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“Well, I’m sure I can think of someone who likes dick. Carmen Lana, for example. Her brother has a marina in Philly we could use.”
“Yes, I’m sure he’d welcome us to his marina,” I say sarcastically. “Especially since Pops used it without asking permission for three years.”
“Ada Russo. Her father has proposed a partnership more than once. It would expand your territory into Boston.”
I scrunch up my nose. “She laughs like a goat.”
“Then plug your fucking ears!” Uncle Ray shakes his shoulders as if he’s attempting to rid himself of his frustration. “Now, you can’t possibly find fault with every—”
Instantly, the image of soft-brown eyes and sinfully full lips comes to mind. Someone I’ve wanted for years but have always kept my distance from. And yet the very idea of her in my bed is the number one reason why I don’t toss my uncle’s suggestion of marriage out the window.
“Di Persia,” I say.
“What?”
“Di Persia. We’ve done business with them for years.”
Uncle Ray’s mouth drops open. “He’s broke! His freight business went bankrupt.”
I crack my fingers as the idea settles more fully in my mind. “The man still has some connections.”
“Connections?” Ray extends his hands imploringly. “Luca, this marriage must be good for business.”
“It will be. You said I needed to look settled. That’s what really matters. As a bonus, I’ll get a man who is already under my thumb. Someone who’s done work for me. Gregorio knows how to meet the needs of my business. And she’ll look pretty on my arm.”
“Quiet and beautiful,” he adds. “Can she be that?”
I recall every interaction I’ve had with her. There have been many. A lifetime, in fact. But it’s the more recent ones I dredge up. Most of my meetings with Gregorio Di Persia are held in his office. On occasion, she’ll be there. When she catches sight of me in the middle of dealings with her father, the disappointment in her expression and venom in her tone is instant. Every fucking time. And while I wouldn’t call her chatty, I’m not sure quiet is the right word either.
It doesn’t keep me from wanting her. It makes me want her more.
“Beautiful, yes,” I tell my uncle. “But she’s somewhat opini—” I stop mid-sentence as a new idea begins to form. A way I can have my cake and eat it too. “She can look very pretty,” I say, more to myself than to my uncle. “Though she may not want to marry me. But I’m sure she’s attracted to me.” That much has always been obvious. “It’s the fact that she knows what I do for a living.”
“If you’re set on her,” he says with a sigh, “then shall we formulate a plan?”
“No need. I told you, Gregorio is under my thumb. He owes me a favor. And the time has come to collect.” I steeple my hands beneath my chin. “If he wants to live, it will be he who has to convince Alma to marry me.”
3
CARINA
“Fucking car!” I slap my palms against the steering wheel, angry that my dad’s shitty Buick Regal can’t get me from work to the house without stalling at least once.
The driver behind me honks when I don’t move through the green light fast enough. In the rearview mirror, I see him wave his hand at me furiously.
“Yeah, yeah!” I flip him the bird, then turn the key, and the engine starts right up. “If you work, why do you keep shutting off?!” I scream, then feel awful because it’s not the car’s fault.
It’s been around since 1987, for God’s sake. It owes us nothing.
Really, I should be grateful that I at least have this. Otherwise, I’d find myself walking to and from my two jobs.
“Sorry, Bessie.” I pat the dash as if it understands me. “I’m not mad at you. The person I should be mad at is my dad. He’s the one who keeps getting us into troub…”
The words die on my lips as I round the corner to see three black SUVs and a Harley-Davidson parked in front of the house.
The Cadillacs, I’ve never seen, but the motorcycle, I’ve seen on too many occasions, and all of them have spelled trouble.
“Shit.” My lips pull tight as my blood pressure rises to dangerous levels. An all-too-familiar ache begins to throb behind my eyes as the car sputters to a halt behind the vehicles.
