2.Luca
Luca
“Those French bastards, I’ll fucking kill them one by one!”
I storm into our private room at the club, slamming the door behind me, seething with anger.
Mariano had agreed to Cora’s demand for a day without Graham or close security, choosing this strip club’s private room for our meeting instead of handling business from his office.
He’s such a pushover, letting his wife dictate everything.
Mariano and Graham stop what they’re doing and look at me in confusion.
“What happened?” Mariano asks, surprised. “Lately, they’ve been coming here and throwing a fortune on the hookers and new stash. They only think with their dicks, easy to manipulate,” he adds with a chuckle.
“That’s the problem!” I exclaim, my temper flaring. “They don’t think beyond their impulses. One of those assholes is drunk and looking for trouble tonight—he just grabbed Alin outside!”
Mariano immediately gets up from his seat. “Is she okay? Cora will make my life miserable if something happens to her here in the club,” he says with concern, that doesn’t seems directed toward Alin. Yes, my brother is definitely his wife’s puppet, I sigh.
“She’s fine,” I assure him sharply, prompting Mariano to relax back into his seat with relief. “Fool,” I mutter under my breath, “I made sure the guy who touched her won’t dare show his fucking face here again.”
My statement unsettles Mariano briefly, but he quickly composes himself, cautioning me, “Just don’t escalate this into a conflict with the French now, brother. We’ve had a peaceful period with good relations. It would be a shame to ruin that all over some asshole who got too handsy.”
“Got too handsy?!” I repeat his words, raising my voice, “He tried to grab Alin!” I point out again, immediately regretting it as it came out too possessive and angry. Mariano seems to notice this too.
“Since when do you react like this? I get it with me, because of Cora. But Alin?” Mariano probes suspiciously, trying to read my motives.
“You’ve known about her for a while now.
She’s not new, and she’s never piqued your interest before.
You didn’t even bother checking on her when she visited Cora at our place. ”
He’s right. Until today, Alin was just a name to me, nothing more.
I assumed Mariano was handling whatever business Cora dragged him into.
But seeing her tonight, something stirred in me.
Her beauty and confidence drew every eye in the club, sparking a possessive rage within me.
I wanted to mark her, stake my claim. When that guy touched her and danced so closely, I nearly lost control.
“He disrespected me by coming here, to my domain,” I confess, my voice trembling with controlled rage. “If they want a war after this, they’ll fucking get one. After what I did, they’ll think twice before fucking with me again.”
Mariano’s sigh reverberates loudly in the private room.
“Luca, you’re my brother, so I’m going to give this to you straight.
Alin isn’t yours to protect, and you need to tread carefully.
She’s not one of us, and she’s like family to Cora.
Sure, she turns heads, but that doesn’t mean she’s yours.
Those guys didn’t do anything they wouldn’t do with any other woman here, and they certainly didn’t mean to disrespect you.
You’re picking fights unnecessarily, especially now that Dad’s gone back to Italy and left you in charge.
” He finishes his admonition, and though he’s right, I can feel the anger simmering beneath the surface.
Normally, anyone talking to me like that would risk losing their head, but Mariano’s words strike a chord.
This isn’t the moment to put my younger brother in his place, not when he’s right.
So, I choose silence, taking a seat beside him and shifting the conversation to the latest updates.
The Russians were also on our radar lately, and my impulsive actions have only escalated tensions with the French further.
I refuse to risk complicating things further by bedding her to sate my arousal, which has been relentless since our eyes first met and her intoxicating scent enveloped me as my nose brushed against her neck.
Her eyes, like glowing turquoise gemstones, hold a story I’m intrigued by but also wary of delving into.
It could spell trouble for both of us. Yet, despite these concerns, I know I must keep tabs on her now more than ever.
After my altercation with the Frenchman, they won’t easily forget it and Alin would be caught in their crosshairs because of me.
Why does the thought of watching her so closely ignite a strange sense of satisfaction in me?