Page 105 of The Capo

The love of my life had even jetted us off to the Bahamas for a three-day luxury trip where we’d done nothing but baked in the sun, swam until we were exhausted, indulged in fabulous wines and foods, and made love until the sun peeked over the horizon.

It was hard to believe the difference in the two aspects of life.

Now we were watching a race at a track designed by my father and his best friend, with the help of a special architect and about a dozen builders, but I’d never seen Francois so happy as when he was interfering with a race or a meeting with his pit crew. Now this.

We were standing in the family’s private box at the racecar track, the race more than halfway finished. I’d been at the railing the entire time, unable to stand the thought of sitting. The men were in the back, discussing how they were going to hunt down Alturo as they’d done more than once.

I couldn’t care less. I was free. I was in love. I was happy. And nothing was going to take that away.

Unless, of course, our team didn’t win the race. That would be a near tragedy. The thought made me smile then bite my lip.

“What are you thinking about?” Raven asked as she sidled up next to me while Zoe was whooping and hollering, pretending she was Julia Roberts inPretty Woman.

“Just how lucky I am.” And I did feel lucky, blessed in fact.

“I’m glad you’re going to be a part of the family.”

“Um. Do you know something I don’t know?”

She laughed. “Only by the way Francois lights up when you enter a room. Incidentally, I heard about your agent. What a tragedy.”

I gave her a look, shaking my head. Francois had taken a trip without me, but I’d known exactly what he was doing. He’d been cleaning up the loose ends and that included my former agent. The fact the pig of a man had betrayed me would forever leave a bad taste in my mouth. “He got what was coming to him. Oops. I guess I’ll go to hell for that one.”

“No, you won’t. I happen to agree,” Raven said as she laughed. “Karma is a bitch. By the way, I was told Edmee wanted to come, but she’s so pregnant right now that she can barely move.”

The sister was a delightful woman, the baby shower I’d met her at another indication of how loving their family was. “Totally understandable.”

“You are in love,” Raven mused. “You look just like I did when I fell hard for Arman.”

I noticed Sara walking up. She was the younger brother’s wife, Louie a surgeon, hating the business his two brothers were in. Yet they all had common ground with the racetrack and team, which I found irresistible.

“Francois is pretty special,” I whispered, my heart racing at the thought.

“According to Jean Baptist and Celina, you’re already adored,” Sara added, overhearing the conversation.

His mother and father had cut their vacation short upon hearing what had occurred. We’d had lavish dinners and breakfasts, every family member required to be in attendance. They’d been exquisite affairs, making me feel as if I’d been a member of their family for decades instead of weeks.

Yet my heart ached for my father. He hadn’t returned my call. While I understood why, that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt.

“And I adore all of you,” I said, without bothering to look at either one of them.

“She only has eyes for the race,” Sara said, both women laughing.

“Gee. I wonder why. Sadly, I don’t think our team has a snowball’s chance in hell of winning. It’s fifty to one odds against team Thibodeaux.” Raven’s voice held a haughty tone, which wasn’t like the girl at all.

“That’s why I placed a thousand dollar bet,” I said, waiting for their reaction. When they burst into laughter, I couldn’t help but join them, finally turning in their direction. I noticed Rocco was keeping an eye out for me, ensuring my safety as he’d been instructed to do.

I’d decided that living in fear wasn’t on my bucket list, preferring to enjoy life. There were enough fruitcakes in this world. I just had to pluck them out.

A Jimmy Buffett song came to mind, and it allowed me to smile all over again.

“You are so bad, but that’s why you’re a kick-ass businesswoman,” Raven half cooed.

“I don’t know about that.” At least the love of my life wasn’t against me working in the family business, to a degree. I had a feeling the arguments would come later on after the shit had hit the fan with my father.

Sighing, I grabbed the binoculars, finding the bright red car on the other side of the track. Suddenly, I started tingling. “There’s a blue flag on the field,” I said out loud.

“What does that mean?” Zoe asked as she rushed to my other side.

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