14. Luca

Chapter fourteen

Luca

I slam the car door, furious at Leo. What the fuck does Rome think he's doing, sending him over to intimidate Kylie? And what the hell was Leo thinking, cornering her? Thank fuck, I showed when I did.

Any other woman would've been terrified, and while there was some fear, Kylie also looked ready to take him on. I was so damn proud of her at that moment, but also furious she was put in that situation. The last thing I want is Rome involving himself with Kylie.

Needing to let off steam, I punch the steering wheel until a crack reverberates in the car. I force myself to stop before I damage it beyond driving. I need the car to drive to Rome's house and shoot Leo in the fucking head. The fucker is going to answer for scaring the hell out of her and ruining my plans for Kylie tonight. Hell, I would've wanted to shoot him just for that alone. Now I want to beat the shit out of him first for scaring her. Gritting my teeth, I start the car and steer it home. It was time for some shooting practice, anyway.

Slamming the door, I head straight for my office. The sounds of sparring coming from the basement suddenly stop, telling me the guys are here. Not a surprise, since they expected me to take Kylie to the penthouse in the city after dinner. This works out since I can get Rafael's report before I head to Rome's.

Once I get the safe open, I grab my gun and ammo.

"The fucker is going to think twice before he tries to intimidate Angel again," I mutter,checking the chamber. "Leo's face isn't going to be pretty anymore. We'll see how he likes that." I reach for more ammo, but the box isn't where I put it. Narrowing my eyes, I search the desk but then whirl around when my gun is yanked from my hand. "What the fuck?" I was so focused on the image of Leo hovering over Kylie, I never heard the guys come into the room.

"Whoa, boss. I think you need to calm down and tell us what happened. Did you say you were going to shoot Leo? The man's your cousin and if that isn't deterrent enough, Rome will come after you for shooting him." Gio opens the chamber of my gun to empty the clip and hands it to Rafael before sticking the gun at the small of his back.

Growling in frustration, I pace because he's right. It would start a war, but what the fuck? He can't just interfere in my business and intimidate Kylie because her dad is a former cop and think they can get away with it. I won't stand for it.

"Who tried to intimidate Kylie?" Gio growls as he pulls the gun back from out of his pants and makes a grab for the clip in Rafael's hand.

I didn't realize I said all that out loud, but I'm glad I did because now I've got Gio on my side. Rafael's not there yet since he jerks the clip out of Gio's reach and snags the gun from him.

"Hey!" Gio yells.

"Calm down, asswipe. You're not helping the situation." Rafael storms to my safe to put everything back, making sure to shut the door and lock it. He then turns around, crossing his arms and spreading his feet as he glares at Gio.

"You heard him. Leo tried to intimidate Little Bit. She's so fucking tiny and he's huge. That was uncalled for."

Gio's face is as red as mine when he repeats the offense. I turn to the window, my mind racing while those two argue back and forth. I put my forearm on top of the frame and stare out into the darkness of the backyard.

"Luca, we know you're protective of the girl, but you need to put your emotions aside and decide on the right strategy to confront Rome. The last thing you want is a war we can't win, but if that's what needs to be done, then we have your back." Rafael's reasoning helps push my anger to the side so I can think more rationally.

Sighing, I straighten and turn around, putting my hands in my pockets."I can't let them think they have the right to interfere, either. We've been doing good until now, keeping out of each other's business." I thrust my hand through my hair and begin pacing again. "Rome doesn't like that her father is a cop. I get it, but she isn't a spy, and he needs to keep his paranoia to himself."

"We can at least still rearrange Leo's face." Gio grumbles.

"You're. Not. Helping," Rafael says through gritted teeth.

Gio huffs, lumbering over to the couch and falls back. The couch groans at his weight.

Rafael switches his attention back to me. "I agree you need to address this, but you have to do it with a clear head if we want to keep the peace with your cousins." He pauses to look at Gio, then back to me again. "Let's go to the ring downstairs. Punch Gio until you let off enough steam and then after, we can make a game plan for your approach."

"Hell yeah!" Gio jumps up and heads to the basement.

Resigned, but also charged at the thought of letting out some of this anger, I follow with Rafael trailing me. "Fine. But give me your full report as we box and make an appointment for the Maserati. The steering wheel is acting funny."

***

The door swings open to reveal Tony with the corner of his mouth tipped up. It's a good thing Leo didn't answer.

"Cousin. Come in man." He pats me on the shoulder before extending his right hand, indicating for me to enter. He's friendly and calm, but there's wariness in his eyes. I may not be part of their business, but they have grown up along with me and know my reputation.

I'm thankful for Rafael's calming influence. He's the reason I'm coming here in control and Gio's relaxing against the car right now. He's sporting the start of a black eye, but he's grinning from ear to ear. I sent Rafael to sit outside Kylie's apartment until I get the lay of the land tonight.

"Hey Gio! You wanna come in for some of mama's tiramisu while Luca talks to Rome?"

