21. Luca
Luca
Chapter twenty-one
Never in my life did I think I’d be taking my wife to a clubhouse full of bikers. Finn assured me they are aware of who I am and why I was in the Cataldi organization. He also made sure to let me know again that these guys may participate in illegal activities to make their money, but they hold the same values as our family, especially when it comes to the women in their lives. It does little to ease the tension I have as we drive through the gates, though.
Parking the car in the gravel lot, the four of us step out of the vehicle next to the row of motorcycles in a line off to the right. A large man with a neatly trimmed beard with a little gray around the edges of his otherwise dark hair walks over to us with two other men all wearing the same cut. The man in front has a president patch on his, and the other two are wearing enforcer patches.
“Ozzy,” Finn calls, “Thank you for having us.” He walks up to the MC president with his hand outstretched.
Ozzy grips it in his large palm and claps Finn on the shoulder. “I told you to call if you needed assistance. Glad you did.”
Finn nods. “Let me introduce you to my wife.” Alessia walks from the other side of the car and shakes Ozzy’s hand then greets the other two men, Linc and Jude. “And this is my cousin Luca and his wife, Giada.”
Ozzy walks up to me and takes my hand in the same firm grip as he did with Finn. “You saved two of our women, Luca. If there’s anything you ever need, know we’re in your debt.”
“Appreciate it,” I reply before he introduces me to Jude and Linc, whose old lady was the girl from the warehouse who Alberto was about to buy.
“Good to finally meet you, man,” Linc says, shaking my hand.
Giada is standing silently next to me with a practiced smile on her face. I wrap my arm around her shoulders to offer her some comfort, but I think the drive here has brought up a lot of memories for her. When we drove through the little town of Shine, her head was on a swivel, looking at every building and shop we passed. She pointed out a candy store her mom used to take them to before they made it to the house. The memory brought a smile to her face, but a few moments later, it dropped, and she was back to being quiet. Giada is still coming to terms with loving her mom and being angry that she participated in the lies from both of our childhoods.
“Eoghan didn’t make the trip?” Jude asks as we grab our bags and walk toward the front door.
“He and Cillian will be up later,” Finn says.
“Good, he can finally meet my old lady. I can’t wait for her to beat his ass at pool.” The affectionate smile on the otherwise tough biker’s face when he speaks of his woman eases my tension further. It’s obvious these men love and respect the women in their lives, just as Finn assured me.
When we walk into the clubhouse, it’s not as I would’ve expected a biker hangout. There are no half-naked women lying around or a bunch of drunk assholes leering at Alessia and Giada when we walk in. A couple of the members are playing pool to the left, another man is sitting at the bar sipping coffee and reading a newspaper, and there’s a woman is sitting with a laptop in front of her and papers spread across a table.
“Pretty girl, come here a minute. I want to introduce you to some people,” Ozzy says.
When she looks up from her work, her eyes meet his then she finds mine. A wide smile stretches across her face as she approaches us. “You must be Luca,” she says, shaking my hand. “If it wasn’t for you, God knows what would have happened to us.”
“I was in the right place at the right time. Glad to help.”
When Ozzy and Freya were kidnapped by Carlo, I overheard the two goons who worked for Carlo talking about the lawyer bitch and the MC president at one of the Cataldi warehouses, waiting for Carlo to get there to take care of them. I took a chance and called Finn from my phone, warning him that something was going down. Though Carlo got away that day, Roberto and Ernesto weren’t so lucky. Good fucking riddance.
Two women come out through a swinging door on the right side of the room, and I recognize one of them immediately. The girl that Alberto was going to buy. She looks a hell of a lot better than the first time I laid eyes on her.
She walks up to Linc, and he wraps his arm around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head. I can only imagine how she feels seeing me again. The first time she met me, I was playing the part of human trafficker. And I played it well. She was out of the warehouse before we took out the men inside.
Charlie offers me a small smile. “I never thought I’d be thanking you if I ever saw you again. You play a convincing bad guy.”
I nod and return her smile. “I’m glad you made it out.”
Not all the women Alberto bought through the years were as lucky, and that guilt still eats away at me.
“I’m Lucy,” a short woman standing next to Jude says, shaking hands with Giada and Alessia. “I heard you're a bit of a gun expert,” she says to Alessia.
