*Cat*
Elio’s eyes collided with mine and held. Sothing was going on. I knew it.
This was his chance to prove that he really didn’t think of as soone who always had to be left behind. We would see how he handled this when the call ended.
The conversation didn’t take very long, and Elio didn’t even speak during the call. He didn’t look angry or upset. He looked more thoughtful than anything.
“Can you call Matilda?” he asked.
“Sure, I can call Mom.”
“Good. Call her and see if she can co over to watch over Emilia while we go see what’s going on with Franky.“
I walked to the closet to the gun box and took out my piece. I checked it, checked the chambers, and made sure everything was in working order. I put on my holster and picked up my phone to call Mom.
“Mom?“
“Hey, how are you doing?”
Mom sounded preoccupied as if she were reading sothing, or more than likely, watching television.
The room beside Emilia’s had a nice television in it and all the streaming networks my mother could ever wish for.
“Elio and I have an ergency task that we need to complete. Can you co over and take care of Emilia? We just put her down to sleep a few minutes ago.“
“Sure, I can do that. Give a few minutes to grab a couple of things to co over with.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
I hit the button and put the phone in my pocket. Elio and I walked to the back door together to wait for my mother there. For so reason, we were silent the entire ti. It was as if we had made a mutual decision not to say much until after we left the house.
Mom bled through the door with her usual energy.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Not sure, Matilda,” Elio answered honestly.
I kissed her cheek and hugged her close. “Thanks so much, Mom. You’re the best.“
“You know I love hanging out with my granddaughter, even when she’s snoring at ,” she said with a laugh.
I chuckled a little, too worried about what was going on to give a genuine laugh.
I was sure she could feel the tension in the room and was trying to lighten the mood, but this mood would not be lightened. I just hoped it wasn’t sothing horrible or sothing we couldn’t figure out easily.
I was so tired of bad news. This was a ti in our lives when everything should be good and wonderful. To take my mind off my nervous energy, I thought about the dress Simona had started designing that day and how beautiful it would probably turn out.
I wanted everything to be beautiful and pristine just like that dress, but life was rarely without mishaps, and it was ssier than any beautiful white dress any day of the week. I said goodbye to Mom, stalling just a bit before walking out the back door with Elio.
As we drove away heading toward the warehouse, I assud, I asked Elio, “Do you know what this is about?”
“I’m sure it’s about Junior, but I don’t know the specifics yet. I just hope it’s not too bad.”
Junior had wreaked havoc before. He was nothing but a troublemaker, and he made life harder than it needed to be.
I was with Elio on this one. I hoped it wasn’t too bad. I rembered how it used to be when Junior was around before, especially when I thought he was just a guy nad Paul, my boyfriend. I shuddered at the thought.
I didn’t want to ever think about that ti in my life again. I wished he would disappear and never co back. And why did he have to show up now when everything was so perfect between Elio and ?
When we got to the warehouse, Franky was waiting for us.
He didn’t seem surprised to see . I assud he was getting used to being with Elio whenever there was a call that didn’t put in imdiate danger. After all, this had a lot to do with and my child as well. I had to know what was going on so that I could protect us both when Elio wasn’t there.
“I don’t know what the fuck Junior was thinking, but he sent over a ssage saying that he intends to finish what he started the last ti.“ Franky said.
“How’d he send the ssage?” Elio furrowed his brow.
“He sent it through so guy no one knows. Poor guy nearly pissed his pants when I drew down on him.”
“You drew down on him?” Elio asked.
“Yeah, it was probably a dumb thing to do, but he was threatening you,” he said. “Junior told him to tell that the next ti he saw you, he’d be there to kill you. I wanted to shoot his ass for being the ssenger, but I realized it would have been pointless. So, I let his ass go.”
Elio was pissed. I could see it in his face. He put his hands in his pockets and stared at Franky as if Franky was the one who made the threat.
“I tell you what. Since he wants to make an enemy of , we will make him enemy number one!” He was practically growling with anger. “Here’s what I want you to do. Get that bastard’s photo out to everybody in our crew. I want you to find out everything you can about Junior. Dig into every crevice of that little fucker’s background. I want him to feel hunted.”
I loved seeing Elio this way. He was so commanding and took charge. His expression was clear and he stood firm, though I could tell that his mind was going a mile a minute. Though his stance was casual, he was ready for battle.
I didn’t bla him for that. He was tired of people harming his family and threatening him. So was I.
