Chapter 28 Keep It Secret
Roman
"Do you even understand the implications of what happened that night?" I ask. “Even if you take away the fact that I'm the Don and you're the woman in my family, or the fact that neither of us like each other, you're my best friend's little sister, which makes you forbidden. I broke a rule by having sex with you.”
She rolls her eyes.
“Calm down, Roman. I promise you won't burn out just because you fucked me.”
My chest rises and falls. I shouldn't be having this conversation with her right now. She's rested and uncharged. I'm the complete opposite.
“You can’t tell anyone,” I say, saying the words I wanted to say all along. “I don’t care what you think about what happened. And I don’t care why you did it…”
She interrupts me.
“Why did you do it?”
My gaze sharpens. I would answer her question if I had an answer. I’ve gone over it in my head so many times. No wonder I’m attracted to her; the woman practically radiates sex appeal.
Her eyelashes flutter.
“I can tell you why I did it,” she says.
I raise an eyebrow, prompting her to continue.
“Because you were there. I was sad thinking about my mother, and you were a warm body that was available. It meant nothing to me. Besides, I’ve always wanted to have hateful sex, and you’re a prime candidate for that. So lose your panties, Roman. As far as I can tell, nothing happened between us.”
I almost want to laugh, because her words hurt more than they should. They shouldn't hurt at all. I should be glad she thinks that. I am.
"Okay. So you won't tell anyone?"
"Why are you so fixated on me keeping my mouth shut?" she snaps.
"Your brother is my right-hand man. Your father is my consigliere. I need them both, and I won't lose them because of a mistake."
Her green eyes blaze. She clears her throat and looks away.
"Okay, I get it. I won't say a word. Anyway, tomorrow I'm leaving for Boston.”
"Okay."
A few seconds pass as I look at her. I should leave, but something holds me back. Maybe it's the thought that I was too harsh. Or the fact that even now, looking at her face filled with carefully contained rage, I want nothing more than to pull her close and fuck her one last time. Or at least kiss her luscious pink lips.
Insanity. That's what it is. Nothing but insanity.
Then the door opens, and her brother walks in. We both look at him.
"Learn to knock, Tony!" Elena shouts, walking over to her bed and sitting up.
His eyes flicker over her before moving to me. There’s a hint of suspicion there. He doesn’t trust me with his sister. He’s never done that. I don’t know why, and today isn’t the day to ask.
“We have a problem, Roman,” he says.
I tense up.
“What is it?”
His throat tightens as he swallows.
“Gallos.”
My jaw tenses.
“What the hell happened?”
We leave Elena’s room without looking back. Frankly, I’m glad she’s leaving. She's a fucking distraction, which I can't help but struggle to keep my empire together.
"Everything was in place," I say, pinching the bridge of my nose. "I double-checked every detail for you bastards. I supervised every step. I almost gave you a package in a box tied with a goddamn bow. Where the hell did I lose you?
I'm tempted to pull out my gun and shoot the man kneeling in front of me. He looks away, his eyes fixed on the ground. I sent ten men to China on a plane with a two-month supply of drugs and expensive weapons. Only one of them came back.
“We were about to take off, but things went wrong,” Lorenzo says, his voice shaking. “They broke in and started shooting inside the plane. Everyone was dead within minutes.”
“And how the fuck did you survive?” I ask, feeling the muscle in my jaw twitch.
He still doesn’t look at me.
“I fell to the ground and hid. But they found me. They kept me alive to give you a message.”
“Go on,” I advise.
“They told me to tell you they were going to finish what Russo started,” he says. “They took all the guns and drugs. They said to meet them if you want it back. They're not afraid of you. They want the DeLuca family destroyed.”
Anger shoots through me.
“I see,” I say calmly. “On your feet”.
He slowly gets to his feet. I can see the relief shining in his brown eyes. The relief quickly turns to horror as I pull out my gun and shoot him in the chest without hesitation. His body falls to the ground.
“You should have died with the others,” I mutter senselessly, looking at the pool of blood on the oak floor.
“Roman,” Tony says hesitantly, getting my attention.
He's been standing next to me the whole time. Michael is sitting in my chair, looking a little pale. He must be. He rises to his feet as I walk up to him and slam my fist on the table.
“How did they know?” I growl.
My best friend’s jaw clenches as he looks somewhere above my head.
“They managed to hack into one of my encrypted files. That’s how they knew the delivery date and time.”
“And how the hell did they do that?”
“I was distracted,” he admits. “I’m sorry.”
“Where the hell have you been, Michael?”
His throat tightens. He hesitates, but finally answers.