My jaw clenches and I rock my head side to side, trying to get rid of the tension in my neck while Dante and I sit in Ralf Strauss’s office and listen to him drone on about the benefits of going into partnership with him and his brother. I’m so not in the mood for this prick tonight. I have much more important things I need to be doing—such as search for my missing uncle. Part of me thinks good riddance to that particular waste of oxygen, but Kristin deserves to know what happened to him at least. And despite him being a terrible uncle to me and an even worse brother to my father, he seems to have been an okay dad to her.
And until I find out where he is, she’s stuck living with me. Not that I don’t like the kid—I do. But I can’t continue lying to everyone about her. I hate it.
The message her father told her to give me plays on my mind constantly too. He said you can’t trust the Morettis. They turned you against your real family. Why would he ask her to give me that specific message? I guess he actually believes that? But the Morettis are the only family I’ve had for a long time, and I can’t keep secrets from them much longer.
“You see how this could be good for us all, don’t you, Maximo?” Ralf asks, dragging me back to the conversation at hand. The same one he and I have already had.
“Like I already told you, Ralf, no.”
“Dante?” he pleads.
“If Max says no, then it’s no,” Dante replies with a frown. “And I’m insulted that you’ve dragged me here tonight when my partner here has already told you his feelings on the matter.”
“But I thought …” Ralf sighs.
“You thought I was going to disagree with him? This man who’s basically my brother?” Dante asks with a cock of his eyebrow.
Now I feel even guiltier about the secrets I’m keeping. Because Kristin isn’t the biggest one. No, Joey Moretti claims that title. Joey and her wickedly sinful body and even more sinful mouth. I have no fucking idea how anyone who’s never given head before can get it so spectacularly right on their first time. But who am I kidding? Just being inside any part of her has me fucking desperate to bust my nut like a fourteen-year-old who just discovered Pornhub. The girl is fucking addictive, and she is going to kill me. But what a way to go.
Dante pushes himself out of his chair and turns his back on Ralf. “Deal with this piece of shit, will you? I need to call Kat.”
“No problem.”
He walks out of the room, leaving Ralf and me alone. “I told you a partnership wasn’t on the table,” I remind him, and he eyes me warily.
When I push my chair back, he flinches and I suppress a smile. Walking around the desk, I grab him by the neck, pressing my palm against his Adam’s apple until he opens his mouth to gasp for air. I shove three fingers inside, pushing them down his throat until he gags and tears run down his face.
“Mr. Moretti expects the paperwork pertaining to the purchase of his new casino in his inbox tomorrow morning. If it doesn’t arrive by noon, then consider the deal off.”
He tries to wrench free, his body struggling to get oxygen, but I tighten my grip. “You understand me, Ralf?”
His eyes meet mine, and he nods almost imperceptibly. Ralf and his brother have had a free ride in this city for far too long. They stepped on plenty of people on their way to the top and can’t be trusted. The last poor fuckers who went into business with them ended up bankrupt because the Strauss brothers ran the company into the ground, bleeding it for every cent right under their business partners’ noses. But because of who they were and their perceived alliance with Salvatore Moretti, no one would challenge them. There’s no chance we’d ever go into business with him. When Salvatore was alive, the Strauss brothers traded off the fact that they were his enforcers for a few years, after my father died at least. However, their gravy train has come to an end. The casino is about to go under, and we’re going to buy it for a quarter of what it’s worth.
Ralf and Micah won’t take it lying down, but I don’t give a shit. I’ll add them to the long list of people who’d like to kill me.
I pull my fingers out of Ralf’s mouth and wipe my saliva-covered fingers on his expensive Italian suit jacket. “By noon.”
He coughs, rubbing at his throat, but when I lift my hand, he recoils and gives me a nod.
I tap him on the side of his face. “Good boy.”
By the time I walk outside, Dante’s waiting for me in the car.
“He get the message?” he asks me when I climb inside.
“Yep. Asshole.”
He laughs. “The look on his face when I asked him why he dragged me over here. He looked like he was about to shit his pants.”
“He almost did after you left.”
“You were right about having a face-to-face with him though. Remind him who he’s dealing with. And it’s nice seeing you work. You’re the most effective negotiator I know.” He laughs harder. “I’m so glad you’re on my side, compagno.”
Another pang of guilt twists my stomach. I have to tell him about Kristin soon. And stop fucking around with his sister. Closing my eyes, I lean back against the seat, but all I see are images of Joey sucking my cock earlier today. Yeah, doing the right thing and not fucking around with Joey Moretti is never going to happen.
