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I squeezed between Tommy and Luca and stared at her in disbelief. “Fiancé?” Since when?
“Based on your faces, I’m guessing you didn’t know that these two are engaged.” Nikos chuckled, shaking his head at the whole scene. His eyes strayed to the women shamelessly watching the confrontation, making his disinterest in whatever his sister was up to clear.
Zoe took a step toward Tootsie, and a few Moretti men stepped in her path. “I’m not going to hurt him,” she spat.
“How do we know that? You’re a Chronis.” One of the guys called out.
Zoe reached into her bag and pulled out a gun. “You’re right. I am a Chronis, and if you know anything about us, we don’t hurt what’s ours. Unlike you Morettis.” She snorted, her features twisting in disgust. “Get out of my way.” Behind her, Nikos rolled his eyes but drew his gun. Within seconds, both sides were armed and just one asshole comment away from mowing each other down.
It didn’t take long for clubgoers to notice the armed standoff outside the VIP section. Women shrieked, and there was a great stampede from the dance floor. We were left alone in the large, cavernous space, the loud music still blasting.
Luca reached down and helped Tootsie to his feet. “You think we did this?” I could hear him trying to hide his amusement. He studied Zoe, unbothered that she had her gun pointed at him.
“Who else?” Her eyes fell on me for a brief moment, and she frowned. “Hand him over, and there won’t be any problems.”
“Alex, Nikos, are you ready to go to war over this? Because your sister is upsetting the very delicate treaty, we just put in place.” Luca adjusted a groaning Tootsie.
“My ribs. Shit.”
Zoe took a step toward the wall of men with guns, her focus never leaving Tootsie. “Let me get him help!” She screamed.
Luca bent his head and said something to Tootsie, getting a grunt in return. “Let Zoe, Nikos, and Alex through. The rest of them can wait outside the VIP.”
With their sister between them, the brothers shrugged and passed through the first ring of Moretti defense. When they got close enough, Zoe ran to Tootsie’s side, taking some of the weight off Luca’s shoulders. She scanned his injuries, gently touching him and whispering in his ear.
I motioned for my friends to move to the other side of the VIP. Adriana immediately went, but Ashley had to coax Malcolm to listen. As they sat, she took some cocktail napkins and dabbed his bloody knuckles. Wrapping up a couple of ice cubes, she held them to his hands as they quietly argued, shooting quick looks at the deadly standoff happening between them and the exit.
Luca and Zoe carried Tootsie to the farthest couch, settling him in the corner to help keep him propped up. I grabbed a bottle of water from the table and handed it to Zoe. It was abundantly clear she wouldn’t let anyone else care for Tootsie, and you had to respect that kind of possessiveness.
Nikos, Alex, Luca, and Marco sat in the chairs around the table. I perched on the arm of Luca’s chair, and he wrapped his arm around my hip. The music had been turned down, but heavy bass still vibrated through the building, creating a strange setting for such an important conversation.
Zoe boldly broke the silence, saying, “I want to take Torquato home with me. I don’t trust you won’t kill him for disobeying your orders.”
Luca’s fingers tightened on me, but he didn’t speak.
Marco leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “You think we brought Tootsie to the club to kill him?” He arched an eyebrow, a wry smile on his face.
Zoe lifted her chin, unwilling to back down. “Look at him.”
“Zoe,” Tootsie choked out. “They didn’t do this. I earned this beating.” He laughed, but it quickly became a wheeze as he grabbed his side. “I think my ribs are broken.”
“What?” Zoe’s confidence faltered.
“Torquato,” Luca said his cousin’s given name with a certain amount of flourish. “Is my consigliere. Why would I kill him?”
She flinched. Tootsie being Luca’s advisor added a new barrier to their relationship.
“Maybe a better question is, would Tootsie be safe with you?”
Luca’s words landed like one of Malcolm’s punches, and Zoe slumped. Looking at her brothers, her eyes turned glassy, begging for them to make everything right.
Alex scratched his jaw as he looked at his sister. His brow wrinkled, and he slowly nodded. “Okay. We’ll make the same deal with Tootsie as we did with you. Consider it another guarantee of peace.”
“Are you okay with that, Zoe?” Luca looked at his former . . . girlfriend? Former arranged marriage fiancée?
“I assume I won’t get to continue working the books with you?” She looked at Nikos, and he shook his head.
“Sorry, Zoe. You’ll be a Moretti.”
