Page 55 of Highball and Chain

I couldn’t help but feel we were playing a game of semantics, but I rephrased my former sentence in an effort to please her. “They work for us. You have every right to tell them, or me, what you want.”

“I can do that.”

“I have absolutely no doubt in your ability to speak your mind.” I kissed her cheek and strode to the waiting security team. The men weren’t thrilled when I gave them new instructions, but they complied.

Five minutes later, I slid into the driver’s seat with Shanna riding shotgun.

“I’d like to get some things from my place and check on my cat. I also need my laptop to start my job search.” She wrapped her fingers around mine.

I lifted her hand to my lips. “Before we start making plans, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about.”

“That sounds ominous.”

“I spoke to Gabe. We’d like to offer you a position at Marchionni Corp. in the research department.”

“Doing what exactly?” She didn’t sound the least bit thrilled with the offer.

I hadn’t thought through the details, so I made it up on the fly. “Researching potential acquisitions, completing background checks, that sort of thing.”

“I’ll think about it.” Shanna turned her head, but not before I caught the disappointment in her eyes.

“You hate the idea?”

“Well yeah. I’m not crazy about working for a company I know is into illegal activities.” She shifted to face me. “Which reminds me. I’d like to officially take back what I said about you taking over for your father. It’s a terrible idea.”

I’d expected this sort of reaction when I’d first told her my family was part of the mafia, but she’d taken it fairly well. It never occurred to me she’d have a problem with the job offer. “The Marchionni Corporation itself isn’t involved in illegal activities.”

“Then how does it all work?”

I couldn’t get into the nitty gritty of operations, but hopefully, I could tell her enough to satisfy her curiosity. “The company purchases failing hospitality businesses, bars, hotels, restaurants—”

“I know how it works. The company is like the one Edward Lewis runs in Pretty Woman.”

“I’m not sure I follow.”

She gave me a dubious look. “Tell me you’ve seen the movie. Julia Roberts? Richard Gere?”

“It’s been ages, but yes, I’m acquainted with the film.”

“Richard Gere’s character runs a company that buys failing businesses and chops them up and sells them to the highest bidder.”

A memory of the movie prickled the back of my mind. “Yes, except sometimes we save the failing company before we sell it.”

“Right, but where do the Lazios and the other families fit in?” She lowered her voice. “Several of the companies you bought claimed they were successful, and your father’s company sabotaged them to force the sale.”

Her assessment surprised me. She’d hit far too close to the truth for my liking. “When you put it like that, it sounds nefarious, but the reality is, many businesses operate in the same manner.”

“If it’s not illegal, why are the Lazios so desperate to stay partners?”

I should have known better than to give her a candy-coated version of the situation, but I’d gone too far to turn back. “Sometimes the company keeps the businesses we acquire. My restaurant and Gabe’s bar, for example.”

She nodded.

“Bars are one of the few places that still move a lot of cash.” I glanced at her to gauge her reaction.

Her eyes widened. “And mobsters are notorious for running restaurants because they make a perfect front for receiving and distributing illegal goods.”

“Correct.”

---