Page 3 of Sinister Engagement

I shrugged. "He was an offensive man," I replied blandly. Business was business, and regardless of my personal views of Jason Perelli and how he ran Club Champagne, America’s contract had been too good to pass up.

"Yes," he agreed. "He was quite brash and rude, even to his betters." Only a man like him would be so arrogant to see himself as above an equally dangerous family. "Regardless, very intriguing, that girl. Perhaps she and my daughters would have much in common. I could see a friendship forming. If only I had a son to marry her to, we could've joined houses.”

"She's already married," I replied. "But you're right, she is an interesting woman."

"Indeed."

When he didn’t elaborate, I pressed forward. “Are you going to tell me exactly why you’ve called me here for this meeting? Seeing as how it’s not for a contract.” I withdrew the notice I’d received two days prior. He paused and smiled as I handed it to him. “Because last I checked, saying ‘an offer you can’t refuse’ tends to get a man killed.”

He laughed, the sound loud and barking. It was odd and rough to hear, especially coming from a man who so seldomly found such amusement. “Only if you’re stupid,” he said with a shake of his head, “and you, Gaven, are the furthest thing from it.” His age-spotted hand waved in my general direction before he started walking again. “Besides, tradition and the classics have a certain … elegance to them, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Like having an entire hall of gaudy paintings of Price heirs?” I countered with a smirk, glancing around at the art spanning back generation after generation. Raph’s laugh was once again choppy, but he didn’t disagree when we reached the door to our destination.

“That's actually something I'd like to discuss with you.” The office we stepped into was as ornate and gaudy as the rest of the mansion. It smelled of paper, wood polish, and the slightest scent of tobacco. Raph strode around the massive desk before sitting in his office chair. When I made no moves to shift farther into the space, he gestured to the leather chairs facing him. “Please have a seat.” My fingers brushed over the front of my suit jacket, undoing the single button as I moved to oblige him.

“I’m going to cut right to the chase, Gaven,” Raph started bluntly once we were alone and out of sight from the guards. “I’m getting older, and Dahlia is gone.” He paused for a moment, a dark look coming across his face. One that I remembered well as I'd seen that very same look when he'd called me five years ago and ordered me to find and bring him his wife's murderer. It took only a moment for it to clear, and once it did, he was back to the smiling Raph that I knew well enough. Had he ever gone legit in his business, he might have made a fine politician. Very few knewjusthow dark parts of him that lurked beneath the surface were, having chosen to keep it hidden beneath layer after layer of mask and facade.

“I have no sons to pass the Price business to when I inevitably pass,” he continued. “You and I have worked together on previous occasions over the years. I respect the code that you follow when carrying out your contracts and how you conduct yourself. You should know that I’ve always cared for you as if you were my own.”

I nodded. “Yes, if I recall, you were one of my very first clients.”

He grinned. “And it has been a lucrative relationship for the both of us.”

“It has,” I agreed. “I’ve always respected you and the way you do business.” The circles and banter, while piquing my curiosity, were also wearing on me. None of it explained what I was doing here now. “Did you call me here to placate my ego, old man, or is there a point to this meeting?”

“Did you know that I was not always a Price?” he asked by way of answer. I frowned, confused by the strangeness of the question. I shook my head and he continued, “Dahlia was the last true Price heir, and I married into the family to be the next in line…” He trailed off as if recalling some long ago memory. A sigh accompanied the rhythmic tensing of his jaw, the brief wistfulness in his gaze hardening at whatever he was seeing in his mind.

“Raph.” I leaned back against the chair as my frown deepened. “All this talk of marriage and heirs. Please explain what this has to do with—” It hit me, causing me to cut off my own words even as I spoke them. “You wish to do the same with me.”

A smile stretched his wide face. “Like, I said, you're far from stupid, Gaven,” Raph replied with a nod. “Yes.” He straightened in his wingback chair and folded his hands over the surface of his oak desk. “I intend to offer you just that.”

