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They rose and shook hands over the table. “My men want to put all of this behind them,” Falcone said. “Move on with their lives. I want to build a better Mafia.”
“We’re on your side on this,” Declan said, his gaze sliding to Aidan. “You’ll have your loyalty from the Bellos or your proof. We’ll respect your decision on this for now. I’d rather we be friends than enemies.”
When Falcone turned toward the door, Aidan rounded the table and jogged to catch up with him. “Can I have a word?”
Falcone dismissed Leo and Gavin with a wave of his hand, and Aidan pulled him aside into a smaller, empty room.
“If he goes after her, I won’t hesitate to kill him. I’m not asking permission. I don’t care about your Mafia politics. If he takes a direct hit at Viv, he will not leave in anything but a body bag.”
Falcone studied Aidan for so long Aidan was worried he might be having a stroke or something. Finally he blinked and said, “Good. I’d expect nothing less.”
Without another word, he turned on his heel and strode out, leaving Aidan alone in the doorway to the long hallway.
“What the hell was that about?” Declan wondered when Aidan caught up to them on the stairs.
“A mutual understanding. If I can’t go after Collin, I want to discuss another protective detail for Viv. Any time she leaves the house.”
“She’s going to hate that,” Evie said.
“Well, I’d rather she hate me than be dead,” he replied, ignoring Evie’s startled expression.
Declan paused next to his car and scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “I can’t spare you indefinitely.”
“I know. A rotation, a schedule. Something.”
“Yeah.” He studied Aidan across the hood of his Range Rover. “If it's important to you, we’ll make it work.”
“It’s important to me.”
“Then we’ll figure it out. And Aidan?” Declan pulled open the door of his car. “If it's so important to you, try spending more time at home.”
Declan let the meaning hang in the air before getting into his car and pulling out of the lot. Evie didn’t say anything, just gave him a long look and followed Declan out.
“Are you going to give me some ominous look before driving away too?”
Brogan snorted. “You surprise me, little brother.”
“With what?”
“Nothing.”
“Brogan,” Aidan said, waiting until Brogan looked up at him again. “Will you help me find proof?”
With an almost imperceptible nod, Brogan folded himself behind the wheel of his Jag and drove away, gunning the engine.
Aidan didn’t like having his hands tied. He didn’t want to wait until the other shoe dropped before he could do something about this threat hanging over them. He wanted to find the proof he needed to get rid of this fucker and protect what was his. And he wouldn’t stop until he had it.
ChapterTwenty-One
Seven days, four hours, and—she glanced up at the clock on the bakery wall—twenty-eight seconds. That’s how long it had been since Aidan stuck her with yet another protective detail. This time, a steady rotation of men either from the syndicate or her brothers.
It was driving her crazy. Viv tried her best not to complain. The alternative might very well be keeping her safely locked away in Glenmore House. It was big, but it wasn’t that big. It wouldn’t take long for cabin fever to set in if they tried to keep her cooped up there.
Aidan had been spending more time at home, Declan’s influence, no doubt, with the way he seemed to carefully watch them at dinner. Proximity hadn’t made it any less awkward, though. It was like the man was trying to be as wooden and stilted as possible. She’d taken to figuring out which buttons to push just to get him to do more than smile and nod.
She preferred the yelling to the uncomfortable silence, and if she pressed the right buttons often enough, they ended the night sweaty and satiated. He might not be willing to give her a decent conversation, but he was more than willing to give her his body.
Which had only, obnoxiously, uncovered a new problem for her. It’s not that the sex was bad. She could hardly say that. But with their main interaction consisting of either staring at each other through strained smiles or fucking like animals, she was starting to feel like a warm body and not a wife. A very exhausted and sexually satisfied warm body, but a warm body nonetheless.
