“Because it keeps you safe,” I said. “I’m going to help the girls.” I turned to walk away but heard Alex speak.
“Information is power. We need to know.”
“No, but I need something from you.”
I looked over my shoulder to Rafe, whose eyes grew as wide as a full moon. “Me? No way. I’m out. In fact, I was never in. I refuse to put my license on the line because you’re a damn ass.” He looked at me and added, “And whipped.”
In the kitchen, I started filling plastic baggies with ice cubes.
Faye came over to help. “Is someone hurt?”
“Not yet. Wait a minute.”
Chapter 22
I put the couch between me and my brothers to save my face, not save face. Katya and I made the best deal we could. I wasn’t ashamed of what we accomplished when it could have gone the other way. This wasn’t perfect, but it was the hand I was dealt, and I intended to make everyone a winner.
“I need one thing, and it’s all over.”
“No,” Alex said. “No deal. Rafe is the only one who hasn’t been damaged by Dad and his dealings. Don’t be the one who changes that. There’s no rewind or restart in this life. He’s managed to come out clean. Let him stay that way.”
“Can we sit down and talk about this? I need one thing. It’s not that big of a deal. Once I deliver this one thing to Sergei, we are out for good.” I stared at the cushions on the couch and debated whether I should sit or run.
Rafe flopped into the chair while Alex fell into the sofa. I took the safe route and sat on the sofa arm as far away from both of my brothers as possible.
I ignored Alex and looked at Rafe. “It’s simple paperwork.”
“How simple, and what kind of paperwork?” Rafe twisted the cap off his beer and took a long pull.
“No way. He’s not doing anything.” Alex raised his voice.
Faye peeked around the corner. “Anyone need ice?”
“Or Band-Aids?” Katya added.
They both stood in the doorway and watched for a minute. When no one asked for first aid, they went back to the kitchen.
Rafe got up and paced the room. He looked at Alex. “I’ll do it.”
“I said no.” Alex rose.
I moved back behind the sofa.
Rafe frowned. “You don’t get to choose. While I’m not thrilled about losing my license after going to school for years, I realize I’ve never paid my dues for this family.” He grabbed a third beer and twisted the cap. The hiss of carbonation broke the silence. “Dad sent me to law school for this. He wanted me to represent our family when we were in trouble. I was supposed to be the secret weapon. But how good is the weapon if you never fire it?”
“No,” Alex repeated.
Rafe challenged him. “You don’t get to decide for all of us. I’ll do it this one time, but don’t ever ask me to break the law again.”
“How do you know I’m asking you to break the law?” I asked.
“Come on, you’re a Wilde, and lawlessness runs in your veins. I know you’re not asking me to draw up a will.”
I laughed. “You’re not too far off the mark.”
While Alex sat and scowled at us, I told Rafe what we’d need to exit our life of crime for good.
“Give me a week. I’ll have it ready, but don’t ever ask me to help again. I love you, and I understand you love Katya, but I don’t get it. No woman is worth this. However, we are family, and family is worth everything.”
Rafe left Alex and me in the living room. I wasn’t certain I’d avoided an ass kicking until he asked, “Did you get the hair?”
And that’s how the subject of Sergei ended and Liam began. I rushed to the bathroom and plucked the hair from the tile. I emptied the baggie of water that held ice days ago and put the single strand inside. When I returned, everyone was moving toward the dining room. On a big platter sat Stella’s pot roast Italian style.
Out of respect for me, Alex left the seat at the head of the table open. As I walked by him, I slid the baggie into his jacket pocket. The rest of the night was spent the way it should be, dining with my family and making love to my fiancée. Or soon to be fiancée; all I needed was the ring and a yes.
The next day, I left Katya asleep in bed. My poor girl hadn’t gotten much rest in days, and last night was no exception. Once my family left, we popped a bottle of champagne and celebrated our good luck.
