Mafia Underboss (Mafia Royalty Book 2)

by Cala Riley

  ∞∞∞

  Lorenzo

  “Where are we with Fillipo?” Gio asks me as we sit in the meeting room at Bash’s.

  “As far as I can tell, he’s stepping carefully. I don’t think he planned on things going south. It looked as if he’d been about to skip town until the commission made their decision to protect him. He must have friends in high places.”

  “I don’t buy it.” Bash looks uncertain, which is unusual for him. “I understand where they were coming from. My father had been an unforgiving man. He had racked up quite the body count, but this was too close to home. I think he has someone in one of the other families protecting him.”

  “I’ve vetted them all. I have men watching their moves discreetly. So far nothing’s turned up. If he’s working with another family, they’re keeping it quiet.” I inform them.

  Every spare minute I have, I’ve been digging into the other families. It’s harder since they, like us, take precautions to disguise their movements, but not impossible. I haven’t figured it out yet though.

  “What about Fillipo’s house? Have we gotten in there yet?” Bash looks as frustrated as I feel.

  “We have,” Gio confirms. “I had one of the girls cozy up to him. He took her back to his place here in Brooklyn. She said it didn’t look like anyone lived there. Very sparse. When she mentioned the fact, he had been cocky. Told her that he would never bring her back to the place his wife lives. He told her it was his Brooklyn home where he fucks trash like her. She stayed the night and attempted to search the place, but said it was unusually clean.”

  I frown as Giovanni gives his report. It’s the only address we have for him. Seems Fillipo has been doing a lot of things off the books lately. I grit my teeth in frustration.

  “Just let me kill him. I don’t even care if the commission didn’t give us permission. I’ll take the consequences. You can tell them I went rogue.” The murderous rage that always lingers beneath my surface springs forward. The beast wants blood.

  “I can’t let you do it, Lo. It would blow back on me, rogue or not, and you know it. Besides, I need you alive. You two are the only two I can trust right now.”

  The beast growls, but I take a deep breath, attempting to put him back in his cage.

  “Fine, but if he makes a move, I’m taking him out.”

  “You will not! You will obey me, Lorenzo.” Bash’s booming voice does little to calm me. “I see the rage in your eyes. You need to control yourself. Fillipo has been planning something for a long time now. If we give in to our urge to kill him, he will win. We will have lost it all. I will not put my family in danger. I will not let another rule in my place. Instead of giving into these urges, we need to use that rage. We need to get ahead of him. Find his home, Gio. I don’t care what you have to do but do it. Bring his wife in. Kidnap his daughter. You find out everything you can.”

  Gio nods before standing to leave. Once the door closes behind him, Bash turns to me.

  “You have been an important part of this organization for a long time. I understand your rage. I feel it too. You need to calm it. Go see Mia. Release some stress. Let Gio handle this one. I’ll call you when I know more. I need you to keep it together, brother.”

  I growl. “I can’t do nothing! This fucker is messing with my family. He’s a threat. It’s programmed into my DNA to get rid of any threats.”

  Bash’s eyes harden. “He’s a threat, and he will be dealt with, just not right this second. We need to be smart about this, Lo. We can’t fly off the handle half assed. It will only get us killed or, even worse, our family. I know you don’t have any blood anymore, but you have Mia. Are you willing to put her in danger for this murderous rage I see in your eyes?”

  The flames douse as an image of Mia flashes across my mind. Dirty blonde hair that stops just below her shoulders. Those hauntingly beautiful honey-colored eyes. Those delicious, plump pink lips.

  Fuck.

  “I will do anything to protect Mia.”

  “Then live for her! You can’t protect her if you go all vigilante and wind up killed as a consequence.” He pats my shoulder as he stands to leave. He’s at the door before he turns around. “What are you doing with her anyway? Are you going to publicly claim her?”

  I growl, and he laughs.

  “I think you already have.”

  Then he leaves me sitting there, stewing in all the feelings I try to keep buried. I’m coming unraveled. I knew it was a matter of time; I just hoped I would have more time before it happened.

