Chapter 15
Alessandro shields my body with his as Ricky grabs my hand. “Run!” he shouts. And I do, taking off with him in the direction of the door on the far side of the room.
When we get far enough away from the wreckage, I turn back, searching for any signs of the others. “Maddox and Geovani!” I cry, frantic. “We can’t leave them behind.” Why didn’t they follow us out of the room?
Shots ring out through the air; patrons scream and scramble to escape through the front entry of the bar. My heart races in panic, but I force my feet to keep pushing forward, with the threat of what Geovani said earlier ringing in my ears. We cause trouble here, the bikers will kill us. We might not have caused that truck to drive through the wall of their club, but we are most certainly the reason it did.
“They know how to look after themselves. We need to get you out of here.” Alessandro takes my other hand, and the three of us are running for the back door. Alessandro jumps in the driver’s seat of his Aston Martin, Ricky pulling me into the passenger side with him. They swiftly leave the lot, gravel flying as we gain speed. It’s not until we’re hurtling down the highway that I realize I’m trapped in a confined space with the two of them.
Ricky sits with his legs spread apart, allowing me to fit my legs in between, even though we are sharing the front seat, his arms wrapped firmly around me. “You are safe, baby girl,” he whispers in my ear, and I’m not sure if it’s me he’s trying to calm or himself. But right now, my heart feels like it’s going to burst out of my chest it’s beating so damn fast. I try to get under control, concentrating on his soft words, but with Maddox and Geovani still back at the bar, it’s impossible.
“Am I, though? I’m stuck in a car with you two. Where are you taking me?” I whisper through my panic.
Alessandro glances at me quickly. “Safe house,” he growls out.
I shake my head. Fuck, we can’t. I’m not going back there knowing everything can be seen. I know I signed that damn NDA of Geovani’s, but I can’t keep this secret, it’s too dangerous for all of us. “You can’t. Please, we have to go somewhere else.”
A darkness washes over him, his lips forming a thin line. “Why?”
I wince, knowing I’m breaking my promise to Geovani. “It’s bugged. Everything you say in that place, Enzo hears.”
His face flares with fury, slamming his fists on the steering wheel. “How the fuck do you know?”
I glare at him. “You’re just going to have to take my word for it. He might be your family, but you both know you can’t trust him. Haven’t you wondered how he’s always one step ahead of you?” Tears are rolling down my cheeks. I feel so guilty, but I’m stuck between them, wanting to keep them all safe even though they’re at war with each other.
“Flamingo Hotel,” Ricky says, and Alessandro does a U-turn right in the middle of the street, his tires screeching as he changes the direction we were traveling in and narrowly avoids another car.
I hold on to Ricky’s legs. He tries to calm me, his fingers stroking my arms gently. I glance back at him, a sinking feeling taking over. “Please tell me you guys didn’t orchestrate whatever that chaos was at the bar just to get me back with you.”
Ricky looks hurt by my accusation, but I wouldn’t put it past them.
“Tell me what you really think of me, princess.” Alessandro cuts a corner way too fast, causing his tires to squeal. I hang on for dear life. If that madman back there didn’t kill me, Alessandro is going to.
“Remember, we didn’t even know you were coming tonight. We thought that was a meeting with just Geovani,” Ricky explains.
I swallow the lump in my throat, an even worse scenario now playing through my head. That had to be his pa back there. Who else would be crazy enough to drive right through the wall of that place knowing it was owned by the Strykers. “Carlo. He’ll kill Geovani. We have to go back and help them!”
“We can’t,” Alessandro snaps furiously, as if my words have just injured him.
I turn to Ricky. “You don’t understand what we did.” More tears fall as I imagine what will happen to the boys if Carlo gets his hands on them?
“Who?” Alessandro grunts.
“Me and Geovani. He will kill him if he knows.”
“What did you do, baby doll?” Ricky whispers, taking my face in his hand, brushing hair out of my weeping eyes as he takes me in.
My stomach churns uncomfortably, knowing this one I have to keep to myself, even though I wish I could tell them. I feel as though they would be able to help us. They may not like Geovani, but I’m just as deep in this as he is, and I know they would help me. “Not anything I can tell you about,” I answer sadly. I hate keeping secrets; I know how much it hurts me when they keep stuff from me.
His thumb dusts down the side of my face. “You leave our protection for a week and you get yourself into all sorts of trouble.”
