Chapter 3
Chapter
Three
Jasmine
C hristmas Eve in our home was more tradition than a religious celebration. For most of my life, this night was filled with delicious food and our small family. Where there were only four, including Contessa, tonight there were multitudes. It was as if the Bible story of Jesus and the fishes was coming to life. There were currently over twenty people to be fed. With bodyguards, the number rose to over forty.
Savory aromas filled the kitchen as Contessa managed multiple tasks. She wasn’t alone: Arianna Luciano brought her cook Greta along to help. Heaven forbid, Dario’s mother would actually do something as mundane as culinary activities. No, she was busy spending as much time with her granddaughter as possible.
The granddaughter wasn’t me.
I wasn’t a Luciano. While I’d lived with Dario since I was seven, the Luciano famiglia beyond Dario and Dante liked to pretend I didn’t exist.
While that hadn’t exactly changed, I existed, and I now had a powerful ally, not that Dario as capo dei capi of Kansas City wasn’t powerful. Catalina was on my side, more than supportive once she learned about me. As the mother of the aforementioned granddaughter, her opinion carried a lot of weight with Mrs. Arianna Luciano.
“I’ve never seen this dining room table so long,” I said as I helped Catalina arrange the water goblets at each place setting.
“Contessa has the whole seven-fishes menu down to a science.” Catalina questioned, “Dario didn’t invite his family here for Christmas Eve when you were young?”
My mind went back to my childhood. “Neither Mrs. Luciano nor the capo, Dario’s father, would come to the apartment after my sister and I moved in. They hosted a large celebration at the big house in the Ozarks, but we weren’t invited. Dario wouldn’t go. It was just us.”
Catalina came closer and wrapped her arm around my shoulders. “Now, they’re all coming to your home, including Arianna.”
I scanned the table, set for nearly thirty. “They’re not all happy about it,” I whispered, thinking about Dario’s uncles Carmine and Salvatore. They’d rather starve than break bread with members of the cartel, including Catalina. Their opinions weren’t swayed by a small baby.
She smiled knowingly. “They don’t have to be happy. Dario makes the rules. He’s determined to make the alliance work, and to work, we need to be one family.” She lowered her voice. “You’re probably thinking of certain uncles. Truth be told, my uncle Nicolas isn’t thrilled about the famiglia. We can ignore them and show them how wrong they are. I’m glad you’re open to my family.”
“To Dario’s family, my opinion doesn’t matter.”
“You are Dario’s family,” Catalina said. “And your opinion matters to me. I hope you don’t mind that my parents, Em, and Rei are all staying here.”
My lips tingled at the mention of the two men. “Your mother is nice.” I felt my cheeks warm.
Catalina’s eyebrows rose. “Em and Rei?”
I’d seen both of them again this morning, as Dante gave Camila the kitten. “They’re cute” —I thought of Rei— “and intense.”
She laughed. “Cute? I bet they’ve never been called that before. Intense is a good description.”
“Okay, ruggedly handsome.” I shrugged. “You’ve probably figured out that Dario is a bit overprotective. I’ve not had a lot of opportunity around men except for bodyguards. I guess I feel different around them.”
She scanned me up and down. “Be yourself, Jasmine. Yes, I’ve noticed his overprotectiveness. It’s because he loves you. I expect he’ll be the same with Ariadna Gia when men start to notice her.”
“Oh God. He’ll put her in a convent. ”
Catalina laughed.
My stomach twisted as I wondered if Piero mentioned what happened last night. “I’m not sure that they notice me?” Yes, after last night I was fishing.
“They do,” she exclaimed. “I’m a little afraid Dario will pull one of his knives on them. Surely, you’ve noticed.”
I had.
Having the attention of one of the two was flattering. Having the attention of both was unbelievable.
“ You’re stunning. You’ve grown up since the capo’s wedding .”
“You’re beautiful. You should be told every day.”
Rei’s and Em’s words came back to me. Before I could answer, Contessa came into the dining room carrying trays of shrimp cocktail over beds of ice cubes.
“The men are out of their meeting,” she announced.
“Do you need any last-minute help?” Catalina asked.
“No, thank you,” Contessa replied confidently. “Everyone is in the living room. Mrs. Ruiz is still holding Ariadna Gia.”
Catalina’s eyes opened wide. “Oh, Arianna isn’t happy.”
“You may want to intervene.”
“I can help you, Contessa,” I volunteered as Catalina hurried away.
Contessa’s loving gray eyes settled on me. “I appreciate you.” She lifted her chin. “Go out there with everyone and show them that you belong here.”
“Do I?”
“More than anyone. This is your home and has been for over thirteen years. Don’t let last names stand in your way, Jasmine. If Mr. Luciano’s family can accept the cartel, they can accept you. They should have done so a long time ago. Show them they’ve been wrong.”
Smoothing my dress, I lifted my chin and walked toward the voices. Truth be told, I was more comfortable around Catalina’s family than Dario’s. At least her family hadn’t snubbed me for the last fourteen years. Since Catalina and Dario wed and Catalina welcomed me in their home, his family now speaks to me.
A fire crackled in the fireplace as holiday music filled the air. In the corner near the windows was a lighted tree that nearly reached the ceiling, fourteen feet high. I grinned as Catalina took her daughter from her mother’s arms, claiming that the baby was in need of a diaper change before dinner.
As I scanned the room, I couldn’t help but think about Dario’s goal for one family. With a few exceptions, the room was divided into small groupings of like-minded people. The cartel women were mostly gathered together. Josefina Roríguez was seated at Valentina’s side. It was difficult to believe Josefina was Aléjandro and Reinaldo’s mother, as she looked too young and beautiful to be the mother of grown men. Also, the famiglia women were congregated, the exception being those gathered around Ariadna Gia.
