Page 15 of Satin Empire

“Then why are you really here?”

I take a drink to consider. “Because I told her I’d do it, and I keep my promises. Come on, bro, you know me.”

He nods and looks away. “Tell her that I’m sorry, but it has to be this way. And I’m sorry to you too, Carlo. You’re a good soldier. You always have been. And you know how important this alliance is. All three Italian families working together to crush the Russians. When the war’s finally done, we’ll have peace in this city for at least a generation, if not more, all thanks to the marriage alliances we’ve forged.”

I grunt in reply. Gian married Allegra Rinaldo, cementing the first bonds; now it’s my turn to rope in the Milano Famiglia.

“There’s something else I want to ask you.” My heart does a quick double beat and a strange sudden jab of nervousness hits my stomach. I clear my throat and sit up. “I heard a couple new businesses opened up. There’s the law firm out in the suburbs and the truck shipping company. I want to run them.”

Renzo looks surprised. I stare back at him, showing nothing, but inwardly I’m squirming. He’s only ever given me low-level businesses to manage, like strip clubs, laundromats, and restaurants, but these are top-tier and big money. A law firm affiliated with our Famiglia will be a huge boon to the political side of our operations and the trucking company can expand our reach beyond the tri-state area, out into the Midwest and beyond. It’s serious work, but nobody’s been assigned, not yet at least.

“You want the trucks and the lawyers,” Renzo says, and he sounds surprised. It annoys me, even if it shouldn’t.

“I’m ready, bro. I can handle it.”

“I was already thinking about Gian for the job. Don’t you have enough to deal with? Planning raids and operating the clubs? I need you in war mode, Carlo, at least for a little while longer, and the lawyers and the trucks are going to be full-time jobs. Gian’s better suited for it.”

I grunt in reply. “I can handle this, Renzo.”

“The answer’s no. Maybe if you had asked a few weeks ago, before I put plans into motion to get Gian up to speed, or maybe if the war weren’t happening, but here we are. I’m sorry, but no.”

I finish my drink and stand. What else is there to say? I took my shot and the Don rejected my bid. I leave his office with my head held high, and at least I tried, but it still fucking stings.

Because we all know the real reason I won’t get those jobs.

I’m Carlo. I’m good at kicking in doors, killing our enemies, and fucking random chicks I pick up in the club. I’m inherently unserious, more suited to the brainless shit, and I absolutely loathe it. I want more responsibility. I’ve been pushing for a bigger role in the business side of the Famiglia for months now, but it hasn’t happened.

It won’t happen, not while everyone thinks I can’t handle it.

Chapter 8

Alana

I find Mom down in the home gym. She’s at the end of a workout, sitting on the bench and cooling off, her head leaned back against the wall. She smiles when I walk over and sit next to her, and she tries to put a sweaty arm around me, but I wriggle away.

“You got too old too fast,” she mutters with a sigh, closing her eyes. “Can’t even hug your mother anymore.”

“You’re disgusting right now. Take a shower and we’ll have a big old bear hug.”

She laughs and rolls her eyes to look at me. “I don’t see you down here very often. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

I flinch and stare at my hands. Mom’s always pushing me to exercise more, and she’s probably right. I’m not a teenager anymore and I’ll start putting on the pounds eventually. It’s just that I don’t like spending hours in the gym, not like my mother does, and there’s something about why she’s always in here that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. It’s like she’s fighting to hold onto her youth, struggling to stay fit, trim, and beautiful for Orsino, because the alternative is he finds some pretty new model to replace her. And if that happens, she thinks we’re fucked. The gym has some bad vibes for me right now.

“I wanted to talk to you about the engagement.” I’m nervous and the look she gives me doesn’t help. Her face shuts down, and I can tell this is the last thing she wants to discuss. Mom knows how I feel about this topic, even if we haven’t talked too much about it yet. She was probably hoping I’d keep my mouth shut and play along for once in my life.

But I’ve never been good at that.

“What about it, sweetie?” She gives me her best maternal smile. It’s not very good. I love Mom, but she had me so young, and she never developed a softness toward kids. For her, children stole away her childhood. As if I asked to be born.

“We both know Orsino is marrying me off to this Carlo guy because he wants to get rid of me?—”

“No, honey, we don’t both know that.” Mom’s tone gets hard. That’s the Mom I know. “And I don’t like that attitude.”

“Whatever, even if it’s for a good reason, he’s still doing it to me because I’m inconvenient. And I don’t want anything to do with this. You have to know that, right?”

“I know it’s not ideal,” she says, speaking very slowly. “It’s not what I wanted for you. But we both have to make sacrifices.”

“Mom, I’m getting married to a stranger. That’s a lot different from spending hours in the gym so I can stay hot for my older husband.”

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