Page 31 of Lust and Honor

“I’m following Don Carlo’s orders,” he answers, confident, not bothered by my tone in the slightest.

“Don Carlo told you to go to my house and paw at my daughter and her mother?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that, Maxim. You’d better talk to Don Carlo.”

Oh, I’ll talk to Don Carlo. But not over the phone. I hop in my car and drive straight to the office. I storm in ready to kill someone, and find him talking to Brando.

Brando flashes a teasing grin when he sees me. “Well, hello, darling. I was starting to worry. Where you been hiding these past few nights?”

I shoot him a death glare, and he chuckles. “What, you can kiss me, but I can’t ask where you’ve been?”

Carlo pours me a whiskey, ignoring his brother’s clowning, and asks, “Did you deliver Nico’s message?”

I take the glass and sit beside him. “Loud and clear.”

“Good. I spread the word to keep everyone on their toes. Human traffickers don’t get to run loose in our territory.”

I fix my eyes on him, keeping my voice steady. “Why’s Enrico in my house?”

No surprise. No shock. He just replies, “I sent him.”

I grip the glass tighter. “I got that part. Tell me what I don’t know.”

Brando jumps in, amused. “Carlo’s trying to find a decent father for your kid, Maxim.”

I turn a stunned look on Carlo, who takes a calm sip from his glass and shrugs. “It’s true. You know Enrico up close. Don’t you think he’d make one hell of a dad?”

Brando chimes in again, tossing out, “I wouldn’t bet on it. Guy’s the type to clock out after ten p.m. If God gives him kids like yours, he’ll either keel over from exhaustion or throw himself off a balcony within the year.”

Carlo muses, “Aurora’s a quiet girl. But that ‘lights out at ten’ thing might be tough for Ava.” He looks at me and adds, “Don’t worry. If Aurora and Ava don’t like him, I’ve got better options lined up.”

My jaw clenches so hard I hear my teeth grind. Either the air’s getting thinner, or I forgot how to breathe. Carlo seems pretty damn pleased with the effect he’s having, happily finishing his drink.

“This is how you planned to handle it?” I grind out through gritted teeth. “By forcing my kid’s mom to marry some lowlife motherfucker?”

“No one’s forcing anyone into marriage,” he says firmly. “I talked to Ava. If she wants to stay in Aurora’s life, she needs to choose one of the suitors I send her. Someone who can bond with Aurora. And no lowlifes are getting near your girl. I’ve picked out my cleanest guys, ones deep in my legit businesses.”

“Carlo!” I growl.

His voice hardens. “Only a man who’s truly worthy gets to step into their lives. You have my word.”

And I lose it. The rage coursing through me snaps the leash on my reason, and for the first time in years of running with Carlo, I raise my voice at my capo. I shoot to my feet, slam the glass on the floor, and roar with everything I’ve got.

“They’re mine!”

The claim feels so right coming out of my mouth, I repeat it.

“Mine. Both of them are mine.”

There’s no trace of anger on Carlo’s face for me crossing that line, just the familiar glint of victory in his eyes. Brando’s got a weird, sly smile.

Carlo calmly pours another whiskey and commands, “Sit.”

I let out a sharp breath but do as he says.

He leans back in his chair. “I’ve been watching your daughter up close for almost a year. I know her habits, her spirit. Every kid’s got their own personality, and your girl, Maxim? She’s the kind who needs a father figure. She needs a protector, someone she can lean on. She needs that more than anything. Sure, she loves her mom, but she craves a dad even more.”

His words douse the fire of my anger. I focus on him as he continues. “You’ve dealt with more women than any man I know. Tell me, aren’t the girls who end up in places like Heaven usually the ones without a strong father?”