Chapter Three

Diego

"We're taking a step back."

I stare at Rafe across the antique dining room table, not sure what the fuck that means. The ornate chandelier overhead spills light down over us, but the room is so fucking big it does nothing to chase away the shadows clinging to the furthest corners. "A step back from what?"

"Everything."

Coda and Domani, ordinarily stoic, grim motherfuckers, share a look that lets me know they don't know what he's talking about, either. Even Mattia, the unflappable, cool-as-a-cucumber consigliere, seems caught off guard by his best friend's after-dinner announcement.

Amalia, Callandria, and Genesis, Gabriel's wife, excused themselves from the dining room a few minutes ago to give us time to talk. I guess they knew what was coming. Luca and Gabriel certainly don't seem surprised. For once, they're a united front, perfectly in sync with their older brother.

"You're going to have to explain it like I'm five," I growl. "Because I still don't know what the fuck you're talking about."

"He's talking about the four of you stepping up as the face of this family while we play puppet masters," Gabriel says, an amused glimmer in his eyes as if he finds this shit funny. Hell, maybe he does. There's no telling with him.

"Puppet masters?" Rafe frowns at his youngest brother, his dark brows pulled down into a severe line.

Gabe just shrugs, unrepentant. His leather bomber jacket and dark jeans fit his devil-may-care attitude. He's the only one of the brothers who doesn't dress like mafia. Doesn't act like it, either.

Rafe sighs, choosing to ignore him. I think Gabriel fucks with Rafe just because he can. He's been doing it for as long as I've known them. None of the brothers particularly relish being responsible for the Valentino empire, but Gabe hates it more than most. In ways, there's more darkness in him than in his brothers, but this way of life suits him less than Rafe and Luca.

"What I mean," Rafe says, turning back to us, "is putting the four of you in charge of daily operations for a while. You'll work together to handle whatever the fuck needs handling while we focus on other shit."

"You've gotta be shitting me." I stare at him as if he's lost his ever-loving mind. Matter of fact, I'm certain he has lost it if he's suggesting putting me in charge of running shit alongside Mattia, Coda, and Domani. I have no interest in ruling over his little empire of criminals.

"He's serious," Luca Valentino says from beside him, drumming his long fingers on the table. His probing gaze meets mine. "They'll need your help keeping the law off their backs."

"Have you forgotten that you don't trust me?" I arch a brow, expanding my what the fuck look to include him. "Last I checked, I was only included in this council out of necessity."

"We haven't forgotten anything," Rafe says, speaking quietly. The man never raises his voice. I don't think I've ever heard him shout. When he's pissed, he gets quieter than usual. "But the past is in the past, is it not?"

The past is in the past. It's fucked up to sit across from the man who murdered my father and agree with that sentiment when I spent most of my life determined to make him pay. It's equally as fucked up to sit across from the man I tried to destroy as if I'm a welcomed family member. And yet…here I sit, anyway.

I mean, goddamn. Amalia's father murdered Rafe's mom and shot Rafe. Rafe's father killed her parents, leaving her an orphan. If they can let all of that go and end up happy together, our shit seems like pebbles in comparison.

Dario Marchesi was a lot of things, but he wasn't a saint. Hell, he wasn't even a father, not really. Alvise Butera raised me. He taught me how to survive this world. He's the one who deserves my loyalty. All Dario ever did for me was complicate my life.

I don't know why I was so hellbent on avenging his death. It seems so goddamn pointless now.

"The past is the past," I agree, holding Rafe's gaze. "But I'm a fucking lawyer, not a sottocapo." I jerk my head toward his brothers. "They're your backup, not me."

"And they agree with me," Rafe says, his voice level.

"Che palle! This is madness."

"He's not wrong," Coda mutters. "No disrespect intended, but I know fuck all about being in charge, Rafe."

"We'll be here to guide you. You'll answer to us. We're just taking a step out of the thick of it for now to focus on legitimizing a few things."

"Why?" Mattia asks the only important question at this point. Why now? What the fuck are they thinking? There hasn't been war or the threat of war in months because the brothers are united. This is what they've always worked toward…peace between the five families. A break from the constant treachery. Why risk overturning the whole fucking cart now?

"The baby," I say quietly. It's the only logical answer. Of course, he's taking a step back because Amalia's pregnant. He lost his mom to this world. She was murdered right in front of him and Nico. Rafe nearly lost his life the same day. I'm guessing that shit still haunts him. He may be a lot of things, but he loves Amalia. If there's even a chance of someone harming her or their baby, he won't risk it. He wants out of the spotlight for their safety.

Rafe lifts his chin in acknowledgment, confirming my suspicion.

"Cazzo," I groan, pinching the bridge of my nose. He picked the worst time to make this decision. Any other day of the fucking week, I might have gone along with it simply because it's Amalia we're talking about here. But not even two hours ago, Athena White stood before me, threatening to send my world up in flames. If it ignites, Rafe's goes up, too.