I was still angry that she’d snuck out of the house, but without that information about Sergei and Timur, my family would have been trapped into a life of crime. There was one more hurdle to clear, and that was coming to terms with Katya’s heritage. Here was a woman born Russian, who would marry Italian, and was really Irish if my gut feeling was right.
While she slept, I read her mother’s journal and wanted to weep for her. My mother always said that life was preordained, which meant that everything that happened was for a reason. What if I was the reason Katya’s mother died and she was forced to stay in Las Vegas? If I was preordained to be hers, I had a lot to make up for because my woman suffered plenty while she waited for me.
Stella was in the kitchen when I walked in. “Is she ready for breakfast?”
I kissed her on the cheek because she was always there for me. “No. She’s sleeping. It’s been a taxing couple of weeks for her.”
Stella nodded. “Your mother would have liked her.”
“Do you like her?” It was important to me that Stella approve, but if she didn’t, I would still choose Katya because she was my future.
“I do. She’s strong and sensitive. She’ll make a good mother. She’ll be a lioness and a kitten.”
The thought of our children warmed my insides. I’d been hoping to plant my seed inside Katya this whole time so when I proposed, she couldn’t possibly say no, but those thoughts were dashed when she told me we were safe because she had the shot. I made a commitment that day to make sure she missed her next appointment.
“She’s a good woman.”
Stella smiled. “And I’m plumping her up for you.”
I laughed. Stella once told me that a skinny girl was a waste of time. Dating one was like milking a bull. “You’re doing well in that department.” I’d noticed that Katya’s stomach and hips had rounded. Her thighs cushioned my hips when settled between them. Her breast had barely filled my fingers but now filled my hands. “She loves your pancakes.”
“I shall make them now. Where are you off to this morning?”
I gave her a hug. “To buy a ring and make her mine.”
“Make it big.”
I kissed her cheek again. “You want everything plump.”
She smiled and went back to cooking.
I visited at least a dozen jewelry stores before I found the perfect setting. It was a massive square yellow diamond set in a halo of smaller diamonds. It was far from traditional, but it was unique and named fire and ice, which was exactly how I saw my future wife.
While she would always have the cold Siberian edge from her Russian side, she also had the warmth of another running through her veins.
When I got home, I found Katya in the closet. She stood looking at a white dress. “Did you buy a new dress?” I came behind her and kissed her neck.
“No, this was supposed to be my wedding dress to Sergei.” She reached out and touched the soft fabric. “I hated that I had to buy it.”
I reached for the hanger. “Let’s get rid of it.”
“No, while I didn’t want to marry Sergei, I do love this dress.”
“It’s perfect, then.” I turned her around and kissed her before I dropped to one knee. “I didn’t expect to do this in the closet, but does it matter where I ask you to be mine forever?”
Her blues brightened, if that was even possible. “Are you…?”
I took her right hand in mine and kissed it. “I am, so listen carefully because I don’t want there to be any confusion.” I took the little white box from my pocket and listened to her gasp. “Katya Anya, wi
ll you be my partner in love and life? Will you stay with me through thick and thin? Will you have my children and my heart?”
“Ask the real question, Matteo.”
I opened the box to show the diamond I’d chosen for her. “Will you marry me?” I waited and waited while she stared at the ring. “This is when you say ye—”
She dropped to her knees and kissed me. “Yes, a thousand times, yes.”
I placed the ring on her finger. No one would mistake her for single ever again. “You’ve got the ring and the dress. I can have us married in an hour.”
She looked down at her finger. “It’s perfect, but I have to wait. I have a father who doesn’t know I exist. I want to give him a chance to be a father if he chooses. A father should give his daughter away the right way. With her permission. Can we wait until I can at least give finding him an honest chance?”
How could I deny her? While an hour from now sounded better to me, I knew the wait wouldn’t be long. Alex had put a rush on the results, and it would only be days until we knew for certain.
“Yes, sweetheart. We’ll wait for your father. I have a feeling he’s going to be thrilled to know you.”