Alessandro pulls into the back parking lot of the Flamingo Hotel and parks his car. For a second he stares out the windshield, and I see by the tension in his body he’s about to snap. Abruptly he shoves open his door and strides toward the guard at the back door of their club.
Ricky opens our side, and I awkwardly stumble out. He stays close by my side, draping his arm around my shoulders, and we follow Alessandro past the guard who’s openly glaring at me. We go in the back entrance with Ricky shielding me. He hasn’t stopped touching me since we ran from that place. I have so much I need to say to him. I’m still so angry at them, but also the comfort of his touch on me is everything I need right now.
Alessandro finishes talking to the guard then joins in on the other side of me like a protective barrier as we walk through the partying clubgoers like it’s a normal Tuesday and we are not on the run from a fucking madman. We don’t stop until we’re safely inside Alessandro’s office with the door closed.
My heart races for a different reason now. I’m alone with the two of them.
Ricky doesn’t skip a beat before pulling me into him and kissing my lips with so much desperation I feel it right down to my toes. He holds me so tightly to him I can’t breathe. “I thought I lost you,” he whispers into my lips, his hands running down my back.
“I’m right here.” I offer a half smile, the best I can muster, but I’m not here. I’m back at the bar, wondering where the other boys are. If anything happens to them it will be all my fault. I’m the one who demanded this meeting tonight. I risked all our lives because I needed to see them, to tell them about this secret in person.
I push off him, needing space. Needing to clear my head. “Ricky, you fucking hurt me.”
His head drops. “I know… I thought—”
“You didn’t think, you followed Enzo’s orders, and you both nearly got me killed. If Carlo got his hands on me that night, if Maddox and Marco didn’t get me out of there, I wouldn’t still be here today.” I shift my angry gaze to Alessandro. “You would stop at nothing to get to the top, including lying to me and using me for your own gain. Your motherfucking papa is the one with all the power, moving you all around like pawns in his game. After tonight, can you finally see what he’s doing? He couldn’t give a shit about any of you. He rants on about the family, but he’s betrayed all of you,” I spit out at him. He needs to know the damage he could have done. The hurt he’s caused me.
His hands ball into fists, rage radiating off him. I’m not done. I move toward him, shoving him in the chest, my furious eyes locked with his.
“Enzo stole my life from me. My ma died because of his drugs; my papa died at Marco’s hands ordered by Enzo. Marco and I are trapped, locked up in a fucking tower so he can’t get to us. He stole my family, my life. He’s done awful things to you all, and for what? To help himself become more powerful, so he can get more money. How can you stand by and let him destroy your lives?”
“Our girl is right, Alex. Enzo has stolen so much from us all. I’m his fucking son, for fuck’s sake. He needs to pay for the shit he’s done. This is what Maddox has been trying to tell us. Things have to change, and we have the power to knock him off his perch.”
My phone starts vibrating in my pocket, to answer the call. Only two people have this number, Geovani and Dani, and my heart skips a beat when I see his name lighting up the screen. “Geo,” I call his name, elated he’s still alive.
“Where are you?” he seethes, a darkness to his tone that scares me.
“Flamingo Hotel, with Alessandro and Ricky. Is Maddox with you?” I choke out, a little taken back by his tone.
“Yes,” he grunts.
I look at the other two, both hanging on my every word. “You’re both okay?”
“We’ll live. Stay there, I’m coming to get you.” Before I can say another thing, he disconnects the call.
I stare at my phone, my stomach churning. He’s pissed. My eyes rise to meet the others. “They’re both still alive.” I offer a half smile, relief filling me as I swipe the tears I didn’t even realize I was crying from my cheeks.
“You have a phone?” Ricky takes the device from me, inspecting it like it’s an alien creature.
“Most people do.” I snatch it back. “If you’re asking if Geovani has the same control issues as you three, the answer is clearly no. Since leaving your control, I have a phone, my own money to buy new clothes, a job even. Surprising, isn’t it, that little old me can stand on her own two feet after all.”
“Didn’t take long for the snippy attitude to return.” He smirks in a way that makes heat flush my cheeks. He’s such a beautiful man, and when he looks at me with those adorable puppy-dog eyes, I can’t help but melt into a puddle all over the floor. “Harley, you are right about it all. I didn’t know what Enzo had planned the night of the wedding.”
“What about Elisa, were you really going to marry her just because he told you to?”
