12. Marco
CHAPTER 12
MARCO
Elio slapped the contract down in front of Gianna a week later. Bianca had invited us all to breakfast and we had a lot to go over.
“Once you sign this contract, you’ll be in charge of managing your father’s previous restaurant on behalf of the Gallos,” Elio told Gianna.
She stared at it and then turned to me, confusion pinching her brows. I hadn’t mentioned it to her just in case the plan fell through, and Elio had used one of his legal contacts to slip in what we needed. Bianca wouldn’t bother checking the fine print when she trusted us to do our jobs.
“Managing the restaurant?” Gianna asked. “I’ve only worked there. I’ve never managed it.”
“Learn quickly.” Bianca took a slow sip of her cappuccino. “I don’t want to see any loss of investment.” She moved on almost immediately, turning to Elio. “Remind me how long you’ll be gone?”
“A month. Maybe more. Depends how fast she goes and how long it takes to wrap up the estate.”
Grandmothers were one of the very, very few soft spots Bianca Gallo had. She’d been extremely close to hers growing up and I still remembered her devastation when Nonna Gallo had been ripped out of this world—a bullet meant for her son. Elio’s grandmother back in Italy was about to join Nonna Gallo in the beyond, and Bianca had granted him permission to go.
“Eat a delizia al limone for me while you’re there,” Bianca said. “I haven’t had a decent one in decades. Enzo, where are we with the Cafaros?”
“Still monitoring the situation. The head is gathering ammo, but there’s no movement to use it yet.”
Bianca nodded sharply. “Keep me updated. Marco, I want you to ride the asses of the capos in charge of Rossi intelligence. They’re either incompetent or deliberately withholding information. Find out for me. We’re not going to have another incident like last week.”
I nodded. We had several plants in the Rossi organizations but some had gone silent recently, and the people in charge of finding out why had been next to useless. Santo was combing through the people on our side after we’d uncovered Nerin working with someone in the Rossi organization.
“Santo, have we found out anything about the Romanos? I’m getting impatient.”
“Ludovico has only replied that they have a family emergency and will not be discussing alliances or marriages at this time.”
Bianca rolled her eyes. “That’s a crock of shit.”
“Most likely, yes,” Santo agreed. “I’ll continue pushing for a meeting. I don’t want to go too hard and chase them straight into Rossi arms.”
“Maybe we’ll be lucky and all the stress will give him a heart attack so we can deal with someone more competent.” Bianca held out her hand. “Pass me the contract and someone get me a fucking pen.” I passed her one from my pocket and she scrolled her name at each flagged portion of the contract before pushing it down the table to Gianna. “I don’t have all day. Sign it and get to work.”
My omega chewed her bottom lip but signed her name like she had been told.
“Good. Now everyone get the fuck out of here. I have a meeting with my father.”
We all got up without a word, leaving the remnants of our breakfast and drinks. I made sure to grab the contract and pulled Gianna along with me. Enzo and Santo continued on to begin their day, but Elio paused next to us.
“Walk with me.”
The three of us set off together to take Gianna to the restaurant.
“Are any of you going to explain to me what happened today?” Gianna asked.
“In time,” I replied. Just to be safe, we waited until we’d arrived and were headed down the street to the restaurant to speak just in case Bianca had gotten paranoid and bugged our vehicles.
“You’re manager for now,” said Elio. “We added a clause that ownership automatically reverts to you after two years. I figure by that point Bianca won’t give a shit.”
Gianna stopped short. “Wait, what do you mean ownership?”
“Marco wanted us to find a way to get it back to you. This way you can run it with Bianca’s blessing and your father can’t fuck it up again. Once you’re no longer a novelty and Bianca’s not staring you down, it’ll be yours.”
Gianna turned to me, her eyes wide and lashes ringed with tears. “You wanted to do that for me?”
I swallowed against the swell of emotion both from myself and what was radiating through the bond. “You said you wanted something to do during the day.”
Gianna launched herself at me, and while I initially braced for a hit, what came instead was her arms wrapping around me and her lips descending against mine. That perfect pink mouth I had been craving tasted just as sweet as I had imagined. I hooked my hands beneath her thighs and scooped her up, the slight tang of salt from what I could only assume were happy tears mixed with the sweet peach of her lips. A growl snuck free and Gianna devoured the sound. Affection and gratitude tumbled through the bond toward me, all tangled in a haze of lust.
Elio cleared his throat. “Please don’t fuck in the middle of the street.”
I broke away from Gianna’s kiss just long enough to tell him to fuck off. It wasn’t an uncalled-for reminder because with every sweep of her tongue I was a little more tempted to take her into the alley and fuck her up against the brick.
“We have shit to do, Marco,” Elio reminded me, his words clipped. “You can find your own way home if you’re going to fuck around. Let her go to work and you can do whatever the hell you want tonight. I’ve got to head to the airport.”
He disappeared back down the street in the direction we’d come, and I reluctantly put Gianna back on her feet, pulling a slim device from my pocket and handing it to her.