Alessia laughs. “I heard you're the only person here who has a shot at beating my brother-in-law at pool.”
“Hey,” Jude exclaims. “Eoghan doesn’t win every game.”
The women share a laugh at Jude’s expense before we’re shown to our rooms.
“We don’t usually stay here,” Lucy explains as we walk down the hallway. “But with the idea of Carlo being so close, Ozzy called everyone in. At least until we find out if he’s really at your old lake house.” She looks at Giada. “I know a little something about fucked-up families.”
“I’m sorry,” my wife says, giving Lucy a small smile. “I hope they got what they deserved.”
The tilt of Lucy’s lips makes me a little nervous if I’m being honest. “They definitely did. Oh, hey, Cece,” she says, turning her attention to the tall, willowy blonde woman stepping out from the door we’re in front of. “This is Finn, Luca, Giada and Alessia.”
Cece smiles and says a quiet hello before scurrying off. Lucy looks after her as she rounds the corner. “That’s my sister. She’s still a little skittish around people she doesn’t know. You’re most likely only going to see her if you go in the kitchen. Baking is her happy place. Especially around all these assholes,” she says loudly, and I turn to see Jude walking up to her.
“Were you talking about me again, Lucifer?”
Lucy rolls her eyes. “How come every time I refer to someone as an asshole, you assume I’m talking about you?”
“Because you usually are,” he replies, giving her a smacking kiss on the cheek before turning his attention to me and Finn. “Once you get settled, come outside. We have a car that will blend in a little better around here for you to take to the lake.”
Finn and Alessia head into the room next to ours to change and get ready to go before I shut the door to mine and Giada’s room.
“You okay?” I ask as she unzips her bag and pulls out a sweatshirt and a hat. When we decided to go on this little hunt for Carlo, we knew we needed to try to disguise ourselves the best we could without looking like we were trying too hard.
Giada removes the sweater she’s wearing, and I catch sight of her bullet wound. Every time I see it, that rage bubbles back to the surface. That motherfucker needs to die.
“A little overwhelmed, honestly. Being back here, well, in Shine, I’ve never been to an MC clubhouse before. I don’t know; it’s bringing up a lot of old memories I haven’t thought of in years.”
“Like what?” I ask as she slips into the hoodie and twists her hair up to put under the cap.
“My mom being happy. Of feeling like we didn’t have to walk on eggshells like we did at our house. Of Marco here with her. It’s like this town has unlocked so many good memories, but they’re all tainted with everything I know now.” She shrugs. “It’s just a lot right now.”
I pull her into my arms and tip the bill of the hat up so I can kiss her mouth. “There’s nothing I can say except it’ll take time to come to terms with everything. But know your mom loved you and wanted you to be happy. That’s all I want, too.”
She gives me a shaky smile and blows out a long breath. “Let’s get going.”
The drive to the lake is quiet as Giada looks out the window like she did when we drove through town. She made this drive with her mother and brother countless times, probably excited for a vacation. Now she’s here to see if the boy who grew up to be an evil psychopath is hiding in the house that held so many happy memories for her.
When we pull off the highway into the neighborhood with several large houses dotting the lake, my nerves ratchet up about a thousand notches.
“If there’s even a hint that he spots us, call Ozzy and have him haul ass here. I don’t want this fucker getting away again,” I tell my cousin, who’s driving the midrange SUV owned by one of the club’s friends. Definitely a smart move to have us bring this out instead of the luxury sedan that Finn drives. “And no matter what, you stay in the car. You're only here to point out the house,” I tell my wife.
“We’re armed to the teeth,” Finn tells me. “Including Alessia.”
Though this is a simple recon mission, Finn’s made sure to come prepared on the off chance something happens. Neither of us are willing to be caught unaware when we’re carrying precious cargo with us.
“Go down to the houses right along the shore. I remember being able to walk out the back door and having a dock in our backyard.”
Finn does as instructed and we drive around the lake, not too slowly, so it doesn’t appear like we’re looking for something.
When we get to the other side, Giada gasps. “That’s it,” she says, trying not to crane her neck at the house on her right. “And there’s a light on downstairs.”
Finn passes the house without slowing and takes a left to get back to the highway.
