The only person he wanted to see less than Alex was standing before him, her platinum blonde hair shining like a halo around her stunningly beautiful face.
She was a walking contradiction of angel and vixen, wearing a simple white sheath dress which stopped just above her knees, her breasts beautifully showcased beneath the half moon neckline, the very picture of innocence splashed in sin.
As she leaned casually against the door of her Alfa Romeo, Ariano’s jaw clenched hard, willing his erection to heel.
How can this woman turn me into a walking hard-on in seconds without even touching me? Goddammit.
There was just something about Celina DiMarco. She had that elusive quality that drew all men because you looked at her face and saw innocence, then looked at her body and saw sin. The dichotomy of angelic innocence and dirty sensuality could bring the strongest of men to their knees.
Ariano was no exception.
He was a mere mortal after all.
The fucking prodigal daughter was home and there was nothing heavenly about her.
Chapter Two
She sashayed away from the cherry red convertible, her stiletto heels clicking against the pavement as she brushed past him.
“Cat got your tongue, caro?” she asked innocently, her breasts deliberately rubbing against his chest.
She noted that his muscles stiffened, making his shoulders swell even more, but she could not resist inhaling the scent of his cologne as she made her way past.
“Celina,” Ariano said, and she noted that to his credit, he managed to keep his voice hard. “When did you get back from Europe?”
She had already entered the back of the stifling restaurant, the kitchen staff working at full force to ready themselves for the dinner crowd.
As expected, a hush fell over the workers as her heels met the tile of the kitchen, a semi-awed air falling upon the staff as they took in her slender figure.
“Oh, fuck me,” Marc the head chef, muttered under his breath with fear. Celina lifted her head to wink at him. Instantly, he lowered his gaze and she wondered if he was wondering when she was going to exact her revenge on him. She was leaving him hanging intentionally, hoping the fear of her father’s wrath would teach him not to pick on defenseless young ladies again.
Never mind that he deserved every second of it after what he had done. He was lucky that was all he got.
She shoved the unpleasant memory of what had transpired with the chef from her mind. That had been months ago. She hoped he had learned his lesson.
“Yesterday,” she replied flippantly to Ari’s question, barely tossing the answer over her shoulder as if it was an afterthought.
Ariano didn’t respond as they made their way inside the empty front of the house and she wondered if he was too busy watching her ass.
“Celina!”
Her father jumped from his spot as his eyes fell on her, his arms extended to embrace her into a hug.
“Hi Papa,” she sighed, kissing him on the cheek and removing her oversized sunglasses from her face. “How are – “
“Where are your clothes?” he demanded, setting her back to scowl at her outfit.
She felt herself bristle but she maintained a bored expression on her face, despite the anger that was rising.
“You don’t like my outfit?” she asked sweetly. “Ariano seems to like it, don’t you, Ari?”
For the first time since entering, she turned to look at the imposing man who, like her, kept a stoic expression on his face.
A small part of her hoped he would compliment her, even though she knew he never would.
“I haven’t looked at your outfit, Celina,” he replied in a cool tone. “I’m sure it’s lovely.”
Oh, he’s good, she thought, chuckling inwardly. Not as good as he thinks he is, but he’s all right. I’m going to enjoy him for a short while.
Celina wasn’t quite sure what to make of Ariano Francisco, at least not yet. She had only a handful of encounters with the man and probably as many words, but every time they were in the same room, the electricity between them seemed to sizzle.
He was one of her father’s most trusted men, but he was an import, not born into the family, therefore he didn’t attend family functions or have any business running in her circles.
But there was something about him which she found exciting…her nipples tightened at just the thought of the passion that seemed to soar between them.
He’s annoyingly attractive, but he seems to know when to keep his mouth shut. That’s more than I can say for ninety percent of these assholes, Celina thought, batting her eyes at her father as she waited for him to retort.
Before anyone could say another word, the door to the kitchen swung open again and Alex entered, his face flushed from the heat and presumably, being the last person into the meeting.
He opened his full mouth to bark something at Ariano but the words seemed to stick in his mouth as his gaze fell upon the boss’s daughter.
Celina noted his eyes raking over her as if she was buck naked, before he forced himself to greet her father.
Big mistake, she thought, almost rolling her blue eyes skyward to commemorate his stupidity. She trained her gaze on Giovanni to see his reaction.
Her father’s brown eyes turned dangerous as a scowl etched into the lines of his face.
“Celina, go find a jacket in my office,” he ordered, glowering at Alex, who seemed oblivious to the impending wrath.
“It’s too hot for a jacket, Papa,” she replied, slipping into the booth he had just occupied and crossing her long legs alluringly as she smiled at the three men.
There was a very important reason for her outfit, after all. She was not about to ruin its effects by hiding beneath a jacket.
Of all the men present, only Ariano wasn’t staring at her.
I don’t even understand how there’s a competition between the two of them, she thought, reaching for the pitcher of water in the middle of the table. Ariano is the obvious choice. Alex is an imbecile.
Giovanni’s affection for both men was well-known to everyone, including Celina.
