Chapter 20 Tyson
TWENTY
TYSON
I understand what’s expected of me, but it doesn’t make this dinner party any less tolerable.
Usually, it’s just Massi and I, trying to survive whatever the hell our fathers throw at us, but now that we’ve added Carter to the mix, my patience is even thinner than usual.
The second Mr. Masseria’s eyes land on our girl, I want to lunge across the room and gouge them out, never allowing him to creepily check her out again, but I have to pretend that I don’t even notice.
His gaze travels to her chest, and he’s very obviously staring, my blood boiling with each passing second until Massi interrupts, returning his focus elsewhere.
Carter looks visibly uncomfortable and shaken up, but there’s a specific glow to her that I’d recognize anywhere, the post-orgasm bliss painted all over her face.
Involuntarily, I clench my fists, hating how her and Massi sneaking off affects me, but I’ve never felt a true connection to a woman before, and the urge to possess her wholly is too strong.
Still, for the charade, Carter belongs to him tonight, and if I want to keep our cover, I need to shrug it off, instead choosing to believe in the promise that she made me.
“Tyson. Now.” My father snaps his fingers, and like a dog on a leash, I follow his command.
We work our way through the living room, his footsteps stopping right beside Massi, his father, and of course, Carter.
Her perfume makes it hard for me to breathe, but she glances up at me, a slight blush forming on her cheeks as we make eye contact.
She holds her emotions in those captivating baby blue irises, and right now, I can feel her sadness radiating deep into my bones, like we’re connected on a deeper, spiritual level.
All I can do is I offer her a small smile, one to ease her troubled mind, and her entire body relaxes, as if one facial expression has erased all the doubts or worries she was holding onto.
“Before dinner, the five of us need to have a chat in my office,” Mr. Masseria says sternly, coming across as an order, rather than a suggestion or an invitation.
It feels a little strange, bringing Carter into the fold with four men surrounding her on all sides, ushering her into a room by herself, but she’s strong enough to fight back or defend her actions.
Massi shoots me a look, and without hesitation, I walk beside Carter, effectively forming a protective bubble around her as we follow our fathers down the hallway to the office.
Alone, my father isn’t intimidating in the slightest, but when he stands next to the head of a crime family, he’s transformed into a man resembling power, something people fear.
Having been friends since attending Emory themselves, our fathers make a nasty duo, one of the many reasons why the two families merged into one force to be reckoned with.
They both stand behind the desk, acting as if this were a casual business meeting, but when those two are together, it’s far from informal, similar to how people view Massi and I.
“Now, you three seem to have gotten yourselves into a big mess.” Mr. Masseria jumps right in, his eyes locked on Carter directly in the middle of us as we all take our seats.
“Young lady, I don’t know how you got mixed up in this, or where exactly you fit in, but how can we guarantee your silence without having to rearrange that pretty face? ”
“Dad, that’s not –” Massi nearly levitates out of the chair, his body tense, but his father only holds a single finger in the air, effectively shutting him up.
“I’m the one who killed those two people. I alone pulled the trigger, and I don’t plan on telling a single soul.” Carter folds her arms across her chest, fearlessly facing the Don head on, but I can already tell by her attitude that this isn’t going to end well.
The thing is, when you’re dealing with men like us, nothing is off limits.
Carter may not be a part of this Family, but she’s subject to the same treatment as everyone else, and that terrifies me.
“You’ll have to forgive us, Ms. Cassina, but as I’m sure the boys have told you, we’re in the middle of a war.
You seemingly just showed up in their lives, and you’re an inexplicable shot, capable of taking a life without a shred of remorse.
One can only let their imagination wander,” my dad says, his charm and way with words impressive, but nonetheless, something to take seriously.
They’re playing good cop, bad cop in an attempt to scare Carter, but little do they know, she doesn’t frighten easily, and can handle herself better than anyone I’ve ever met.
“Girls are allowed at shooting ranges, right? We can own guns, carry permits, and even hunt, too! For you to accuse me of being some kind of double agent is just ridiculous, and borderline offensive,” she huffs, rolling her eyes for dramatic effect, and I can barely contain my smile as she defends herself effortlessly.
Before anyone can say another word, Mr. Masseria leans over the desk, backhanding Carter across the face in a split second, the sound echoing off the walls.
Massi reacts first, jumping out of the chair and lunging toward his father, but I grab him by the waist, knowing that whatever’s running through his mind won’t end well.
“I don’t stand for disrespect, young lady,” he smirks, clearly pleased with the shock value of his move, and Massi’s response.
This whole charade was intended to get a rise out of us, to see how we’d react, and they played right into his hand.
Thankfully, being the quiet one has its perks, but my father has his gaze trained on me, just waiting for me to say something.
“We’re not stupid, you guys taught us better than that. Carter isn’t a threat, but hey, she is one hell of a shot, that much we can all agree on, right?” I laugh, standing from my chair and finally releasing my grip on Massi, allowing him to regain his composure.
“If you ever fucking touch her again …” he warns, but I push him toward the door, ending this before it gets any worse.
The last thing we need is a blow out or any more smart remarks because that’ll only lead to future bullshit for us, and I’d prefer to avoid any additions to our already heavy workload.
“Go. Now.” I shove Massi one more time, both of us locked in a stare down until he concedes, allowing me to gently grab Carter’s arm, dragging her to a standing position and getting her the hell out of here.
“We aren’t finished!” I hear from behind us, but I urge her forward, not letting either of them get another word out.