  “Fuck!” I scream out in the now empty room. “I’m fucked.”

  ∞∞∞

  “What are you doing here?”

  I shouldn’t have come, but I can’t get her out of my head. After working out for a couple of hours, I finally went home and polished off a fifth of whiskey. It still didn’t help. If anything, it made it worse. I lay in bed for hours, tossing and turning. When that didn’t help either, I went for a jog.

  I ended up here. I wasn’t going to wake her. I just needed to know she was okay by seeing it with my own eyes. I let myself into her place and stalked to her bedroom, trying to remain quiet.

  There she was. The angel of my dreams. Sprawled out in her full-size bed. Her beautiful dirty blonde hair laid out around her like a halo. As I turned to leave, she whispered something in her sleep. Just a whisper, but to my soul, it was a command.

  Come closer.

  It taunted and tempted me until I was standing at the edge of the bed. I trailed my finger down her face, and she turned into my touch, taking comfort from it—from my hand that has killed many men in my lifetime and will kill even more. A hand that enjoys the hunt just as much as it enjoys the kill.

  I should have left. I should have run far away from her. I should have protected her from this monster inside. Instead, I gave in to the song of the siren. I pulled my clothes off and slipped under the covers with her and pulled her body close to mine.

  Home.

  That one word echoed in the silence. I tightened my grip on her and she gasped. Turning in my embrace, those eyes that haunt me smiled in recognition. She was happy I’m here.

  I don’t respond to her. Instead, I lower my lips to hers and kiss her. It’s a gentle kiss. A caress with my mouth. Showing her that I see her light and I respect it. My darkness craves it. When I pull away, she whispers to me.

  “Is this a dream?”

  I don’t speak. I’m afraid if I do, it will ruin the moment. This perfect moment. The moment when I relinquish some of the control I hold over my emotions. Only some of if it. If I let it all go, I will ruin this perfect angel.

  I trail my hand over her naked body. She’s the most beautiful woman I have ever met. I knew the moment I met her that she would change me. Force her light upon me. I thought I was strong enough to resist. I thought I could stay away.

  One kiss changed everything. I suppose some would say this was all predestined. I don’t believe in God or anything similar. When you have seen the shit I have, there is no way you could believe there is one single entity watching over us. If there was, why did they allow bad things to happen to good people? I could agree with abandoning people like me. People who have done wrong their entire lives. People who have taken other lives.

  I never could understand how someone who is supposed to be so good could allow those same horrors to happen to those who are innocent. Those who live their lives on the good side. They do the right thing. They help others.

  Like Mia. Mio piccolo angelo. She’s a perfect angel sent to Earth. Yet here she’s lying next to me. Or maybe I’m next to her since I did sneak into her house, her room. She’s here though. Put into the path of the devil himself. If there was a God, he would protect her from the likes of me. Give her a good life. A man who can treat her the way she deserves. Give her the American dream. Instead, she has me.

  “What’s wrong, Lo? Tell me,” she whispers as my hands continue their exploration.

  Everything.
<
br />   I lean down and take her lips with mine once again. This kiss is still gentle, but I put some of the passion I feel for her behind it. I nip her bottom lip, and when she gasps, I press my tongue into her mouth. She moans, and I growl.

  I will never be able to give Mia what she deserves. I will never be able to be there for her the way she needs me to be. What I can do is give her the one thing no one else has ever owned.

  My heart.

  She owns my heart. I will always protect her. I will always be there for her. I just cannot accept her heart in return. My tainted hands would crumble it in my grasp. I would break her, and I would never forgive myself. I can’t give her what she wants so desperately, but I can give her this parting goodbye. Something for her to remember. She will remember the night I gave her everything I had.

  I roll over on top of her, and she spreads her legs and wraps them around my hips, pressing my bare erection into her center. I can feel the heat mixed with the wetness calling me. I kiss down the side of her neck as I thrust my hips forward through her wetness. I make sure I won’t penetrate. She needs her innocence.

