Page 38 of Useless Love

I smirk. No wonder she’s being so guarded. “Princess, next time, lead with that. Then I’ll know not to go into so much detail about how hard I get thinking about your wet pussy on my—”

“Bye, Carmine. See you soon.” She hangs up and I chuckle to myself.

A hour pass and I meet Mariano Satta, the jerk I wanted to kill a few days ago, who is throwing a party at some high-end club. When I arrive, the entire club is filled with naked women. Not a single one is allowed a piece of clothing.

“Your engagement news has spread,” Mariano says as I approach. He’s fondling the tits of some stripper giving him a lap dance.

He forces me to sit on the couch, and then snaps his fingers. Another stripper starts grinding me. I ignore her and try to play nice with Mariano. “An engagement was the only way to end the war between the Gaudinos and Bencivengas.”

Mariano laughs. “You say that so matter-of-factly. Like you’re not benefitting. I hear one of his twins is the whore of New York. No disrespect, just looking out for you.”

My eye twitches. I hadn’t heard those rumors, but I keep it light. “I keep telling Chicago that what you hear about New York is only rumors.”

"No, seriously, which of the twins are you marrying?"

"Arianna Bencivenga," I finally answer, after taking a sip of my drink. She’s definitely a virgin, so if there’s a whore, it must be the other one. I never even got her name and I haven’t talked to her at all, so I can’t say.

“Well, happy marriage!” Mariano says. “I’m taking this bitch in the back. Enjoy yours.” Mariano leaves, which is good because I can’t play nice forever.

When he’s out of sight, I push the naked girl off my lap and stuff some money in her hands. Chicago is not my kind of place. Plus, the girl bouncing on my dick was useless; I wasn’t going to get hard under her.

After making the rounds at the party, I leave and head straight to the jet. I’ll be back in New York in a matter of hours.

Not soon enough.

***

“Everything is all set.”

Like the cold New York air, Christopher's words make my blood pump fire the next day. I have to follow through with my promise to Satta or he’ll make my life a living hell.

I join Christopher in the SUV. Today, we’re killing my old man’s most loyal soldiers. Taking complete control of the Gaudinor organization won’t be hard; it just had to be quiet.

Whenever I feel any doubts, I just remind myself how close my old man came to starting a new war. Then rage burns inside me. He’s too old and making stupid decisions; he’s no longer fit to lead. Killing him isn’t my first priority, but I’ll do it if forced. For now, I only need to assume control. Taking his men out will do the trick.

“From now on,” I tell Chrisopher, “nothing that idiot orders is done without checking with me first.”

My right-hand man nods. “These are the men who have surrounded him for years. After we kill all of them and place new men by his side, his wings are clipped.”

Christopher and I drive in silence, going around to homes, clubs, restaurants, and hotels quickly and secretly killing men on the list Christopher complied. Many put up a great fight, but none saw us coming. We use that to our advantage. I’m not proud of what we’re doing; these men have been loyal to my family for years. But they follow my old man’s orders, not mine. I’ll be sending all of their widows and families compensation to help with the loss.

So much fucking loss; what a tough life this is.

When the list is complete, Christopher drops me off home and says, “It’s all yours now.”

I never wanted that shit. But this is my old man’s fault. Having six fucking older brothers, no one, including me, expected I’d ever control our organization. Now look at me—I'm the boss.

Fuck.

“When will you let the other organizations know of the changes?” Christopher asks from inside the car as I glance at him through the rolled-down window.

“In a month,” I say, feeling the burden already heavy on my shoulders. “When I officially announce my control of our organization, I’ll also set a wedding date with the Bencivenga princess. That will serve as a distraction. Hopefully.”

“That’s one hell of a distraction,” Christopher says. Then he smirks. “It’s not like you’re itching to bed the Bencivenga princess or anything. Just sacrificing for the organization, right?”

I gritted my teeth at his sarcastic tone. I wave him away.“Fucking go home and organize everything that needs to be in place.”

With a sharp nod, he begins driving away, but not before I hear him laughing.

---