Carmine Luciano and Salvatore Luciano, Dario’s uncles, stood guard over their respective families, no doubt not wanting their sons or daughters interacting with the cartel. I hadn’t seen Salvatore’s daughter, Isabella, since Dario’s wedding. She wasn’t a little girl any longer. If Carmine had his way, my guess was that he’d rather have her in a convent than in the presence of cartel men.
Another exception was Mia and Camila seated together with their husbands attentively at their sides. Mia’s baby bump was more than a bump, and Aléjandro was beaming at her side.
“It’s difficult…deciding which team to cheer for?”
I turned to the deep voice, coming face-to-face with the handsome man who last night gave me my first real kiss. Emiliano Ruiz. “According to Dario, we’re all one team.”
“It’s not often you meet a capo who’s also a dreamer.”
A smile curled my lips. “You don’t think it’s possible?”
He shrugged his wide shoulders as his dark stare scanned the room. “I think it’s possible, but shaky.” He lowered his voice. “I hope I didn’t get you in trouble last night.”
Meeting his gaze, I shook my head. “Piero will keep our secret.”
“What if I kissed you here and now?”
My eyes opened wider. “Let’s not test that theory.”
His lips quirked into a sexy grin as he nodded toward the highboy. “Are you a red or white wine lady?”
“White goes best with fish. I like sweet wines.”
The temperature of the room spiked, and I sucked in a breath as Emiliano placed his hand in the small of my back .
“Come with me and I’ll pour you a glass, and you can explain this seven-fishes thing to me.”
Trying to ignore the way his touch sent a tingling sensation through me, I found my voice. “It’s an Italian-American thing. Tradition…” As we crossed the room, I caught Dario staring in our direction.
Overprotective was an understatement.
Is he armed?
Of course he was.
At the highboy, as I continued on about the Christmas Eve tradition, Reinaldo joined us. Suddenly, I was surrounded by two rock-hard bodies. Unlike Dario who always wore a suit, Reinaldo and Emiliano were both dressed in black jeans and button-up shirts. Reinaldo’s was white with the sleeves rolled up showing off his powerful forearms and the fringe of a tattoo. Emiliano’s was light blue. Instead of the boots they often wear, both men were wearing expensive leather loafers. They both wore gold chains around their necks. Their warmth encompassed me as the spicy scent of their cologne filled my senses.
“I see the two of you know one another.” Rei’s stare was intense.
“We met when Cat married the capo.” Em looked at me and grinned. “Would that make you my step-niece?”
Warmth filled my cheeks. “I don’t think that’s how it works. Dario isn’t my father, and Catalina isn’t my stepmother.”
Having the two men together, I could not only sense their different personalities but hear them as well. Emiliano’s accent was barely noticeable compared to Reinaldo’ s, probably the result of the former living his entire life in California.
“You never mentioned Jasmine,” Rei said to Em, using the strange pronunciation of my name.
Em stood taller after handing me a glass of moscato. “Have you two met?” He turned to me. “Jasmine, this is Rei, Reinaldo Roríguez.” He turned to Rei. “Rei, this is Jasmine.”
Rei’s penetrating dark gaze was locked on me. “We met…last night.”
The intensity of his stare brought back the feelings from last night, the almost painful twisting of my insides. I said a prayer that my padded bra was keeping my nipples from giving me away.
Emiliano quickly poured himself a glass of cabernet and lifted it to me. “Cheers.” He looked at Reinaldo and back to me. “I have an idea. We’re planning an escape for later tonight. Jasmine should join us.”
“Where do you think you can escape to on Christmas Eve?” I asked.
“Emerald Club is open,” Em replied.
I nearly spit out my wine. “Oh, I’m most certain that Dario wouldn’t approve.”
“You’re an adult,” Rei said. He lifted his dark eyebrows. “Aren’t you? You don’t need Daddy’s permission.”
“I am an adult.” I recently turned twenty and Dario wasn’t my dad. He was my guardian, but that will be legally revoked upon my next birthday. “But seriously, Emerald Club? As soon as we stepped through the doors, one of the guards would call Dario. ”
“There has to be someplace in this city that is more exciting than here,” Em said.
We all turned toward the large room.
“This is exciting,” Rei said. “We can guess who will pull out the first weapon.”
“See that man over there, the one looking our direction?” I asked.
They both hummed their response.
“That’s Piero, my bodyguard.”
“We’ve met,” Em said, lowering his voice. “The way he’s staring at us, he may be the first one to pull out his gun.”
“I’d gut him before he had the chance,” Rei said in a menacing murmur.
“Excuse me,” Contessa said over the din of voices. “First course is served.”
People around the room began to stand and move toward the dining room.
“Are there assigned seats?” Em asked.
“Dario is at one end,” I replied. “And el Patr?n at the other.”
Em leaned down, whispering near my ear. “Tell Piero to take the night off. Rei and I will keep you safe.”
Emiliano pulled out my chair and helped me sit before the two of them sat on either side of me. The warmth of their legs pressed against mine beneath the table gave me a feeling that was the opposite of safe. It stirred a fire within me, tending the flames I’d felt for both of them since last night.
Somehow, we managed our way through all five courses.
I’d grown up with this tradition and knew how to take it easy with the first few courses as the food continued to come. It was clear that many from the cartel weren’t as familiar. They’d eaten too much in the beginning and as Contessa announced dessert, there were many groans and the murmurs of being too full.
As people were stepping away from the table, Em leaned closer to me. “Are you ready to get out of here?”
I turned to Rei. “Do you want me to go?”
He shrugged. “If you can get away from your bodyguard.”