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He might have memories of what we’d done the last time I saw him rioting through my brain.
But he wasn’t the only one who could play that game. And the minute I got him alone, I was going to remind him exactly how much he’d always wantedme. And what he’d promised me the last time we saw each other, about never keeping another secret from me again.
3
BROOKS
Ileaned into the bar, my back deliberately turned toward the room, and nursed my second glass of whiskey as I went over what Penny had said again and again. She’d been less than forthcoming about how she’d found out about Anthony—or even whether she realized he was the one who’d been following her and Michael on that fateful night—but she’d been crystal clear on some important details. This band was a new one for her, but it seemed to be made up of his best friends. She didn’t think they were in the family, but thought they did know who he was.
She’d been surprised about the band, but it had made sense to me. Yes, it was a strange hobby for a guy as high up in a major crime family as he was, but it was less confusing when you knew what I knew about him. Like that he’d never wanted to be part of the mob in the first place. His uncle, Ercole, was the head of a family that was richer and more powerful than any other in the city, but who rarely made appearances. I knew they still had rackets going on—probably around the world—but they kept those under wraps.. Officially, no one did business with the Massimos anymore, not because they were outcasts but because they’d just stopped pursuing deals with any other family.
They’d become ghosts.
Rich ghosts who were still insanely powerful and could take you out with the snap of their fingers if they wanted to.
Ercole had ushered the family into a position where they didn’t have to war with anyone else, though, and he’d done it so smoothly that no one had known it was going on. But he’d killed members of his own family to get it done, and that had left scars within the family itself.
Anthony’s father had been one of the first casualties. Ercole’s younger brother—Anthony’s father—had been the biggest challenge to Ercole’s rule, and therefore the biggest danger. I’d lost touch with Anthony before it happened, but we’d heard the rumors. And it didn’t take a genius to realize that it would have turned Anthony—always a sensitive sort of guy—off from getting any more involved with the family.
I wondered if that was what he was doing here. Pursuing his own version of life that didn’t include the mafia.
If that was true, though, why the hell had he been tailing Penny and Michael?
A sudden warmth directly behind me warned me I was no longer alone, and a moment later a hot breath whispered across the back of my neck.
“You look like you’re thinking entirely too hard for such a pretty girl.”
I tensed, hating that men thought they could just walk up to a girl and whisper something like that in their ear. Hating even more that they expected any girl to accept it and maybe even enjoy the attention. Act like they were flattered to have caught some guy’s attention.
And maybe other girls would have faked it right now, just to avoid any drama.
But I wasn’t other girls.
I turned so fast I caught the guy still standing far too close to me, which just made my job even easier. A sharp jerk of my head and I heard the crunch of bone as his nose broke. A flick of my wrist and his windpipe was crushed. Another quick movement and he went to the ground, clutching his balls like he’d just been kicked there.
Probably because he had.
“Asshole,” I muttered, stepping over him and walking to the other side of the bar without bothering to see whose feathers I might have ruffled with my actions. I didn’t care.
And I dared anyone to come at me over what I’d done. Men like that guy deserved to be taken down like the rats they were.
I pulled up to the bar in a different place, gestured to the bartender for another glass of whiskey, and realized that the music had stopped. When I turned and glanced at the stage, wondering whether I’d actually stopped the show, I saw that I had.
And Anthony Massimo was staring at me like he was seeing a fucking ghost.
* * *
His look of shock turned into a cheeky, entirely too charming grin when he jumped off the stage and walked toward me, though, and I felt the same grin stretching my own lips.
I couldn’t help it. I’d known this guy since I was a kid and had no clue what the world might hold for us, and though I chose Joseph and Sloane’s side of the line, I’d always have a soft spot for Anthony and the smooth way he glided through the world.
And boy, had he grown up. He’d been gawky and awkward the last time I saw him—the one and only time we’d slept together—and though all the promise of a handsome man had been there, we’d barely been old enough to drink. He’d been all potential and no follow-through.
Times had definitely changed.
I stretched without meaning to, my back arching in appreciation of the way he was looking at me. His gaze ran from my face down over my body and back up, and when his eyes found mine again, I could see that he was thinking the same thing about me. I bit my lip and let another lazy smile grow on my lips.
I’d been intrigued when I saw him on that video. Interested when Penny had said she knew where to find him. It had been a good plan—find the guy, sex him up, and find out what he knew about what his family was doing and why—but I’d had my doubts about how well it would work. Sure, I knew Anthony would remember who I was, and I’d been sure he’d still want me. But I hadn’t known if we’d have the same chemistry, and that chemistry was going to be important if I was going to get him to give up any secrets.