Elio also had the added stress of worrying about the mafia business overall. While he had a lot of n on the ground helping him run things, no one knew all the intricacies of the business like Elio. If sothing happened to him, God forbid, the family would have to send soone else over from Italy. By the ti whoever it was ca over to hold the business together got here, it might not still be standing.
I was proud of my man for being strong and knowing his business. He knew how to handle his n and gave orders without stepping on people’s toes or making people angry. He was confident that his orders would be carried out and that his n would co through for him. Like he’d said, he did not surround himself with weaklings.
“When we get them, what do you want us to do?” Franky asked.
“I’d say kill the fucker, but I want to talk to him first.”
“Sure, we can do that.”
“Have you seen him since he’s been back?” I asked.
Franky nodded. “That’s how we knew he was around before he sent that warning.”
“I’m talking about more recently,” I clarified.
Elio looked thoughtful for a mont. “She’s right. The last ti we saw him, where was he?”
“I think I see where you’re going with this,“ Franky said, snapping his fingers and walking over to a map on the wall.
I followed Elio and Franky over to the map, looking at it and pointing to one of the places on the map where I knew he’d been the last ti he was around. Elio pointed out another spot on the map and Franky pointed out a third point close by.
“Do you think he’s over there?” Elio asked.
Franky stared at the dots and shook his head. “I hope he’s not that stupid.”
“I hope he is,“ I said, staring at the area as well.
It was an old haunt Junior used to have, but it would have been exponentially stupid for him to still be in the sa area. It would be the first place soone would look for him. Junior was cunning enough to pull a double bluff, but I didn’t think he would in this situation. He needed stealth to do what he planned to do.
“Search it,” Elio said, a grim look on his face. “I want you to cover all the bases with this. If he’s being stupid, maybe we can catch him at his own ga. If he’s not playing gas just to get us over there, then, that’s fine too.”
“What if it’s a trap?” I asked.
Franky was thoughtful and shook his head again. “While I think Junior is smart enough to pull sothing like this, I don’t think he’s going to this ti. I don’t think he would set Elio up, mostly because he wants to be the one to take him down.“
“Be careful anyway,” Elio said. “We can’t assu it’s not an ambush. He could be trying to lure you all over there while leaving and Cat out in the open or alone at the house.”
“You have a point,” Franky agreed.
I looked at the map again, trying to understand Junior’s ga. Yes, he probably had his own n again, and he was a force to be reckoned with. He could cause a lot of trouble for everyone in the city, not just us.
Junior was a loose cannon. He was not a stupid man, but occasionally his arrogance made him appear stupid. I just wanted him away from and mine.
Franky and Elio talked for a few more minutes. When Elio and I were back in the car, my skin heated, and I thought of the way he looked in the warehouse giving orders. He was so sexy when he was so commanding and in control like that, and I just wanted to tear his clothes off.
“I don’t want to go back in right now,“ I whispered in his ear.
He looked into my eyes, and he must’ve seen exactly what I wanted.
“Can you park near the pond when we get back to the compound?”
“Sure thing,” he said, smiling.
It was hard to keep my hands off him on the long drive ho.
“You can have the rest of the night off,” Elio said to the driver as we entered the compound and the driver parked where Elio’s asked him to before.
“Thank you, sir,” the driver said, and he left us with the windows down, listening to the night air and breathing in its scents.
“What are you up to?” he asked.
But I was pretty sure he knew the answer to that.
“Oh, I don’t know,“ I said, climbing into his lap and straddling him. I loosened his tie, pulling it from around his neck, and then opened the buttons of his shirt.
He grinned at , his eyes lighting with sensual hunger.
“Now that you’ve gotten here, what are you going to do with ?“ he asked, his voice deepening in timber and his hands rubbing at my hips and playing with the bottom of my blouse.
“I intend to have my wicked way with you,“ I teased.
I nibbled at his bottom lip.
We started to kiss, our bodies heating and straining toward one another. My breast touched his chest. His hands caressed my lower curves. I pulled back from kissing him long enough to pull my top over my head and snap open the front of my bra.
He looked down at my breasts as if he would devour . I leaned closer to him and slanted my mouth over his again.
My entire body lit up like a struck match, its fla growing with each kiss and caress. Would it always be this way with this beautiful man I held in my arms? Would he always make feel like I was the most important person in his world?
Would he always light every cell in my body afla and then combust with as we fell into passion?
The questions rolled through my mind as our bodies took over and our souls collided.
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