Page 9 of A Seed Of Peril

“Okay!”

To our amusement, Katrina was gone before either of us could count to two.

I set the towel on the counter, telling Dino, “Don’t worry. I’ll create a diversion where you can escape.”

He cracked a smile, his expression telling me he had this. He waved his hand dismissively.

“Nah, it’s all good. This’ll be easier than pretending to enjoy the taste of air at one of her tea parties.”

I laughed while Dino grabbed a soda from the refrigerator and pulled open its tab.

“No errands to run today?” I asked.

Dino followed me back to the island, both of us leaning against it. We watched the staff continue to work, finishing putting away dried dishes and gathering what they’d need for the afternoon. It was still slightly weird having any sort of staff handling our meals and just handling anything else. I had been so used to Nadia doing all this. Hell, our new, more lavish kitchen was something I still wasn’t used to, either.

White was the main color chosen for the kitchen, the picture window at the sink giving off a homey feel, sun shining through, lighting up the gray, granite-like tiles. The view wasn’t anything spectacular; just some of the front lawn and a peek at the street with the kitchen set more in the far right corner of the mansion.

Black granite countertops surrounded our six-burner electric stove. The same granite was used for the island that sat four comfortably. Our more everyday appliances like the coffee maker, toaster, and blender stood spread out in their spots along both sides of the counter. The collection of flavored syrups, various sugars, and necessary silverware at the coffee maker gave it all a nice touch.

Our appliances were mainly stainless steel here, too. The only real difference with our major appliances were their sizes. Everything was bigger. Grander. The refrigerator was wider, still with double doors, but this one contained extra storage space and a touch screen that controlled the water and ice dispenser and allowed us to see everything inside. To the right of the refrigerator was the door to the pantry. Inside the pantry was where we kept another wide refrigerator to hold blood bags, and then a chest freezer that primarily stored our meats… Both animal and human. Those were organized separately.

White-painted wooden cabinetry stretching below the long counter and mostly above it was a fitting choice. So was our stack of two matching stainless-steel ovens at the far left end of the counter.

“Nothing that can’t be done from the office.” Dino took a sip of soda. “Dom would just send out one of his soldiers, anyway.”

The burp he let out next was gross but impressive. The way Luigi gave Dino the stink eye made us laugh, erasing the momentary sting of missing Nadia.

Speaking of soldiers, was I still considered one now that Hector had passed? Since being sworn in as one, life hadn’t been much different regarding sitting in on more meetings and being active with outside tasks. The only change was fighting alongside the family, but that was unavoidable in both circumstances. I didn’t miss having to go toe to toe with Fabio and Vincent, that was for damn sure, but I had become curious from time to time about what it would be like to go out on hits or just scope out someone before an assignment.Would I ever get either chance? Did Dominic plan to up my rank to say, a capo?I knew I would never become his new underboss, and that was fine. No one else but Dino deserved such a precious spot.

That was a conversation we desperately needed to have.

“Hey, Dino?”

“Hmm?”

I looked at him to see him chugging another sip of soda. “Do you think Dominic plans to keep me as just a soldier?”

Dino moved away from the island and gestured with his hand for me to follow him. He placed his palm on my back as he led us out of the kitchen, saying, “This way.”

Of course, no business discussion was permitted around the kitchen and cleaning staff. Duh.

We slowly walked down the hall toward the foyer. It was nice not having to wade through a bunch of men milling about. Unlike Hector, Dominic didn’t want a lot of them hanging around here all day, every day. It came down to privacy.

The change was easily agreed upon by me and our brothers.

“I’m not sure what he wants to do about that. If it were up to me, I’d have already promoted you, but I know the main man’s got a lot on his plate lately. