rest of my family.
Which was how we’d all ended up congregating at my parents’ house while Rico had accompanied her and her younger sister, Sophia, to the graveside service. River hadn’t wanted a large gathering at the burial, so my brother secretly planned for a memorial service to take place afterward. I’d never heard of a surprise wake, but his heart had been in the right place. It turned out to be exactly what River needed, as evidenced by the laugh she’d just belted out with her friend, Quin, and my goddess sitting across from her on the couch with a shy smile on her face.
I’d been walking down the hallway from one of the rooms in the back when Emory first entered the house. I stumbled over my feet when her doe eyes landed on me. I’d known who she was immediately, having found out my grocery store girl’s name last week, thanks to Rico’s background check. What I hadn’t known until then was she was also Sophia’s teacher and now after-school tutor.
She was wearing a loose-fitting, knee-length, navy-blue dress with a long silver chain necklace hanging down in between her breasts, and her long, blond locks were pulled away from her face with loose curls flowing down her back.
Creeping on an unsuspecting woman from afar was evidently my new modus operandi. There was something about the seventh-grade math teacher, and her seemingly timid disposition, which screamed caution. Not in a red flag, danger ahead sort of way, because I had a strong feeling this beauty wouldn’t hurt a fly. Her soulful deep-brown eyes, though, told a story all on their own. There was hurt lining the edges of them and a deep-seated sadness, which went well beyond someone grieving for a friend’s loss. None of this had been apparent in aisle seven of the grocery store.
“What’s got you looking like someone stole your favorite sidearm?”
I’d been so lost in thought I hadn’t even heard him approach. Allesandro, or Alec, was one of my older brothers and business partners. We, along with Rico and our eldest brother, Gabriel, owned Quattro Security. Initially our firm had been based out of Atlanta, however, Gabe had come to Mountain Grove to help out a friend and ended up meeting the love of his life, Cate, and her son, Miller. Soon after, we packed up and moved our business to the quaint little town in Western Maryland.
“I don’t have a favorite,” I replied.
“Don’t bullshit me. I’ve watched how you caress your Glock.”
“And we’re discussing the way I handle my weapons during a funeral for what reason?”
I loved my family fiercely; would take a bullet for any of them and have the gnarly scar to prove it, but right then I wished he’d go bother someone else.
“If you don’t stop gawking at her like she’s your next meal, you’ll scare her off before you even get the chance to say hello.”
Well, shit. Busted.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“So that’s how you’re gonna play it, FratelloBrother? This should be fun to watch.”
If only he knew.
He chuckled as he strolled off to join our friend Caleb, who happened to be the chief of police, and his wife, Hayden. I stared at his retreating form for a few seconds before shaking my head, my gaze quickly returning to the voluptuous woman who’d stolen my breath, and apparently, my sanity.
I watched as Quin, who was also an employee at River’s shop, To A Tea, left the other two women briefly, only to return with three shot glasses and a bottle of Fireball. A grin formed on my lips as I watched Emory’s eyes bulge when she consumed the first shot. It was quite evident she’d never tasted the cinnamon whiskey before, and I had to stop myself from crossing the room to pat her back when she sputtered from the intensity of the flavor. The second shot didn’t go down much easier, but for what it was worth, Emory did her best to hide her discomfort.
Rico chose that moment to interrupt their little soirée so he could drag River off to the buffet tables Ma set up in the dining room. I was thrilled my brother had found the love of his life, and maybe somewhat jealous. My brothers and I each wanted the kind of love we’d grown up around. Gabe had found it with Cate and from where I was sitting, Rico had taken the leap as well.
Our parents had met in Italy when my father was in the service. They knew from the start there was something special about one another, so when Pop went back to the States, Ma went with him. And the rest was, as they say, history.
My brothers and I had followed in our father’s footsteps and joined various branches of the military. Well, except for Rico, who’d been recruited by the FBI straight out of high school. Considering he’d started hacking at an early age, becoming a fed was better than spending time behind bars.
Gabe and Alec enlisted in the Army, while I chose the Navy. I’d always had a certain affinity for the water. I was the captain of the swim team in high school and worked a bunch of lifeguard jobs during the summer, so when the time came to decide my future, there had only been one choice.
Becoming a Navy SEAL was like a dream come true rolled up in the worst nightmare you could ever imagine. The training was beyond intense. It was designed to take you beyond your limits, test you both physically and mentally, and if by some chance you were still standing at the end of the sixty-five weeks, you earned the right to wear the Trident pin. In other words, it didn’t happen overnight, and it wasn’t a cakewalk.
Through my eight years on the teams, I’d seen some of the worst humanity had to offer. We’d taken down insurgent groups who didn’t give a fuck about the lives they’d ripped apart, some going so far as to use women and children to barricade themselves against our attack. They didn’t care who or what they destroyed in the process, the only thing that mattered was furthering their agenda. In the end though, we all lost.
I’d spent so much time reminiscing, twenty minutes had passed and while I walked through my parents’ home, it appeared as though I’d lost my opportunity to approach Emory. I overheard River and Quin talking about how my beauty had left to go work on lesson plans for school on Monday.
