Page 45 of Loyalties & Longings

Enzo runs his hands through his hair, tugging at it, then he turns around so fast, he sways just a little.

“Did they give you a name? Anything else?” Now his eyes are pleading with her, only he’s pleading for her to remember anything else. Wanting any information she hasn’t already given us. Shaking her head, Lake turns her eyes to the floor as though she has failed her father while he begins pacing furiously.

“Must be linked with your guns and ammunition deal falling through. It has to be. Make no mistake, Blaze, I trust you, and I know you did everything right. You’re my best man, but somefiglio di puttanahas come and pulled the rug from beneath our feet, and there is going to be hell to pay. You can mark my words. They are dead men walking. No one pulls one over on Lorenzo Morelli and lives to tell the tale, much less rub it in my face byminacciando la mia famiglia.”

I know Enzo is enraged when he is calling people ason of a whoreand that they’rethreatening my familyin Italian.

After pulling out the stones and being as gentle as I can to get Lake all cleaned up, I finish wrapping her hands before I speak.

“Enzo, I would like to teach Lake how to shoot.” I turn my gaze up to him. He stops dead in his tracks, turning on me fast.

“Absolutely not!” he says with finality.

But knowing he isn’t thinking logically through his anger right now, I won’t take no for an answer on this one. “Wouldn’t you feel better knowing she can defend herself? I know I would.” I steal a quick glance back at her, and her eyes are wide, darting between her dad and me.

“No, I don’t think she needs it. She has lasted this long without needing to use a gun, hasn’t she? I don’t see why she needs to have that kind of pressure and danger in her hands.”

“With all due respect, Enzo, things are different now,” I rebut, sensing he knows I’m right. There’s a moment of quiet before I add, “Even though you’ve had one of us with her almost all the time, it’ll give her some of her independence back. We cannot be with her around the clock. Today has been proof of that.”

Enzo looks as though he’s thinking it over, his temper slowly cooling, when I hear Lake from my side.

“Dad, I want to learn. I need to do this for you. Us. I need to do this for myself. I’m sick of feeling like the teenager you treat me like sometimes. I need to be able to protect myself.”

At this testament, Enzo’s shoulders fall, almost as though he realizes she is right, and he needs to let her do this.

“Okay. Blaze will start your training as soon as your hands are healed.” His eyes meet mine, and he gives me a confident and authoritarian nod.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Lake

After only a week, my hands are almost fully healed. I have been able to make sure the past week hasn’t been a total waste of my time, though, by working on all the administration needed to get the speakeasy open and running. Blaze has been waiting on me hand and foot and has kept me fully satiated.

I was even able to have the furniture delivered and set up with Blaze’s help, since Dad has allocated him as my full-time babysitter until he trains me to shoot. Not that I’m complaining. It has given us a reason to be together even more than we had been in the weeks since his release without arousing suspicion.

I still haven’t told Dad about my relationship with one of his closest men, but I will soon. I’m not kidding myself about how anxious I am. Even the thought of having to put my big girl pants on and act like the reasonable adult that I usually am has my palms sweating and me gnawing at my bottom lip. I also don’t want Blaze to lose his place with my dad just because we can’t keep our hands off each other like a couple of young, horny teenagers.

Things are all coming together for the bar so quickly, and I’m excited to be privileged enough to be the owner/manager of my very own bar in less than fourteen days.

I go through my daily organizer while eating my breakfast of scrambled eggs and mashed avocado on toast. Dad is doing the same at the opposite end of the dining table.

After my first training lesson with Blaze this morning, we have to head over to the speakeasy to accept the first shipment of alcohol. Then, there may be enough time for a light lunch before shopping for our opening night outfits. I look across to Dad and ask around a mouthful of eggs, “What will you be wearing for thespeakeasy opening?”

“I’ll probably just wear one of the suits I already have. Unless you want me to call Giorgio?” He looks at me over the top of his newspaper.

Giorgio is Dad’s personal tailor and has been for as long as I can remember. He does such an amazing job. Dad’s suits are always fitted to perfection, and he always looks amazing. However, Giorgio is getting on in years now, and I know Dad has a wardrobe full of outfits he can choose from without having to hassle Giorgio for this one event.

“No, one you already own is fine. I was only asking because I’m going to choose my outfit today.” At this information, he cocks an eyebrow. “Yes, Blaze is coming too. We’re going after the shooting lesson.” I stand and walk my dishes over to the sink. Dad has already gone back to reading his newspaper. “Besides, he needs to find an outfit, too,” I add quietly, almost as an afterthought.

***

After driving an hour out of the city, we finally arrive and pull into the parking lot of the King’s Armory and Firing Range. I glance around and notice that it’s deserted. I know Dad is close with the owner, Julius, yet I still have a cocktail of feelings swirling around in my head and stomach.

I’ve never been uncomfortable around firearms, having grown up with them either sitting on tables, carried in shoulder holsters, or tucked into the backs of people’s pants.

Only the real shifty ones carry their guns tucked into their waistbands. Did I mention that is Massimo’s preferred method of holding his gun? I wish that one day he’ll shoot himself in the ass.

“Okay, Siren, let’s do this.” Blaze pulls my attention back to the present before stepping out of his truck and closing the door.We head for the entrance, and I see theCLOSEDsign displayed on the door even though the lights are on inside.

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