Chapter 25
25
AMARA
The shooting stopped a long time ago, but no one has opened the door, and we’re all feeling the tension. I’ve curled myself up against the wall, knees to my chest, and have the blanket over my lap to keep from accidentally flashing anyone. Gia and Sienna have quietly chatted with Rori, while Sofia has remained mostly quiet and brooding sitting next to me. Every once in awhile I hear her mutter something under breath, but I can never make it out.
I watch her carefully out of the corner of my eye, wondering if I should be talking to her a little more. Getting to know her. She is Lazaro’s sister after all, and while family dynamics are foreign, I’ve heard and read plenty that you never want to be on the sister’s bad side. I really would like us to be friends, or at least friendly, but hesitation keeps me from saying anything.
Suddenly she looks at me and asks, “What do you want to know, darling? I can all but hear you biting your tongue.” Her tone is amused, not harsh or upset.
I blush. “Sorry, I just…I know you’re Lazaro’s sister, and you don’t really know me, so maybe…” I trail off, still unsure how to put my thoughts into words that won’t sound stupid or offensive.
“You’re nervous because I’m Lazaro’s sister and you’re sleeping with my brother,” she summarizes, her lips pulling up into a full-on grin now. “Darling, like I said earlier, as long as you’re both happy, and no one has done anything to force the other, I’m not going to involve myself. So don’t worry, I’m not going to come after you for anything like that.”
“Plus, she’s put up with all the crazies the lot of them have brought home over the years.” Sienna snickers. “Anything you tell her can’t be any worse than what she already knows.”
“They’ve told you the things they’ve done with other women?”
“Oh, more than that, I’ve walked in on quite a few of them,” Sofia corrects drily. “There are some things a woman can’t unsee, no matter how hard she tries to forget. To be fair, I was more traumatized with my own brothers than the Caruso brothers. They at least aren’t related to me by blood.”
“I’m almost afraid to ask, but what did they do?”
“I think the better question is what haven’t they done.” Sofia sighs, shaking her head. “Darling, don’t worry about the past with them. All those boys, they’ve sowed their wild oats, as you Americans like to say, but they are older now, and they are loyal to a fault. Lazaro especially.”
She’s right, but I also really want to know. It’s probably going to eat me up with jealousy, but I’ll handle it.
“Lazaro has always struck me that way,” Sienna agrees, looking at me with a smile. “I mean, he has to be, to put up with Alessio and his bullshit.”
Sofia snorts. “You mean the bullshit that he encourages just as much as Alessio encourages him? Those two have been best friends for a very long time. They know what buttons to push to get the other to do what they need them to, or want them to, depending on the situation.”
“It’s nice that they’re such good friends, since Lazaro is Alessio’s guard,” I agree.
“They’re all great friends, though some are closer than others. When it comes to brothers, Lazaro and Alonzo are close, but mostly because Urso was always in front of a computer, and they’re much more physical in what they prefer. But if we’re talking relationships to the Carusos, then yes, Alessio and Lazaro are thick as thieves. Massimo and Alonzo are close, and obviously Zeno and Urso are close, but the lot of them all together, they’re like an unstoppable force. Even the soldiers are nervous of them all when they’re together,” Sofia smirks.
“Growing up, I always thought that my brothers were close,” Gia says quietly. “But they’re not, not if you go by the example of the Carusos and Cattaneos. And seeing as my brothers are split down the middle on who to support, they are definitely not close.”
“Few are,” Sofia assures her. “The mafia life is full of rivalries and men wanting more power, more control over things that they feel they have some kind of right to.” She waves her hand around. “I mean, you see this place? Nico’s parents built this to make a statement of who they were and what they were. It’s the kind of place that makes you feel nervous the minute you step into it. They did that purposely, and they knew other people wanted it.”
“Is that why they built those passages you mentioned?” I ask curiously. “In case someone tried to take it over, so they could get out?”
