Page 75 of The Price of Power

A few seconds later, she thwacked the kitchen towel that had been draped over her shoulder on the counter in front of me, declaring, “I’ve got it!”

I lifted my eyes from my phone. “You’ve got what?”

“You’re happy,” she said. “That’s what’s different.”

I started to open my mouth to tell her she was being ridiculous but stopped myself. Instead, I shrugged.

As usual, the woman wasn’t wrong.

Usually, I tried not to think about my life in terms of intangible emotions like happy or sad. Business was either up or down. Relations between the D’Angelos and other families were tense or peaceful. Days were busy or calm. Since my mood usually didn’t play into any of those things, it wasn’t worth dwelling on.

But today, there was no denying I was feeling pleased.

And apparently, both Letizia and I knew the reason.

“I knew Miss Olivia would do you good,” my housekeeper beamed. “The moment she first stepped foot inside this house, I could tell she was a special one.”

True—Liv had proved just how special she was last night.

No threat had compelled her to apologize. Nothing was hanging over her head. There was no favor she wanted from me. Nothing that she hoped to gain by manipulating my emotions.

All she’d wanted to do was admit that she’d been wrong—because she cared.

There was no way she could have known what those words would mean to me.

I could count on one hand the people in my life who truly cared about me, and they were all family, either by blood or by circumstance.

Sure, my men were loyal to me, but that was different. That allegiance didn’t spring from emotion. It came from the understanding that I looked out for their interests. I was the source of their living and their protection. I was the one standing between them and either a bullet in the head or a life sentence in prison. I was the reason their wives didn’t complain about spending money, and their kids all had college funds.

But they also knew that if I died tomorrow, someone else would take my place and fill that role. Probably not as well, but they slept easy knowing one of my brothers could step into my shoes.

With Liv, it was different.

She didn’t have to care. In fact, I’d given her countless reasons not to. If I ended up in the morgue or was sent away by the feds tomorrow, nearly all of her problems would disappear. She would be free. Her brother would be safe. Her family could keep their cash and their business.

And yet, she still cared about me.

A part of me—the street-hardened part that lived and died by the sword—couldn’t understand it. But another part did.

The loving, still-human part of me that felt the same way about her.

I looked up at Letizia and shot her a knowing wink. “Don’t tell anyone,” I whispered conspiratorially. “I can’t have anyone thinking I’ve gone soft.”

Letizia’s smile only widened. “Of course not.”

She went back to scuttling around the kitchen while I finished my coffee. I had just drained the last few drops when the text alert from the secure app on my phone chimed. I looked down to see the notification from Tony.

Trouble. Call me.

I groaned as I stood up from the stool, annoyed but not surprised. The world didn’t care if I was having a nice moment or not. It kept right on spinning.

“Excuse me,” I said to Letizia, stepping through the kitchen door and out into the hall so she wouldn’t hear the conversation I was about to have.

Just as I stepped out, I saw Matteo coming down the stairs. I held up my hand to stop him as I dialed Tony. All I had to say was one word—“business”—and he nodded in understanding.

As soon as Tony picked up, I put the call on speaker so my brother could hear.

“Apologies for bothering you so early, boss,” Tony immediately said. “But this couldn’t wait.”

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