It is the duty that separates men from boys.
—Aporva Kala
BASTIANO ROMANO
Motherfucker.
Dildo breath.
Cum stain.
I sorted through my inventory of curses as Gio and I sat in a corner booth at the bar, waiting for Uncle Vince to show up. I loved my Uncle Vince. The man got me like no one else did, but he was always goddamned late, and no amount of love made tolerating his tardiness any easier.
Especially when I marinated in the company of Gio while he was in rare form.
“How about her?” My dad pointed to a girl sitting alone at a center table.
With her dark hair and heavy Italian features, I recognized her immediately.
“Gio.” I raised my eyebrows and shot him a glassy stare. “That’s my cousin.”
“So? The British do it.”
“Not for a few hundred years.”
I caught a flash of skin as a girl approached the table, adjusting the neckline of her dress along the way. She’d gotten a few feet from our booth when Dana moved to intercept, narrowing in on her like a frat boy at a two-for-one lap dance sale.
Earlier today, I had demanded she escort any mafia bunnies she saw out of L’Oscurità. I was using my ex-girlfriend as my personal bouncer, but I couldn’t care less about the ethics of the situation. All that mattered was she’d do it.
And I knew she would because she was fucking obsessed with me.
Her obsession started the moment she saw me. It was one of those things you could just tell. Shortness of breath. Glazed eyes. Difficulty breathing. Sometimes, there was even wheezing involved. She was either severely allergic to me or obsessed with me.
Her obsession would likely be a problem down the road, but when that time came, I’d fire her, slap a restraining order on her perky ass, and move on to the next hostess. Only this time, I’d hire her without having fucked her.
See? I was capable of personal growth.
“Gio.” My voice remained firm, as unwavering as always. Not that he gave a damn. “Ten mob bunnies in half as many days? You’ve got me walking around like I’m Hefner reincarnate.”
He needed to get it through his thick skull that I’d never be interested in the Romano business. He’d taken Elsa from me, and the only reason I still talked to him was for my sister Tessie and because it had been Elsa’s choice to accept the bribe.
Gio, my uncles, and the rest of my family risked their freedom on a daily basis. For what? Money? We had enough. We could legitimize our businesses today, and the generations of Romanos to come would still be filthy rich.
Gio took his lazy-ass time shifting his body, returning his wandering eye’s attention from a low hemline to me. “How are you so sure it’s me sending them your way?”
“It sure as hell isn’t Uncle Eli or Uncle Frankie. They don’t give two shits. And Uncle Vince would be straightforward about it. No pussyfooting.”
He absently rubbed his arm, cocked his head to the side, and lifted a single brow. “Pussyfooting? What’re you trying to say, son?”
A smile tugged at the edges of my lips. “Exactly what I said, Gio.”
“Huh. I’d wipe that goddamn smirk off your face with my fist, but your mother is coming in with your sister any second now.”
We shared a tired grin at the mention of the woman.
I ran a weary hand down my face. “Man, Ma hates blood. She married into the wrong family.”
Not that hers was any better.
Gio laughed, despite the fact that neither he nor she had a choice in their nuptials. Maybe that—the lack of control even one of the most influential men I knew had over his life—was why I held so much disdain for the mafia business, even before Elsa and I broke it off.
I eyed my whiskey sour, the drink reminding me of my meeting with Ariana De Luca tomorrow. “You ever hear the name Ariana De Luca?”
Gio’s eyes narrowed as he straightened, finally giving me his full attention. "You gunning after a De Luca now?” Disapproval radiated off of him in fierce, unrelenting waves. “Don't. They're batshit insane, and we don't need any of that right now.”
Rumor had it the De Lucas hadn’t been batshit insane for a while now. Not with Angelo De Luca ousted and his son Damian in his place. I didn’t broach the subject, however, because the De Luca syndicate was a joke, and the Romano syndicate was anything but.
“I’m not gunning after anyone, Gio.” I downed my drink.