“That’s the most logical explanation,” Sofia agrees. “But also, from the things Nico and Dante have both said over the years, it also has a lot to do with power and control. Knowing they have ways to get out of here if they have to.”
“We have the same kind of passages in my father’s home,” Gia says. “And the only people who knew how to use them were our family. My father would never trust his soldiers with that information. It’s another way for the enemy to get in and surprise you.”
“So is there a passageway to every room?” I ask, intrigued.
Sofia shakes her head. “Not to every room, but to the ones that Nico’s father felt were important. It’s a good network, but not one you want to get lost in,” she adds warningly. “It’s a maze in there.”
“Nico’s parents were big on mazes,” Rori remarks with a roll of her eyes. “I mean, there’s a giant rose maze in the backyard. But from a tactical point of view, it makes sense, I guess. If someone gets lost in there, they’re going to walk right into your trap, or give you time to find them before they can get to you.”
“When we were stuck in that bunker in Arizona, we found a few secret tunnels and rooms in there,” I tell them, trying to keep my excitement at the memory in check. “It was so cool. And they made the entrances out of things you’d never notice. Like the one to the emergency exit, it was only able to be opened by a lever hidden in the table leg, and if I’d have been searching that wall, you’d have never known it was there.”
“That would be so cool to find,” Gia says excitedly. “I always loved puzzles as a kid. When I was trying to find the entrances into the tunnels in my father’s house, I spent a lot of time pulling and pushing things to find them. Well, secretively anyway. Couldn’t chance them realizing what I was doing. Of course, that was before he thought to put cameras in there.”
“All of the ones here are accessed by hidden scanners,” Sofia explains. “And they all are biometric, so even if you put your hand on it, you’ll never know it’s there unless you’re given access. Nico and his father are both really good at hiding entrances.” Then she stops and pins me with a hard look. “I’m sure I don’t need to remind you that this is a secret, not to be discussed with anyone other than Lazaro or one of us, and never out in the open where someone can overhear.”
I nod quickly. “I got it.” And I really do. It also makes me feel better that I’m being trusted with this information. They must think I’m trustworthy.
We lapse into silence for a moment before Rori finally asks impatiently, “How much longer do they plan to keep us cooped up in here?”
“As long as they need to,” Sofia replies simply. “Though by my calculations, they should be coming soon. They’ll have men cleaning up, and once they’ve got the bulk of it done, we’ll be allowed out.”
“Translation: They don’t want our innocent little eyes seeing all the bodies lying everywhere,” Sienna supplies with a roll of her eyes. “Do they really think we don’t know what we’re going to walk out to? Or that we haven’t seen all of that already?”
“They’re men, what do you think?” Rori replies sarcastically.
Sienna flips her off, then gets to her feet. “Well, I’m tired of sitting. Amara, the set up for the salon is mostly done, but is there anything you want organized or moved or something? I can’t stay idle any longer.”
“Ah, I don’t know. I’d have to look around and see where they put everything.” She’s right, it’s probably best we get up and do something. I mean, my ass is getting sore from sitting on the hard floor.
“Then I guess that’s what we’re doing,” Sienna says, helping Gia to her feet while Sofia stands up and helps me.
We spend a little while going through equipment and supplies, and with their help, we get things in organized spots that are easy to get at and make sense when I’m working. We’re almost finished when the door to the room finally opens, making us all turn to watch as the men start to pour in. The first one inside is Nico, and his gaze zeroes in on Gia immediately. The look on his face when he sees her is one of relief, but only for a moment. Then he’s instantly pissed. “What the fuck?” he curses.
Alessio steps around him to look at Sienna, his expression similarly relieved yet thunderous. “Looks like we have some guards to speak to,” he agrees with Nico. I glance at Lazaro and see he is downright furious.
“Whose fucking shirt are you wearing, colombina ?” Lazaro demands menacingly, like he’s ready to tear it off me and barely holding himself back.
