Page 4 of Reckless Sinner

“He wouldn’t believe me if I said it was purely altruistic. He’s suspicious, he’s had to be, growing up with all those backstabbing butchers.”

Once again, I held my tongue. I wasn’t of the opinion that the mafia were backstabbers and butchers, at least, no more than any lawyer or politician I’d ever met. The mafia simply defied the law rather than trying to manipulate the system. I could have some respect for that choice. But why would they just go around turning traitor or murdering people constantly? That was no way to run any kind of business.

Good luck getting my father to agree, though.

“But if you frame it in a… help me help you sort of way…” I said slowly, “then he’ll buy it?”

Dad nodded. “Precisely. And that’s where you come in. He won’t have reason to suspect you, and we can get more personal information on him and his family. The shit a man will tell his girlfriend but not his boss or coworkers. That’s what we need. Especially when the DA announces their prosecution of Marco.”

“Marco?” I started a little in surprise.

Marco Russo was asoldato: a soldier. They were one of the lower ranks in a mafia family. Basically, they did all the dirty work. Going after a mafiasoldatowas usually a pretty safe bet for a lawyer. They were just high up enough that you looked like you were doing something to deal with the mafia, while not so high up that the mafia would really care. Soldiers were cannon fodder. Replaceable.

But not Marco. While he was lower on the ladder (rumor had it he and his father didn’t get along and that he was more reckless than a Formula One driver with a death wish), he was still the son ofDonRusso.

“What could you possibly have on him that would be worth the trial?” I asked.

“We don’t have anything on him… yet. But we soon will. We’ve got a friend in the FBI who’s helping us orchestrate something.”

“So, what, you get Marco on some charge or other, and you bring the might of the entire family down on your heads.”

“Not if we’ve got Dante in a vice. Dante will be expected to represent his brother, of course. That’s how these things work. But we’ll have you and all the information you give us. We can nail him and the rest of his family to the wall with the combination.”

I swallowed. “Dad… I’m not sure I can do this.”

“Why not?” Dad finished his meal and downed the last of his wine. “You get a few months with the man you’ve been mooning over, you help your old man become Attorney General…”

“Won’t it look bad that I was dating him?” I interrupted. “Either I look like an accomplice or an idiotic dupe.”

“We’ll work on the press when the time comes, get you a couple interviews and prep your story. But that’s a concern for much later. Right now allyouhave to do…” Dad got up and walked over to me. “…is have fun with the man. I’m sure he knows how to show a woman a good time. All ofthoseboys do.”

The way he said ‘those boys’ made it sound like being a Russo was the dirtiest thing in the world. Like you were born wrong.

“But isn’t this…” I took a deep breath and kept my tone neutral. “Isn’t this kind of… selling me? If I’m having sex with the man…”

Dad chuckled and petted my hair. “Oh, Delaney, how dramatic you get. Selling you. As if I’d ever do such a thing to my daughter. I’m simply giving you permission to do what you already wanted to, and I’m warning you to be prepared when the hammer falls. You get it both ways, don’t you see? The man you’re lusting after, and helping rid this city of crime.”

My throat felt too tight and my stomach twisted even harder, but I nodded.

“You don’t want to disappoint me, do you Delaney?” Dad cupped his hand under my chin and lifted my face up. “You’d be a huge help to me in this. You always talk about wanting to help me.”

I felt like I couldn’t swallow, like a lump was stuck in my throat. “Of course I want to help,” I said. It felt like my voice didn’t belong to me. “I want to make you proud.”

“That’s what I thought.” His hand dropped away from my chin. “You’re such a good daughter, Delaney, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

He walked out, leaving the dishes to be taken care of by our housekeeper. I stared down at my plate, unable to touch the rest of my food.

I didn’t even eat breakfast the next morning on the way to the office. There was no reason for me to be at this meeting and I hoped that Dante would just think I was visiting my father as a coincidence. I couldn’t afford for him to be suspicious.

What if he doesn’t want to date you?I thought as I rode up the elevator with my father.

Dante Russo was handsome as sin. His jawline looked like it was carved from marble. He was also rich, both from his family and from being a lawyer. Why would a man like that choose to be with me, of all the people he could possibly choose?

Maybe if he thought it was a way to get in good with my father… but if he only wanted me for that, then I wasn’t sure I would want him anymore. Not that I could really judge him given what I was about to do. But I still… wanted him to genuinely want me, not use me as a tool.

Yes. I was a hypocrite. But at least I knew it.

Dad noticed my nerves. “Breathe before you pass out, Delaney. My goodness, you’d think you were on your way to prom.”

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