But her opinion was never asked. To the family, she was merely Giovanni’s sultry, bratty daughter who came and went with the wind, but that was the way she preferred they see her.
The reality would shock them all to their core.
Including Papa.
But that was not why Celina had been invited to the meeting.
Her part, like always, was to sit back and listen to the men “talk”, to look pretty and walk away with her consolation prize.
“Celina!” Alex leered. “You’re home!”
“Sit down!” Giovanni snapped, his voice like a thousand razors piercing through the air.
Celina noted with more amusement that Alex still had not noticed that he was about to be on the receiving end of the Don’s wrath.
She swallowed her smile, despite the anticipation bubbling up in her at a plan well executed.
The men shuffled toward the table, idiot Alex squeezing in beside her while Ariano opted for the other side of the booth, his blue-grey eyes steadfastly on Giovanni as he spread his palms onto the table.
His gaze hasn’t shifted toward me once. That must take some self-restraint…unless he doesn’t find me attractive. But she knew that wasn’t true.
There was an intriguing connection, but how deep it went, she had yet to see.
Celina had always been curious about him; where he had been trained, how he had climbed the ranks into her father’s lap so quickly.
It wasn’t like Papa to adopt a puppy from New Jersey and keep him so close, especially when Alex had always been tied to her father’s ass like the brown-noser he was.
One of these days when I’m bored, I’ll look into Ariano’s story, she promised herself. I bet he has some fucked up sordid past I can dangle over his head like a pendulum axe if need be.
The thought depressed her.
When did I become the gi
rl who expects the absolute worst in everyone? She wondered. I don’t want to just know someone anymore, I want to know how I can use shit against them before they hurt me. But the answer was obvious; she had been born into that school of thought. Time and experience had taught her that everyone was out for themselves and she had to learn how to roll with the punches and protect herself.
After all, she was the daughter of one of the biggest don’s in the new world. Cynicism and darkness seemed to envelop her no matter how far away she traveled or for how long.
“Let’s get down to business,” Giovanni growled, his voice barely more than a harsh whisper as he continued to glare scathingly at Alex.
Alex, however, had his liquid brown eyes fixated on Celina’s generous breasts.
Celina twirled a piece of white blonde hair between her fingers and pretended not to notice, simply biding her time until her father eventually snapped.
“Cara, bring the boys some grappa,” Giovanni yelled at the bartender.
“Business, si?”
“Si,” the men agreed.
“First of all, I want you to know that I been watching you both closely over the past year and I am proud of both of you. You each work separate areas of my business but you handle yourselves well on the street. I been watching…”
“Grazie,” Ariano said as the man trailed off.
“Maybe I ain’t been watchin’ as well as Alex is staring at my kid’s tits!”
There it is, Celina thought with satisfaction, watching Alex’s face explode into a sea of red shame.
“No, I ain’t - “
“Shut the fuck up,” Giovanni spat.
“No, boss, I – “Alex blubbered, his pea brain still not managing to fully tear his eyes away from her.
“I said, shut the fuck up, Alessandro!”
Giovanni’s voice had gone so low, everyone at the table had to strain to hear him.
Well that’s not a good sign, Celina thought, idly taking a sip of her water as Tracey brought shots of grappa to the table.
The women’s eyes met and Tracey offered her a glass but Celina shook her head, shifting subtly toward Alex.
Celina thought she saw a slight smirk touch the bartender’s lips but the woman simply left the order and turned away as if she needed to distance herself from what was about to happen.
Tracey knows me fairly well, she thought. At least this show has an appreciative audience.
The movement in Alex’s direction worked as she had expected, Alex the man-child instantly looked at her again and Celina knew that the deal was done.
She had accomplished what she had meant to do that day.
As if in slow motion, she cast her wide innocent eyes toward her father and watched the rest unfold.
“Get the fuck outta here!” Giovanni growled out and Alex jumped, knocking his knee against the table.
“What? What?” he demanded, looking at the don with guilty eyes. “Who? Me?”
“Go the fuck home, take a cold shower and come back at four o’clock. I don’t fuckin’ need you here today!”
“But why – “
“You fuckin’ arguin’ with me, Alessandro?”
Celina almost had to sit forward to hear her father speak that time.
Yep, death voice activated.
Alex’s face turned white and he slid out of the booth quickly shaking his head.
“Of course not, boss. Anything you say,” he replied shakily, finally putting his eyes to the ground as he should have in the first place.
Slow fucking learner that one, Celina thought, slumping against the booth and retrieving her sunglasses as Alex escaped with his tail between his legs.
He’s lucky he’s got anything left between his legs.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Giovanni demanded as Celina put the glasses on over her eyes.
“With me? I’m just sitting here, aren’t I, Ariano? I didn’t do anything!”
A cold smile met Giovanni’s mouth but not his eyes and he turned his back to his daughter, focussing his attention fully on Ariano.
“I called you here because I had a task for both you and Alessandro,” the don explained, his tone clipped with anger.
Celina knew she was going to get an earful later.