“Oh, for fucks sakes,” Sofia snaps in annoyance before I can answer. “The lot of you need to calm the fuck down already. Did you really expect that they would all be fully clothed? Or have you forgotten that all of us, including myself, were literally dragged out of bed when all this bullshit started? Would you rather they have given us time to get dressed instead of getting us all in here?” Sofia’s eyes shoot daggers at Dante. He just smirks at her in return.
I can’t decide whether that’s admirable or asinine.
Nico doesn’t say another word. He simply moves to Gia, lifts her in his arms, and stalks out of the room. Gia gives us a wave over his shoulder, but we can hear her murmuring to him, probably trying to calm him down. Alessio does much the same to Sienna, but she doesn’t even glance back at us. He says something in her ear, and her lips pull up into a wicked smile just before they leave the room.
That leaves Rori, Sofia, and I, all facing down Lazaro, Alonzo, Dante, and Massimo. I glance at Massimo, who looks absolutely amused at the whole situation.
“Whose shirt is that you’re wearing, Amara?” Lazaro demands again with barely restrained patience.
“Lazaro, calm down,” I tell him with a scowl, hands going to my hips in annoyance. “Would you rather I still be naked?”
“ Still ?” he repeats. Shit. His eyes go impossibly dark, and I swear his body seems to get larger. Uh-oh, that was definitely the wrong thing to say. “What the fuck do you mean still , Amara? Where the fuck were your clothes?”
I glare at him. “Well excuse me, but you knew exactly how naked I was when you left me to go do your mafia business hours ago,” I snap at him. It’s like he’s trying to accuse me of something, or blame me for this mess. “When everything happened, Mario just wrapped me up in the blankets to get me out of the bedroom as fast as possible. And I’m sure that was at your order, so you don’t get to be pissed about how I was dressed when he grabbed me. Got it? I was perfectly covered when Massimo eventually carried me down here, and Alonzo was nice enough to loan me his shirt so that I was more comfortable. You should be?—”
I don’t get to finish before Lazaro rounds on both of them. “I’m going to kill you both,” he vows.
Massimo holds up his hands placatingly. “Hold on, I didn’t see anything. When I took her from Mario, she was already wrapped up in the blanket and all I could see was her face. We were under heavy fire, so I had to hurry. Nothing more.”
Alonzo just shrugs. “I figured you wouldn’t want her to be in nothing, so I gave her my shirt and had one of the men get me a new one. I wasn’t around when she put it on. I just gave it to her and left, so calm your ass.”
Lazaro doesn’t look mollified in the slightest. Instead, he turns and orders, “Everyone out. Now.”
“Don’t do anything stupid, brother dearest,” Sofia warns him. Then she looks at Dante, and her expression hardens. “You and I need to have a chat.” Dante just steps back to let her pass him. Massimo is right behind them, looking like a kid on Christmas.
“You alright?” Rori asks me, drawing my attention. She gives me a concerned look.
“I’m fine,” I promise her. “He’s just being a jealous asshole,” I add with a pointed look at Lazaro. Not that he cares, considering his expression doesn’t change.
“Alright, just remember where you put everything,” she adds with a wink. “If we find him dead on the floor later, I’ll help you get rid of the body.” Then she orders Hades to her side and stalks away, never even glancing at Alonzo, who follows her silently.
The minute the door shuts, Lazaro is moving so he finally stands towering in front of me. “Off. Now,” he hisses, practically foaming at the mouth. “You are not wearing another man’s clothes in my presence, Amara. Ever.”
“And I’m not standing here naked when anyone could walk in, Lazaro,” I hiss back.
“No one will dare enter through that door unless they want to die. Now. Take. It. Off. Or I will do it for you.”
A little thrill ignites at his words, but my stubborn defiance quickly overrides it. “You’re being ridiculous, Lazaro. It’s only a shirt.”
