Chapter 4
4
D ante
“So, no word of Santini?” I ask Nico as we wait for our meeting in the black SUV outside the private airfield.
A prominent supplier I’ve been talking to has flown into the US from the Middle East, and we’re buying special guns from him. That’s my primary role in the family business. Buying and selling, and dealing with politicians and lobbyists. Corruption and blackmail included.
Nico shakes his head. “He’s still laying low. A part of me thinks maybe he realized he wasn’t ready for us finding them and wiping them out so quickly,” he says, referring to when Ross ordered his men to kidnap Andie, AJ’s mother, and kill her. They wanted to kill AJ as well, who was then in Andie’s pregnant belly, to avenge me for accidentally killing Ross Santini’s son and only direct heir. But me and my brothers arrived before anyone died—at least in that dingy basement. Andie passed shortly after we took her to the hospital due to severe eclampsia during childbirth.
“Too easy. I think they’re watching, waiting for the best time. I’ll breathe again after Santini is dead.”
“Yeah. Well.” Nico looks at his watch. “Hey, how’s the sitter working out?”
“Well.” I shrug. Lucia has been with us for the past two weeks, and we’ve done a good job respecting each other’s space. Besides a chat I exchanged with her once, we’ve made this unspoken rule of not sharing anything personal. I like that.
She’s an attractive young woman, I can’t deny. My pulse raced a few times when we held a stare or two before, and she gave me a glimpse of the brown depth of her eyes. On top of that, she has a sexy body that I’d love to see without clothes. She doesn’t wear anything revealing on the daily—she favors jeans and shirts, but they hug her slim shape and outline the subtle curve of her hips. I never made her wear a uniform—maybe I should have.
I curl my fingers into a ball. I don’t need that kind of stress right now. Even though I haven’t had sex in months—a record amount of time. But even I know not to fuck the help. And Lucia is a great help.
Lucia is caring, and AJ is becoming attached to her. Even Zenovia, who likes no one, doesn’t complain about Lucia, which is huge.
“Well? That’s it, bro? She’s hot.”
“She’s the nanny, for fuck’s sake,” I say behind clenched teeth.
“So you’re not into her?”
Any man with a working pulse would be into her. But I know what Nico’s asking. Am I going to pursue her? “No.”
“Is it okay if I ask her out ? ”
I kinda hate men right now. Her words from when we met ring in my ears, but I won’t repeat them because Nico is so fucking smug that he thinks he can make her or any other woman change their mind with his magic dick.
I gather she’s coming from a bad breakup and doesn’t want to get romantically involved—a wise move as my nanny. I’m still looking for another one, at least someone to give Lucia days off so she doesn’t sue me down the line. But so far, no luck.
“You come within two feet of her when I’m not around, and I’ll cut one of your limbs,” I say.
Nico whistles. “So no one can have her.”
“Shut up, asshole. Lucia’s mine,” I growl. “My nanny,” I quickly add. “You know how hard it was to find someone? Why would I send her ass running? Because that’s what would happen if she got involved with you.”
Like Rocco and myself, Nico doesn’t have the best record of long-lasting relationships. Massimo seems to be the exception, even though he married Amara out of duty. They love each other now, but we know that’s rare to come by.
Realistically, even love isn’t enough. My dad loved my beloved mom his way. Still cheated on her when she was alive. It still hurt her.
I don’t share Massimo’s sense of duty. I’m supposed to be the second in line, but I wasn’t able to marry Andie—or prevent her from dying. Maybe she would still be alive if I offered her the commitment she wanted. She wouldn’t have gone out with friends to vent about me and how difficult I was being. She wouldn’t have been out of the house and kidnapped.
“You don’t know what your nanny is into. Maybe she’d come back for more,” Nico says, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Two limbs now,” I say.
“Since you’re not interested, why don’t you go out with me sometime? You know… to meet women.”
“I don’t know if I’m in the headspace to meet anyone right now. My daughter and killing Ross Santini are my main priority.”
“You’ve always been a multitasker. Besides, bro, I mean fucking, not going down the aisle.”
Fucking would be great.
Going down the aisle, not so much. The hopeful look on Andie’s face comes to mind. We went out a few times, had unprotected sex once, and she got pregnant. When she returned to my life, heavily pregnant, she needed support. She had no family and was finding it hard to deal with expenses.
I offered to help and promptly told her to move in while we figured things out. I meant it as a pragmatic way of protecting her and my unborn child, not a gateway to eternal bliss. Of course, she didn’t take it that way. Looking back, I didn’t have any romantic inclinations towards Andie anymore, which hurt her feelings. I could tell. She mentioned marriage a couple of times, but I ignored her comments.
I was too comfortable to change my status quo. That’s me—a selfish bastard who saw how many times his mother cried when she thought she was alone in the closet. How many times did my dad pretend to be still interested in women he dated after her death so he wouldn’t be alone? He even married again and cheated on his second wife, too.
My mom suffered for love. My dad caused her suffering, but a part of me knows he struggled with his own need to have someone to build his egotistical ass at all times.
