"Axel!" Calla scolded.
"He's alright," I said, hearing a smile in my voice for the first time in as long as I could remember.
A beautiful woman in front of me, a boy who somehow looked like me in my arms. It was everything I'd wanted once upon a time, before they took it all away.
When Axel lost interest in using me as a punching bag, Calla took him back and settled him into the seat of the stroller.
Once she’d gotten him buckled, she turned her attention back to me, smiling happily. "Thank you again. So much. Can I give you some money or—"
"You've already given me more than you know," I whispered, reaching out a hand to touch her face. "Have a good life, Tesoro." Treasure.
She gasped again the moment I touched her, my hand cupping her cheek as she stared up at me in confusion. I could never speak to her again, never touch her, but I'd never be able to walk away from her either.
The moment my thumb touched her high cheekbone, something in me shifted.
I was found.
One
Ryker
Two weeks later
Latour’s black sedan pulled up at the back of the lot. We might have been tentatively willing to trust him in the interest of an alliance, but until the man proved himself to Matteo, he wouldn’t set foot inside his home.
Or my warehouse.
When Chad got out of the car, his eyes traveled to Simon standing by the driver’s side of the Lincoln as he waited for the head of the Bellandi family to emerge from the vehicle. We had designed every aspect of the meeting around the need to emphasize the power hierarchy, and the shift from what Chad felt familiar with.
The full wrath of Matteo Bellandi needed to stare Chad Latour in the face, because if he ever made the stupid mistake to cross Bellandi, it wouldn’t only be the man himself who unleashed his fury on him.
I’d take away everything he should have worshiped and make him watch as I made them mine.
I watched from the sidelines, with my backup beater car behind me. I leaned my ass against it with my arms crossed over my chest, as fury filled my veins.
He was so fucking stupid. So fucking oblivious to his surroundings. How did someone survive as a cop and not realize a monster lingered just out of sight?
If Matteo hadn’t needed him, I’d have slit his throat before he even saw me.
Simon opened Matteo’s door finally, and the head of the Bellandi family made a grand show of unfolding his brutal body to stand next to the car. He eyed Chad’s tall frame with distaste, noting the badge he wore strapped to his belt.
Our line of work made dirty cops inevitable, a necessary evil we suffered to avoid jail time. But as people who took our vows of loyalty seriously, I couldn’t think of a single dirty cop who I didn’t think was worse than the dirt beneath my boots. Loyalty came first. The family we chose came first. A dirty cop betrayed both.
This one was just worse than most, because he was in my way.
I watched the exchange from the shadows. Chad stretched out a hand to shake Matteo’s, and my boss refused to touch him. His mouth moved, and Chad was quick to withdraw the hand.
Matteo wasn’t a germaphobe. He just hated people. The cruel expression on his face never faded, never relented for even a moment to show a hint of happiness.
I’d heard stories of a time when he’d been a different man. A boy really, in love with a girl he’d never be able to keep.
I understood the feeling.
Simon nodded at me over Matteo’s head, and I pushed off my car to make my way into the fray. Chad still hadn’t seen me, hadn’t even bothered to take his eyes off of who he saw as the threat. But while Matteo might have posed a threat, he’d never kill Chad himself.
He’d save that pleasure for me, when the time came that he stopped being useful.
I knew, because he’d told me. We were forthcoming like that.
Chad’s eyes finally landed on me when my suit clad ass touched the Lincoln, and I perched on the hood. Simon glared at me as the weight of the car shifted, the tires groaning under my bulk. I ignored him, letting my fists clench around the edge of the hood.
I couldn’t stand. Couldn’t be too close to the fuck, because if I got any closer, I just might fuck everything up and kill him.
Owing Matteo everything meant I couldn’t do that. Not yet.
Chad chuckled nervously as he turned his attention back to Matteo. “I don’t think your man likes me.”
I stood too much to gain from his death to entertain anything else.
“He doesn’t like pigs who take their wives and sons for granted,” Matteo returned. “So here is how it will go.” Chad swallowed, nodding before Matteo even spoke. “You are now my bitch. If I tell you to do something, you do it. End of story. When you are not working for me, you’ll be a dutiful husband to your wife. You’ll treat her well, give her anything her little heart desires. But understand that my executioner will watch you and wait for you to fuck up either of these directives.”
“What does my wife have to do with anything?” Chad sputtered, staring at Matteo with wide eyes and a gaping mouth.
I jumped off the Lincoln, stepping into Chad’s face so he had no choice but to look at me as I spoke. “The only reason you still have a wife is because you may be useful to Matteo. Stop being useful, and you will find that you no longer have a wife and son. Because they’ll be mine.”
“I-what?” he asked, glancing at Matteo to see if he would agree with my demand. I knew that it wasn’t normal to just claim a married woman.
I’d make her a divorcee or widow first if I could do it without hurting her.
I never wanted to hurt her.
“Just keep that in mind and know that I’ll be watching everything you do. Don’t fuck up, Latour,” I extended a hand, patting his cheek just harshly enough that he winced. “I’ll see you around.”
Then I turned back for my car, listening to every word they spoke as I went. “I suggest you prove very, very useful. Persuading Ryker to wait won’t be easy,” Matteo said.
“I got it,” Chad seethed, and I felt his eyes boring into my back as I walked. “This is fucking ridiculous. She’s my goddamn wife.”
“So treat her like it,” Simon grunted. “Otherwise he will.”
Damn fucking right I would, and I’d have the entire force of the Bellandis at my back when the time came. It was only a matter of time before Chad fucked up. They always did, and when he did, I’d be waiting.
Until then, I’d get to know my Sunshine.
Two
Calla
Three years ago
I needed to get home.
I rushed out of the corner store, waving at the man who held the door for me as I passed. My son at home alone with his father, who was also my husband, shouldn’t have felt so urgent.
I wished I could enjoy my time alone, browse through the grocery store and maybe buy things that weren’t on my list for once. I shouldn’t have needed to get back to them and should have been able to trust my husband with our child.
Instead, my son needed me. It took fifteen minutes for Chad to get frustrated with Axel and call me. It surprised me he lasted that long with the look Axel gave me when I left.