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I maintained my composure while my instincts screamed at me to be on guard.
“Glad to meet you all,” I said, voice steady but laced with tension.
“Likewise,” Lorenzo replied, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
Lorenzo studied me in silence, while Sergio was giving me murderous looks, disgust etched into every line of his face—not a fan.
I kept my expression neutral, unwilling to show weakness, but my fingers twitched for the gun I’d posted behind the bar.
Fuck the no-weapons deal.
Franco’s gaze slid from me to Sergio, and Franco’s lip curled in a snarl. “Is there a problem here?” The steel in his voice was unmistakable and surprising.
Maybe Franco was tougher than I gave him credit for.
I took a deep breath, my eyes never leaving Sergio and Giuseppe. Those two probably posed the biggest threat. The tension inside of me mirrored the one in the room. My mind raced, trying to pinpoint if, apart from those two, anyone else posed an immediate threat.
This meeting had been a dumb idea. The likelihood of this ending in a bloodbath was higher than I’d liked. At least I got Gabe out in time.
Finally, Sergio looked away, but the tension remained.
Franco’s siding with me had bought me time and given me the chance of this meeting, but it was clear the members of the Moretti family wouldn’t easily accept an outsider as their leader.
And why would they? When even I wouldn’t accept it.
There were sure to be a lot of challenges, and not all of them would come in the form of glares.
But however this meeting ended, at least the facts would be out in the open: no more attacks on our properties, no more kill attempts.
Either this was a start or an end.
“Let’s get down to business,” Franco announced, cutting through the silence.
We settled on a group of sofas, taking our seats around the low table.
With Franco by my side, I waited until Vittorio settled down, with Rosario to his right. They both studied me silently when I took the place opposite from them.
Lorenzo and Giuseppe moved behind the bar and prepared drinks, while Sergio remained standing. And glaring.
Crazy to think these sofas had seen their fair share of naked butts and sex. The gravity of the gathering made the usually seductive atmosphere of the club seem almost eerie.
I looked from face to face, trying to gauge their thoughts, but kept my expression blank, giving away nothing of the turmoil inside.
This had been a crazy plan right from the start. And I should’ve dismissed Franco’s idea outright. How was I meant to join men who hated me? Lead men who saw me as an interloper, stealing a birth right that should have belonged to another?
“I’m sorry about what happened with Bruno.”
Vittorio nodded.
Death was a part of our life—a part of the business.
But my uncle killing Salvatore Moretti had been bad. And then, me bringing down, Bruno…it was the worst possible place to start any kind of partnership. And especially one that had to overcome a history of bad blood and distrust.
If I had any hope of securing my place as the head of the Moretti family, I needed to know who was with me and who would rather see me dead.
If I wanted to become a Moretti.
Big if.
