For Adriano (26 page)

CHAPTER 30

Adriano

The next day, we set everything in motion.

The driveway of the Syndicate headquarters has never been this packed with cars. Most of the soldiers have been rallied up.

Inside, in the living room to the right of the foyer, James, Luca, Salvatore, Henry, and around thirty soldiers have gathered.

I’m the last of the four of us to arrive, so James begins, “As you all know, we’ve called you here to participate in a new operation. We’re going into Fat Sal’s Club 7 to rescue
Capo
John and one of Fat Sal’s guards, Santino, who’s also being held captive there. We have City Hall’s floor plans of the area; however, we don’t know if there have been any secret corridors added that lead to an undisclosed exit.”

Luca adds, “We need you to start preparing for it because we’ll hit Club 7 on Saturday. Equipment and gear are needed: guns, silencers, and bullet proof vests. Check our arsenal at the warehouse for our gun supply. Henry and Adriano are working on the details of how to get access to their security system.”

Capo
Alessandro addresses James, “Are you taking over Club 7?”

“No,” James answers and doesn’t elaborate, because he hasn’t figured out what to do with the place.

“Do we have permission to kill all of his men? And what about casualties? There’s a lot of staff in the above-ground club area. Are we attacking both?” he asks me.

“You eradicate that entire place,” I answer, fed by my rage that Fat Sal’s targeting us in our personal lives.

“There will be many casualties – everyone against us dies,” Luca finishes. “We have six days to prepare. Adriano will let you know your positions in the teams.”

I explain it further, “You’re going to be divided into teams of five; details to follow tomorrow. Be extra alert this week. Any soldier of Fat Sal’s you spot, you kill, but not in daylight. And you dispose of the body yourself. He already tried to bait us by having snipers at Security Simplicity. No telephone conversations about this operation. Are we clear?”

“Si,”
the men agree.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” I turn to Luca, who’s buttoning his suit jacket. “Are you leaving?”

“Yes, I promised my wife I’d come home immediately.”

I was hoping to inform Luca about Cam and me. Perhaps it’s better for me not to involve him until I have a sensible, definite plan, but we need to discuss the state of affairs at Security Simplicity. “I need to talk to you.”

“Tomorrow, in the morning. Come to my penthouse.” And he adds sarcastically before parting, “I’m sure you’re just dreading to go home?”

I don’t have to tell him I slept with Cam; he realizes that. But he’ll never believe that I’m about to desert the Syndicate to run away with her.

The men disband, and James comes up to me when I’m about to go to my car.

“Adriano, Camilla called me.”

My blood turns to ice, and I snatch my phone out of my pocket to see if she’s contacted me; she hasn’t. “Is she okay?”

“Yes, she’s fine. She had a request, of course. I couldn’t deny her or else she won’t cooperate and check the floor plan – she’s the only one who can tell us if there are more corridors.”

“What was her request?” I ask with false, deadly calm.

“She wants to be part of the team that goes into the underground club.”

I knew it!

And she knew that I would never agree, so she goes to her father. The reason why we can’t be together in this Syndicate is already occurring.

“I’m going to give her a personal trainer. She’ll need shooting lessons too.”

“You’re letting her come?”

“No, I’m just placating her. Keeping her busy,” he discloses. “Has she told you anything more about Santino?”

“She hasn’t mentioned him.”

“Evidently, he’s still a priority to her.” Displeasure is directed at me. “She’s very difficult to read nowadays. I think she’s hanging out with you guys too much.” He departs with a joke that has a dark undertone.

I’m guessing he’s starting not to trust us.

I have my work cut out for me; I need to bend Cam to my will. And I know just how. Instead of letting anger take over, I’ll simply seduce her. If I battle her, she’ll be more tenacious to push her own senseless plan.

***

Containers of Italian take-out are scattered over my bar, and
someone
is lounging on my sofa with her legs draped over the back of it, wearing only panties and a short white top that barely covers any skin.

Seriously, hottest image ever. I smirk as I slam the door closed, and Cam turns her head away from the TV.

“Hey there!” Her foot slides up her leg.

Little miss conniving has planned this all out;
she’s
going to seduce
me
into forgiving her, or at least into being sympathetic for what she requested of James.

“I’m glad you’re comfortable.” Throwing my keys onto the oak table, I sit down and prop my feet up.

In her position, I’m looking directly at her ass and panties, and my pants start to feel constricted. I rake a finger up her thigh and take her legs, placing them over my lap. “So you talked to James?”

