Chapter 4
Christiano
Pissed off that I didn’t get to spend much time with Sienna at the wedding, I feel edgy as I sit in my best friend’s living room. The bourbon I just tossed down my throat doesn’t help at all.
Remo looks at me and lets out a sigh. “This can’t go on for much longer, brother.”
Only Remo and Nico know the true extent of the hell I’ve been going through since Sienna broke things off with me.
Even though Remo is two years older than me, we clicked during high school. Where it took Nico some time to learn my moods, Remo caught on instantly. He has an uncanny way of being able to read my mind.
“I know.” When he hands me another tumbler of bourbon and takes a seat across from me, I shake my head. “I wish I knew what was going on in Sienna’s mind.”
“Maybe you should consider letting go. Things are tense between the two of you at every gathering, and the others are noticing.”
I shoot my friend a glare. “Don’t even go there, and I don’t care what the family thinks.”
“Why Sienna?”
He has asked me the same question over a hundred times, and every time the answer remains the same. “Because there’s no one else who makes me feel the way she does.”
I take a sip of the amber liquid and savour the burn at the back of my throat. I stare at the crystal tumbler as flashes of the woman who has me tied up in knots race through my mind.
Her beauty is serene. Whenever I see her, she instantly calms the violence in me.
Her fragility calls to the monster inside me, bringing forth such an urge to protect her that it overwhelms me.
Her people-pleasing nature makes me want to lock her in a safe place where no one can abuse that side of her.
I once watched Sienna pet Bullet, Dad’s rottweiler, like he’s a damn puppy and not a trained killing machine. The dog rolled over and let her love on him for as long as she wanted. She had the same effect on Bullet that she has on me. Just like the dog, I’d happily roll over for her.
If only she’d let me.
The reasons I love her are endless. There isn’t a single thing about her that’s a turn-off.
“Sienna is…my opposite in every way. She makes me feel…” I pause as I try to think for a moment. “She eases the storm inside me. Without her, there’s only darkness.”
Remo lets out another sigh, giving me a compassionate look.
Before he can say something else, I order, “Change the subject.”
His features grow serious, and just as I think he’s going to harp on about my obsessive love for Sienna, he says, “I ran into Valentina and the kids today.”
Only Adriano, Remo’s older brother, and I know Remo once had a crush on my sister. Unfortunately, she was already married to Will, her high school boyfriend, whom I don’t like at all.
When she told me she was marrying the spineless weasel, who knows nothing about the workings of the Cosa Nostra, we had such a big fight we almost stopped talking to each other. Dad had to play mediator between us.
I still think she could’ve done so much better, and Remo certainly would’ve been my first choice for her.
I raise an eyebrow at my friend. “Yeah?”
“I popped into the mall to upgrade my phone when I saw her walking with Asher and Talia. She looked exhausted, and when I grabbed her arm to get her attention, she almost had a heart attack.”
“So, you scared her.” I shrug to indicate I’m not following.
“She startled badly. The kids as well.” He leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “My gut tells me something is wrong.”
“I’ll check in on her and the kids,” I say to set his mind at ease.
Silence falls between us for a few minutes, then he lets out a chuckle while shaking his head. “Look at us, Christiano. Pining after women who don’t want us.”
“Mine wants me. Sienna is just fighting it for some reason,” I set him straight.
“Yeah-yeah.” He climbs to his feet. “Come on. Let’s spar. I need to get rid of some energy.”
Drinking the last of the bourbon, I set the tumbler down on the glass coffee table, which is situated between the couches, and get up.
I follow Remo to his home gym, and removing my gun, I set it down on the nearest bench. We move to the mat and circle each other. Remo cracks his knuckles and flashes me a cocky grin.
“Ready?” he asks, before taunting me. “Or should I give you a minute to stretch? I don’t want you straining a muscle.”
I roll my neck and lift my fists. “Shut up and fight.”
When he lunges at me, I block his first strike, barely deflect the second, then eat the third as he gets in a punch. Pain scatters through my jaw, and I let out a chuckle.
We circle each other, our eyes locked. Suddenly, Remo feints right, but goes left, trying to catch me off guard. I duck and deliver a blow to his ribs, which has him grunting, then he retaliates with a kick to my side of my left leg.
“Asshole,” he says, hopping back to put some distance between us while he rubs the side of his chest.
“Aww…did I hurt the baby?” I taunt him with a shit-eating grin on my face.
He rushes at me again, and this time we collide hard.
