Page 131 of Dangerous Contract: Part 1

Cas opened his mouth, then shut it. Finally, his brother asked, “What do you have in mind?”

“To truly make them suffer, we need to do something more...personal. Something that doesn’t make them think twice about coming after us. Something that makes them never think about it again. Something that scares them so fucking bad that they shudder when they hear the name Cattaneo.”

Their father sipped his bourbon, his expression unreadable.

“Think about it,” Raz urged, leaning forward. “What’s the worst thing you can do to a man like Tatum?”

“Kill him,” Cas answered, only half-joking.

“Okay, the second worst thing,” Raz said.

Cas leaned forward in his seat, deep in thought. A slow smile spread across Don Cattaneo’s face.

“The worst thing a person could do to me,” Don Cattaneo said. “Would be to take my sons from me. That would erase my entire existence. Who am I if I’m not your father? Who would I be without my sons? That would destroy me. And the same goes for Tatum. Sure, he’s okay with giving his daughters away. But he’d never harm his son. His only son. The only one who can carry on the Tatum name. The future CEO of Tatum Industries. The future of the Tatum family.”

Raz nodded. “If we want to teach Tatum a lesson, we start with his son, Jake Tatum. Dad, you can go ahead and schedule that meeting with Mr. Tatum. Ask if he can meet tonight to discuss uniting the families. Let his weak ass think we’ve caved.”

Sipping his drink, Don Cattaneo nodded.

“Cas,” Raz said. “I need you to find out where Jake hangs out.”

“I already know where that runt hangs out,” Cas told them. “He likes boasting about who his dad is down at Club Belview.” Cas grinned. “When we’re done, he will wish he wasn’t his dad’s son. Okay, so we already know Jake will be our gift to the Tatums. What about Trevor? Should we look for him too? Or will we ask for him to be at the meeting also?”

“Don’t worry about Trevor Wilks,” Raz sneered, staring out the window, watching the storm rage. “That bitch is all mine.”

The Don took another sip of his drink, his gaze on Orazio. Raz knew his dad was staying silent, letting him handle this to see how he’d protect the family, to see if he was ready to step into the role of Don.

Raz didn’t know if he was passing the test or not. All he knew was that for his family, he’d burned this entire city down. For his family and for Monique, Raz was ready to spill some blood.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

MONIQUE

––––––––

It was time for a spa day!

Although she was ready to have fun with her girls, she was kind of worried about Orazio. Should she call him and check on him? Would that make her appear clingy? She was too damn grown to be clingy!

But she really wanted to hear his voice, even if it was just for a few seconds. Monique checked her phone again to make sure she hadn’t missed a call from him. She hadn’t. Sighing, she shoved her phone into her purse.

He must be busy, and she didn’t want to be a distraction. She knew Orazio’s job involved more than justofficework. She knew he was involved in things that tiptoed over the line of legality. She’d chosen not to ask questions.

He would confide in her when he was ready. She wouldn’t pressure him to tell her things, no matter how much she wanted to. She just hoped he came home safely. That was her main concern.

“I’m ready to have my body rubbed,” Toya said, stretching as she exited her suite with Meka following behind her. “I thought you stepped out to call Orazio?” Toya asked.

“I decided not to,” Monique told her. “I don’t want to seem clingy. He hasn’t even been gone three hours yet.”

“Yeah, that is a bit clingy,” Toya confirmed. “Now that we’re all ready for the spa, you’ll be too busy to think about him. Come on. Let’s go.”

Toya ushered Meka and Monique to the elevator and then toward the Cattaneo Spa. Monique checked her phone one more time, then told herself she wouldn’t check again. Today, she was going to relax and enjoy herself.

And that wasn’t hard to do because the casino’s spa was everything one could dream of and more. The moment Monique and her friends stepped inside, they were enveloped by the scent of lavender, which seemed to float through the air like a gentle caress. Soft, soothing music played in the background, creating an atmosphere of complete serenity.

She’d needed to come to a place like this after her divorce. It would’ve beat laying in her bed crying as if she’d actually lost something worth saving... which she hadn’t.

“Wow, this place is incredible,” Toya breathed. “They must’ve renovated since they first opened. It wasn’t like this when I took a peek inside last year, or was it the year before that? I can’t remember.”

---