A tentative smile pulls at her lips. “I did it for us. And I was planning to tell you.”

Taking my pack of cigs from my pocket, I hurl them onto the table. “Please do elaborate.”

“James is allowing me into your organization, Adriano. If he does that, then why wouldn’t he agree with our being together? I’m already ‘in the life’.”

“It’s not about that,” I grumble.

“So it’s purely because it’s unprecedented to disobey orders?”

“Unprecedented? No, it’s forbidden!”

“Fine! But it’s also because I want more training, and if I asked to go to the raid, he wouldn’t find it odd for me to continue working out and taking my self-defense class. Whatever happens, Adriano, it can’t hurt for me to develop physical strength.”

That’s true. And I wasn’t even mad at her request; I always knew she’d do this kind of thing – she’s persistent and has a mind of her own, and it secretly turns me the fuck on. But her safety is my first priority,
always
. “What did you ask him exactly?”

“Nothing was actually discussed. I requested to go to Club 7. He didn’t blatantly say ‘no’.”

“I’m okay with you training and taking shooting lessons. But I have to know – are you sure you want to be with me even—”

“I’m positive. You can’t scare me away. Do you even realize how long I’ve wanted you?” Her knee rises, her delicate foot sliding across my thighs. When her leg drops to the side, so does my gaze, following the sensual action, bewitching me with one simple move.

“Yes, Cam, I realize that,” I comment distractedly while focusing on her pussy.

Her foot searches for the hardening bulge in my pants. “What do
you
want?”

“I want my cock up your ass.” I yank her knee over my lap, pulling her astride me, so she’s forced to sit up.

When I grip her behind, tucking my fingers inside the edges of her underwear, she gasps, and I take the opportunity to taste her mouth. She clasps my shoulders while thrashing on my lap.

“Can you make me come first?”

My dick just grew an inch with her request. “With pleasure, Cam.” And I rip her panties off in one tear.

My palm roams up her spine as she sublimely bows her back, and I plunge my tongue into her mouth as I let her lean back toward the ground.

She clutches my neck and throws her head back, so I kiss up her throat as I raise her back up again.

I march upstairs without breaching our kiss and throw her onto the middle of my bed.

She fumbles with my buttons as I remove her top, and I already have her naked.

After stripping my clothes while she watches me through half lidded eyes, I grab her ankles and hold them apart, licking my lips while gawking at her glistening pussy. Then I release them and dive in, roughly sliding her to me with my arms around her hips while I consume her like I promised earlier. She moans and smothers me, pushing and circling against my face.

I can feel her opening up and glide my tongue inside. I see her tweaking her nipples and biting her lip. I’m throbbing to have her, so I bite my way up her stomach, sucking her nipples and rubbing my cock up and down against her.

“Lock your legs around me, Cam,” I order and capture her mouth when she obeys.

My palms rest next to her head. I’m witnessing a look of admiration and disbelief I’ve never seen before, and it heats a new responsiveness within me. Her vanilla perfume extinguishes any frustration. Wanting to dispel the disbelief, I sift my fingers into the hair behind her ears, making sure she’s looking straight at me. “I’m not going anywhere, Cam. I’m not running away from you anymore, I’m running toward you. Catch me.”

She mouths, “I love you,” when her lids fall closed, and I drive inside her.

Her warmth grips my cock, and I groan when her small hands land on my ass, forcing me in while she meets my thrusts. And for a man who never enjoys a missionary fuck, I sure as hell missed it with her.

I overpower Cam’s moans with a kiss while I push her into the mattress. “God, you feel so good wrapped around me.” The heels of her feet dig into my back, and I slide in deep, biting her nipple. Then I feel her pussy clamping down around me.

“Oh, Adriano...”

When I feel her coming, I pull out and wedge her thighs apart, sucking her pussy into my mouth, savoring her essence.

“Ahh! Fuck!” she screams, and her entire body trembles while she clutches my hair in both hands.

Flattening my tongue, I move up when her body goes slack, and she grins lazily.

“What do you do to me?”

No, what do you do to me?

I let her taste herself on my lips, and Cam fists my dick that’s still rock-hard. “I’m addicted to licking you,” I whisper against her mouth.

“I’m not complaining.” She gives a little squeeze.

And I reach for my pants hanging off the edge of the bed, getting out a small bottle of KY.

“I came prepared. No excuses.”

Her brows rise, and an apparent need to please me flits across her face when she nods sweetly.

