Page 11 of Married With Malice

If didn’t know better, I’d have to wonder if he’s actually evermethis middle daughter. Annalisa Barone is about as respectful and obedient as a badger with rabies.

Another point of contention is that I’m not interested in an ‘obedient’ wife. Or any wife. I’ve just run out of room to navigate a solution.

Albie shuffles to the door. “See you at the altar, kid.” He wags a fat finger. “Don’t be late.”

“Counting down the minutes,” I reply.

That’s too close to sarcasm. I’ll have to watch it.

Albie leaves without catching on. Uncle Richie, who knows me better, though not as well as he thinks, notes my lack of enthusiasm with a raised eyebrow. He waits until Albie is heard coughing down the hall and is out of earshot.

Then Richie cocks his head and assumes a fatherly tone. “I’m sure it weighs on your mind that your brother couldn’t be here.”

He rarely refers to Cale by name anymore. Richie sticks to referring to him as ‘your brother’ when he’s speaking to me. When he’s not speaking to me, I doubt he mentions Cale at all.

Cale was thirteen and I was only four the year our parents died within six months of each other. That block of time is painful and kind of hazy in my head. One thing I can clearly recall is how Richie sat us both down the day we arrived in his house. He said he would honor our mother, his beloved only sister, by raising us as if we were his own children. From then on, we would be the sons he never had.

I’ve often wondered how my two cousins, Bianca and Tiana, felt about being relegated to background roles in their father’s mind. They must be bothered on some level but in a family where honesty is rarely prioritized, they would never admit it. A few years older than me, both of Richie’s daughters have been married off to family associates and installed in mini mansions within walking distance to their parents’ house.

“Cale couldn’t leave Sadie right now,” I say. “She’s in her third trimester.”

True, and I also told him not to come. He’s been clear about his objections to this arrangement. I can’t be sure he’ll hold his tongue.

Richie nods and keeps his penetrating gaze locked on my face. “So I’ve heard.”

I stare right back him without a flicker. “But he sends his well wishes to everyone.”

This isn’t true but my primary mission in life is to keep my uncle from remembering Cale’s defiance. The most direct way to accomplish this feat is by behaving like the perfect mafia apprentice.

Before he was out of his teens, Cale was marked as Richie’s successor. He joined Richie’s crew right out of high school and quickly earned his place. Despite Cale’s best efforts to keep me in the dark, stories would sometimes reach my ears anyway.

The big brother who took pride in my straight A report cards and cheered in the stands at my games was tough to reconcile with this malevolent gangster I kept hearing about. It was Cale who persuaded me to attend college out of state and then continue my education in law school. It was also Cale who always said I ought to reach for the stars and never feel obligated to follow in anyone’s footsteps.

In time, I figured out the reason why my brother was so hellbent on sending me away. It was the same reason he stuck close to Richie. Cale planned to keep me out of aCosa Nostradestiny at all costs. Even at the expense of his own future.

Our uncle always had big plans. To see those plans through, he needed some hefty alliances. I heard nothing of Richie’s intention to push Cale into marrying one of Albie Barone’s daughters until Cale had already balked and abruptly married our former neighbor, Sadie Wingate.

The Wingate mansion is right next door to Richie’s estate. The only reason this fact was ever even slightly interesting to me was because Asher Wingate owned the New York Dukes hockey team.

But Sadie, a chronically upbeat savior of animals, had nothing in common with Cale. Ten years younger than my brother, she fled her starchy family after college and opened up an animal sanctuary in Colorado. The likelihood of Sadie Wingate and Cale falling madly in love seemed about as probable as meeting a talking frog. At first I was skeptical, thinking my brother must be working some angle he didn’t want to discuss.

Then I saw them together and changed my mind. My brother was positively smitten with that girl. He also had a problem. Sadie couldn’t abandon her ranch. And Cale’s job as Richie’s second-in-command wasn’t a responsibility that could be escaped by turning in a two week notice.

After Cale married Sadie, it became clear that his heart was now the property of a feisty redhead in Colorado. He had no desire to remain in New York and do Richie’s bidding.

Meanwhile, Richie has always been extremely keen on adding me to the family business. For years my brother had sidelined his own plans to give me other options.

Now Cale was stuck. I knew what I had to do for him.

I also knew he’d never allow it. The only way around his stubbornness was to give him no choice.

The deal I made with my uncle was that I’d take Cale’s place. Sure, I didn’t have my brother’s gritty street background but I’d amassed more knowledge about Richie’s business realm (both legal and illegal) than I ever let on. I’m good at putting pieces together and my uncle was impressed. My legal education would also be a huge asset. Anyway, I was tired of living ten states away from the family. I’d commit to staying right here for good.

In return, Cale would be released. To sweeten the pot, I even agreed to Richie’s marriage scheme with the Barones.

No one, not even my brother, guessed that I had no intention of fulfilling my end of the deal. My plan was always to figure out a solution before the time came for anyone to march down the aisle.

Which brings me to my present predicament.

---