Page 61 of The Don

“If I was the governor’s wife, I’d be looking over my shoulder because when Diana sets her eyes on a man, a vacant position by his side soon opens up.”

I say nothing, but from the tick in Leo’s jaw, he is angry about that, and I wonder if Diana is the person responsible for Giovanni killing his wife. I heard his wife had connections to an elusive mafia king that nobody knows the identity of, and Giovanni was declaring an act of war when he murdered her in cold blood. He wanted to expose the mafia king and bring him into the open, but nobody ever came. Her death was pointless, but hearing Leo speak about Diana, it makes me wonder if I’m seeing the whole picture.

The thoughts fade from my mind as we pull up outside the lawyer’s office in town and as the soldiers take up their positions, we emerge from the car into an uncertain future.

We travel in silence in the elevator to the fifth floor and I swear my nerves are frayed and I wonder how Leo must be feeling now. I know we replaced the real will with our own, but nothing is guaranteed in life, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the original is the one we hear read out today.

As we step from the elevator, I sense the interest of the staff hidden in cubicles, going about their daily business. I’m guessing we appear quite the circus because Leo is dressed to reflect his personality. Head to toe in black, with menace in his eyes. I love how dangerous he is. How enigmatic and deadly yet hiding a heart bigger than most people I have ever met. He walks with an aura of ‘don’t fuck with me’ and I’m guessing most people are grateful when he passes by.

His soldiers have no emotion, no fear and no regard for anyone other than their Don and I am so proud to walk beside him, knowing I have met my match. My man and my place is beside him and I’m looking forward to starting our life together in just a few hours’ time.

Ernest Bagway is a small man with thinning hair and glasses. His suit appears too large for him, and I wonder if it’s on purpose because he appears to shrink into it like a tortoise into his shell. He’s nervous. Hell,I’mnervous and when faced with the wall of menace that has crowded into his meeting room, I half expect the guy to keel over and die of a heart attack.

We take our seats around a huge walnut table, and only the sound of the clock ticking on the wall interrupts the tense silence.

Leo has become the man he is. The mafia boss who gives out the vibe, fuck with me and you die.

Ryan is on his other side and staring at the lawyer with a contemplative expression. I glance up as the door opens and Matteo arrives with his own circus, and I wonder what took them so long. They left before us, and I expected them to be here already. I don’t miss the look he shares with Leo before taking his seat beside the lawyer, who visibly swallows hard.

The clock ticks close to two pm and the door opens again, and I stare with interest as Diana heads into the room with a man in a suit beside her. To be fair, he looks fucking terrified when he sees who’s waiting and I’m almost sorry for him.

“Good afternoon.” She says as if she’s attending a business meeting and continues with a wave of her hand, “This is Curtis. My lawyer.”

Leo snorts beside me and then fixes her with a withering stare.

She merely smirks before taking a seat beside her lawyer and then proceeds to whisper behind her hand as he shifts uncomfortably on his chair, refusing to look anywhere but down at the polished table, probably at his tortured reflection staring back at him.

As we wait, the clock moves past two and the lawyer glances at it, the sweat beading on his brow and jumps when the door opens, and Dom and Flora walk in. Flora’s eyes narrow when she sees her sister, who calls out, “Flora, darling. Come and sit by me.”

Flora completely ignores her and looks away before sitting beside Dom at the opposite end of the table.

Earnest Bagway coughs before saying, “We have two more people expected, and then I will begin.”

I note Leo catches Dom’s eye and his brief nod tells me Carlos Matasso will not be walking into this office this side of hell and so I’m shocked when the door opens once again and a familiar face heads into the room.

“Gentlemen. It’s so good of you to wait.”

Giselle Matasso slides into one of the two remaining seats and glances around the room with a smug, “Good afternoon.”

I catch a quick glimpse of Diana and wonder why her face is like thunder as she stares at the empty seat beside Giselle.

Leo tenses beside me as Giselle smirks in our general direction and Ernest Bagway clears his throat.

“Now I’ll begin.”

CHAPTER43

LEO

Istop breathing. This is the most important hour of our lives, and it will change everything. If Carlos is dead, his widow definitely isn’t grieving, and Diana appears to know something judging by the smirk on her face and the curious glances in Giselle’s direction.

I have an overwhelming feeling we’re just props in her stage show and I have never been more uncomfortable in my life.

Ernest stares at us all with a worried twitch in his eye and then says nervously. “I have here the last will and testament of Don Giovanni Ortega. God bless his soul.”

Dom coughs and Matteo rolls his eyes, but I fix my deadly gaze on the man who had better deliver on his promise.

He reads it word for word, the legal jargon providing me with an instant headache. Then he gets to the main reason we are here and sighs before staring around the room as a collective.