As for me? I’m able to have sex and not catch feelings. I don’t want to experience my mom’s heartbreak or my dad’s despair. I can do all right without any of that mess.
“Boss,” the driver says, then cocks his head in the direction of the airfield. “They’re here.”
Time to make some money. I’ll worry about fucking later.
A few hours later, I walk into my home.
Andrei, one of my bodyguards on rotation around the house, walks up to me. “Hey, boss. I have mail that arrived for your nanny,” he says, then hands a small box to me. “Since she’s new, I wasn’t sure you wanted me to give it to her or wanted to get it checked by security.”
I shake it and hear a little thump inside. What could it be?
The box doesn’t give anything away. Besides her printed name and my address, no logo or additional information hints at the brand or store. “I’ll take care of it, thanks.”
I carry it upstairs and knock on her door. I tell myself I’m doing this to check on a potential threat to an employee, not because I’m looking for a reason to talk to her.
A couple of beats later, Lucia opens it.
A lump of frustration lodges in my throat.
She’s wearing a cotton robe—it’s not silky or sexy but hints at her not wearing anything else underneath, and that’s enough to get my blood pumping. Her hair is damp, and the ends of her medium-length strands stick to her neck. She must have just showered.
I inhale her perfume, which has a hint of wildflowers and other spices I can’t pinpoint. It’s a lovely, feminine scent—not too sweet but sexy and unassuming.
She steps back, and I enter her bedroom. It’s tastefully decorated, with a king-size bed, marbled white nightstands, and abstract paintings on the wall. I’ve been in it before, but seeing her in here feels different. Like she’s part of it now, even though she hasn’t added her personal touch to anything, and I can barely see personal items on the dresser.
“Is there anything you need?” she asks.
I watch her in silence. A sense of intimacy lurks as my gaze drops to her kissable lips. Yes, there’s a lot I need. But I will those images away—images of her and her damp hair on my pillow. “You received a package today,” I say, giving it to her.
She takes it from me and holds it against her chest. “Thank you.”
I jam a hand into my pocket, unwilling to move. “How’s AJ?”
“She’s sleeping. I gave her a bottle, and she’s good.”
We haven’t tackled transitioning AJ to her nursery yet, but it’s on my list.
“Do you need anything else?” she asks, tilting her head, and a part of me wonders if I detect an invitation there.
I clear my throat. Lust stirs up inside of me, my cock twitching. Nico has a point. I need to do some serious fucking before I start entertaining crazy ideas in my head. Such as burying my cock deep into the nanny’s pussy. “I need you to open it. The box.”
She widens her eyes. “Excuse me?”
I tilt my head, my eyes searching for hers. “The person who killed Andie is out to get me and AJ. They know we’ve upped our security, so I can’t let you receive packages without knowing it’s not from them.” What if they put their hands in those packages and tampered with them or somehow hacked her order?
“I ordered this yesterday. There’s a stamp.”
“Yes, but they could have found out somehow and swapped packages,” I say firmly. She’s obviously a newbie to the mafia world, but I’ve been part of it for too long not to suspect these things.
She clutches the package. “I can’t open it in front of you.”
I step toward her. “Then I’ll do it.”
She tosses me a look of shock. “Are you serious?”
Why is she so nervous? Her apprehension only piques my interest. “I won’t leave until I make sure it’s nothing bad.”
She reluctantly gives it to me. I tear off the tape around it and open it. Then, I see another small box inside—and another one.
One is a vibrator. The other one… a butt plug. And a small tube of lube.
A twinge of surprise stabs at me. I shouldn’t know these things about her. Little surges of desire travel up and down my body, and I regret not following her advice not to have her open it in front of me. No good can come from knowing my nanny is not only sexy but explorative in the bedroom.
A red stain covers her cheeks when I look at her, but she crosses her arms and lifts her chin at me. She takes the toys from me and sets them on the dresser. “Are you happy?”
“You said you weren’t seeing anyone,” I say, wanting to confirm that she won’t take off in the middle of the night. She hasn’t been out since she’s worked here, so she hasn’t met anyone new. Has she gone back to her ex? Annoyance crawls under my skin.
She rolls her eyes. “I’m not. Hence the toys.”
“Why the butt plug, though? Isn’t that awkward to use on your own?” I press, fully aware I’m out of line. However, if she wants to enjoy her toys, that is not my business.
“Are you offering assistance?” She perches her hands on her hips, but before I can answer, waves me off and says, “If you need to know, there was a deal, and the butt plug came with it.”
“You’re a good saver,” I say calmly when my heart still beats erratically. Are you offering assistance? She may have said it in a teasing, playful tone, but an undercurrent of defiance laced her words. Challenged me to act on this growing tension between us.
“I try. Why are you so interested? Are you in the market for new sex toys?” She leans against the dresser, crossing her arms, giving me a once over. She’s fucking with me.
“Not at the moment. Have fun.”
She tilts her head. “Will do.”
She closes the door behind me, and I can’t help but smile.