The more I talked about the family business, the more I wanted a drink. At this rate, I was well on my way to becoming an alcoholic. Maybe I could eat away my frustrations instead. Consume my sorrows, get rid of my six pack—and the mafia bunnies that loved said six pack. Two birds. One stone.
Gio stared at me with sober eyes. “Because you’re not in.”
He meant the mafia, and while we both knew Romano blood coursed through my veins, we also knew I didn’t want the responsibility the name brought. We didn’t speak about it, at least not explicitly, and I suspected it would always be the elephant in the room.
But Gio had been known to drop some damn impressive passive aggressive hints here and there. In other words, pussyfooting. It was why he sent those mafia bunnies my way, and it was why he would continue to do so. It was why he always wanted to meet at a Romano-affiliated business. And it was also why, thanks to Asher, he tolerated me working at L’Oscurità if I had to go outside the Romano name.
I ignored his words, fostering the silence like a five-star general preparing for a battle speech. We were at war with our eyes, each blink a clash of swords, each breath a chink in our armor.
He caved first. “Ariana De Luca. I’ll look into her. See what I can find.”
I nodded once, a brief affirmation of my victory.
Elsa sent another text, though I’d just sent her a hundred large. For the past eight years, I’d funded Elsa’s life. I paid her mortgage, her car payments, her health insurance, her credit card bills, her groceries, and a monthly allowance most people wouldn’t make in three years. Talking to her placed a giant cloud over an already gloomy day. How much money did one woman need?
Uncle Vince came in, drawing attention from the bunnies as he made his way to our booth and sat beside me. His eyes swung once to one of the bartenders on shift before returning to me. “Keep an eye on Graham. He’s the one we flagged as a potential rat.” His murmur drifted my way, soft but straight to the point.
Graham bartended here, which meant I’d be spending more time on this side of L’Oscurità. My mind immediately flashed to Ariana De Luca and her infuriating behavior, but I pushed the thought aside. Not the time nor the place.
I nodded to Uncle Vince and turned to Gio. “See? No pussyfooting.”
Gio scowled. I smirked. Uncle Vince sighed. And between the three of us, it was likely that none of us had seen Uncles Eli and Frankie in a while. This was a typical night with the Romano family, except for Asher’s absence. And the fact that my mom and little sister were coming to meet us.
My eyes swung to the door when I caught sight of my little sister Tessie, her hand clenched tightly to my mother’s. She was all sunshine and smiles, her curly black hair a long, unruly mess that bounced with each excited step she took.
The minute she saw me, she took off in a sprint. She clambered clumsily over Uncle Vince and onto my lap as soon as she was within touching distance. I wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her and let out a soft laugh, one I reserved strictly for her.
When she was a baby, she looked nothing like Gio and me. So much so that I questioned her paternity. After all, it wouldn't have been a stretch with the strained relationship Ma and Gio shared.
But as time passed, the hue of her irises had darkened, her hair had transformed from honey to dusk, and she had grown far taller than most kids her age. Now, at eight years old, she was a Romano through and through—save for the fact that she spent most of her time living in Rossi territory. If it were up to me, that would be rectified immediately.
I leaned down, captured the tip of Tessie’s ear between my teeth, and pretended to munch on it. “My favorite little bear. Just in time for dinner,” I murmured softly into her ear.
She giggled, turning on my lap to face me, her lanky body barely fitting on top of mine. "People don't eat bears."
“You’d be surprised,” I muttered, eyeing Ma as she reached our table.
She took her place next to Gio, and his arm came around her so naturally, you’d think we were the fucking Brady Bunch.
“New haircut? It’s nice,” I said like the best fucking son ever.
I gave her the requisite compliment. As far as I was concerned, I could check out for the rest of this family reunion. Maybe even take Tessie into my office, watch the security feed with her, and make fun of what people were doing. People were idiots, which made people watching our favorite pastime. Well, it was mine at least. Tessie would learn.
“Thanks, Bastian." Ma touched the tips of her blonde hair, a faint smile on her lips and appreciation gleaming in her light blue eyes. "I cut nine inches off in September."
As in eight or so months ago.
Did I compare us to the Brady Bunch?
More like the fucking Lannisters.