4. Matteo

4

MATTEO

" H ey, Boss. Mancini just arrived with one of his men. They're sending them up now," Rocco alerts to me as I sit at my desk in the office of my penthouse going over the numbers from the last load of guns we received.

Weapons trafficking is the number one way my family makes money, which is why port access is highly sought after by the crime families of New York.

Drawing my attention to Rocco, I nod to him.

"Mancini never sent over a copy of the contract beforehand?" Enzo asks as he sits in one of the two black leather chairs positioned across the desk from mine.

"Nope. He said something about wanting to go over it in person." Having the time to go over a contract before the meeting is preferable, but I intend to have two signatures on that document before Mancini walks out the door today. So if he needs to go over it in person, then that's what we'll do.

"You sure you don't want our lawyer to look it over before you sign it? "

"That's not necessary. You know the faster we get this done, the better. The only way I can get control of his port is with a wedding ring on Giuliana's finger."

"Besides," I continue as I lean back in my oversized chair, "it's not going to be a complex contract. Just our names, a few terms, and a couple of signatures."

Rocco exits the room to meet Mancini at the elevator, leaving Enzo and me by ourselves. "You ready for this, then?" he asks, raising a brow at me as if he thinks I don't know what I'm getting myself into.

"You know this is the life we lead, Enzo. Arranged marriages are a staple in our world. At least I'm able to make a strategic move and pick a wife that will benefit us. This gets us that much closer to taking down Giuseppe Silvestri and stripping his family of their power before we get rid of him. The alliance between them and the Mancinis has been going on for far too long."

"As long as you think marriage to Giuliana for the rest of your life is worth it."

"Of course it's worth it. Giuliana might think this marriage is going to be more than a contractual agreement between her father and me, but it won't take me long to show her how our lives are going to be."

Enzo nods. "And you used that chick as an example last night."

Chuckling to myself, I rest my elbows on the arm rests of my chair and interlock my fingers in front of me. "Yep, and I'll do it again to prove to her she has zero say in what I do. Our lives are not to be interconnected. The port is all that matters. She can continue living her life the way she sees fit, and I'll continue living my life the way I see fit."

Shaking his head, Enzo narrows his gaze on me. "I don't understand how it can be this easy. Silvestri and Mancini have been in an alliance since Silvestri's sister was married off to Mancini. Why would he allow Mancini to join forces with us? He has to know our plan is to cut his ties with the port."

"Giuseppe Silvestri still sees me as a young, naive leader. One that won't retaliate for what he did to our parents." Which makes sense, considering I haven't retaliated in the three years since he ordered the hit on them. But what I have planned for the Silvestri family is more than death.

"If he thinks we've aligned ourselves with Mancini, then he'll think he's just gotten access to our port. The man is power hungry. Power in our world is what's important, Enzo. It'll blind even our worst enemies."

"So, when you marry Giuliana, where will she live? Here or at our family home?"

My penthouse is in the heart of the city. It's where I spend time when I need to take care of business here. Our family home, where our parents raised us, is located forty minutes out of the city, secluded on several acres of land. We're selective about who we bring there, and I don't plan on starting with Giuliana.

"She can continue living with her father for all I care."

"So, you're not planning on having any kind of relationship with her?"

"That's correct. It'll be a lot easier if we keep our lives separate."

Enzo studies me quietly for a minute. "You shouldn't have to marry someone you want nothing to do with. We can figure out another way to dismantle the Silvestri family."

Raising my eyebrow at him, I silence his doubts. "Getting married means nothing, Enzo. It's simply a business transaction. I'll continue to live my life the way I'm doing now, and Giuliana has free rein to do the same. "

Our attention is pulled to the door when a knock sounds on the hard oak. My eyes flicker back to Enzo's. "You ready?"

He nods. "I'm taking your lead, Teo."

"Come in," I say just before Rocco enters the room with Mancini in a tailored light-gray suit, holding a black briefcase down by his side. His salt-and-pepper strands are slicked back, and his matching goatee is perfectly trimmed. I quickly glance behind him to spot Fausto following him.

Interesting.

Fausto is an old family friend of Mancini's, his consigliere. He's someone who advises him on affairs in our world, but not someone who typically accompanies him to meetings. That spot is usually held by Mauricio, his underboss. Right-hand man. What Enzo is to me.

"Matteo, thank you for having us," says the man who's led the Mancini family for over two decades now. "Forgive me for the last-minute change the other day. An emergency came up. You understand."

Standing, I gesture to the empty chair next to Enzo. "Of course. Please, take a seat."

We both take our seats while Fausto remains standing by the door next to Rocco.

"No Mauricio today?" I bring my attention back to Mancini who pauses for a moment before responding.

"Not today," he answers tightly, as if trying to dissuade me from asking further questions. It'll work for now, but I make a mental note of it. "Are you ready to go over the contract?" he asks as he hands me the document from his briefcase.

"I am," I say, taking the contract from him. "I must say, this is the first time I've ever received a hand-delivered document."

There are only three reasons someone would hand deliver a contract: one, they have zero access to technology, two, they're hiding that document from someone with access to said technology, or three, they trust no one.

Mancini laughs, responding without a beat of hesitation as he takes out a copy for himself. "Call me old school."

I let out a light chuckle. "You might be old, Mancini, but you're not that old." I furrow my brows. "So, tell me. What's really going on here?"

I feel my brother's eyes boring into me.

Mancini's gaze remains on mine as he sits back in his seat, crossing one leg over the other. "I came here to sign a contract, Matteo, not to participate in an inquisition."

"And I'm here to make sure I know exactly what I'm marrying into." My tone is stern, rigid.

After a few tense moments of what feels like a showdown between us, he finally relents with a smile on his face. "Of course, Matteo. Please. . ." He holds out his hand for me to proceed. "Continue."

I clench my teeth slightly, making sure it's undetectable but enough for me to refrain from saying what I want to say to this man.

Bringing my gaze down to the document, I study it. "Is everything in the contract as we discussed?" Everything should be straightforward. There's not much to contracts like these. You have the name of the couple to be wed and the conditions. No need for wasted words for such an easy arrangement.

"I am a man of my word, Matteo."

I'm silent for a few more moments while I scan the contract until a name pops up that I don't recognize. Heat floods my face as I take in the abrupt change Mancini tried to sneak in on me. "I just have one question, then." Snapping my gaze to his, I can already tell he knows exactly what I'm referring to. "Who the hell is Luxtyn Stockwell, and why the fuck am I marrying her instead of your daughter?"