Chapter 43 MICELI

Thursday

Salvatore brings his kidnapped waitress to the family dinner. As a deterrent against Catalina's matchmaking, it's pretty effective. Especially with the way the two of them keep sneaking heated looks at each other.

Catalina doesn't throw her sister in my cousin's path once before we leave to meet in Sev's office.

Uncle Sal follows his son into the room and I bring up the rear.

My brother leans against the front of his desk. "Everything still going smoothly with the bar properties?"

Salvatore's tone is filled with smug satisfaction when he gives the breakdown to my brother. He deserves that smugness. One of the bars is in Manhattan and allowing any other mafia to own it would put us in a weaker position.

The two that are in other boroughs will give my brother leverage in his bid for godfather.

"No interference from Stellar Holdings?" Sev asks.

Henry Caruso and his cousin in the Lombardi Mafia up in Boston tried to buy the properties out from under us. It didn't work, but Henry is going to have to be dealt with sooner than later.

He cannot be the next Lucchese don, no matter what his uncle wants.

Salvatore reassures Sev that the man who sold the bars won't be a problem and therefore neither will Henry Caruso or his Lombardi cousin.

I ask about the jammer blocking texts and calls from them to the man who owned the bars .

Juniper tried to double cross us to get more money for the properties from the Lombardis, but we don't play fair.

Now, the bars are in Salvatore's name. Sev has his leverage and we have two additional properties outside Manhattan and one in it for laundering money.

Salvatore says, "Now that the paperwork is filed it is set to self-delete once he sets his device to charge."

"I'm surprised Matthew hasn't sent people to check on him." I would in his place.

"No reason to. The GPS on the woman's phone still registers at the house and the false GPS signal Domenico's people set up for Juniper's phone does too."

Which is smart on Salvatore's part, but not an excuse for Lombard's inaction. "It's still sloppy."

My cousin's expression says he agrees.

"Lorenzo called me." Sev looks at Salvatore and not me when he says this.

But I'm the one overseeing the investigation into that rat.

Our cousin crosses his arms, looking belligerent.

"He says you were very disrespectful when he came to Amuni," Uncle Sal throws his oar into the water.

Family dynamic in the mafia is always a juggling act. Uncle Sal is the consigliere. His son is a capo. They're equals in terms of rank, but they are also father and son.

It was easier for me and Sev because our father was the don. When we got made we each vowed to submit to his authority as our don.

Salvatore and Uncle Sal exchange some words.

"He's lucky I did not kill him. If he tries to touch her again, I will slit his throat," my cousin finally says, anger making his voice rough.

I don't even try to hold back my cynical laugh. "It's Severu all over again. No woman is going to turn me into a Neanderthal like you two."

Sev isn't impressed. "Good luck with that. You share my DNA."

"But not your obsession for your wife." My brother's feelings for Catalina have nothing to do with DNA.

We are both our father's sons.

"If you did, I would have to kill you," he replies in a conversational tone that I do not mistake for one that lacks conviction.

Sev will kill any man who touches his wife, including me.

Still, my lips twist wryly. "You know what I mean, brother. I will never obsess over a woman like you do Catalina."

Not even a certain Irish mob princess whose pussy tastes like the honey of the gods .

" Never is a dangerous word you could end up eating." Severu gives me a big-brother look.

A don would not concern himself with such trivial things. But my brother? Yes.

I shake my head though.

I'm not worried. I'm marrying for the sake of the mafia, not for my own sake. That's no recipe for love.

Even if I thought I was capable of feeling that emotion. Lust is another matter.

Salvatore raises his hand palm out toward his dad. "Do not tell me you would do any differently if he tried to maul mamma."

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen," I say with mocking pity.

Uncle Sal is not amused. "Are you saying this nobody, this outsider you have known less than two weeks, is your woman? Monica worked for you for six months before you were serious enough about her to ask Enzo's permission to tell her the truth about your role in la famiglia ."