Massi storms through the house on a rampage, his head snapping back and forth like he’s on the hunt, but finally, I’m able to read his mind when his mother comes into view.
Glancing down at Carter, her expression is unreadable, eyes glazed over as she goes through the motions, not even fighting back while I hold her arm firmly in my grasp.
Our girl is as tough as they come, but her reaction is the most frightening part of the night, a sad reminder that she’s been abused before, and can mask the pain effortlessly.
“I’m sorry, Momma, but we can’t stay for dinner.” Massi interrupts her conversation, and her demeanor instantly changes, like he popped her balloon and deflated the entire night.
“Oh, Junior, no! I feel like I haven’t seen you in so long, please stay,” she begs, but his face hasn’t changed, and neither will his decision.
“It’s my fault, Mrs. M., I’m not feeling too good, and I would hate to get anyone sick,” I speak up, all eyes on me as I cover for every person who was in that office, hoping to de-escalate the situation.
“Ty, honey. Can I get you some medicine, maybe you want to lay down for a bit in the guest room?”
“Mom.” Massi pulls her in for a hug, likely whispering something in her ear, because once he backs away, she’s completely accepting of us leaving.
“It was lovely to meet you!” Carter calls out robotically as we whisk her away, fleeing the scene of the carnage as quickly as possible.
Once we’re all outside and safely in my truck, I let out a deep breath, the constriction around my neck finally loosening as we leave the house.
My main concern is the two people beside me, but they’re both silent as I drive out of the gate and down the road. I want to talk this out, check in on Carter, but the tension in this truck is almost too much to bear, and I’m scrambling to come up with a solution.
Both of them need to snap out of it, leave the bullshit at the door so to speak, and finally, I think I’ve figured out the perfect plan to get them out of their heads, but first, they need to tell me what they want.
The second I put the truck in park, both of them try to slink out of the passenger door, but I press the lock, not letting them go before we talk.
“Ty, come on,” Massi sighs, and Carter looks up at me, her cheek bright red and indented with the imprint of a ring.
“We’re not going inside until we talk about this,” I say, my eyes locked onto Carter’s as tears blur her baby blue irises.
“I’m fine,” she chokes out, but I’m not buying it for a second, and neither is Massi.
“Bullshit, Principessina. I don’t care who hurt you in the past, but what happened tonight was on my watch, and I’m so fucking sorry. I should’ve protected you,” he confesses, and her head falls onto his chest, slow tears rolling down her cheeks.
“I don’t need to be saved, okay? And it’s certainly not my first time being slapped.
My father … well, he’s the same way, and my smart mouth has always gotten me into trouble.
It’s fine, and I’m fine. I promise,” she says softly, her eyes fluttering shut as Massi wraps his arms around her body, and I stroke her hair, raking my fingers through her dark curls.
“What helps you feel better after … something like this?” I ask her, and she mulls it over for a few seconds before answering.
“I’ve never had friends, or close family members I could turn to.
I’ve never had boyfriends, or people to comfort me, so usually I’d just steal some of his scotch and drink myself to sleep.
But now, I have to open up to you guys, or allow myself to be taken care of, and I’m not sure I know how to do that,” she sniffles, the sound of her sadness nearly breaking my heart, but I don’t want to overwhelm her with my own needs.
If it were up to me, I’d hold her in my arms all night, encouraging her to talk until she couldn’t anymore, but Carter isn’t the type to open up or show her vulnerabilities.
I’m shocked that she’s even shared a tidbit with us tonight, considering we know nothing about her home life or past experiences beyond the scars on her back.
Seemingly, there’s not much to tell, since her father sounds like a piece of shit as it is, but even in the midst of the chaos, I find myself feeling even closer to her.
The circumstances surrounding her confessions are unfortunate, but anything that can bring out those deep, dark secrets buried in her soul are always a welcome addition.
She’s fascinating, and I want to decode every piece of her that she’ll allow.
“I have an idea, Carter. Do you trust me?” I ask, taking her hands in mine, and she looks up at me with doubt – and what also seems to be trust – in her eyes.
“I trust you both.” She looks between us, tears staining her cheeks, and I swipe them away, not able to stand her sadness any longer.
“Ty, I don’t know if that’s the best idea,” Massi whispers, practically cradling Carter like a newborn in his arms, but I shrug him off, knowing what she can handle, and hoping I can speak for the things she can’t quite explain about herself, yet.
“No, I want to try whatever Tyson has in mind. I know he won’t hurt me,” she argues, but rather than this turning into a full blown bickering session, he simply agrees with her, trusting her intuition.
“I’ll remember you said that, baby girl,” I say, smiling as I unlock the doors, freeing us all from the confines of my truck.
I wasn’t prepared to show Carter the darker, dominant side of myself just yet, but I have a feeling that she’s more like me than she realizes, and we all have our ways to take back our power.
When she was on Massi’s arm tonight, I was haunted with a twinge of jealousy, but having her between the two of us erases that, as if our reunification has made everything right again.
Her smile lights up the darkest spaces inside of me, and although I’ve never cared to share, when she laughs with Massi, or they have their secret moments, it makes me just as happy as if it were only the two of us in this relationship.
They are the closest people I have on this fucked up planet, and somehow, being apart of this throuple has given me more than I ever could’ve achieved on my own.
It’s strange, maybe even taboo to some, but it works for us, and tonight, I’m going to carve it out in a way that’ll be inescapable.
This right here is for life.