"If this is what you want," Mattia says. Coda and Domani are already nodding their agreement, willing to fall in line.

"We have a problem," I blurt. We're beyond breaking the news gently. Christ. We were beyond that when Athena showed up.

"Figlio di puttana!" Gabriel growls. "I've had about enough of those."

"An FBI agent followed me here."

"Jesus fucking…" Coda mutters.

"Cristo." Luca whips his head toward the window as if looking for her. It's pitch-black outside, and the house sits behind massive gates, an impenetrable fortress. He can't see anything. I'm not even sure if she's still out there or if she only followed me to get under my skin.

Either way, it worked. I thought about pulling over and dragging her out of her car to finish what I started in the parking garage. My fucking dick was hard the entire drive here, thinking about her in the car behind me, hot and wet. Sticky for me.

She should have run when she had the chance instead of following me into the dark. Now, she's in my domain. And I've never felt more like hunting.

"They're trying to get you to talk again," Rafe says, seemingly unsurprised.

"Looks that way. Their agent cornered me in my garage earlier this evening."

"Is he going to be a problem?" Luca asks point-blank.

"She."

"She?"

"She is a woman. Athena."

"They only sent one this time?" Rafe's eyes widen. "That's new."

You don't even know the half of it.

"Is she going to be a problem?" Luca demands to know.

"Aren't they usually?"

"Women or the FBI?"

Coda's question earns an amused grunt from Gabriel, though he doesn't look any more thrilled than either of his brothers. No one at the table is happy with the news. Guess we all deluded ourselves into thinking the feds were done asking questions about Tommaso Genovese.

"What's your plan?"

"Who says I have one?" I lift my gaze to Rafe. "That's supposed to be your department."

"Cut the shit, Butera," he warns me, his expression going cold. "We both know you're a calculating motherfucker. You have plans for your plans. And unlike most, you're actually smart enough to pull them off."

"Is that a compliment or a complaint, Valentino?"

"Depends on whether you feel like getting up to your old tricks." He lifts his glass of brandy to his lips, taking a swallow. "The way I see it, you're either an asset or a problem. You tell me which you plan to be."

Everyone else at the long table goes quiet, watching the two of us as if expecting us to go for each other's throats. They've been watching us the same way for the last year. But like so much else, we're beyond that now. We're two fucking peas in a pod, both headed straight to hell. He doesn't trust me. I'm not entirely sure I like him. But we're stuck with one another anyway.

And shit, at least he's honest about where we stand.

"I have no intentions of talking, Valentino." I lift my hands, flipping them palms up on the table. "In case you forgot, my hands aren't any cleaner than yours in any of this. Might be dirtier, in fact."

"They weren't pristine last time."

"You weren't married to my sister last time," I say bluntly, holding his gaze. "You hadn't risked war to save her life. The minute you did that, you guaranteed my loyalty and my silence."

He eyes me intently for a moment and then dips his head in an approximation of a nod, letting me know he gets it. Shit, maybe he does. He has brothers. He tied himself to an empire he didn't want to free his twin. If anyone understands how far someone will go for family, he should. She may not be my blood, but she's been my sister, my responsibility since the day Alvise brought her home when she was ten.

"What's your plan?" he asks again.

"She isn't going to give up easily." I barely even know her, and I'm already certain of that fact. This is personal to her for some reason. Perhaps because I pushed too far today. I don't know, but I threw down a fucking gauntlet, and she couldn't help but pick it up. She won't back down until one of us cracks.

"So what do you want to do? Make her disappear?"

I turn a lethal glare on Gabriel, who holds up his hands. "Jesus. I was joking." His lips pull down into a frown. "Not even Rafe is that fucked in the head yet."

"Stronzo," Rafe mutters under his breath.

What am I going to do? The answer to that may make me the biggest bastard in this room. She really should have run when she could, but she didn't. Now, I'm not going to let her. I'm going to take what I want. Her.

"She won't be with the FBI for long," I say, running a fingertip around the rim of my glass. "Not when they found out that she's sleeping with the enemy."

Shocked silence greets my announcement.

"Dio Santo," Luca growls. "You're fucking her?"

"Not yet." I lift my gaze to his, keeping my expression as level as possible. They can think what they want to think about my choice here. At the end of the day, it is my choice. And they don't need to know why I'm making it. "But that's the plan."

"It'll ruin her," Gabriel growls.

"I'm aware. But it's better than making her disappear, don't you think?" We don't target women. I wouldn't let anyone put their hands on this one if they tried. But she's already sifted loose more about what happened than she should have been able to find. We can't afford for her to keep digging. If she does, she'll dig us right into a fucking hole, and Rafe will have to make a choice between taking her out and letting us fall.

I won't allow the first to happen. This city won't survive if the second does.

"Trovarsi fra l'incudine e il martello," Rafe says, seeing the gravity of the situation. He knows we're stuck between the hammer and the anvil without me having to spell it out for him. I'm not the only clever, calculating motherfucker in the room. He didn't claw his way to the crown by failing to grasp the bigger picture.