We all wait in silence for my cousin's response. Pretty sure my uncle is expecting a different one than me though. I don't know what Sev thinks.

"She is mine." Salvatore's words don't surprise me.

But I'm the only one.

Sev gives our cousin a narrow eyed stare. "Are you saying you are not open to being the husband in the alliance deal with Shaughnessy?"

What the fuck?

No one is marrying Róise Shaughnessy but me. It's my bloody fingerprint next to hers on that contract.

"I'm the sacrificial lamb in that scenario," I remind my brother in a hard voice. "The deal is done."

The look Sev gives me is not friendly. "You two fight like cats and dogs. Maybe Salvatore won't piss her off so easily."

What the fuck is he talking about? Róise was disappointed when I told her about moving the wedding forward, but she wasn't pissed off. Her fury was reserved for her dean.

Who will not make the mistake of believing he can disrespect her again.

"She is my fiancée." My hands curl into fists and I have to slam a lid on the desire to drive both into my brother's smug face.

"I am not marrying her," Salvatore inserts with utter conviction.

The blunt words, if not the sentiment, surprise me. My brother could see that kind of adamant refusal as disloyalty .

Not that he does. The surprise on the stronzo del cazzo's face morphs to satisfaction almost instantly. He nods at my cousin in silent permission to pursue Bianca.

The look he gives me doesn't have any of that approval. "Figure your shit out with Róise then. This marriage is supposed to cement an alliance, not start a war."

Salvatore leaves. No doubt to go find his new obsession.

"Severu—" Uncle Sal starts to say.

My brother puts his hand up. "No, Uncle Sal. I don't want to hear it. If you can't see the way Salvatore looks at Bianca, I can. She's good for him."

I have to agree. I see more of the cousin that I knew when we were younger than I have in two decades.

"Marrying her does nothing for la famiglia ," Uncle Sal says.

"No, but it would do a lot for your son. He's a good, loyal man. He deserves to be happy. And you know Aunt Ilaria agrees with me."

Uncle Sal lets out a long-suffering sigh. "My wife sometimes allows sentiment to overcome good sense."

"I'll be sure and tell her you said so," I say with a shark's grin.

Uncle Sal just rolls his eyes. "You can't get me in any more trouble than I am already. I haven't been friendly to my son's girlfriend and according to my wife, that is equal to a cardinal sin."

I'm not surprised Aunt Ilaria has taken such a shine to Bianca Gemelli. Salvatore's housekeeper is my aunt's best friend and Rosa has adopted Bianca right under her protective wing.

I wait for our uncle to leave before rounding on Sev. "What the hell was that?"

Without answering, Sev walks over to his drinks cabinet and pulls out the whiskey. Pouring himself a glass, he asks with a raised eyebrow if I want one too.

I jerk my head in the affirmative.

After handing me my glass and taking a sip of his own whiskey, he looks me straight in the eye. "We have to present a united, strong front in the face of Henry's bid for power."

"Agreed." It's more imperative now than ever to go public with our mob alliance.

Sev frowns. "Brogan called me earlier. Róise refuses to move up the wedding date."

"She didn't say anything about…" I let my voice trail off because that's not true.

Okay, yeah. She said she wasn't going to agree to it. But only once. And she didn't bring it up again.

I left Long Island believing Róise was onboard with the new plan.

Or not really caring either way?

Because I assumed having Brogan's agreement was what really mattered. I'd gone to tell her myself about the change out of courtesy, not because I was looking for her approval.

"Cazzo," I mutter.

Sev just looks at me.

"She was mad at the dean, and I fixed that problem." Believing I was doing her a favor.

Managgia la miseria .

Tripped up by my own arrogance. Because I didn't fucking ask. Róise said she wasn't going to walk down the aisle and I dismissed that as her go to reaction.

Stubborn refusal.

My brother throws back the rest of his whiskey. "Apparently she was mad at you."

