Chapter 8
Eight
Luca
It’d be impossible for me to forget Nova’s birthday. Especially since she’s been raving about it for the past week.
Is she excited?
Yes.
I think it has more to do with her becoming an adult than anything else. She’s been yammering on about colleges and how she’s been accepted into Evergreen University next semester.
I can’t say I’m surprised, given the fact that she’s on campus all the fricking time. It’s a good thing we get along, or I’d be shoving her out the door and tattling on her for showing up.
There’s no way Moreno and Paige know she spends so much time here. There’s zero chance they’d want her hanging around other college-aged boys.
As far as they know, she’s never been on a date.
I know better.
Nova can keep a secret.
Turns out, so can I.
Truth is, I get along better with Moreno than my own father, which doesn’t say much, considering Moreno isn’t the least bit friendly or warm. I suppose that’s what you get when you house the mafia together under one roof and then try to raise a family.
The answer: fucked-up kids.
I’ve avoided going home. At any opportunity, I’ve stayed on campus, but Nova is having her eighteenth birthday party at the house and hearing Harper tell me she’s going, all I can think is this is a bad idea.
I’ve tried texting Nova and suggesting she change the location. She can crash here for her birthday, let the girls spend the night on the living room floor or couch.
The response I got was a crying laughing emoji.
Nova is as stubborn as her father.
Which means I’m packing a bag for the weekend before driving home, the one place I swore I wouldn’t return to, no matter what.
Ashton knocks on the open bedroom door as I stuff the last of a few items into my duffel bag. “You ready?” he asks.
He’s not from the area. He grew up in Chicago, part of an extension of the family if you will, not blood but brothers, nevertheless. Mafia is always family, either they love you or they kill you.
Turns out, our families get along well enough not to kill one another. It helps that we grew up in different parts of the country. There aren’t territorial disagreements between brothers.
“Yeah, let’s go.” I’m not thrilled with traveling back to the compound where I grew up, but Nova is having her party, and the truth is Harper is going to be there, and someone has to keep an eye on her.
We make our way to the compound, and Ashton is quiet. He’s been here once before, when we were just kids. It was the first time we met. I wonder if he even remembers it; we were little.
I don’t see Nova’s car outside, and I’m not sure how Harper intends to get here. I probably should have offered her a ride, but it’s not like I want to encourage her to come to Nova’s party.
I’m fine with Nova and Harper hanging out. It’s great they’re becoming friends. What isn’t so hot is visiting this place with Harper.
She doesn’t have the slightest clue about our family, and I don’t intend to tell her that my father runs the mafia. There’s no reason for her to know the kind of man he is, how he orders his men to kill his enemies and steal from them. He’s not a good guy.
Mom goes along with it only because she swears her family is no better, which is saying something. I’ve never met them.
Hard to believe she came from an opposing mafia family, but I’ve done a little research and investigating when I was in middle school, and she’s not lying. I thought maybe Dad had all of them killed, but they’re still around, causing mayhem and murders of their own.
“Looks like we’re here early,” Ashton says, noticing the same thing that I do; Nova’s car isn’t outside, and the front entrance is pretty sparce. If she were having friends over, I’d expect a few more vehicles out front.
We park the car, and I hesitate, tempted to turn around. “What time does the party start?” I ask.
Ashton shrugs and climbs out of the vehicle, not the least bit bothered by our early arrival. He grabs his backpack from the backseat along with an overnight bag.
I grab my duffel from the backseat and lug it over my shoulder. While I don’t want to stay over, I also know if Harper is intending on spending the night, I have to be here and make sure she’s safe.
Tonight will be chilly, which gives me an idea and also a reason to keep her out of the house as much as I can.
I stalk around back. Ashton hurries after me, bags in hand, as if I’m walking to a back entrance to enter the house. He’s going to be in for a treat, because the least amount of time I can spend around my father is my plan.
If I’m lucky, he’s out on business this afternoon and tonight as well.
Don’t imagine I’ll actually get lucky.
I toss my duffel onto the back porch. I’ll deal with it later, when I’m forced to go inside the house.
There are a few stray branches, broken and lying on the ground. I gather them and keep looking for more.
“Put your bags by the door and help me,” I say, heading for the tree line and the forest that wraps around the property. There’s fencing that keeps the lot secure, but the forest expands far and wide.
“Help you?” Ashton mutters under his breath. “What are you doing?”