Chapter 23
When I tried on my dress, it no longer fit. Stella giggled and fed me another plate of pancakes. “That’s an easy fix,” she told me.
An hour later, the dress was gone with a promise to be back by nightfall. Not that I needed it anytime soon. I refused to get married until I had made a genuine effort to find my real father. Without much to go on, I’d hit a dead end.
While I knew of many powerful men in Las Vegas, I was not on a first name basis with any, and certainly not on a nickname basis. Lucky could have been anyone in a town known for luck. For all I knew, he could have been my mother’s masseuse since she met him at the spa.
Matt walked out of our bedroom looking quite handsome in his suit and tie. He leaned over and gave me a kiss. “I’m off to get the paperwork settled.”
“Rafe got it taken care of?” I knew he wasn’t happy to forge documents, but he agreed as his one contribution as a member of the infamous Wilde family. As a new lawyer at McAlister and Associates, this was the kind of work Rafe would be assigned along with every two-bit criminal who walked through the door, so it was easy enough for him to file the paperwork and put it on a partner's desk for signature. As long as the fee for services was paid, no one would give it a second thought.
“He’s got it all done. We have a look-alike to walk in and pretend they’re Yuri, so in case anyone asks, there’s proof he was there.”
It was amazing how much Matt and his brothers were willing to do to protect me. That was what family was supposed to be like.
“You guys went the extra mile.”
“It’s got to work for everyone, including Sergei, or we are back at the beginning.”
Sergei had done everything he was asked. He stayed away from Old Money Casino. He ceased putting pressure on Matt to continue the deal. Every time I looked over my shoulder, I saw one of his men. They weren’t there to harm me. They were there to make sure I was safe because my safety and Sergei’s went hand in hand.
“Be careful. There are bigger issues than Sergei.” Rumor had it the Colombians were flexing their muscles, and since the Wildes left the business, it created a vacuum everyone was jockeying to fill. Given the two big players were still the Russians and the Irish, I’d put my money on Sergei. Any man who stayed under the Bratva’s radar and moved up in rank to take over had skill and luck. He’d made Yuri completely disappear without question. I had questions for sure, but I was smart enough not to ask. What I didn’t know couldn’t hurt me.
“Stella made you an appointment at the spa. Happy Birthday, sweetheart. We have a celebratory dinner planned tonight.”
He was such a funny man who made a big deal out of everything, but if he wanted to celebrate, I’d be a happy reveler.
“Is it just you and I?”
He smiled. “It’s a private affair.” He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed my ring as if I were the Pope. I think he simply liked seeing it on my finger. It was as good as a tattoo on my forehead that said I was his. “Wear that red dress I love.”
I watched him walk out the door. It didn’t take long for Stella to fill the void Matt left behind. “What’s your favorite flower?” she asked.
“That’s easy. I love roses.”
She smiled and walked out of the room, no doubt to fill the apartment with their fragrant scent.
I walked to the living room and took a seat on the sofa. Had it really only been weeks since I moved here? The anniversary of my mother’s death came and went. I’d brought her favorite roses to the cemetery and told her how much I loved her. I sat on the grass and read her diary again. I released all the guilt I felt at having been angry because she’d killed herself. I’d asked her forgiveness because I only knew what I’d been told. I knew she was with me when a light breeze caressed my skin. I swore I heard the whisper of her voice on the wind tell me how much she missed me.
My wedding day to Sergei passed without much thought. I would have completely forgotten about it had it not been for the priest calling to confirm the date and me telling him the wedding was off. He sounded almost relieved.