“I’m not going to tell you again, colombina ,” he warns me. “ Take. It. Off. ” I glare up at him, refusing to do his bidding. He’s not going to hurt me, but this is going to be a stupid fight, much like the one we had earlier about me doing men’s hair. He and I really do need to discuss his jealous tendencies, but right now, he doesn’t seem to be in the listening mood.
When I don’t move, he lets out a sound that’s a mixture of a growl and snarl, and I screech when his hands fly up to the collar and yank, tearing fabric and sending buttons flying as he rips it off me and throws it aside, leaving me standing naked. “What the fuck?” I screech. “What the fuck, Lazaro?” I wrap my arms around myself to cover myself, but then I screech again when he lifts me into his arms, turning us so my back is against the wall and his face is in front of mine.
“You don’t ever wear something on your body that belongs to another man, Amara,” he tells me succinctly. “Especially not something of my brother’s. You’re mine .” Then he seals our mouths in a punishing kiss that has fire building instantly in my belly as my anger turns into passion. Though, it’s different than earlier tonight. This is the kind of passion that you read about in books and see on TV. The kind people crave and search for their entire lives. His grip on my ass is almost bruising as he suddenly yanks his mouth from mine and growls, “I can smell his cologne on you.”
“Then do something about it,” I suggest, and even to my ears, it sounds coy. Teasing.
He stills and stares into my eyes. “Do you know what you’re asking for, colombina ?” he demands. I gasp when his grip tightens even more, bordering on pain, though it doesn’t dull my desire. If anything, it only heightens further.
“Yes,” I gasp, wrapping my legs around him. The material of his shirt does nothing to dull the heat of his skin, and at this angle, there is no way I can hide my reaction to him. “But we still need to talk about your jealous tendencies,” I add pointedly.
“Fucking right, I’m jealous,” he grits out. “I walk in here to see you wearing only a shirt that’s not mine, and find out that you were brought here naked by your guard and one of my friends. I don’t give a fuck if they didn’t see anything, but the chance that they did, and that you smell like my brother instead of me, it makes me want to stake my claim on you again. To remind you just how much you belong to me. I want to mark your skin, I want to cover you in my scent, and I want to make you scream so loud that the entire fucking house hears it, so that they know it too.” One hand leaves my ass to grip my hair tight, tilting my head back to expose my neck. “And I want you to feel me so deep inside you that you’ll never doubt it either.” Then he leans forward and sinks his teeth into the crook of my neck.
The shock of pain makes me cry out, but then I feel him suck on my neck, and the pain morphs into something else. Something darker and addicting. I want to push him away as much as I want to pull him closer. Want to beg him for more. When he releases my skin, he moves up my neck a little more and repeats the process. I don’t know how many times he does it, but by the time he makes his way to the other side of my neck and gives it the same treatment, I’m a quivering, whimpering mess, and I’m pretty sure I’ve soaked his shirt all the way through.
I never had any idea that this kind of treatment could make me want him so badly. Or that I’d want him to keep going.
When he finally pulls back, examining his handiwork, I see a feral satisfaction in his eyes. Then they lift to stare into mine, and I shiver. “No one will ever doubt that you’re mine now, Amara,” he rasps. “They’ll see my marks, and know that no one else will ever get to touch your skin, or get so close as to try and replace them.”
“Lazaro,” I breathe, my fingers weaving into his hair and gripping tight, trying to force his head back so I can kiss him. I need it. I need him . I feel that same pressure and overwhelming desire as I did earlier.
Thankfully he gives me what I need and presses his mouth to mine. I devour his taste, moaning as I claw at him, needing to be closer. He grunts but doesn’t push me away; instead, he leans into me, his tongue sweeping into my mouth and his teeth nipping at my lower lip. “You’re soaking me, colombina ,” he purrs, one of the hands on my ass sliding over my hip to brush against the junction of my thighs. “I can feel how wet you are, and smell just how much you want me.”
“I want you to smell like me too,” I quip on a gasp, arching my hips into his seeking fingers. “Maybe I need to make sure that no other woman thinks you’re available either.”
