Epilogue

After returning from their trip to LA, both Antonio and Lyle were ready to dive back into their New York lives.

The city was still as dark and dangerous a place as ever, but neither Antonio nor Lyle were going to take a backward step now.

Antonio felt reinvigorated from reconnecting with friends in LA and made some seriously interesting new associates. It turned out that LA was full of Doms. They were powerful, rich, and looking to get involved with Antonio. It was an exciting time, that was for sure.

But more than anything, what filled Antonio’s heart with joy was the deep feeling of companionship he got from being with Lyle. Yes, the boy could still be sassy and a pain in the ass from time to time. And Antonio would frequently need to dish out some strict discipline when he didn’t follow instructions or show the correct respect.

However, that was all a normal part of life and Antonio wouldn’t have changed it for the world. So much so in fact that Antonio began to talk more and more to Luca about finding himself a boy too.

Luca might have still been unsure, but Antonio could sense on some level that Luca was ready to settle down. It was just a question of who the boy would be…

Ultimately, that was Luca’s business. As far as Antonio was concerned, he had everything that he needed with Lyle. Life in the mafia could be brutal. Even a strategic thinker like Antonio didn’t know who was waiting around the corner ready to ambush him with a sawn-off shotgun.

And the truth of the matter was that with each passing year there would be a new crew, a crazier rival, and much more death and destruction on the horizon. But that was the life that The Sorrento men were born into and would die in too.

Antonio didn’t live in fear though. Each and every day was a delight, and he knew he would never, ever stop loving his boy with all his heart.

He may have been the Sorrento’s master strategist, but Antonio was more ready to kill than ever before if it meant keeping his devoted love Lyle safe from harm’s way.

And Lyle’s desire to dig for the truth was always going to bring him up close and personal with danger. His career was continuing its ascendancy. Lyle loved his work, he loved his social life, and more than anything else he loved his Master.

Lyle would sometimes worry that Antonio would leave for business and never return. But that was all part of the mafia life. Lyle was going to stick to the right side of the law, but he knew that no Sorrento man could ever be expected to. And that was fine. Lyle loved Antonio for who he was, not who he wasn’t - and that was more than good enough for him.

Lyle had found his deadly savior, and it filled him with the kind of fulfilment that no other man in the whole city could ever dream of providing him.

And just when things looked like they couldn’t get better, Lyle looked up from his laptop and saw Antonio standing over him with a steaming hot espresso cup.

‘It’s small but perfect!’ Lyle giggled, sipping on the sweet, perfectly bitter drink.

‘Just like you, boy,’ Antonio replied, taking a gulp from his own espresso. ‘Just like you…’