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“That’s right. When he was twenty, his father demanded he execute a man. Actually, Mr. Beneventi handed the gun to Sandro’s brother. When his brother balked—on the verge of shaming them in front of representatives in the Five Famiglia—Sandro stepped in.”
I choke on my drink.
“Whenever Sandro’s deep in his cups, he talks about losing his innocence.” Tommaso finishes his beer. “Understand now why he’s fine whiskey and cheap beer?”
I nod, trying to reconcile what I just heard with the monster I know. I’m deep in thought when Tommaso slides a cell phone across the bar.
“You can FaceTime your grandparents.”
My eyes meet his. “But Sandro …”
Tommaso snorts. “You think I’d pass you a phone if he didn’t direct me to do so? You have Sandro’s permission to contact them so long as I’m listening in.”
My eyes tear up. Weeks without a word. Without my grandfather’s silly jokes. My nana’s unsolicited advice.
Sandro’s aware how close you are to them.
Maybe, just maybe, he’s ready to be reasonable.
Tommaso clears his throat. “Tell them you and your new boyfriend are traveling in Europe. You lost your passport, wallet, and cell phone, then apologize like hell for worrying them.”
I pause. “They’re going to ask about Ciro.”
“That conniving asshole? Tell them he had a freak accident at work. He was mixing concrete in a cement truck when his shirt got caught in the hydraulic cylinder. Poor fucker was sucked right in. An employee discovered him the next morning and called the police. And aside from Ciro drowning in a spinning vat of cement, know what they found?”
My hand clenches the limoncello glass. “What,” I whisper.
“Half a million dollars’ worth of coke locked in his office cabinet. It’s believed he was high as a kite when he died.”
My stomach drops as Ciro’s lifeless form, hanging from that beam, flashes across my mind.
“Your so-called friend, Kelly, was going to tell the police you were at C&C Enterprises when it happened. Sandro convinced her not to.”
I shake my head, then defend my friend. “But I was at work.”
“No. You were on an airplane headed to Europe. Accompanied by your boyfriend, Alessandro Beneventi, who surprised you with the trip.”
I place my glass on the bar for fear I’ll drop and shatter it. “Is this your explanation?”
“Nope.”
“Sandro wants me to name him?” I stutter.
“That’s right. Better to stick to the truth, though shade in a few grey areas.”
I place a hand to my throat, struggling to process this latest twist while remembering the pressure of Sandro’s fingers around my flesh after I asked for his name. “He’s not my boyfriend.”
Tommaso snorts.
“It was never like that between us.”
“Who sat outside your apartment every night waiting to drive him home?”
My cheeks heat. God, the filthy sex Sandro and I shared. He came, conquered, and destroyed me. But I hope I affected him as much. If I knew a witness was waiting nearby …
“Make your call, Riley. With the time change, your grandparents should be awake.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