I can feel his rumble of satisfaction in my chest, and his lips quirk into a smug smile. “Marking your territory are you, colombina ?”
The thought of doing what he’s done to me unleashes something feral, and I don’t try to fight it. I go on instinct, gripping his hair tight in my fist and yanking his head back to expose his throat. I latch my teeth onto his neck, and he lets out a moan of pure pleasure as he presses me even tighter into the wall, his grip on me so tight that I’ll wear him for days. “That’s it, colombina ,” he grits out through clenched teeth. “Show everyone who I belong to. Mark me, just like that. Fuck, you’re going to make me embarrass myself if you keep that up, like some untried boy.” Suddenly he uses his grip on my hair to force me to release him.
I lick my lips, still able to taste the slight saltiness of his skin. “Maybe I wasn’t done,” I protest huskily.
“ Dolcezza , any more of that, and I’ll be done, far too quickly,” he warns, before he suddenly spins us and walks us back across the room to the barber chair. He pulls me away from him and sits me in it, smirking when I yelp at the coldness of the fabric against my skin. “It’s been far too many hours since I’ve tasted you, and I need to correct that right now. First, you’re going to tell me how to lean this back, then I want you to put your legs over the arms for me.”
My body trembles at the picture he’s painting. As hot as that sounds, I can feel my nerves piquing. “There’s a little lever on the side,” I tell him, nodding toward it. “But Lazaro, I don’t know if I’ll be able to have you over me still, even in here like this.” I feel stupid for saying it, like I’m once again going to ruin the mood, but I want to be honest.
He pauses and looks down at me, his expression immediately softening. His hand comes up to cup the side of my face. “I will never do anything that makes you uncomfortable, Amara. I plan to lean it back, then kneel on the floor and spend as much time as you can stand with my mouth on that sweet pussy. No towering, I promise. Do you think you can do that?” His eyes search mine.
I blink at that and then nod, the imagery in my head reigniting the desire in my belly. “I can do that,” I tell him softly when he doesn’t move.
“If you can’t at any point, then tell me to stop, Amara,” he tells me seriously as he finally grabs the lever and helps me to ease the seat back to a comfortable position. Then, being the gentleman he is, he helps me lift my legs over the arms, baring me to him completely. It’s uncomfortable, vulnerable, but the way he stares at me with such hunger eases my fears. “So fucking beautiful, colombina ,” he rasps as he lowers himself to his knees. His hands come up and work under my ass, pulling me forward. “Look at how this pretty pussy is dripping for me already,” he praises. “Just begging for me to clean it up before it becomes a mess again.”
The word ‘mess’ has my brain switching on instantly, thinking about just what kind of mess was left there earlier. “Oh my God, no,” I bark in horror, trying to scramble back, but his grip on me holds me steady, and his head whips up to stare at me in shock and concern.
“What’s wrong?” he demands.
“Um, excuse me, but do you not remember what happened earlier and how your stuff is probably still leaking out of me down there? Gross. No. We are not doing—” Lazaro’s sharp burst of laughter interrupts my tirade, and I glare at him. Why is he always laughing at me during these moments? Bastard. “It’s not funny,” I snap. I start trying to lower my legs, but he quickly pulls a hand from underneath me and presses on my inner thigh to stop me.
“Shhh,” Lazaro soothes, mirth still making his lips twitch. “Calm down, colombina . You’re fine. Do you really think that is going to dissuade me? I don’t give a damn about any of that as long as I get to taste you. But if it bothers you that much, the only thing wetting this pussy is your own sweet juice, and I’m going to lick up every last drop. Then, we’ll see about making you leak something else.” He winks at me saucily before he—like the insane man he is—lowers his mouth and sweeps his tongue through my center.
My brain short-circuits, and any worries I had flit away. The only thing that matters is the man with the wicked tongue between my legs and the way he knows how to drive me crazy.