Either I seduce Athena and make sure her bosses find out…or we find another way to make sure she stops digging. We don't kill women. But we do what we have to do to protect La Cosa Nostra.

This time, I intend to enjoy every filthy moment of it.

Run, rabbit, run. I'm coming for you.

"Mattia's here to see you."

I flick my gaze up from my computer screen to Ricci, who is standing in the doorway to my office. It's not even eight in the morning. I'm not entirely surprised Mattia's here. I had a feeling Rafe would send someone. He trusts no one, especially not me.

"Send him in."

Ricci nods and disappears into the outer office.

Less than thirty seconds later, Mattia strides through the doors, a cup of coffee in hand, dressed in his usual dark suit and matching tie. You'd think he was some high-powered executive if you didn't know him. At least until you take a good look at his eyes. The glittering darkness there screams danger. Like Valentino, he isn't someone to be fucked with. He may hide it better, but he's just as dangerous, capable of just as much savagery.

The only difference is that Mattia's far more patient than his best friend. He'll wait years before he strikes if it suits his purposes. Valentino prefers to handle his business and move the fuck on.

"Which of us are you here to babysit?" I ask, genuinely curious if Rafe sent him to keep an eye on me or if he sent him to get a bead on Athena.

Mattia's brow rises toward his hairline. "Who says I'm here to babysit anyone?" He brings his cup to his mouth, taking a long sip. "One of these days, you and Rafe will stop dancing around each other and realize you're both too goddamned busy to worry about the other half as often as the two of you think you do."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means you both spend too much time worrying about bullshit when neither of you has time. Yet you spend your time thinking he's watching for a knife from you. He spends his time thinking you're watching for a knife from him." Mattia grimaces. "Neither of you will betray the other because of Amalia. Life would be far easier if you two would accept that already."

So Rafe worries about me not trusting him. Interesting. Is that why I got roped into being his new underboss? As a show of faith? I start to ask Mattia that question and then swallow it back, unsure I want to know the answer. I'm not sure the answer changes anything. Regardless of the reason, I won't say no if it means protecting Amalia.

"Your agent is coming this morning?"

"That's the plan," I say with a smirk. With any luck, she'll be coming all over me before she leaves my office.

Mattia leans against the door frame, giving me a level look. "I looked into her last night. She's never worked a RICO case."

"Not even one?" I ask, not entirely surprised. I knew yesterday that she was too goddamn young and inexperienced to be working this case. "Who the fuck sends a rookie to deal with people like us?"

He shakes his head, at a loss for how to answer that one. "My sources say she worked in cybercrimes before being assigned this case."

"Jesus Christ," I mutter. Her bosses are pricks for sending her after me. They should have known better. "She's a lamb to the slaughter. Why the hell would they assign her to us?"

"No clue, but I don't envy her." He takes another sip of his coffee, eyeing me over the rim of the cup. "You sure you want to follow through with this? She's young, fresh out of Quantico, has a whole career ahead of her."

Unless you derail it, he doesn't say it, but he doesn't have to say it. It hovers in the air, unspoken. If I seduce her, I won't just be destroying whatever case she's trying to build against us. I'll be destroying her career. They'll never trust her again. It's a fucking asshole move. But the thing is…I never pretended I was Prince Charming. I never said I wasn't a fucking asshole.

I take what I want, just like I always have. That's how my world works. That's the rule I live by. Take what belongs to me and make no apologies. Athena White belongs to me, even if she doesn't know it yet. I won't apologize for taking her. Even if it destroys her world. Even if I have to burn it to the fucking ground to make her mine.

If she wanted safety, she shouldn't have followed me into the dark. If her bosses wanted her safe, they shouldn't have been stupid enough to put her in my path. I've never apologized for being who I am. I won't start now.

"I made my choice." I meet Mattia's gaze, daring him to try to stand in my way. Daring Rafe and the FBI, too. They can try, but this is personal. I can pretend it's about protecting the Valentino empire and Amalia all I want, but at the end of the day…it has nothing to do with either of those things and everything to do with her.

Mattia sighs and then nods. "Figured you'd say that." He pushes away from the door, draining his cup. "But I thought we should have this conversation anyway. Probably should have had it with Rafe, Luca, and Gabriel last year, and didn't. I'm doing shit differently this time around."

"Think they would have done anything differently?"

A rough bark of laughter bursts from his lips. He launches his cup toward the trashcan beside the desk, sinking it in one. "Not a fucking chance," he says. "But who knows? They've surprised me a few times lately." He looks me over. "Your FBI agent just moved to Chicago. Her entire family is back in Washington."

I jerk my chin in a nod, grateful for the intel. Family tends to complicate things; right now, that's the last thing I need. Until she's in my bed and I'm stealing my way into her fucking soul, I want her to myself. Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide.

I'm going to be the only thing she thinks about. Until it drives her fucking crazy.