Rolling her over onto her stomach, I get off the bed and drag her to the edge of the mattress, upper body resting on the sheets as her knees drop onto the floor. I knead her ass and spread her apart, licking up once. She lies with her cheek on the bed, beholding me.

I uncap the bottle and let a drizzle of lubricant trail down her ass. And I lock eyes with Cam when I rub her taut hole with one finger. “Relax, sweetheart.”

She listens, and I slowly push my finger past the tightness.

Cam groans, and her face creases with a worried frown.

I cover her body with mine and press my lips against her temple. “Open up. Relax,” I soothe and feel her unclenching. “Good girl.” My finger is replaced with the head of my cock. I have to push hard to get past her entrance, and she buries her nose into the comforter while I lose myself inside her. “You’re incredibly tight, Cam.”

I move slowly while kissing her neck. And after a few thrusts, she lifts her head and a moan escapes. Since we’ve done this in the past, she starts to loosen quickly.

“Better?” I want to know.

“Hmmm.”

And I take that as my cue to really fuck her ass like I’ve visualized for so long. I fist her hair and tug her head back to twist our tongues.

An unusual awareness of belonging and possession defeats any other emotion. “You’re mine forever now.” I nip her ear while taking her ass without restraint.

“Yes,” she groans, and my balls tighten.

“Cam, fuck!” I pound into her and let go, pouring so much lust into this alluring woman that’s influenced my mind from the day we met. With a few hard plunges, I find my release of sharp, dizzying intensity.

Our ragged breathing slows down in the silence of the room, and I slip out slowly. “Let’s go shower. I’ll kiss your ass better.”

She laughs with eyes closed. 

“Was I too rough?”

“No. I like it when you’re rough with me.”

I like it when you voice it. “Keep that up, and I’ll be hard again within seconds.”

Cam and I have an exquisitely long shower before ever reaching my bed again.

CHAPTER 31

Adriano

I think about Cam and our uncertain future constantly, and with all the mayhem going on at headquarters, rushing home to my loft every night has become my favorite part of the day.

She challenges me and provokes me, but eventually, she does follow my direction. I enjoy witnessing her growing mentally and physically. I enjoy how she lets me tease her. How I can’t always figure out what she’ll do next. With other women, that particular quality bothered me. With her, it absolutely captivates me. She wraps me around her finger without knowing it. That little piece of me that always belonged to her is growing every day.

But my thirst for Cam also clouds my ability to think straight since I can’t figure out how to protect my parents and siblings once she and I leave. And until I’ve come up with a plan for how to protect them, I can’t get out with Cam. The Syndicate will badger and torture them to locate her. And not even Luca will have the power to stop James. I’m ready to risk my life for her, but not my parents’ lives. Not Carmine and Mary’s lives. Carmine is already asking too many questions about my work life lately as it is.

Apart from that, I need to tap into a lot of resources to get us out of the country. Then I’ll need to continue to protect her; and I don’t know how to do that except to keep running. But there’s a part of me that’s reluctant to let this life go. This life that has become an intricate part of me over the last ten years. Yet, within the two years I’ve known Cam, she’s apparently taken over that part of me too.

Since I’m at a breaking point – unsure of how to proceed – I decide to confess to Luca. I was supposed to meet him yesterday, Tuesday, at his penthouse, but because we’re both swamped with keeping our women safe and drawing up our plan of attack, I didn’t get to speak to him privately, so I’m on way to Luca’s now.

I arrive at his penthouse while he’s eating breakfast with Fallon, before he’s off to headquarters.

“Good morning.” I pour a glass of orange juice from the decanter on the kitchen island and stand across from where they’re seated on two of the barstools.

“Good morning.” Fallon stirs a spoon in her mug.

Luca, who similar to me, has also had a busy week, prompts, “We have several situations to go over, and I should’ve left ten minutes ago.” He addresses Fallon, “I need to talk to Adriano alone.”

And she gives us privacy, gladly fleeing to her library.

“First,” Luca begins, “What is the status of the shooting near Security Simplicity’s building? Did any witnesses – specifically, the child – come forward? Is there any link to us?”

“No. Chicago P.D. is keeping me posted. The kid hasn’t been brought in or questioned. It’s a relatively unimportant case because there was surprisingly minimal media coverage. Our building wasn’t even mentioned in the investigation, only the opposite tower the shot originated from, so we’re in the clear.”

