Page 96 of Love Without Control

“Makes sense since Manny is his consigliere. And he’s completely loyal to Luca?”

“A million percent. Our father could tell Manny to shoot off his own dick, and the fool would ask if he wanted him to aim for the balls too.”

“You paint a lovely mental picture,” I said with a grimace. “So what you’re saying is that you don’t have enough tangible evidence to bring our father down?”

“Not yet,” Fiero said, with a sad shake of his head. “I do my best to eavesdrop as much as possible, and I’ve started asking to sit in on meetings under the guise ofwanting to learn more about the family business.” He sneered that last part. “And there’s no way to plant a listening device. The old fucker has all his offices and cars swept three times a day for bugs.”

“Paranoid asshole,” I muttered, feeling my mood sink. I didn’t know why I always got my hopes up every time I called or had online meetings with my brother, but I did. “Thanks for trying though.”

“No prob. I want you back here as much as you want to come back.”

“Fiero,” I warned, pulling my Florida Marlins ball cap off and readjusting it on my head, “you know I’ll never be able to come back to New York. Even if Luca eventually goes to jail for good and we determine it’s safe for Eden to return, my betrayal will never be forgiven. You don’t just fucking leave the family.”

Our thoughts were that if Luca got a life sentence, he would have no reason to go after the Bouviers, even if Eden pointed the finger at him. A life sentence was a life sentence, and he wouldn’t fuck with a powerful family unless it was to save his own skin.

That was probably wishful thinking though. Who the hell knew what that crazy bastard would do? The ideal situation would be for one of his enemies in the joint to shank him to death in the shower. That was the only way we could be sure Eden and her family would be safe. And I wasn’t above paying someone to make that happen.

Fiero drained the rest of his glass and slammed it down onto the leather blotter on his desk. “Shit, I know. On a better note though, I haven’t heard Luca talk about the Bouviers in a long time. I think he considers that issue closed.”

“Because he’s convinced she died with me in the helicopter explosion,” I added, and he bobbed his head up and down.

“Yeah, that was way too close for comfort. If I hadn’t overheard his conversation…” Fiero trailed off, a shiver shaking his shoulders.

“You saved our lives,” I said quietly. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”

“Fuhgeddaboudit. Don’t go gushing all over me. You’ll make me blush,” he teased before changing the subject. “How’s the new house?”

“Excellent. Lots of amenities. We have a small sauna next to the workout room, and there’s a hot tub on the lanai out back.”

“Such a fancy pants with your lanai. What is that anyway?”

I laughed and spoke a bit louder as I went to the fridge to pour myself a glass of iced tea. Eden and I had both started drinking a lot of the sweetened drink in the past few months.

“It’s like a cross between a patio and a sunroom. It’s got a concrete floor and is on the back of the house like a patio, but it has windows like a sunroom, though ours are just screens and not glass. It leads out to the pool.”

“Why do you need a pool when you live right near the ocean?”

“Well for one, sometimes conditions aren’t good for swimming in the ocean, and for another, we have a tall privacy fence so we can skinny dip without getting arrested.”

Fiero laughed. “Ahhh, that’s the important thing.”

My ears perked up when I heard Eden’s footsteps on the lanai, and I quickly turned my cap around backward. She loved when I wore it like that.

I kept my gaze on the door even as I spoke to my brother. “Damn straight. We still have a gorgeous ocean view from the upstairs balcony since it’s above the fence line. It’s pretty much a dream house.” My heart sped up when I saw my pretty wife enter through the kitchen door dressed in tiny denim shorts that made me a bit slack-jawed and a lightweight green sweater that hung off one shoulder. And the turtle necklace. She wore that every day.

Eden’s eyes roved up and down my body, from my bare feet, gray sweatpants, white tee, and backward ball cap—what she teasingly called my man-slut outfit. She gave me a look that almost incinerated those very clothes from my body.

“I need to come visit this dream home,” my brother mused, and I swung my head back around. Hell, I’d almost forgotten he was there. When I opened my mouth to protest what he’d just said, Fiero beat me to it, holding both hands up, palms out. “I know, I know. Too risky. I’d never want to inadvertently lead someone to your front door.”

Eden stepped up beside me and waved at the screen. “Hi, Fiero.”

A grin widened across his mouth. “Hey! How’s my favorite sister-in-law?”

She laughed. “Your only sister-in-law is doing good. I was at my friend Charlisse’s house.”

“I told you I’d come walk you home,” I told her, glancing at the receding light through the window over the sink.

“Her house is across the street,” she said, giving me thatyou’re ridiculouslook she reserved just for me. “It’s not even dark yet.”

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