  I know the moment I hit her clit because her breathing hitches. I thrust again, and she moans.

  “Please, Lo. I need to feel you inside me.”

  I know she does. I need to feel it too. I would love nothing more than to claim her, but I deny myself the pleasure. She may hate me now for not giving her what she desires, but one day she will thank me.

  I rock my hips again as I kiss down to her chest and take a nipple in my mouth. Her hands dig into my back as I continue to rock my hips into hers. The pain from her nails feels terrible and amazing at the same time.

  Let her mark me. Claim me as hers. Let her scar me as a reminder of the time she was mine, and I will always be hers. Even if she never knows it.

  We continue to rock for what seems like forever. An eternity. I would have stayed there as long as she let me. She pulls my head up to hers and kisses me. She kisses me like I’m her last breath. It only takes a few moments longer and she bites my lip as she orgasms. Two more strokes, and I spill my seed all over her stomach.

  I taste the blood in my mouth from her bite.

  “Lo, that was… wow.”

  “Shh, mio piccolo angelo. Sleep.”

  I lay next to her until she falls asleep. Then I stand up and get dressed. I kiss her forehead then wipe the little bit of blood transferred from my lip.

  “I love you, mio piccolo angelo. I’m sorry,” I whisper before I turn and leave.

  I will hold onto this memory for the rest of my life. The one time I restrained myself. The one time I felt love.

  The only time, because come tomorrow, Mia’s going to hate me. I dread the thought of making her hate me, but it needs to be done. It’s the only way to protect her.

  I always said I would protect her, and I always keep my word.

  Even if it’s from the monster within.

  Chapter Eight

  Mia

  A ringing alarm startles me awake. I look at the time on my phone. It’s 5:00 a.m. I groan as I snooze the alarm. Today will be my first day with Dr. Fields.

  I stretch my arms out above my head then bring them down to lay on my stomach. I gasp.

  My skin feels weird.

  I sit up quickly as I look at my stomach. My skin looks dry, like its peeling. The memories from last night flood back.

  Lo rocking against me. The way I felt when he kissed me. The softness. The gentleness. Those three little words left unsaid, but not unfelt.

  I look around for any other sign he was here, but there is none. I really thought it had been a dream. The way Lo handled me was the way a man handles a woman he’s in love with. What you would hope for when you lose your virginity. Comfort. Gentle. Kind. Loved.

  Lo made love to me last night without actually making love. I wanted him to slip inside, to take my virginity, but he held back.

  It didn’t matter though. I felt what he didn’t say. I felt all those emotions he let through. It’s why I assumed it had been a dream. That and the fact that he stayed silent. Quiet. Not muttering a single word.

  The dried-up proof that he had been here is on my stomach.

  I should be grossed out. I should be mad. Instead, I’m elated. I pick up my phone and text him.

  Mia: Thanks for last night. I have to go the clinic today. Drive me?

  I set my phone down and wrap my robe around me before heading to the bathroom. I rush through my shower to leave myself enough time to put some light makeup on. Once out, I check my phone.

  Lo: Busy. Angelo will take you.

  Before last night, I would have been upset. Disappointed. Hurt.

  Not today. After last night, I feel more secure about him, about his feelings for me.

  Mia: Okay. See you later?

  I rush into the bathroom and get ready for my day. When I’m done, I check my phone. Lo didn’t respond.

  I do feel disappointment then, but only because I wanted to hear from him. I sigh and go to the kitchen. Izzy is making herself an egg.

  “Want one?” she says, but she doesn’t look my way.

  “Yes, please.” I grab a travel thermos and fill it with coffee. When I turn back around, Izzy already has two plates made.

  “That was quick.”

  She gives me a guilty smirk. “I heard your alarm. I figured you would need to eat.”

  “Thank you. I do.”