“We’re going to build a bonfire,” I say, carrying a decent stack of branches and tossing it into the stone fire pit in the backyard.
I head for the forest, grabbing any wood that’s broken and dried to keep the fire roaring.
I’m going to need a lot to keep the girls outside, especially since it’s going to be chilly.
Ashton picks up a stick and points it at me. “You know how to build a fire?”
“Mom had me join the Boy Scouts when I was a kid. She thought it would help me if I ever got lost in the woods.”
Ashton grabs another branch from the ground. “And your father?”
I inhale sharply, not wanting to think about him. “He—”
“You’re home,” Dante says, stepping out onto the back porch, squinting from the sunlight as he stares at me. “And you’ve brought company.”
It’s about as warm a welcome as I’d expect from him. He’s never been overly affectionate as far as I remember. Hard to be when you’re in charge of ordering men to kill for you.
“Hi, Mr. Ricci. I hope it’s okay that I came by unannounced,” Ashton says rather quickly, the words almost slur together, and I swear I can hear his heart race from across the lawn.
I suppose he knows a bit about having a don as a father, since Aurelio runs the Chicago mafia. Although Ashton and his father get along, they at least talk to each other on the phone once a month.
My father never calls me.
But if he did, I also wouldn’t answer it.
“You’re home!” My mother’s voice carries across the grounds, her excitement bubbling over as she hurries outside barefoot to greet me. “You didn’t tell me you were coming, but it is Nova’s birthday,” she says more to herself than to me.
She embraces me in a hug, and for a second, I wonder if she’ll ever let go. “It’s good to see you and Ashton,” she says, glancing at my friend.
Mom met Ashton again when we were moving into the apartments on campus. She offered to come help us move out of the dorms, and while I didn’t take her up on the offer, she still showed up to help. Which meant her mostly shuffling a couple of boxes between places for us.
“Thanks, I was just setting up a bonfire for tonight,” I say, gesturing to the pile of sticks and branches haphazardly thrown into the fire pit.
“Perfect night for a bonfire,” she says. “I’ll have the guys bring out enough chairs and make sure there’s ingredients for s'mores.”
Ashton’s eyes light up. “Gosh, I haven’t had those since I was a kid.”
Mom smiles and glances at me. “Should I have them pick up anything else at the store?”
“You’d have to ask Nova,” I say. “It’s her party.”
She laughs and nods. “I’ll follow up with Paige and see if she needs anything.”
Paige is Nova’s mom and my aunt. We grew up in the same household, under the same roof. One big, not so happy family.
“It’s good to see you. How’s school?” Mom asks. She waits a beat before Dante wanders back inside. “I came by this week and watched the Narwhals.”
“You didn’t,” I say, my stomach plummeting. She saw me play worth shit. Wonderful. “Was Dante there?”
“Your father couldn’t make it,” Mom says. “He had other pressing matters to attend to. You know I really hate that you call him that.”
“It’s his name, isn’t it?” I point out.
Mom nods and shakes her head, defeated. “Yeah, I just wish the two of you could get along.”
“Maybe if he wasn’t a murderer—” I don’t say anything further because I catch sight of Harper walking up the long driveway in a bright red dress. “If you’ll excuse me,” I say and brush past her, not finishing our conversation.
“Luca,” Mom calls after me, but I ignore her as I hurry to catch up with Harper before she makes her way to the front entrance and chances running into Dante.
I jog across the lawn, ensuring that I catch up with her. The cold sting feels surprisingly good. “Harper!”
Her eyes widen, and a faint smile plays on her lips. She’s carrying a gift bag in one hand and a small overnight bag on her shoulder. “Let me help you with that,” I say, taking the heavier of the two items, slinging the bag over my arm.
“Thanks. I didn’t expect to see you here tonight,” Harper says. “I thought you might have practice or something.”
I wince, wondering if she’s referring to the shitty game we played last week.
“Wouldn’t miss Nova’s birthday party.”
“Even though she said it’s an all-girl’s sleepover and no boys are allowed?” Harper quips. She’s smiling, and I half-imagine she’s teasing me.
“Well, we’re like family, and this was my house growing up.
” I point at the compound, which resembles a mansion.
I haven’t stepped foot inside yet, and I’m waiting until the last possible moment when I have to go in.
Maybe I can convince the girls to camp outside tonight, and I can watch their tent, make sure they’re safe.
“Wow,” Harper says, taking it all in. “It’s gorgeous. What does your family do for a living?”