We struggle for control, our breathing rough and teeth bared.
He sweeps my feet from under me, but I quickly twist my body, dragging him down to the floor.
We roll across the mat, wrestling like we are trying to kill each other instead of burning off stress.
Remo slams his fist into my left kidney, and I shove him off of me while hissing, “Fucker. You always aim there.”
Grinning like he just won the fight, he says, “Because you hate it.”
We climb back to our feet, and as he throws another punch at me, I headbutt him.
Remo staggers two steps backward. “Ohhh, you’re so fucking dead.”
“Give it your best shot.”
He comes at me again, tackling me off my feet, and as my back plows into the mat, I laugh. I buck hard, and when Remo loses balance, I wrestle him until I’m on top. Just to fuck with him, I pat his cheek. “You were saying?”
I push to my feet, a smile tugging at my mouth. “Have you had enough?”
“Not by a long shot,” he mutters before lunging at me and delivering two blows to my left side.
I retaliate by slamming my forearm into his throat, and as he gags, I take his feet out from under him, dropping him on his ass.
Even though he’s trained well, he’s not as good as me so I take it easy on him. The last thing I want to do is seriously hurt my best friend. After we spend an hour working up a sweat, I call it a night.
While I pick up my gun from the bench, Remo catches his breath before asking, “You’ll check in on Valentina?”
“I said I would.” Knowing what his next question is going to be, I add, “And I’ll let you know if anything is wrong. Chill.”
“Chill? That’s rich coming from you.”
With a smirk, I walk out of the gym and head toward the front door. “See you next week.”
Remo and Adriano both live in cottages situated on their parents' property. The grounds are teeming with guards, and as I make my way down the path that leads to the driveway, Nico joins me.
“Looks like you worked up a sweat,” he mentions.
“Sparring session.”
I get into the backseat of my Bentley and pull my phone out. Bringing up Valentina’s number, I press dial and listen as the line connects.
“Hi,” she answers, sounding breathless.
“How are you?”
“I’m fine, and you?” When I hear nervousness in her tone, my eyes narrow.
“How are the kids?”
“They’re good.”
She also sounds exhausted. Maybe I’m just looking for something after what Remo said, but her tone doesn’t sit right with me.
“Are you home?”
“Yes.”
I end the call and meet Nico’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “Valentina’s place.”
During the drive, I think about my upcoming meeting with Constantin Dragomir. He’s head of the Romanian mafia and one powerful motherfucker who can either become a thorn in my side or a valuable ally. We’ll only know once we sit down for a meeting.
A meeting that took me months to secure.
Nico parks the vehicle behind Valentina’s BMW, and as I get out, I glance at the mansion our parents bought for them when she got pregnant with Asher.
Will is a so-called realtor who can’t sell a property to save his fucking life. If it weren’t for the money I pay Valentina every month, they wouldn’t survive.
It’s another reason I despise the fucker.
Not giving a shit, I don’t bother knocking and shove the front door open. I hear Talia crying and Asher whining, “I’m hungry.”
“Food is almost ready. We’ll eat soon, my baby.” The exhaustion in my sister’s voice hits me square in the chest.
I stalk into the kitchen, and seeing my sister frazzled by the stove, with her hair piled on her head in a messy bun and tired lines on her face, my temper flares. Talia is sitting in her kiddie chair, looking feverish from crying, and Asher is tugging on Valentina’s pants.
I pick up Talia, and she instantly rests her head on my shoulder while popping her thumb into her mouth.
Smoke starts to creep out of the oven, and as Valentina panics, ripping the door open to get to whatever’s burning, I stalk toward her.
“Uncle Christiano!” Asher shrieks happily and runs toward me.
I ruffle his hair before I lean past Valentina to switch off the stove and oven.
“Christiano,” she gasps, her eyes going wide as saucers.
I glance at the half-cooked meal she’s preparing, then look at Nico and order, “Go get them something to eat.”
He quickly leaves, and when I turn my attention back to Valentina, I take in how pale she is.
Violence spreads through my blood like a wildfire.
“What the fuck is going on here?” I demand.
“Don’t curse in front of the kids. It’s just been a rough day.”
I stare at her until her chin begins to quiver. “I had a lot of errands, and then I started feeling sick. I think Talia is sick as well. Things just got away from me.”
“Where the fu…” I catch myself before I curse again. “Where is Will?”
“In his office.”
Handing Talia to her, I say, “Stay here.”
When I walk toward the doorway, she sounds panicky as she asks, “What are you going to do?”