Page 40 of Cassio (Belles & Mobsters 3)

Both our gazes darted to the window, watching Margaret throw her head back and laugh.

“We have a man lined up to seduce her?” I questioned Luca.

Luca’s jaw tightened and his hands clenched into fists by his side. “Yes.”

He didn’t want to admit it, but he had a thing for Margaret Callahan. It was unlike Luca not to go after a woman. It made me wonder why he kept his distance from her. It couldn’t be because she was a Callahan. It wouldn’t have mattered if she was the president's daughter. If he wanted her, he would have gone after her.

“Luca, stai bene?” I questioned my brother.Are you good?

His jaw ticked, but he kept his eyes locked on the ladies.

“Sì.”Yes.Clipped answer.

He wasn’t good. Something was bothering him, but I couldn’t resolve it if he said nothing.

“What is bothering you?” I tried again. When you’d taken care of someone for so long, it was hard to stop.

Muscles in his neck strained as he clenched his jaw hard. I waited patiently for him to find words. Luca was free with his charms, but when he was pissed off, words disappeared. I failed to teach him how to express his feelings, probably because I wasn’t that good at it myself.

“Having a man in place for the Callahan girl,” he finally started talking. “There has to be another way.”

My little brother was right. There were other ways, but none of them would be as efficient as this one. This one would break the contract and require immediate ramification.

“There are other ways,” I agreed. “But we don’t have time for those.”

As many women as he had, I was surprised that one woman even concerned him. Luca had a habit of changing women frequently. I guess his self-imposed rule of one night max would require you to go through an unhealthy number of women.

“You sure you won’t start a war with Callahan?” Luca challenged. It was a risk, but a necessary one. Callahan would never give up his secret daughter to me. He owed me a debt, and he opted for Margaret to settle it in the form of my bride. The question was whether he’d rather default on it than pay me in the form of his love child.

Áine and Callahan were close. From the moment he found out about her, she was under his protection. When her mother and Callahan got back together, he protected Áine with everything he had. It surprised many crime families, but they knew if they attempted something with her, there would be a hefty price to pay. Likely with their lives.

The marriage arrangement between Margaret Callahan and myself was kept a secret and only a handful of people knew. It was necessary in order to keep anyone from targeting the women.

“It will work out,” I told him. “It has to. Can you go chase down the man and make sure he’s in place?”

Callahan was tired, he wanted out, but he worried about his nephew taking over. He was still too young. I was willing to back him up, let Callahan enjoy his old age with the woman he loved. Connecting the Callahan family and ours would mean security and safety on the East Coast. I fully intended to carry through to the end. Luca and I had sacrificed a lot over our lifetime - our youth, dreams, our innocence. Our hands were tainted with blood.

Our father meant us to be his killers, his dirty errand boys, his leverage… nothing more, nothing less. But we rose above it. We were still killers, but now we killed for ourselves and our own made family. Our family, our friends, our allies. Our half-brother could never understand that sentiment. He was just as selfish as our father was and power hungry above all else. He would continue destroying, torturing until his dying breath.

He’d never see this one coming. Stupid bastard never saw anything coming. Luca and I built a unique empire with the alliances we’d established. Our territories stretched far and wide. If you weren’t with us, you were against us and none of us… not Luciano, not Nico, nor Alessio, Raphael, Alexei, Sasha, or Vasili would stand for someone doing human trafficking in our territories. The entire East Coast, and some, was practically ours.

The last chess piece was being played. New York would be Luca’s and mine. Unfortunately for our brother, he fucked us over, along with Benito, one too many times. It was time to bring him down. Marco, his corrupted state’s attorney, and any other associate of theirs would be destroyed.

They sealed their fate with this latest auction. Nico was using all his resources to chase down information. Poor Bianca. It meant he quadrupled the security on her and the twins. She was probably suffocating, but to her credit, she didn’t complain. She just joked around with us that she might need a vacation back at Nonno’s. She liked him as much as Nonno liked her.

But it wasn’t the right time for vacation. Nico wouldn’t risk anything happening to them. Despite the way he went about forcing our sister to marry him, Bianca and Nico worked well together. She was good for him and he worshiped her. If he didn’t, Luca and I would kill him. Luckily no need for that extravagance.

My eyes roamed the floor and I spotted Áine sitting at the bar. Margaret was nowhere to be found. Even from here, I could see men throwing glances her way, hoping to get closer to her.

Don’t. Fucking. Think. So.

Glancing at my brother who was ready to depart, I asked him one more time, “Will you be okay, Luca?”

He nodded, a gleam of determination in his eyes, and I pondered what it was for. “Perfect,” he drawled, his lips curving into a smile that spoke of stupid decisions.

But my mind was too focused on a certain flamed-haired woman to think it through. Without another word, I left the room and took the stairs. I had to force myself not to jump them like goddamn Tarzan going for his Jane. That would be one way to freak people out.

Just as I neared the bar, I watched the man’s hand reach for her ass; Áine unaware what was happening behind her. Blind red rage shot through me. I grabbed his hand before it could land on Áine’s fine ass, and I gripped it tightly.

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