Page 24 of Don't Break My Heart
Fuck. I turn away from him and glance out over the stunning view of the ocean, anything to avoid answering his question. “Why wouldyou say that?” I try to keep my voice light, unemotional. The last thing I need is Onyx knowing the truth.
His chair scrapes along the floor and in one quick move he spins me back to face him, both hands capturing my waist as he presses my back into the marble countertop, pinned beneath his weight. His dark eyes bore into mine, his breathing ragged like a wild beast. “Don’t keep shit from me!”
I blink up at him, wondering what he already knows. “It’s a little pot calling the kettle black, since you’ve been keeping shit from me my whole life,” I snip back, not willing to share what I know so easily. Me knowing Valentine wants me dead is one thing. If his brothers find out, my nice, neat way out of this town might not be so simple.
His hand moves to my neck, and he glares at me. “I’m trying to keep you alive, trouble. Now’s not the time to be a fucking brat.” I see the tick of frustration; he’s on the edge of losing his shit completely and going all hulk on me again. “Rule four, no lying or keeping secrets.”
I shove him in the chest, trying to get some space. “Fuck, you’re an asshole sometimes,” I spit when he doesn’t budge. “Valentine set it up alright, is that what you want to hear?” I say, keeping my voice low so the other boys can’t hear me. “He fucking wanted me dead because he believed I was after their papa’s money and I had somehow convinced him to make me his heir.” A bitter laugh escapes me. “We both know that’s not true. I want no part of this bullshit life.”
He pushes off me, scrubbing a hand over his face. “Fuck. I knew we couldn’t trust him.”
“Don’t sweat it, big guy.” I grin back at him. “I sorted him out.”
He stares back at me blankly, and I know he’s not impressed. “What, by pulling a gun on him and threatening him?” He grabs me by the arms, and I think he’s about to shake some sense into me. “Youdon’t know these people, Sloane, what they’re capable of,” he says more softly, his eyes filled with emotion. He’s really worried.
A cold laugh escapes me, and my hand moves to his solid chest as I shove at him. Of course, he was watching me and Valentine in the hallway. “And they don’t know me. I’ve handled Valentine, so don’t go telling the others what he did. It will only cause more trouble, and you and I both know we want this mess cleared up quickly so we can go home.” He stares back at me, furious.
I glance out at the boys and see Reef watching us. I smile at him so he knows I don’t need him to intervene, even though I can see by the flex of his hand that he’s about to. I return my attention to Onyx. “If you really care about me and want to help, this shit has to stay between us. I’m serious, Onyx.”
“Don’t keep shit from me again.” He drops his hold on me, the pressure of his fingers still lingering on my skin.
My eyes narrow in on him. “Same goes for you,” I snip back, stalking toward the door. His double standards give me whiplash. I know he’s only trying to protect me, but I’ve got this.
When I make it out onto the charming little outdoor space, I pull one of the rattan chairs over and take a seat beside Reef. Snatching for the bottle of wine, I fill up the closest glass, while Onyx is left seething at the other end of the table. I get it, he needs control over everything, me included, and this situation has him even more on edge than normal, but what does he think it’s like for me? I’m not just going to sit back and let them all control my life. I might have been forced into this mess, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going to take care of it in my own way. All three men at this table have another thing coming if they think I will.
Romeo watches me, and I know he’s wondering what just happened inside. “What’s the plan, Romeo?” I ask to get the focus off me.
“What plan, doll face?” His eyes roam down my body a flicker of heat in them that tells me exactly where his dirty mind is going. Man, he and his brother are similar.
I down my drink then top up my glass again, not missing the growl from Onyx as I do. “First, you have your dear papa blown up, second we sign over all the paperwork to Valentine, leaving him in charge of your papa’s affairs in Italy, then we all fly home and back to our normal lives,” I say, hopeful.
He glances at Reef, and the two of them share a look. “It’s not quite that simple, doll face. I have a legal team looking over his will as we speak. But Valentine has to agree to our terms.”
I purse my lips. “What terms? Isn’t it simple, like we just give it all over to him and get the fuck out of here before someone else gets hurt?”
He takes my hand from across the table, gently kissing the back of it. “Right now, we just want your name off anything related to the Moretti organization, take the target off your back. The three of us brothers should be able to work it out from there.”
Something in the way he says it sits heavy in my stomach. “You want some part in the Italian side? I thought both you and Orlando wanted it left to your brother.” My voice squeaks out, a little more panicked than I want it to be.
“That was when our papa was alive. Now things are different.”
I lock eyes with Reef, and I can see he’s about as happy with this fucked-up idea as I am. Onyx looks even less impressed, his arms crossed over his chest and his face harsher than normal. Is this what they were arguing about when I came up the stairs? Trust Romeo to want more than he needs.
I slip my hand from his as I sit up a little taller, locking eyes with him. “What does the Italian side of the Moretti organization even do?”
Romeo’s eyes come to me, a hand running through his stubble, but he doesn’t answer. And I know it’s bad just by the way my pulse quickens.
I shift my attention to Reef, looking for answers. One of these fuckers better answer me or I will lose my ever-loving shit. I don’t care what they have been through.
Reef glances at Romeo then back to me as he shakes his head, I think annoyed that Romeo is being tight-lipped about this shit. “Along with owning a network of high-end clubs, restaurants, and nearly half of Italy’s media outlets, the family stands as the country’s largest distributor of cocaine.”
Onyx takes over. “Sloane, this family is into some fucked-up shit. Don’t forget our suspicions that Emilio himself was deeply involved in human trafficking, specifically the smuggling and exploitation of young women across Europe.”
Onyx’s words make my skin crawl. This couldn’t get any worse. “Are you fucking kidding me?” I ask, my eyes locked with Romeo, needing him to tell me this is some sick joke.
He drops his head, looking anywhere but directly at me, and I know it’s bad. “My papa’s operations extend far beyond street-level crime. He built a criminal empire with deep political ties and influence over entire regions of law enforcement and finance in Italy and the States.”
I raise a brow in Romeo’s direction, not sure I even know who this man is anymore. “You want a fucking piece of this shit!” My voice shakes out. If this is what he wants to be involved in then I don’t know him at all, and he doesn’t know me if he thinks I will just sit back and watch him do it. This is the kind of exploitation I have been fighting to stop my whole damn life.
