Page 144 of Contract of a Billionaire
“Yes?” I urged.
“I promised to get the Corsican mafia out of Philly.” The meaning of it sank in.
“So we need to get married?” My lips curved into a smile. “I’m on board. Unless you’re not.”
A sardonic breath left him. “I am so fucking on board. I’ve been on board for the past eight years.”
“Stalker,” I teased.
“Getting married is the easy part,” he continued. “The hard part is that I have to eliminate your grandfather.”
“Oh.” Silence followed. A tense, yet almost comfortable silence. “We visit them and just tell them that’s how it’s going to be.”
“And how is it going to be, love?”
“You signed a contract. You got me. The deal was theirbusinesscomes to you. To us. So we get to do whatever we want with it.”
“So you’re okay giving it away?”
My hands cupped Alessio’s cheeks. “Am I okay with it?” I rasped. “I thought I’d never see you or Kol again. I thought I’d have this baby,” he put his hand on my lower belly, “alone. So fuck yes, I’m okay with it. I don’t want it. And you’ve put that behind you. So let’s do what needs to be done and just live our lives.”
His nose brushed against mine. “We earned it; didn’t we baby?” he murmured.
“You earned it even more than me.”
* * *
Two days later,we sat in an obnoxiously blue, sixteenth century styled parlor. Or maybe it was an office. I couldn’t quite tell.
Marcel Blanchet watched me, those weary eyes on his wrinkled face. The guy was the head of the Corsican mafia but he looked to almost have both feet in the grave. He was almost ninety for Pete’s sake.
“I could teach you like I taught your mother,” the old man grumbled, his voice hard to hear. Or maybe it was the fact that I was nervous to be here.
“I’m not interested,” I answered. “Alessio will handle that business.”
“Righteous like her father,” the old man spat. “But stubborn and strong like her mother, I see.”
My eyes flicked to Alessio, wondering if the old man complimented me or insulted me but his face was an unmoving mask. This was the ruthless man that people feared.
My grandfather, it was so strange to call him that, looked at Alessio. “So what are your plans?”
“We’re pushing out of Philly,” Alessio said, his tone cold. Almost bored.
My grandfather shot to his feet, and I had to blink twice to make sure my eyes were not deceiving me. Was someone so old supposed to move so fast?
“Never,” my grandfather bellowed, his face turning red. He was about to have a heart attack on our account. “As long as there is breath in my body, that will never happen.”
“That deal saved Autumn’s life,” Alessio continued like my grandfather hadn’t spoken. “And it will ensure Autumn and our children are safe. A broken deal means death. For someone.”
Grandfather waved his hands, muttering curses in French. Some I understood. They were the same ones my own mother had a tendency to repeat. Others, I had no clue what they meant.
“You should have let her die there,” he hissed. I understood that one and so did Alessio. “We had your son. He could have taken over.”
The tension was so thick, I could easily suffocate if I took a deep breath. Yet, Alessio seemed relaxed. Happy almost.
“Autumn.”
“Yes?” My voice sounded small.