“He’s there,” Giada says. “It has to be him, right?”
“I saw the street address. I’ll have Cillian check the property records and see who owns it.”
“It’s him,” Giada whispers and stares out the window as we head back to the clubhouse.
Three hours later, Cillian and Eoghan walk in with duffel bags in each of their hands.
“We made a trip to the warehouse. Brought a few extras just in case,” Cillian says, setting the bags on the floor next to the bar. “I looked into the property records for the address you sent me,” he tells Finn. “It’s had the same owner since the sixties. Antonio Russo. Giada’s grandfather.”
I release a heavy breath. “It’s Carlo then. You’re sure it was never sold?”
Cillian looks at me like I asked the stupidest question he’s heard all day. “Of course. The taxes on the property have been paid every year from a shell account that ended in the Caymans. If I recall, the Cataldis are particularly fond of using shell companies to hide their money.”
“We go tonight. Before dawn breaks, I want that fucker six feet under,” Finn says. We all nod in agreement as Ozzy, Linc and Jude walk over to greet Cillian and Eoghan.
“We have a plan?” Ozzy asks.
“To go in and kill Carlo and anyone else we find,” I reply.
“Sounds solid,” Jude says, his lip turning up in a little smirk. He looks down at the bags Eoghan and Cillian brought in. “And look. You brought more toys.”
After going over the schematics for the home Cillian was able to bring up on his computer and getting a feel for the house we’ll be heading to later, we have dinner with the club. Giada and Alessia sit with the other ladies, and Lucy regales them with stories about God knows what, but they’re laughing and having a good time, which I’m grateful for. It’s keeping Giada distracted, at least from what I can tell, and that’s what she needs right now.
My family sits with Ozzy, Jude and Linc, who are going with us tonight, while Knox, the club’s VP and Cash cover the only road leading to the highway just in case Carlo manages to slip out of our grasp.
“I think we’re set, gentlemen,” Ozzy says, getting up from his chair. “I’m going to spend some time with my fiancée before we head out.” He walks over to Freya and whispers something in her ear before she gets up and follows him down the hallway.
“I’m going to take that as my cue to take my wife to our room,” my cousin says and heads toward Alessia.
“Thank you for going with us,” I tell Linc and Jude. “Taking care of Carlo is our responsibility, so I appreciate your willingness to put yourselves in the line of fire to help us.”
“The Italians have been a problem for both of our families for far too long. I have a personal stake in this, too,” Linc says.
“Yeah, and there’s no way in hell I’m letting my prez or my best friend walk in there without me,” Jude says, standing from his seat. “Now, if you two will excuse me, I’m going to go piss off my old lady.”
After he turns, I shoot Linc a questioning look.
“It’s their foreplay. It’s fucking weird, but it works for them.”
I chuckle and rise from my chair. “See you in a few hours.”
When I reach Giada, she looks up at me with a sleepy smile.
“Come on, sweetheart. Let me take you to bed.” That earns me a different kind of smile from my wife.
When I shut the door, Giada is standing at the foot of the bed, looking at me anxiously. “You haven’t touched me since the shooting,” she blurts out. “This is probably the worst time to bring it up, and there’re so many other things to be worried about right now, but there it is.”
I walk up to her and take her soft cheeks in the palm of my hand as she looks up at me, biting her lip. I pull it from her teeth and kiss her mouth. “I’m sorry. Seeing you hurt, almost losing you.” I shake my head. “It made me go into overprotective mode. I didn’t want you to overdo it and hurt yourself, or worse, have me be responsible for hurting you.” I kiss her again. “But it was never because I didn’t want you, sweetheart”
She leans up on her toes and kisses me back, wrapping her arms around my waist. “Then show me,” she whispers, her hands grabbing the bottom of my T-shirt and lifting it up and over my head.
I don't waste a second, taking the soft material of her sweater in my hand and gently sliding it up her body. She no longer has to wear a bandage, but the wound from the bullet is still pink around the scar that’s going to be with her for the rest of her life.
“The doctor said I could take the bandage off. The stitches have probably dissolved by now anyways. Now, I’m just left with this ugly scar.”
I look into her eyes and bring my lips to the scar. “Nothing about you is ugly, wife. Least of all proof that you survived.”