“I’m happy to take on your task alone,” Ariano replied easily. “Just tell me what to do.”
Giovanni scoffed and glanced over his shoulder at Celina.
It was almost more than she could take and she pretended to cough as her father explained.
“I’ll be promoting one of you to caporegime in two weeks. I ain’t gonna lie to you, Ariano, I ain’t sure about you yet. I know where you came from and I know Luca says you’re an okay kid but I still got my questions, you know?”
“I understand your skepticism about me,” Ariano answered. “And I hope in time I can alleviate your concerns.”
Giovanni paused and Celina watched as he studied the emotionless face of the man before him.
It is such a nice face, Celina thought, slightly bemused. I wonder what it’s going to look like by the time he finishes his next assignment.
Lucky for her, she would be around to find out.
“I have a job for you. It was the job I was going to give to Alessandro but I got the feelin’ you’re gonna have more success with it than Alex, given his behavior here today.”
“You know I’ll complete it, boss.”
Giovanni again looked at Celina who nodded and shrugged as if giving her approval.
“This is a lot of work,” Giovanni continued and Celina could tell that he was having a hard time getting the words out.
Aw, that’s so cute Papa, she thought with amusement. I can’t believe you still think that dipshit Alex is the better man for this job.
She waited, examining her well-groomed nails, toying with a bejeweled pinky stone, her pulse beginning to race with excitement.
“And honestly, it’s the most important job a soldier of mine could do.”
Celina watched Ariano’s face through her peripheral vision, her gaze obstructed slightly by the sunglasses.
He doesn’t look nervous in the least, she thought, sighing to herself. Poor baby.
“I expect you to take this seriously, Ariano,” Giovanni continued.
“I always take your jobs seriously,” the unsuspecting fool replied.
Giovanni released a long sigh and shook his head.
“Effective immediately, you are Celina’s detail,” he said, the words pouring from the don’s lips in a rush.
That really did pain him to say, Celina thought dryly, watching openly as Ariano’s face contorted into an expression of agony.
“But…” Ariano muttered, and Celina let out a snicker she could not contain.
She quickly covered it with a fake cough.
“I don’t blame you if you refuse,” the don continued quickly. “Her detail tends not to last very long.”
“Papa, I’m sitting right here,” Celina reminded him, but her father was not lying. She had been through more detail in the past six months than all of the wives of the capos and their children put together. And she had been in Europe for four of those months.
“It’s not my fault you can’t hire men with balls, Papa,” she continued.
“Be quiet!” Gio snapped. “You’re fuckin’ lucky I haven’t locked you in a convent.”
“Ari won’t have any problems, will you, Ari?” she purred at him.
The soldier eyed his boss and then looked at Celina for the first time since the alleyway.
“It would be my great honor to keep her safe, boss,” he told her father, while staring at her. And to his credit, she detected no crack in his tone.
How cute. He’s still confident he can do this, she thought. Maybe I’ve given him too much credit.
Still, Celina reasoned that Ariano was the lesser of two evils between the two soldiers.
The idea of being ogled by Alex, the slick haired weasel, twenty-fou
r hours a day was more than Celina could bear.
She knew her father could not be trusted to make a good decision without her running interference.
He doesn’t know that about himself, but I know that about him.
“You see, Papa?” she called, rising from the booth. “You were worried for nothing! Ariano and I will get along famously.”
She pushed the shades over the bridge of her nose and winked at Ariano deliberately for her father to see.
To her surprise, he held her gaze without flinching.
“Are we done here, Papa?” Celina asked, spinning to leave. “I have places to be.”
She didn’t wait for a response, her hips swinging as she sauntered toward the kitchen.
As she pushed open the door, she heard her father make a promise she had heard half a dozen times before to as many men.
“If you can handle her detail for six months without getting yourself fired or killed, I will promote you to capo.”
A beam lit up Celina’s stunningly beautiful face as she made her way into the alley, clicking on the fob to unlock her convertible.
Carrot and stick approach. They fall for the same shit every time. All muscle, no brains, the lot of them.
Sliding into the driver’s seat, she started the car but before she could back out, two hands spread onto the lowered window, a face peering into hers.
“Do you have an agenda for me, Celina?” Ariano asked, his lips inches from hers. “Or are we going to start off with me chasing you around?”
She started at his nearness, her heart fluttering uncharacteristically as his scent filled her nose again.
What is that? Dolce and Gabbana? She made a mental note to find out. It seemed to ignite a rhythm in her, making her core clench reflexively.
He’s touching your car, she told herself, flipping herself out of the slight reverie which his scent had caused.
“If you need an agenda to keep up with me, maybe you aren’t the right man for the job,” she cooed, pulling away before he could respond.
She smiled to herself and floored the vehicle onto Brickell Avenue, her eyes trained on the rear-view to see if he had managed to catch up.
Poor, handsome baby, she thought, realizing that she had left him in her dust. He doesn’t stand a chance, but at least he’s not Alex. He’s going to be fun to toy with for a few weeks.
Taking My Mafia Princess Page 2