"You think?"

"Yep."

"That was rhetorical," I say sourly.

"Brogan said that she came to him asking for a different groom last Friday." My brother drops this bomb without inflection.

"No fucking way."

"I thought you smoothed things over after her birthday." I hate the look of disappointment in my brother's eyes.

I don't let my family down. Ever.

"They were. We had hella good sex and she loved the birthday presents I gave her." Why would she ask her uncle for a different groom?

It makes no sense.

"Sex doesn't fix everything."

"Did you get that wisdom from Catalina or Cosmo ?"

"My wife has mentioned it a time, or two."

Or ten, I bet. "Listen, Sev, Róise and I texted back and forth all week. She wasn't looking to get out of our contract."

"She's doesn't want to break the contract."

"Just marry some other guy. That will happen over my dead body," I warn my brother.

It looks like my secret fiancée and I need to have a talk.

~ ~ ~

When I see the three empty spots at the dining room table, I decide to mess with my cousin. Smiling at my aunt, I sit in one of the empty chairs near her clearly meant for the couple .

Pretending not to hear my aunt's hissed, "That's Salvatore's chair," I pour myself a glass of wine from one of the decanters in the center of the table.

I haven't even taken a sip when my cousin pulls out the chair next to me for Bianca.

"Where is Nerissa?" she asks.

My aunt gives me a disapproving frown. "She's working tonight." Her tone is nothing but sweet for the pretty redhead though.

I have to admit Salvatore has good taste, but green eyes are the only ones I want to look into this close up. Doesn't matter. Messing with my cousin is the goal, not his girlfriend.

I'm ready for the punch when it comes so I don't flinch, but cazzo , my cousin's punch carries some power.

"Move, Miceli, this is my seat," he growls like some damn Neanderthal.

I go to take a sip of my wine. "Catalina didn't assign seats tonight."

Salvatore grabs the glass and marches around the table. He's lucky the stem on my wineglass doesn't break when he slams it down on the table. "I'm assigning them. Move your ass."

Aunt Ilaria gasps. "Salvatore, you cannot speak to the don's underboss that way."

"That's rich coming from you." I'm not sure who the glare is for, but I get that I'm not the only one on Salvatore's list right now.

I wonder what Aunt Ilaria did to earn his ire. It wasn't criticizing Bianca. My aunt likes the enigmatic younger woman too much.

Catalina smiles at me. She's used to my warped humor. "Miceli, come and sit by me. I want you here when me and Severu make our announcement."

Ah, they are finally going to share their news. Not that I'm supposed to know what it is, but hello? We live in the same damn space. What else is going to cause her to turn up her nose and go green over her favorite foods?

"Have you got a bun in the oven, cara?" I ask, sitting beside her.

"Don't call my wife endearments," Sev orders. Then both joy and utter determination take over the irritation in his face. "We're expecting the next little De Luca around Christmas."

I know what that determination is about. Sev is going to make sure his family is safe if he has to burn down hell to do it. Becoming godfather and making powerful alliances are a given.

I pull my sister-in-law into a tight hug. "Congratulations. The baby couldn't ask for a better mom."

Then I stand up and grab my brother. "I'm happy for you brother. You have my word that I will lay down my life for your child. "

Sev gives a jerky nod of acknowledgement to my vow.

He insists we all drink sparkling juice rather than champagne so Catalina can share completely in the toast.

My brother, the scariest don in New York is a sentimental sap for this woman.

There's nothing sappy about him when we learn Don Caruso has had another stroke. Mamma's lunch with the godfather isn't going to happen.

The margins in our timeline for our plans just disappeared too. The next weeks are going to be crazy busy and fraught with danger.

"Send out a message," he orders me. "Security is on yellow alert for the foreseeable future."

I nod and start typing out a text that will go to all the capos and their seconds. Then I start making calls. Just like Salvatore.

We have people to put in place and mafia leaders to sway toward Severu for godfather.