Page 32 of Waste of Worth

It also didn’t escape Dino’s notice how Ben had once again mentioned someone in the DeLuca family taking the boss’s seat, or vying for it, as he’d said. It might have only been in passing, but Ben was not the kind of man to make that statement without some kind of worth behind it. Perhaps that, more than anything else, was one of the most worrying things.

Dino didn’t know where to focus first. He could only divert Ben’s attention on so many things before he let others slip, or worse, Ben figured out what he was doing and came after Dino for fucking up whatever plans he may have.

Theo …

The Outfit …

Of course, Theo would always be infinitely more important than the Outfit to Dino. That was a no-brainer. It wasn’t even a fucking question. Dino, no matter his brother’s feelings about their shared past or the wounds between them that were not quite healed, would protect his brother at all costs. Even for something as simple as a friendship that was not approved by their uncle.

Blood before water, after all.

“… more important things,” Ben said quietly.

Dino had only caught the tail end of Ben’s sentence. “Pardon?”

Ben nodded toward Theo and Damian. “I will deal with that eventually, but at the moment, I have more important things to handle.”

“Like what?”

Ben smiled, thin and cold. He stood from the table without a word, giving Dino a pat on the shoulder as he started his trek back to sit with the Outfit’s front boss, Riley Conti. But over his shoulder, Dino heard his uncle’s ending words.

“Be careful with your distractions, Dino.”

Karen.

Suddenly, Dino had a heavy realization sink in.

He had three things to keep his uncle distracted from.

It wasn’t just Theo and the Outfit.

It was Karen, too.

Or rather, Dino’s involvement with Karen.

This was exactly why he didn’t get mixed up in relationships or people.

It couldn’t end well.

Glancing over his shoulder, Dino found that Ben was still watching him from across the restaurant. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket, and knew it was likely Karen messaging him again. He chose not to answer it, for his benefit, and hers.

He didn’t think she would understand for a minute.

But he hoped it wouldn’t hurt her too much.

Dino had to protect what he could, and Karen fell in line with that. It wasn’t her fault she’d gotten mixed up with him, or the crazy, violent mess that was his life. She hadn’t asked for anything more than a fun time with him.

She didn’t ask for pain.

He had to try to keep her from the pain that was always a constant in his life in one way or another.

Almost all of it was caused by Ben.

So, when an hour had gone by, Terrance had finally arrived to accept his payments from his Capos, and then the men were dismissed, Dino went straight to his car, and then he went home. He didn’t pick up that bottle of wine. He didn’t go to Karen’s place like he said he would.

She texted him later that night.

He read the incoming messages—one after the other.