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“And then?" she wondered as he started the engine and pulled onto the street.
“And then Collin Milano is going to wish he'd left you the fuck alone.”
ChapterFourteen
The sun hung low on the horizon, casting long shadows over the city as Aidan drove away from the glistening skyscrapers toward squat brick warehouses and stone buildings. Declan wanted to wait until after the wedding to implement Aidan’s new inventory and distribution system, which was just as well. Arguing about Collin and the Milanos had kept them plenty occupied.
Falcone didn’t see them as much of a threat. Little people talking a big game. They didn’t have much power or much support in the Mafia, not enough for a full-on takeover anyway. Collin apparently got his charm from his father, who had been arrested twice for domestic violence. Giordano had greased the right palms to get him released both times.
But even with Falcone’s assurances that it was probably nothing, something didn’t sit right with him. It all felt too personal, too targeted at Viv specifically. Declan insisted, however, and Falcone agreed that going after Viv to break up the alliance made sense. As if she was some kind of weak link. The woman was anything but.
Aidan wanted to send this fucker a warning, but Declan had ordered him to stand down. No need to stir up trouble with a wild card this close to the wedding. Except it wasn’t Aidan doing the stirring. Collin was clearly sending a message, and their answer was to ignore him. The wedding would proceed, the marriage would be consummated, and the alliance would be sealed. That was that.
But Aidan knew demands like that didn’t drift into the ether when they weren’t met. Cementing the alliance on Saturday wouldn’t make Collin or his family’s desire to subvert it simply vanish. They’d have to respond to it eventually, and Aidan was worried the price would be much higher by the time they did.
For now, though, he’d been ordered not to touch the son of a bitch, and since he and Declan had established a tentative truce in the last few weeks, Aidan was unwilling to push him too hard on it. He’d settled for extra security at the wedding and Nico following Viv around like a hawk while she got ready for the ceremony.
He pulled into the gravel lot of one of their smaller warehouses and glanced at the clock on the dash. Sean’s car was here, and he was, no doubt, already inside waiting. Probably checking his watch with that irritated scowl on his face that reminded Aidan of his father.
James pulled in as Aidan crossed the lot, jogging to catch up with him. It was still odd to see James out doing syndicate business. He hadn’t been back in the field much since his wife had been murdered a few months ago. For the first time, Aidan wondered if all the wedding talk weighed on him.
“I hear you’ve got plans for inventory and distribution changes,” James said, pulling open the side door and letting Aidan go ahead of him.
Aidan shrugged. “I haven’t talked to Sean about it yet to take his temperature on it. You think he’ll be pissed I overstepped?" Sean had been handling logistics since Aidan was in diapers.
“I doubt it. Okay, well, maybe a little pissed,” James chuckled when he saw Aidan’s raised brows. “But not because you overstepped. Because he hates change.”
“The more efficient we are, the more money we make.”
“Lead with that,” James said, following the long hallway past the front offices and toward the storage hangars in the back.
Sean stood at the far end, clipboard in hand, running through the list as he scanned the wooden crates lining the floor in neat rows.
“You’re late,” he said, glancing up from his task. “It’s all hands on deck to clear out the last of the inventory for buyers and get this shit off to new homes before the wedding, and we’ve only got a few days left.”
There was a slight hitch in James's step, but he recovered quickly. Aidan could hear the strain in his voice when he asked, “Where’s the rest of the team?”
“They’re out back, loading the truck for the first delivery. I want to finish cataloging the rest of this, and then it should be good for the second delivery we’re running tonight.”
Sean shifted his gaze to Aidan. “I hear we’ll be doing things a little differently soon.”
“Just trying to keep profits up.”
Sean’s stare was unflinching before he inclined his head. “Up is the best place to keep them. Here.” He shoved a crowbar into Aidan’s chest and nodded to wooden crates on the far side of the warehouse floor. “Start with the ones lined up over there.”
Aidan used the crowbar to pry the lid off the first crate. “Declan tell you about this Collin guy we’ve been dealing with?”
“He mentioned it when I saw him yesterday,” James said, stooping to brush away the packing material and count the weapons in the crate. “Said he was a guy with a big mouth and a small dick.”
“While I am positive that’s true,” Aidan replied, pounding the lid on the crate back into place once James made his tally, “I’m not convinced that’s all it is.”
“Why?" Sean wondered, leaning against a concrete pillar with his arms crossed.
“There are other, better ways to poke at the alliance and push us into backing out than targeting Viv or any woman. And I’d rather be out there pummeling my fist into that bastard’s face getting answers than here counting and delivering guns,” Aidan added, prying off the lid to another crate.
“Aww,” James crooned. “That’s so sweet. We love hanging out with you too, cuz.”
Aidan rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. What kind of fuck goes after a woman to get what he wants?”