“No… I don’t know. I wouldn’t have loved her like I do you. It would have been an arrangement, to strengthen the family, that’s all.”
Wrinkles form on my forehead, disgusted at what I’m hearing. He’s beautiful and he’s supposed to be smart, but right now, I can’t see it. “Can you hear yourself? How many sacrifices do you both need to make before you realize how fucking evil that man is.”
Striding purposefully, Alessandro advances toward me, effortlessly picking me up, and carefully setting me down on the pool table. I groan in agony, my muscles still tender from yesterday’s workout. He frowns, then skates his hands to my belly, lifting up my shirt so he can see my bare skin. “Motherfucker. What the hell has he been doing to you?”
I try to pull down my shirt, but he won’t let me. “This. This is the controlling stuff I’m talking about. You have no boundaries.”
Ignoring my protests the both of them study me, making me feel self-conscious and more irritated by the second. “Baby doll, what the fuck.” Ricky’s eyes meet mine, his doctorly concern back as he inspects my bruises.
“It’s not what it looks like. I’m back in training,” I answer softly. I know what they’re seeing, bruises that look worse than they feel. But I’m fine.
Even under his disheveled beard I can make out the vein in Alessandro’s neck, and it looks like it’s about to pop. “Training for what?” he growls out.
“So I can take care of myself.” I shove him off me, standing and making my way over to the bar he has set up. Finding a crystal tumbler, I pour a couple of fingers of whiskey into my glass. I regret not having that drink at the bar; a sip of alcohol would really help soften this mess. I take a swig, letting the burn of the caramel-infused flavor warm my insides, before I turn back to them.
They’re both staring at me, waiting for me to elaborate. Or are they just surprised I’m real? I can’t tell. “You know, to be able to fight assholes like Carlo D’Amico off. Take control back of my life so I don’t have to live in fear anymore,” I try and explain. Why on earth are they looking at me like that? They have to know I’m not the little princess they think.
Ricky joins me, taking the tumbler from my hand and sipping from it. He steps in closer, taking my other hand with his and lacing our fingers together. He can’t stay away from me. “Good for you, baby.”
Alessandro steps in front, the two of them overwhelming my senses with their proximity. “If he hurts you, I’ll kill him myself.”
I roll my eyes at the macho bullshit. “Enough already, Alex. I have no idea what your gripe is with Geovani, but he’s not hurting me. He’s trying to protect me from the fucked-up situation our papas landed me in.”
Alessandro’s eyes darken and meet mine with sadness. “Princess, I didn’t know what Enzo was up to.” He grasps my chin firmly, making me lock eyes with his piercing dark gaze. “Marrying you was supposed to protect you.”
“As well as make you a very wealthy man when you got a hold of Havardi Holdings, right?” I raise a brow. He can’t persuade his way out of this with talk of protecting me. I know better now. I blink back at him, waiting for him to make the next move. Where do we go from here?
“Yes,” he growls. “That wasn’t just for me. That was to help us all. To take some of his power away.”
“Have you thought maybe Enzo doesn’t want his son being more powerful than him?”
“I have been trained since before I could fucking walk to take over from him. It’s time and he knows it.”
“But I’m right, aren’t I? It might be time, but he’s not willing to give it all up for you, even if you are his son. That’s why he made that damn deal with Carlo. He didn’t even tell you about it. That’s why he’s watching you all. He knows his time is coming to an end, and he’s gripping onto it. Desperately.” I suck in a breath, not able to stand the intensity.
“I thought I was doing the right thing,” he says softly, and I hear the hurt in his words. He’s angry with himself more than anything. He has to admit there was more to all of this.
I raise a brow, not fully believing him and wanting him to admit to it. “And getting all the power you wanted at the same time,” I push with a little more attitude than I probably should have toward a man who’s on the edge.
Ricky chuckles, stepping in beside me, his hands running under my shirt as he lowers his mouth to my neck. “I’ve missed you, baby doll. No one calls Alex out on his shit quite like you.”
I lean into his kiss, a half smile on my lips, not able to help the electric pull he has over me. I’ve been missing him as well, no matter how angry I have been. His lips meet mine, and I kiss him deeply, not giving two shits that Alessandro is watching us. He’s standing closer than he should be with way too much anger radiating off him.
When we pull back from each other, Alessandro stares me down in a way that makes my heart flutter. His gaze is heated. Desperate. Not filled with quite as much anger anymore. I swallow down the fear that it fills me with because I have no idea what he’s really thinking right now.