“A phone?”
“A burner phone. You can communicate with me on this. Don’t go anywhere without it.”
Both of our phones beeped.
“Oh my god! Marco! We have a group chat with Elio? You don’t really seem like the type to do that.”
I shrugged. “It’s convenient.”
El:
Don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone
It’s a long flight to save your ass
G:
It’s like you don’t even KNOW us
M:
She’s promised to be good
El:
I meant you, but sure
G:
Come back with a partner so I have a friend here
El:
…
Yeah, I’ll get right the fuck on that
B would feed me to a bear
G:
Where’s your sense of adventure??
“You know he can’t do that without permission,” I pointed out.
“I can dream.”
El:
Locked in the basement
Self-preservation is running the ship
M:
Giving her a phone was a mistake
El:
I see that
G:
Just THINK about it
You know my vote if you meet any Italian cuties angling for a husband
“Okay, that’s enough phone for you.”
She pouted when I snatched the phone out of her hands. “Why can’t I befriend Elio? I thought you wanted me to be happy here?”
“Christ, woman. He’s killed more people than I have. You can’t forget the people here are dangerous.”
“I didn’t . I just wanted a friend here. If he’s your ally, then I want him to be my ally too.”
“He is,” I insisted. “Don’t mistake allies for friends, though. The only one here you can truly trust is me.”
Gianna sighed and drew my face closer to kiss me. “You’re no fun. Distract me, then, if I’m not allowed to talk to anyone else.”
I chuckled softly and squeezed the back of her thighs, delighting in the way her eyes glittered with defiance. “You know, I think I might.”
Her dilated pupils eclipsed the blue irises, and it was almost enough for me to throw caution into the wind and ruin her before she got anywhere near that restaurant, but Elio was right. I could be patient.
Gianna, as it turned out, could not.
She snuck me around the back and into the residential portion of the building. Her old bedroom was stripped of its personality now that all her things were at the compound, but the bed and furniture were still there, decorated with blues and whites, checked bedding so tidy it practically begged to be messed up.
She tore at my pants, wrestling the front open and pushing me back onto her bed.
“Take a breath. I’m not going anywhere.”
Gianna climbed onto the bed after me and lifted her dress to sit in my lap. She had been plenty desperate for me before, but now the heat was over and this was all her. I didn’t mind one bit as she tugged her panties to the side and rubbed her clit against my cock until her slick was flowing. I also didn’t mind when her cunt swallowed up my cock, her nails biting into my chest as she rode me, chasing her pleasure. Some alphas got up in their heads about the requirements of submission and didn’t like to let their omega be on top, but I was happy just to have my omega itching to fuck me, whatever position that ended up being in.
I treasured the moment for the milestone it was. The glide of her pussy was a ready distraction from the acknowledgment of her acceptance. Maybe it was simply a gratitude bang, but she could’ve flipped her skirt for that. She wanted me, and more than that, I could settle into the knowledge of how much sweeter that was than only taking from her. I could take anything I wanted and she would let me, but my omega was interested in taking for herself right now.
I peeled her dress off, letting the glow of the morning sunshine illuminate her skin, setting her hair to shining like polished gold. Gianna thrust her fingers southward, tucking them beneath the waistband of her panties.
Each broken breath and pitiful sound that escaped her fueled my own desire. I plucked open the back of her bra and pulled down the cups until she flung it aside, leaving her bare for my hands. The twist and roll of her nipples between my thumb and forefinger had her groaning, her hand below growing more desperate as she slammed down on me.
“Fuckity fuck, I’m going to have to put a lot more effort into leg day.” With a pleading look and a soft whine, she flexed her fingers against me. “Take over?”
“Anything for you, hellcat. Hands on the headboard.”
I rolled out of the way and tugged her panties all the way off before settling behind her with my hands on her hips, rocking the tip of my cock through her slick-soaked folds. I braced one hand next to hers and fucked in, leaning over her to get my fingers on her clit. Her head tipped to the side and I accepted the offering of her throat. I could have her every day for eternity and I would never tire of her. The yielding of her body and the fire of her spirit were too intoxicating, a fine bourbon I wanted to sip forever.
Gianna gasped my name and I didn’t slow for a second as she tensed around me. My omega dropped her forehead to the headboard, clinging rather desperately as I fucked her through one rise and into the next. Whoever had designed omegas to break so easily had known what they were doing. Seeing Gianna so steeped in pleasure she could barely speak had to be a divine gift. I had never done a fucking thing to earn that gift, but I would keep her safe, keep her satisfied as long as I could.
I bowed over her until we were pressed together once more, and, with a few sharp thrusts, I came undone right after her, sinking my teeth into her skin so I didn’t alert the entire restaurant we were up here. We waited until we’d both stopped shuddering before easing apart and stretching out atop the blankets.
“That’s not the first time I’ve done that in here, but it’s definitely my favorite.” Gianna nuzzled my shoulder and wedged herself beneath my arm, stretched out naked against my mostly clothed body.
