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For the situation.
Truth be told, leaving her felt like the dumbest choice I had ever made in my life.But it was logical. I did it to protect everyone. Staying with her and playing this game of love would only get us all killed.Knowing her though, she’d probably come out on top.
Either way, she can’t be with you.
I was supposed to meet with the Reeds for a routine business meeting, but that always meant I had to have the right man with me. I really hoped Chris wouldn’t say something stupid.Best to leave him in the car; otherwise, he might get himself killed too.
Dealing with gangsters wasn’t bad when you held the purse strings, but I still had to be careful. I was getting close to the location when my phone started buzzing.
It was Carlo,my right hand man. He wasn’t the kind to call on his day off.Something was definitely off.
“This better be important,” I said.
“Boss, I think they’re the ones who took Adriana,” Carlo said. My heart skipped a beat. Just thinking of her made me flustered. I had to keep my cool.
“What makes you say that?”
“I was doing some recon and one of their guys is a snitch. He told me everything.”
I nodded satisfactorily. Money does buy a lot, including information.
“You sure about this?” It was sometimes tough to tell, even by good, seasoned men like Carlo.
“Guy showed me the wrecked car and everything, paperwork for the title, all of it. I’m telling you, they wanted to use her as collateral.”
Great.Not only did I have to deal with an overprotective father, but I also had to make sure the warring gang didn’t do something to her. Even though I had left her, I still cared for her. I wanted to make sure she was ok, and any threat to her was a threat against me.
“Who put out the hit?” I didn’t think they would try to kill her, but I had to be sure.
“Not sure about a hit, but they’ve told me that she’s the key to Frank’s money,” Carlo said. “Guess someone figured it out sooner rather than later.”
I breathed deeply.More money, more problems. And beautiful women…
I knew she was trouble, and I still wanted her. I knew that her father didn’t want me with her, and I knew that having her would be the greatest forbidden fruit of my life. She wasn’t just a hot fling, and she was more than just eye candy. No, she was the real deal.
Adriana, how I wish you knew.
Chris stopped the car. We were at our destination: a small, discreet warehouse in the middle of a nondescript industrial park. There weren’t too many cars, which I took as a good sign.Less men.I hung up on Carlo. It was time to get down to business. I stepped out of the vehicle then turned to Chris.
“Stay here,” I told him. “And be ready to get us out of here if we have to.”
“Piece of cake,” Chris said. Then he patted the gun in his holster. “I got you.”
“I’m good,” I assured, showing my own weapon. I knew they’d pat me down, but at least if they saw it they’d know I wasn’t messing around.
Sure enough, when I entered the small warehouse, they did. The guard who checked me wasn’t very good though, and I went through with my gun.
Marion Reed, the son of the head of the Reed mafia, was there instead of his father, Braden Reed. Braden had done it as a slight against me. Unlike the Reeds, however, I wasn’t petty and didn’t care.
“What can I do for you?” I asked Marion.
“Your man Frank is getting on our nerves,” he said. “He’s taking our cash, and you know we don’t like that.”
I was sure they didn’t, but I had to shrug. The interpersonal politics of being a rich man who dipped in all manner of dirty business was not lost on me.
“I only pay bills,” I said.
Marion snorted. Braden should have been there, because his son wasn’t very bright. His man wasn’t very good at patting me down, and he had no negotiation skills. He had no tact.