Today was my twenty-fifth birthday, and my life had changed in profound ways. I slept with the man I’d dreamed of all my life. I no longer had family ties to the Russian mafia. My loyalties were with the Wildes. Soon, if I had an ounce of my true father’s luck, I’d find my real family. Would he be married? Would I have sisters or brothers? Would they embrace me or treat me like the outsider I’d been in the Petrenko household? My hopes were high that I’d be something more. “You need to go to your appointment,” Stella said. “Get going before you’re late.” If the older Italian woman wasn’t force feeding me, she was bossing me around, but I loved her motherly instincts. It had been far too long to be without a mother’s love.
I picked up my bag and walked out the door. “You ready?” Sophie asked. She was my personal detail. Matt had handpicked her himself. He liked that she was female and trained by the Israelis. I liked that she was rarely seen. She managed to blend in with the woodwork. I knew she was around, but I never felt suffocated.
“I’m ready.”
It was odd that I’d been unsupervised my entire life until now. I never realized how much danger lurked in the shadows. I had always been a target, and yet Yuri never thought to protect me because I was nothing to him. And now I was everything to Matt.
We took the elevator down to the spa. The second the receptionist saw me, I was ushered into a private room where for the next three hours I was exfoliated, moisturized, waxed, painted, styled and made up. I truly felt beautiful.
When I arrived back in the apartment, my red dress was laid out for me, as were the shoes to match.
The dress had fallen over my hips just as Matt walked in.
“You take my breath away.” He walked up behind me, pushed my hair to the side and kissed my neck. Goosebumps danced across my skin. How I ever thought I’d be able to make love to this man once and get him out of my system was insane. Energy pulsed below the surface of my skin when he was near. He was as necessary to my survival as oxygen and Stella’s pancakes.
“You are my breath.”
He zipped up the back of my dress and turned me around. “Happy Birthday.” He pulled a white box from his pocket and held it out in his open palm. “I bought you something I hope you’ll love.”
“I already love it because you picked it out.”
“Open it. It’s special and has significant meaning.”
I’d gone years without anyone acknowledging my birthday. It felt almost wrong to have a gift in my hand. When I didn’t open the box, Matt did. On a bed of white satin sat a pair of emerald earrings in the shape of a four-leaf clover.
“It’s the symbol of luck.”
I put them on. “I don’t need luck. I’ve got you.”
&nb
sp; “Yes, you do.” He lifted one of the dangling earrings and smiled. “Let’s get lucky.” He threaded his fingers through mine and led me out the door.
“Where are we going?”
He chuckled. “Lucky Luciano’s, of course.” It was the high-end Italian eatery in the casino.
“Are you trying to make me Italian by ingestion?” I’d eaten more Italian food in the last three weeks than I’d eaten in my entire life.
“No, I’ll make you Italian by insemination. I’m just going with a theme tonight.”
I laughed. “Lucky is the theme? I’m pretty sure you’re going to get lucky tonight.”
He patted my ass as we walked to the elevator. “No, baby, it’s you who’s getting lucky tonight.”
We entered the elevator alone, and he kissed me until the doors opened on the first floor. When Matt walked through the casino, it was like magic. He was the star, and nothing short of red carpet and paparazzi would do. Everyone knew him, and by association, they knew me.
When we got to Lucky Luciano’s, there was a sign on the door that said closed for a private party.
“You shut down the restaurant for me?”
He grabbed the handle of the door and waited. “Tonight is far too special to share it with anyone else.”
“It’s just a birthday.”
He brushed his lips against mine. “It’s so much more than that.”
He opened the door, and on the tables were my mother’s favorite roses—one pink, one yellow and one white. Two were named after Diana, the Princess of Wales. Even my mother believed in fairy tales.
Petals on the floor led us to a table in the back. I stopped when I saw a man sitting with his back to us. His strawberry blond hair seemed familiar, and yet not.
“Someone’s at our table,” I whispered to Matt.
“Yes. It’s a surprise.”
My breath caught in my throat. The theme was lucky because he’d found my father. My knees grew week. I gripped Matt’s arm. “You found him.”
He cupped my cheeks. “Yes.”
Betting On Her (A Wilde Love Novel Book 2) Page 15