“As far as I’m concerned, anyone else who’s ever touched you doesn’t exist. I’m the only one who gets to do that now.”
Gianna bit my pec, mostly playfully, but hard enough to get my attention. “You can’t just mandate other lovers out of existence.”
“I’ll be rejecting any reality that includes your other lovers.”
“You want an untouched, simpering virgin in your bed?”
I snorted. “Hardly. I want you in my bed. I just don’t want to think about anyone else having you.”
Gianna’s eyes sparkled as she wiggled around and climbed back onto my lap, staring down at me like she was Venus risen out of the sea. “Same deal has to apply the other direction, then. I don’t want to know about anyone who you’ve gotten my new favorite appendage into.” She traced a finger over my cock, blue gaze rife with mischief.
“New favorite, eh?”
“Mhmm.” She stretched out, resting her forearms on my chest and getting close enough I had to blink to see her face.
“You’re happy with the restaurant?” I asked. “I had to get Elio to do it so Bianca wouldn’t be suspicious.”
“I fucking love the restaurant. I think I can love it more now, knowing that its failure won’t mean my starvation.” She traced her fingertips over my cheek. “I never expected to have a hand in my family’s legacy, so thank you. You managed to give me what I’ve always wanted and never dared hope for. I can take care of it and help it grow and come back to you at the end of each night.”
“I gotta admit I never thought you would want to.”
Gianna rocked her hips and hooked her fingers in the collar of my shirt as she leaned down to give me a kiss that tasted like the first peach tea of summer. “I never thought I would want to either. You’re a lot more decent than I would expect for anyone working for Bianca.”
“Don’t try to de-fang me just because I did something nice.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. As long as you don’t do that to me either.”
I laughed. “Hellcat, I am fully fucking aware you’re always going to have your claws. I would never want to take them from you.”
Once she was dressed, I took her back down and made sure no one was going to kick up a fuss about her being the new manager. I didn’t want to leave her, but I had work to do for Bianca that couldn’t be ignored. The Rossis were gathering strength and we had to keep tabs on it. I wasn’t expecting war tomorrow, but it was definitely on the horizon.
By the end of the day, I hadn’t found anything useful after grilling the people in charge of intelligence, which meant sooner or later Bianca would ship me out to take over and see what the fuck was going on.
Gianna returned to the Gallo compound after a twelve-hour shift.
“About fucking time.” I was all over her the second she walked into our suite, needing to breathe her in after a long day apart. “I’d have picked you up if Bianca wasn’t up my ass all day. I just got back here myself.”
“I’m perfectly capable of driving. Plus, it’s nice to have my own vehicle again.”
“How was it?”
“Weird as hell, but it’ll get better. I’ll try not to work quite such long hours after this week. I just need to get to know everyone in this new capacity before I back off a bit. The restaurant isn’t doing as badly as I’d expected, but it could definitely do better. I can’t quite tell if my father is annoyed or relieved that I’m there?”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, like, I think he’s happy to hand over the management duties and just focus on being a chef, but also he’s not used to having to listen to me.”
“Well, that’s too fucking bad for him. You’ve got the backbone, and now you have the authority. If anyone can browbeat a middle-aged Italian man into compliance, it would be you.”
Gianna laughed and I savored the sound.
“Did you eat?”
She looked sheepishly at me. “Okay, I may have been surrounded by food all day, but I was so busy I didn’t think to consume any of it.”
My growl had light flickering in her eyes. “You starve yourself at work and I’m going to have to teach you a lesson again. You won’t be able to sit at your little desk with that perfect ass aching.” I gripped both cheeks for emphasis.
“I’ll be good.”
“I’m not even sure you’re capable of being good.”
She lifted up on her toes, following the press of my hands, and looped her arms around my neck. “You should show your omega what happens when she doesn’t listen, alpha.”
Fuck me .
I growled again and goosebumps erupted over her skin. “I must’ve done a piss-poor job of punishing you last time if you’re asking for it again.”
“Maybe you created a monster and now I crave a firm touch.” She grinned and followed my lead as I boosted her up, and she jumped to wrap her legs around my waist.
“So you’re saying I need to get creative with your punishments? How about if I leave you dripping and desperate?”
“That would be truly evil.”
I barked a laugh. “Hardly. Maybe I just want you to think of me all day, every day until the end of fucking time.”
Gianna purred. “I was going to do that anyway, but if you’d like to make the rest of forever a little spicier, I have no complaints about that.”
She was too fucking perfect. This life wasn’t meant for someone like her, but like it or not, we’d both been born into it. We could survive it, and while we had a long way to go with each other, I wasn’t afraid of that path now. I might never be able to give her what she deserved, but I was certainly going to try. She didn’t fully trust me yet, but I could see it growing day by day. Her desire could lead the way, and the bond would make it all easier, but she was trying as much as I was to make this new fucked-up life together work. The day would come that I’d need to step up and fight for her, maybe die for her, but until that day came, I was going to savor every fucking second.