“I have worked my entire life to rule this town. If I could have you by my side as I do it, my life would be complete. I won’t apologize for going after what I want. You have no idea the sacrifices we have all made to get me to the top.” He says his piece then lowers his mouth to mine, kissing me every bit as deeply as Ricky just did, forcing his tongue inside my mouth possessively and making butterflies take off in my stomach.
I shove him away. I’m not ready to forgive and forget so easily with him. He’s hurt me so deeply. Wanting to rule whatever kingdom he thinks this is, isn’t an excuse. “No, you’re right, I have no idea. I’ve never been given the chance to work toward something I wanted before. I can’t imagine the sacrifices you had to make,” I say with bitterness lacing my tone. “Because I didn’t get to choose anything. This life was forced upon me, and I still don’t understand how I’m supposed to survive it.”
“By our sides.”
“Enzo won’t allow that while he’s still in charge and you know it. If you really want me by your sides as you say you do, we need to take back what he’s stolen from us. Take the power he promised you. Stop giving him control over your lives.”
Alessandro takes my hands in his. “Marry me in secret and we can take it all together.”
I step back from him. “No. Alessandro, I won’t be your arm candy. I’m not handing over what my papa created. I’m running my family’s businesses from now on with Marco, just the way it should be.”
“I’ve already earned his men’s respect,” he snips back.
I tilt my head up at him defiantly. “Then use that to our advantage when you announce to them that I’m the new boss. You say you want to protect me, but do you only want that if it’s on your terms?” I tilt my head, watching him, waiting for his reaction.
I see the flash of hurt. “They won’t respect some young girl coming in there and demanding she’s in charge, it doesn’t matter how I feel, Harley.”
“Why?” I glare back, wanting to stomp my feet and have a tantrum right here in his office. He’s the most infuriating man in the world.
Ricky steps in beside him, backing him up. “It’s not the way things are done.”
Irritation crawls over my skin because I know what he’s saying is true. The men around here don’t have any respect for women, and I’m no one. I didn’t grow up here showing my face alongside my papa, I can’t just waltz on into his show room and demand they listen to me, because they will laugh in my face. I cross my arms over my chest and suck in a deep breath. “Then Marco can stand by my side. I’m not handing over my family businesses to anyone else.”
Alessandro growls. He’s a man on the verge of losing it.
Ricky takes my hands in his. “We can discuss details later. We haven’t seen our girl in days, and from that phone call, I’m going to assume Geovani’s on his way to collect you. We need to make up for lost time.” Ricky’s hand brushes over my stomach and travels up my body, cupping my tits. Instinctively I move into him, wanting his healing touch.
I give him my full attention because right now I need a little distraction from the tension that’s eating me alive. “What exactly did you have in mind, Ricky?” I smile seductively, my hand tangling in his shirt as I move closer.
“Geovani’s not taking you anywhere,” Alessandro snarls out.
My eyes flick back to him reluctantly. Why must he be the fun police. “That’s not your decision to make,” I snap with an eye roll.
“Alex,” Ricky warns his brother, growling into my neck. His actual half-brother. Not sure I can wrap my head around that just yet.
But I have to smirk back at him. He’s like a dog with a bone, and right now he wants me, his lips not even leaving my skin to threaten his brother. I’m not going to deny him, he’s had a traumatic night, after all. I untuck his shirt and find his belt buckle, needing my hands on him. His lips rise back to mine, kissing me roughly, sending a flood of dampness straight to my panties. I undo his top button and slip my hand inside his pants, feeling his hard length. Fuck, he feels so good.
Over his shoulder I see Alessandro’s body stiffen, his eyes running over us together.
My lips turn up at the sides in an invitation for him to stop being such an asshole. He could come and join us. “Are you going to keep glaring at me or come have some fun?”
I lean into Ricky’s touch as he plucks at my nipple, his head dipping to place kisses down my neck.
“For fuck’s sake,” he growls out, striding over to the door and flicking the lock. His dark eyes are filled with sin and a promise of what’s about to come. Hopefully me. Watching us together has him all hot and bothered, even if he’s still furious about losing all the control over me.
He tilts my head back so I meet his dark eyes. “I will support you and your brother in taking back what’s yours if you can promise me one thing: when the time comes, you get your men to support me in taking over the reins from Enzo.”
My lips twitch up at the sides. “Done.”