23. Adriano
By Thursday evening, I’ve reached the unfortunate conclusion that being in love appears to have made me significantly less efficient. Not publicly of course. No one at ISM would dare accuse me of losing focus.
But privately?
I’ve spent the last twenty minutes staring at the same financial report while thinking about the way Casey looked this morning, standing barefoot in my kitchen wearing one of my shirts and absolutely nothing else beneath it.
Falling for her hadn’t been on my agenda, even when I took her home from the gala with the intention of getting her out of my system.
But the second I touched her, tasted her, felt her shatter around me, it was like a switch flipped.
I knew she was mine in that moment, as if I’d been struck over the head with the realization.
I just need to let her catch up. She’s been through hell, and her trust is shattered.
I’m willing to give her all the time she needs to figure out that we’re endgame.
“You’re smiling at spreadsheets again.”
I look up sharply to find Matteo sprawled across the chair opposite my desk with the kind of ease only family gets away with in my office. How had I not even heard him come into the room? “I’m not.”
“You absolutely are.” He squints at me suspiciously. “It’s deeply unsettling.”
“I’m working.”
“You’ve been on the same page for twenty minutes.”
I close the file without comment and sigh.
Matteo leans back further in the chair, entirely too pleased with himself now. “You’re gone. Like genuinely gone. Nico owes me four hundred dollars.”
“I don’t want to know why the two of you were betting on my personal life.”
“Because we’re invested emotionally.”
“You’re parasites.”
“We’re family,” he corrects easily. “Different word. Same concept.”
I should throw him out. Instead, annoyingly, I find myself glancing toward the clock mounted on the wall behind him.
Matteo notices instantly. “Oh my God,” he says, horrified. “You have plans.”
I say nothing.
His eyes widen slowly. “You organized a date.”
“Leave my office.”
“Adriano Mancini planned a romantic evening.” He presses a hand dramatically to his chest. “Elena’s going to cry when I tell her.”
I don’t know why Matteo has taken to Elena like he has, but I can only assume he craves that maternal figure in his life.
He was young when our mother died, barely in college and it changed him.
Outwardly, he became louder, funnier, but in those quiet moments, I notice the grief he tries to hide.
But he won’t talk about it, so I don’t push and instead let him wear the mask that he made.
“I’ll have Rossi throw you in the river.”
He laughs. “Worth it.”
Before I can decide whether homicide is an acceptable solution to sibling irritation, my phone vibrates against the desk.
The amusement disappears from Matteo’s face the second he sees the shift in mine.
I answer immediately. “Talk.”
Rossi’s voice comes through low and steady. “Another one pulled out.”
Good.
I lean back slightly in my chair, gaze drifting toward the skyline beyond the office windows while Rossi continues listing figures.
Another investor gone.
Another contract quietly dissolved.
Another bank suddenly unwilling to extend Jasper the credit he desperately needs.
Carefully orchestrated pressure from a dozen different directions.
Not enough to draw suspicion.
Just enough to slowly suffocate him.
“How bad?” I ask.
“Bad enough he’s selling assets now.”
Something cold settles calmly into place inside me.
Jasper spent years humiliating Casey while building another life behind her back, then had the audacity to chase after her when she left his sorry ass. He should consider himself fortunate that this is all I’m taking. “And the federal investigation?”
“Moving faster than expected,” Rossi replies. “Turns out your instincts were right. Tax fraud, offshore accounts, falsified reporting. He buried it well, but not well enough.”
I glance briefly toward Matteo, who’s watching me quietly now.
No jokes this time.
Because he knows exactly what tone my voice takes when I decide someone deserves to disappear. “Keep digging,” I say calmly. “I want everything.”
The line goes quiet for half a second.
Then Rossi sighs softly. “You love this woman.”
The bluntness of it catches me off guard enough that I don’t answer immediately.
Because the terrifying thing is—I know he’s right.