"Fuck yeah, I do." Gio jogs up the steps and walks right past me to the kitchen. I shake my head as Tony and Gio chat as if they've been best friends their whole lives. It's why I chose him to come instead of Rafael.

"Luca."

I swing my gaze down the hall to where Rome's standing in front of his office. "Rome."

He nods toward the interior of his office. Knowing he doesn't like to give his back to anyone, I move past him and enter before him. It's the life you have to accept with the role he's taken on.

"Would you like a drink? I believe the Balvenie is your preference." He walks to the bar and fills two tumblers without waiting for my answer. It's a reminder he knows my habits. While it pisses me off, I also trust him to an extent. Some may think it's foolish, but I choose to trust in Rome's honor. He's proven to be a better man than his father. Than both of our fathers. That doesn't mean I want to have him over for family holidays.

I give him a chin lift, accepting the glass. Rome indicates the seating area away from his desk, keeping things casual, which is good. Setting the drink on the coffee table, I unbutton my jacket before relaxing into the oversized leather chair facing the one Rome sits in. He's leaned back, one leg over the other, drinking from his glass as he observes me.

"I shouldn't have come at you hot on the phone. There's been some … recent developments that had me reacting before doing some research." Rome explains.

I slant my head, curious. "What would those developments have to do with Kylie and what research are you talking about? I've done my own research and had Rafael look into what fingers you've stuck in my business after our call. I'm not happy about you butting in. We've been good about keeping our shit separate and that's not going to change. "

Rome sighs. "Like I said, a few developments have occurred." He raises his palm to stop me from interrupting. "I'm going to lay it out for you, but you need to stay calm. I can't have you turning into a hot head and thinking you can take this on yourself. What I'm about to tell you is family business, which means it stays in these four walls and I'm handling it. But I agree with Leo and Tony. It's time to let you in on what's happening."

My frown deepens, knowing I'm going to hate whatever it is he's about to tell me.

He leans forward to set the glass down on the table before relaxing back and stapling his fingers. "There's a new syndicate in town. They've been steadily trying to push their way into ours and the local gang territories. We've pushed back harshly and they are backing off. However, there's some rumbling that it's to give us a false sense of power. I've got my men working on it and found some trails all pointing to a plant in your sugar baby business."

My jaw clenches at the news.

No way. No fucking way.

I don't interrupt so I can hear all of it, but I do it seething.

"They can't get to us, so they are trying through you. Not only are you my cousin, but some of my guys, as you know, joined your service."

"If you think I'll allow you in for those reasons, you are sadly mistaken. The business is mine, and I will handle anyone trying to sabotage it." I glare at him, not willing to budge on this point.

"Relax Cousin. I'm not using this as an excuse to hone in. I just want to find out if there's an infiltrator and take care of it. That's it. It affects me and my family and you have to see I can't just do nothing." He leans forward, placing his elbows on his knees.

He isn't going to budge on this.

I get up to pace while rubbing my jaw as I absorb this new information.

"Think Luca. What would you do in my shoes? I give you my promise, I will not interfere in your company. I'm only interested in the plant. They'll lead me straight to this syndicate, which will give me enough evidence for approval to officially end them here in Chicago. If I go in on a hunch, the backlash won't be good for either of us."

"Fuck!" I grab my drink and throw it across the room. It's only seconds before men fill the room with guns pointed.

"Out. Now." Rome barks.

The sounds of a struggle outside the office tells me Gio's fighting to get in here. "Gio, I'm fine. Go back to eating." I'd already set a code word with him and since I didn't use it, the struggling noises stop and Rome's men file back out of the room.

I hang my head and sigh.

"Please, Luca. Sit. I don't want trouble between us. I understand why you don't want in and I respect that. But you are family. I'm not my father and I won't turn a blind eye like he did. I want better for all of us. You've seen the changes I've made. Trust in that."

I lift my head to look at him. He waits patiently while I battle with my self control. "Fine." I move to sit back down. "What's the plan? And don't think for a moment the plant is Kylie. I'd stake my life on it." Even if she is, I wouldn't allow any harm to come to her.

"No, she's not. I had a background check on her and I know why she signed for the service. She's not a suspect anymore." He smiles at me. "You got a good one. You keeping her?"

I growl. "We are not talking about Kylie anymore. Since you know she isn't the plant, do you have any ideas who it is? I'm struggling with this, because I vet my people extensively and regularly to keep an eye on things."

Rome nods. "I've always thought you had a brilliant head for business. Whoever is doing this is staying low key right now. All I've got are some rumblings, so you need to continue as normal so they aren't tipped off. I'll call you when I know more. But Cousin, when I find the mole, I'm taking them. You won't be getting your hands dirty on this."

I grit my teeth, but seeing the logic of it, I nod.

"Good." He stands and grins at me. "Come on, let's go have some of mama's tiramisu before Gio eats it all. After, we can create a plan to catch this asshole."