  We eat in silence for a moment before she speaks. “I’m sorry about last night. I don’t care about your past, Mia. I love you no matter what. I know I can’t make this decision for you, but I wish I could. Other than my mother, Sofia, and Matty, you’re the only family I have.”

  I sigh as I finish chewing my food. “I know, Iz, but you have to understand, I’ve always loved medical stuff. I planned on going to school for it. I’d been accepted at the University of Michigan. I was all set to go.”

  “What stopped you?”

  “My father. He disappeared. We were always told if he disappeared, we needed to hightail it out of town. He had it all set up for us. Our new names. Money for us. The only thing he didn’t have in there was where we would go. My mother picked New York. She thought we would be safer if we hid in a big city. Less likely anyone would catch on. Especially since New Yorkers are known for being selfish and self-absorbed.”

  “I’m sorry about that. It must have been really hard.”

  “It was. It took a long time for me to stop missing him. He wasn’t the best father, but he was my father, nonetheless. He loved my mother. At least I think he loved her the best he could. He worked for bad men. When he disappeared, we assumed he died.”

  She looks somber as she looks at me. Izzy’s father isn’t around anymore either. There’s a kinship there. “That’s terrible. The not knowing? It would kill me.”

  She could never know how much it bothered me to not know. Then again, it was a relief to have him out of my life. A catch twenty-two really.

  “It used to, but I’m over it now. No need to live in the past. Anyway, because of my fake identity, I can’t really go to school or do normal things. The only reason I ended up at Bello Italiano is because Uncle Tony didn’t check my social security number. Had he, I probably wouldn’t have worked there. I don’t know whose social security number I have. Probably someone who is no longer alive. It’s why I want to do this. I want to have purpose back in my life. It might not be perfect, but Bash is offering me a sliver of the future I always imagined for myself.”

  She looks at her plate. “I never realized. I’m so sorry, Mia. I think I convinced myself I was protecting you, and I didn’t realize what you were saying. I cannot even imagine not being able to do what you wanted because you’re in hiding. I always wondered why you didn’t go to college. I thought it was because you couldn’t afford it. Now I see why.”

  “I wish it was the reason. Then at least I could do something about it. This is something that will always be my life. You’re afr
aid I’ll get killed, but I don’t feel like I’m living up to my full potential. I feel like I’m wasting my life. The night Matt got shot? I was scared to death, but I also felt alive, Iz. It was a shock to my system in the best way. I don’t think I can go back to before.”

  She stands up and comes to wrap me in a hug. “I understand now. I still don’t approve it, but I will support you the best I can. It just might take me some time. I’ve been running from my past so long, and now with you and Sofia intertwining yourself with what I have tried so hard to leave behind, it’s catching up to me. Just give me some time to adjust.”

  “I will, Iz. Take as long as you need. I don’t need you to approve. I need you to still love me.”

  “Oh, Mia. I will always love you.”

  I sit there letting Izzy hug me as I hug her back. We stand there in silence a moment before my phone rings. Angelo’s name shows up on the caller ID.

  “Good morning, Angelo.”

  “Good morning, Miss Mia. We need to leave in five minutes.”

  “I’m just finishing my food. I’ll be right out.”

  He doesn’t respond as he hangs up. That’s Angelo. He doesn’t talk much, but he’s polite.

  “I have to get going, Iz. Thank you for breakfast.”

  I shove the last bit of my eggs in my mouth before I take my plate to the sink. I grab another thermos and fill it with coffee for Angelo. It’s the least I can do for him.

  “Where are you going today?”

  I forgot Izzy wasn’t there last night when I told Sofia and Matt about my new job.

  “I’m going to the clinic Dr. Fields works at. She’s going to start training me.”

  “Oh. That doesn’t sound bad.”

  I give her a real smile. “I don’t think it will be. I’m going to soak up all I can while I can. She’s retiring once Bash feels I’m sufficiently trained, so who knows how much time I’ll have with her.”

  She nods. “Have fun today. I love you, chica.”

  “I love you too, Iz.”

  I head out the door to start my new life.