He releases a relieved sigh. “Second, the audit. Jeffrey contacted our associate, and he arranged for our previous auditor to handle it now, not the newly appointed female accountant. So while that’s taken care of, we’re still keeping a company afloat that’s not making any profit. We either need to expand or find a new viable company.”

“Can we talk about that later? I have a more pressing matter.”

Reaching for his coffee cup, he states, “Cam?”

I nod and take a sip of the freshly squeezed juice. “Of course.”

“So, how long did it take for you to cave?” A grin pulls at his lips, even though I can tell he’s slightly bothered.

“Hours. It happened the first night.”

“And now? What do you want to talk about?”

Luca and I have been friends since we were seventeen. We’ve shared ups and downs in the Syndicate. We’ve fought side by side and always together. But my next confession will put us at opposite ends of the spectrum for once. “I want to be with her.”

His eyes narrow, and he balls his fist that’s resting on the counter.

“I’m ready to take the risk.”

“What does that mean exactly?” he asks.

“I’m going to leave with Cam.”

“Leave?” he sneers the word and bolts up. “How? When?”

I set the glass down. “I don’t have everything figured out. I came to you to confide in my friend.”

“
My friend
, you come in here telling me you’re leaving what we built for years for a woman?!”

“You know she’s not just any woman!”

“Then what’s your plan?” he challenges.

“I’m going to leave the country, with her. We’re going to run.”

Luca braces the counter and leans forward. “This is a suicide mission. For both of you. Are you going to desert your family? Your mom? When will you see them? You’re thinking with your dick!”

“No, I can’t stay away from her, Luca. She’s... She’s more than just a fuck!”

He grits his teeth. “I know that, but... Fuck! Adriano, you’re not thinking straight. Has she agreed to go with you? To leave her newly found life behind?”

“Yes. I’ve explained our limited options.”

He regards me with suspicion. “She’ll eventually resent you for providing her with another lonely life. You said yourself that she wants a family – above all. Now she has one and is willing to give it up this easily? She’s in love, probably infatuated with the excitement right now and isn’t really considering the long term consequences.”

“You don’t know what’s between us,” I defend, not revealing that I share his concerns. “I’ve talked about it with Cam, and we’re both certain that we’ll do what it takes to have a chance.”

“You’ll never have a chance if you run with her. I know you, and there isn’t a scenario where you’ll be able to protect both Cam and your parents. You also know my hands are tied in this situation. And James will be on the warpath.”

“I had your back the entire time you were getting together with Fallon. I would’ve thought you’d be more supportive of us.”

Luca gives me a skeptical glance. “You’re my brother, and I’ll always support you, but I refuse to indulge in a suicide mission. With Fallon, you knew from the start she was important to me.”

Coming here, I knew I’d stumble upon resistance but didn’t imagine he would be
this
defensive. “Then what do you suggest?”

He looks away in thought. “Do you love her? Or is this just lust gone wild? If you love her, then put her welfare above your own. You and Cam have always had a peculiar relationship.”

“I love her,” I confess with conviction for the first time.

And it shocks him into silence for several minutes before he says in an agonized tone, “It’s not easy having a woman in this life. Fallon is the best thing and the worst thing that ever happened to me. The best thing is having her; the worst thing is worrying about how to protect the one you can’t live without, Adriano. Is this
really
love?”

I nod without a doubt streaming through my veins.

“It had to be the one you can’t have?”

Instead of cracking a joke, I say, “She’s my ‘Fallon’, Luca. I’m not letting her go. I’ll lose her forever if I back out again.”

“Christ!” he whisper-shouts. “I’m not asking you to give her up. I’m just saying you can’t go through with your initial plan. I’ll keep it a secret from James – I have for some time. But you two must promise me to not take any action without involving me.”

“I can’t unless you tell me you’ll help us.”

“I will. However, we need to brainstorm about this, Adriano. Damn it, so much is going on right now, especially with the raid Saturday. But I can’t lose my best
Capo
, and more importantly, I don’t want to lose my friend. We got into this together, and now you’re considering leaving?”

“Then I’ll ask you again, what do you suggest?”

“Promise me that you won’t just pack up and leave,” he persists.

“I promise.”

“Sit then. You have to explain it in detail to Cam. Adriano, are you sure she understands the repercussions?”

I keep standing. “I think she does, but no, I’m not
positive
.”

“Maybe that should be your first step,” he advises, and I recognize that he’s correct. “Are you honestly willing to give up everything we built? Your Syndicate life that’s part of you now?”

Luca knows me better than anyone, and his words spiral me into a world of hesitations.