Giada grabs my face and crashes her mouth to mine. “We still have to take it easy. At least for a few more weeks.”
“Were you planning on performing acrobatics?” I ask, quirking a brow.
She laughs lightly, the sound warming all the cold parts of my heart. “Not today.”
I bend and leisurely taste her lips as though we have all the time in the world before guiding her onto the bed and bringing my body over hers but keeping my weight balanced on my arms.
My lips trail down the smooth column of her neck, over her breasts still encased in a sexy as fuck lace bra, licking my way over her stomach to the top of the pants she has on.
Looking up at her as she stares at me through half-lidded eyes, I press my lips to the skin at the edge of her pants. “I don’t know how I got to be the lucky son of a bitch you let into your body, but fuck Giada, I’m so damn grateful I am.” Her long fingers brush through the strands at the top of my head. “Now take your tits out of your bra and let me watch you play with your nipples while I taste you.”
She smirks then brings the cups of her bra down, releasing her breasts from the material, moving her fingers to her nipples and twisting.
“Good fucking girl.” The words come out in a rough growl as I slide her pants and panties down her legs and throw them behind me.
Guiding her to the edge of the bed, she sits and leans back, her arms behind her so she can clearly watch me eat her sweet cunt. I drape both of her legs over my shoulders, opening her up to my waiting mouth. The first lick I take through her wet pussy causes her to let out a hiss, the second has her grabbing the hair on the top of my head in her fist, and the third has her moaning, “Jesus Christ.”
A smile tips my lips, but I don’t stop. My eyes travel to her hand while she twists and pulls at her peaked nipple. I’m transfixed by the blissed-out expression on her face while I worship her delicious cunt that I’ve spent far too much time away from.
“Fuck, right there,” she moans before biting her lip, trying to contain the screams that threaten to erupt in a clubhouse full of people.
I press two fingers into her tight heat and curl them, finding the bundle of nerves inside of her. That sets off a ripple through her pussy and a breathy, drawn-out moan as she comes undone, her body jerking with the intensity of her orgasm.
I slow my fingers and tongue, following her down from her peak of pleasure and kiss my way back up her body, taking her nipple in my mouth and sucking hard before releasing it with a pop then standing to my full height. The needy expression in her eyes as she stares at my hands undoing the button of my pants makes my cock jerk to attention. Dragging the zipper down before I pull them off my body sends excitement through me, and another emotion I’m not ready to put a name to. I’ve been so worried about hurting Giada I haven’t even let myself think about fucking her, too worried that I’d let my dick do the thinking for me, and I’d say to hell with the doctor’s orders.
“Move up the bed, sweetheart.” Usually I would take her small waist in my hands and toss her up myself, but I have to stay mindful of the wound on her right shoulder.
I kiss my way up her smooth skin and settle my hips in the cradle of her thighs, keeping my weight on my elbows. Low enough to her that we’re touching skin to skin, but she isn’t taking any of my weight. I guide myself into her, feeling her for the first time in weeks. Her nails dig into the skin on my back as we slowly move together. My hips rock into her, and I get lost in the feel of her wrapped around my cock. Our eyes are locked, our breaths mingling with the words I haven’t told her, coming out in heated pants. I love you, I need you, don’t leave me when this is over.
It takes monumental effort not to slam into her over and over, but it’s worth it just being inside of her again, connecting her to me in the way I’ve come to crave in our short marriage.
“You feel so good, Giada. I fucking love the way your pussy takes me. God, I never want to leave.” Sweat drips down my forehead, tickling the side of my face. “I can’t hold back,” I say as I continue to bury myself inside her over and over.
“Don’t. I want to feel you. God, I’m right there with you.”
Her walls tighten and pulse around me as her second orgasm rushes through her, setting off my own. I crash my lips to hers and swallow her moans as we both lose ourselves in each other.
When her orgasm has ebbed, and she stills beneath me, I pull myself from her body and lie next to her, gathering her in my arms. Her head rests on my chest for a few moments before she speaks.
“When are you leaving?” she asks in a soft whisper.
“In a couple hours,” My fingers glide up and down her damp back. “I’ll be back before the sun rises.”
“As long as you come back to me, Luca Bennetti.”
“Always, Mrs. Bennetti.”