“What about your current lieutenants? I’m sure they’d be pretty pissed to find out the organization was being handed over to a stranger,” I countered, relaxing back into the cushions of the chair. “I don’t exactly want—or need—any more enemies gunning for me.”

“They’re devoted to the Price family,” he explained dismissively. “Their families have been a part of this for generations, so they’re well versed in how the head of the family is passed down.”

“Mhm,” I murmured skeptically. “And what makes you thinkIwant to be the next head of the Price family?”

“I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that men in your line of work, or rather,ourline of work tend to find themselves in an early grave. You’ve surpassed the typical lifespan of a hitman—no doubt because of your skillset. The question is: do you want to continue to live your solitary lifestyle? Worried that at any given point you could be next on the chopping block?”

I considered his question carefully before answering. The fact was, I enjoyed my work, but I couldn’t deny that he wasn’t entirely wrong either. The life of a hitman was usually very short lived in comparison to the average person and in the recent months, I had been looking for something more entertaining. The life of a Mafia family head wasn’t anywhere close to the top of that list. Hell, it hadn’t even been on the list of possibilities until now. Nor was it necessarily safer, but it did have more protection. And with the Price family wealth and estate in my grasp … I’d have to be insane not to even contemplate the benefits of accepting his offer.

“I guess this is the part where you give me an alternative solution if I decline or am hesitant of your offer?” It wasn’t that his offer was unappealing; the sheer amount of power that would come with the Price family name being attached to my own was tempting. But there was no gain without loss, and I was anxious to know the specific details of this position. There was always a price that came with an offer, I just needed to figure out what the hell it was, but I had a creeping suspicion.

“I don’t need to give you anything else, Gaven, you’re smart enough to know what the potential downsides are. I can see it all over your face.” Raph’s rough chuckle filled the room as he gestured to my expression.

“So astute,” I muttered, earning another laugh.

“There’s only one thing you would need to do.” He reached into the top drawer of his desk. When he pulled two pictures and laid them out for me to see, I stood and leaned over to scan them. “My daughters—Jacquilina and Evangeline,” he said, pointing to the corresponding portrait with each name. “You would only need to choose one.”

A wife,I mused,is not something I ever thought I'd have.Even as that thought slid through my mind, I sat up and glanced over the images.

The first—Jacquilina—was darker in both complexion and hair. She so very clearly resembled her father, it was as if I was looking into a strange warped image of the man in front of me. Though she was feminine in her own way, with a slender figure and hooded eyes. She was closer to me in age and in height, but there was an iciness to her smile that gave me pause. She would likely make for a powerful ally, but a wife? Dangerous. They always said to keep your friend close but your enemies closer, but close enough to stab me in the back while I slept was far too much of a risk. There was nothing but a serpent slithering around underneath her skin. I knew because I recognized a bit of myself in her. She had the expression of someone who understood pride and greed. Someone who was more than willing to use herself to get what she wanted.

The second image, however, was the one that captured my attention. Evangeline. She was obviously the younger sister. My lips parted as I stared down at the photograph. The smile on her face was uncomfortable, and it was clear she didn’t appreciate posing for photos, but I could picture her laughing with such a carefree manner that I almost heard it in my mind. Unlike her elder sister, this girl had no such calculating look in her eyes. Instead, they were wide and round ovals of purity. Big, luminous, hazel green eyes that begged a man to take her under his protection, under his command. She was far too innocent for a man such as myself.

Yet … the second I looked at her picture, the fire of lust consumed me. There was no ice in this girl. She had a warmth that I’d seen time and time again, but I’d never been given the opportunity to taste. I bet she’d be like sunshine on my tongue, and I found that I had a deep yearning to make it happen. Her cheeks would no doubt flush red as I made her do things that I’d only ever asked of experienced women. Women who knew the score, who only cared for what I could give them in bed.

This girl, however, she wouldn't know. Not until it was too late. It made me a terrible man, but the second I laid eyes on her, I knew. I'd accept Raph's proposal, and this was the one I'd choose to be my wife.

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