“Handle the investigation,” I say instead.
Then I end the call.
Silence settles across the office for a moment.
Matteo studies me carefully before speaking. “You going to tell her?”
“No.”
His jaw tightens slightly. “Adi—”
“She asked me not to interfere.” I keep my voice even, though irritation flickers sharply beneath it anyway. “This has nothing to do with her anymore. She doesn’t need to know.”
Matteo raises an eyebrow. “That’s objectively untrue. I want it noted that I don’t agree.”
I frown at my brother. “Fine, it’s noted.”
It’s not that I’m keeping it a secret to hurt her. I’m protecting her and that’s how I justify it. Jasper made the mistake of frightening her.
Humiliating her.
Making her cry.
Of coming after ISM with that bullshit FBI raid.
And now I can’t seem to stop myself from wanting to dismantle every part of his life piece by piece.
The strange thing is—I don’t even feel guilty about it anymore.
My phone lights up again before Matteo can continue the conversation.
This time, Casey’s name appears across the screen.
Everything inside me shifts instantly towards happiness, a smile spreading across my face that I can’t control.
Matteo notices that too, unfortunately.
“Oh, that’s disgusting,” he mutters.
I ignore him completely as I answer. “Hi.”
There’s a soft pause on the other end, like she’s smiling already just from hearing my voice.
Christ.
“Hi,” she says. “Am I interrupting important billionaire world domination?”
I love that she teases me. “Only Matteo being annoying as usual.”
“Rude,” Matteo calls loudly toward the phone.
“Be nice. Matty is sensitive.”
“I’m always nice to you.”
Casey laughs softly. “Yes, you are.”
The sound settles somewhere low in my chest with dangerous ease.
“You still at work?” she asks.
“For another hour.”
“Mm.” Papers rustle softly on her end. “That’s unfortunate.”
My attention sharpens immediately. “Why?”
“Because Letty told me I’m not allowed to tell you she made brownies without you.”
A smile pulls at my mouth before I can stop it.
Across the desk, Matteo looks physically ill witnessing it.
“Traitor,” I say lightly.
“She was very persuasive.”
“I’m leaving now,” Matteo announces, standing abruptly. “I can’t watch this happen in real time.”
“Good decision.”
He points at me accusingly while heading for the door. “You’re happier lately. It’s weird.”
The office door slams behind him before I can answer.
Casey’s quiet laughter filters through the phone again. “You know,” she says thoughtfully, “for terrifying mafia businessmen, your family is surprisingly dramatic and emotional.”
“It’s mafia-adjacent for your information.”
Her soft laugh makes me wish I was home so I could kiss the smile on her lips.
“My apologies. I’ll make sure not to make that mistake again.”
I lean back in my chair, loosening my tie slightly as her voice settles into the edges of my day like something familiar now. “What are your plans tonight?” I ask.
There’s a pause. “Nothing much. The usual. Why?”
“Spend the evening with me.”
Silence.
Then a softer voice. “Like a date?”
“No, not like a date. An actual date.”
“Is that a good idea?”
“Tesoro, we’re happening, and that starts with a proper date.”
“Is that so?”
“It is.”
“It’s hard to say no to you, Adi.”
“Then say yes.”
She laughs again quietly, and Christ, I think I could spend the rest of my life chasing that sound.
“Okay, yes. What are we doing?” she asks.
“You’ll find out when I get home.”
“Very mysterious.”
“You’ll survive.”
“Debatable but eating all the chocolate brownies will help.”
I smile despite myself, grabbing the file I’ll need to finish later before standing from the desk.
Outside my office window, Manhattan glows beneath falling snow and evening lights.
For the first time in years, I find myself impatient to leave work.
To go home.
To her.
And somewhere beneath that warmth, something colder settles too.
Because while Casey spends the evening laughing beside me, Jasper Cole will spend his trying to figure out why his entire empire is quietly collapsing around him.
Good.