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He sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. “Fine. But I can’t promise more than a few seats at my table. Gianna and Angelo can sit with my wife and me. That leaves room for four more.”
“Mr. Morelli would like to bring his wife and sons with him.”
“I’ll have the tickets messengered over to your office,” my dad said, irritated. “This is an invite to a charity event, not a guarantee you’ll be able to convince anyone to sell y
ou that property. What do you want with it anyway?”
“Does it matter?”
“I guess not.”
“It’s best you’re kept out of the logistics,” Paulie said. “Thank you for your cooperation, Lorenzo. Mr. Morelli will be pleased.”
“Is that all?” My dad’s voice was so loud it rumbled. I never heard him this angry. He was always calm and levelheaded with me.
“No, there’s more. The bank is about to foreclose on the property in New Jersey, the one Mr. Morelli has stressed needs to stay in your name.”
“All Angelo does is take, take, take from me. What kind of friend does that?”
“You need to get something straight, Lorenzo. We made you a City Councilman. The only reason you have this position is because Mr. Morelli made sure of it. Everything you have is because of him, and this is how you repay him?”
My dad sighed. “I wish Angelo could understand that I can’t accommodate his request. Let me talk to him.”
“No, this matter is business. All of Mr. Morelli’s business affairs go through me.”
“If I don’t comply, then what?”
“That’s up to Mr. Morelli to decide.”
“I’ll take my chances with Angelo. The least he can do is grant me a meeting to discuss.”
“We’ll be in touch.” Paulie’s voice was so cold a shiver ran down my spine.
I hid in a dark, vacant office and waited for Paulie to take the elevator downstairs before I wandered down to my dad’s office. He looked beyond frazzled when I stepped inside, slamming drawers and cursing under his breath.
“What was that all about?”
My dad turned around to face me, his jaw clenched in anger. “A necessary evil. Can you find a dress to wear for next weekend? I need you to come to the hospital fundraiser. Your mother will not be happy I was forced to invite the Morellis instead of her friends from tennis.”
“Make sure you feed her enough champagne to get through the night.”
My dad laughed. “I might need something stronger than that, honey. She’s not a fan of the Morellis.”
“I know. She tells me every day how much she wishes I would marry a lawyer.”
“Angelo will be a lawyer soon enough.”
I took a seat on a plush chair across from him and dropped the half-drunk soda and crumpled up candy wrapper on his desk. “She calls Angelo the Street Lawyer. No matter what Mom says, our degrees will still have the same seal from the Dean on them. Our admission to the Pennsylvania Bar will be the same.”
“Can you blame her? I know firsthand how hard it is to be in bed with the Morellis. If Angelo wasn’t my best friend, I would have gotten out a long time ago.”
“I’m hoping by the time our kids are older Angelo will be done with all of this.”
“Gianna, he will never be done. Once you’re in, the only way out is death. You know this.”
“I do. But I’m not going to raise children around criminals.”
“Angelo is a criminal, honey. Your kids will grow up the same way as you, except they will be fully immersed in the lifestyle. I don’t want that for you or for my grandchildren. But what choice do I have?”
