Chapter 5 #2
After dinner, Labria drifted toward the living room window, wineglass in hand.
The evening sky had turned deep blue. I cleared our plates, giving her space while stealing glances at her silhouette against the glass.
The tension in her shoulders told me our conversation was far from over.
I loaded the dishwasher quickly, then joined her, bringing the wine bottle as reinforcement.
The soft clink of glass against glass as I topped up her drink drew her attention back to me.
“What are you thinking?” I asked, leaning against the window frame opposite her.
She swirled the wine in her glass, watching the liquid slosh around. “I’m thinking that Lord’s silence scares me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Lord is quiet, and you know what they say about the quiets ones.”
“No, what?”
“They’re the ones you gotta watch. They are reactive and impulsive. He seems even, but he has a temper.” Her eyes remained fixed on the street outside. “It’s not like him to just let something like this go without even a word.”
I nodded, understanding exactly what she meant. I heard how Lord killed two armed assassins on motorcycles the day of the uncle Dom’s funeral. Lord wasn’t even a made man yet, and he killed two men on the street like he was born into this life.
Labria didn’t know this, but I’d seen him erupt over business disagreements, territorial disputes, even a poorly timed joke. This idea that he would quietly accept Labria leaving him for me. That didn’t align with anything I knew about him.
“Maybe he’s just processing,” I suggested, though I didn’t believe it myself. “It’s only been two weeks.”
Labria laughed, a short, brittle sound. “Two weeks is an eternity for Lord to hold back when he feels wronged. And this—” she gestured between us, “this would feel like the ultimate betrayal to him.”
She began to pace, her bare feet silent on my hardwood floors, wine glass clutched tightly in her hand. “He’s planning something. I know him. The quieter he gets, the more dangerous he is. He’s not going to do anything to you. He’s going to come after me in some way.”
“You think he’d hurt you?” The thought made my blood run cold.
“I don’t know.” She stopped pacing, facing me directly. “I honestly don’t know what he’s capable of anymore. He’s never been physical with me. I can’t even imagine him putting his hands on me, but the man I fell in love with back in Chicago feels like a stranger now.”
I set my glass down on the side table and moved toward her. “I won’t let him hurt you, Labria. I’ll protect you, no matter what.”
She shook her head firmly. “No. I don’t want you putting yourself between me and Lord. I don’t want to create conflict in the Bregoli family.”
“It might be too late for that,” I said quietly.
“It doesn’t have to be.” Labria resumed her pacing, her lawyer’s mind clearly analyzing and strategizing. “Nicco doesn’t seem to want family conflict either. That’s why he came to warn me.”
“What exactly did he say?”
“He said if Lord kills you, it will cause problems in the family.” Her voice wavered slightly. “But if Lord kills me, Nicco will just look the other way.”
I stepped in front of her, halting her pacing. “He threatened you?”
“Not exactly. It was more like... a forecast. A warning.” She sighed.
“Nicco was being dramatic. Lord can’t kill me without an order from him. I’m a protected person, and so are you.”
“Protected by who?”
“Me, you’re with me now, and Lordes can’t touch you. The rules are the rules.”
Despite the seriousness of our conversation, I couldn’t help a short laugh. “That sounds just like Nicco. He’s always trying to raise your stress levels.”
Labria didn’t smile. “Nicco told me Lord will be in New York next Tuesday through Thursday. Something about business with the LaGrassa family.”
“Business with Lolita’s family,” I noted. “Interesting coincidence.”
Labria took another sip of wine. “Anyway, I’m going to retrieve my belongings from his house while he’s gone. Nicco offered a moving truck and driver to help.”
“That’s surprisingly generous of him.” I wondered what ulterior motives he had. Maybe he wanted Labria out of Lordes life so he could have his new underboss brother all to himself. It was all I could think of. Why was he helping facilitate this breakup?
“He called it practical. I think he just wants this situation resolved as quickly as possible.” She moved to the couch and sat down, setting her wineglass on the coffee table. “I need to find a storage unit to keep my things until I figure out my next move.”
I joined her on the couch, leaving a respectful distance between us. “You can use my basement to store your things if you want. I have plenty of space.”
“Thank you, but no.” She shook her head. “I think it’s better if I get a storage unit. Something that’s just mine. I haven’t made any permanent decisions.”
The implication was clear. Labria wasn’t ready to fully commit to whatever was happening between us. I couldn’t blame her. Our friendship began months ago, but our sexual relationship was new. No matter how things started, they were now covered in chaos and secrecy.
“I’m sorry for bringing all this trouble into your life,” she said after a moment of silence. “You just lost your father, and instead of being able to grieve properly, you’re dealing with all my drama.”
“My father, what a man.” I shifted closer to her on the couch. “The more I found out about him, the more I realized I didn’t know him at all. And to be clear, you haven’t brought trouble. You’ve brought me comfort at a time I needed it.”
She looked at me skeptically, with one beautiful brow raised. “And the threat of my ex.”
“There is that.” I admitted. “I’m not afraid of Lordes. He’s half Irish.” I joked. “Plus, I think you’re worth it.”
I reached for her hands, enclosing them in mine. They were cool from holding the wine glass. “I know this is complicated, Labria. I know the timing is all wrong, and there are a thousand reasons why we shouldn’t be doing this.”
“But?” she prompted.
“But what I feel for you is real.” The words came out more earnestly than I intended. “I’ve wanted you from the first moment I saw you, not just physically, but all of you. Your mind, your strength, the way talk, act and are.”
She didn’t pull away, which I took as encouragement to continue.
“I feel guilty about being with my cousin’s ex. I do. In our world, that’s a line you don’t cross.” I traced small circles on the back of her hand with my thumb. “But when I’m with you, it doesn’t feel wrong. It feels like the most natural thing in the world.”
Her expression relaxed, the hard lines of worry easing from her forehead. “I have feelings for you too, Maurizio. I think I have for a while, even before I left Lord.”
“Really?” I couldn’t keep the surprise from my voice.
She nodded, a small smile playing at the corners of her full, kissable lips.
“You were always honest with me. Always treated me like I mattered, not just as an accessory or a possession.” Her fingers tightened around mine.
“When things started falling apart with Lord, I found myself comparing him to you more and more.”
“I’m flattered,” I said, though ‘flattered’ didn’t begin to cover the surge of emotion her words created in me. “But also terrified of the position I’ve put you in.”
“We’ve put each other in,” she corrected. “This was a mutual decision.”
“Still,” I said, bringing one of her hands to my lips, “I wish I could promise you safety at all times.”
“I don’t need promises.” Her eyes met mine steadily. “I just need truth. No matter how uncomfortable or frightening, I need to know what we’re facing together.”
Together. The word hung between us, a commitment neither of us was ready to fully articulate but both felt deeply.
“No more secrets,” I repeated my earlier promise. “Whatever comes, we face it with open eyes.”
She nodded, some of the tension visibly draining from her body. “Together.”
I pulled her closer, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as she leaned into me. We sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the night sky darken outside the window, each lost in our own thoughts about what tomorrow might bring.