Page 17 of Tammaro DeLuca

“Now you decide what you want. You’re married, with a fourteen-year-old, and you’ve got problems with her grandfather. Keep it simple. What do you want from that? Do you want to let her go?”

Rage flashed so quickly that I couldn’t control the effects it had left behind. I tensed, fisting my hands to fight anybody who tried to keep me away from her.

“That’s a hard no.” She giggled. “So, she’s yours. Do you want children?”

“I’d always figured I’d have them one day. I didn’t know that day had already passed.”

“What if Yolanda was pregnant now or in the future?”

I couldn’t help the dopey grin that spread across my face.

“Okay.” Martina laughed. “Children are a go. That means you need to build a relationship with the one you have. Start small. Girls are naturally drawn to their father, so it should be easy. Show her the good parts of you, keep the bad stuff in the streets. I know you’ll be protective of her because you’re a DeLuca. Keep that energy. Especially, here. Beniamino doesn’t care about making enemies if they stand in his way. He keeps somebody on Simone at all times. I’m no different. Neither is Amina. You’ll have to figure out what you’re going to tell her about us. Word from the wise, the truth is better from you than it is from a stranger. You handle the legit stuff, so it’s much easier for you to tell her we’re an empire than Ami or Simo. They deal in the streets.”

I nodded because she was right.

“She still needs security. They’ll go after her if they know it’ll hurt Ami or Simo. Call them and let them in on that part of the story. You’re married with a kid and their reach is now yours. At least while you’re here. Are you going back to Italy?”

So. Many. Questions.

I knew they bothered me because I didn’t have the answers. I always did. That had to be the reason I was getting irritated. Martina wasn’t doing anything wrong, so there was no reason for me to be upset with her.

“I know it’s a lot to process.” Martina leaned over and put her hand on my arm to reassure me. “We’ve got you, though. I’ve got you, big brother.”

Big brother.

That ice around my heart was thawing, and I didn’t like it.

“I think I should–”

“Who is the dude parked out front?” Massimo asked as he walked in with his hand behind his back as if he were reaching for his gun.

“Put your toys away, brother.” Martina jumped up and hugged Massimo as if she hadn’t seen him in months.

“He with you?” He asked me.

“He’s my driver.” I stood and scratched my stomach, hungry from all the smoke.

“Where’d you get him from?” He asked, squinting.

“I hired him. What’s with the twenty questions?” I asked him.

“You brought a hired car home. What do you mean, what’s with the questions? Only approved people know about this place. Make sure you can trust him, then hire him. Cause now you have to watch him. This ain’t a casual visit, bro. Not everybody gets this address.” Massimo walked around Martina and got in my face.

“I heard you the first time, Max.” I scoffed, not intimidated by him. “You know, you walk around here like you’re some bad ass. I know the truth, though.”

I rolled up my sleeves and tilted my head to the side.

“What’s that?” He dared me to say something he wouldn’t agree with.

“Aren’t you into boys? I can’t take you seriously. Papá–” I never saw his fist coming.

“Simo!” Martina shouted.

I don’t know if it was from how high I was or if his blow had that much power behind it, but I was stunned stupid for a moment and that’s why I didn’t see the second one either.

“No!”

There was a guard pulling Massimo away from me and out the back door. That’s when I realized he fucking hit me. I snapped out of it and ran after him. Outside in the backyard, we went at it. I hit him in the stomach as my payback from the first two hits he had. Massimo didn’t seem overly phased by it.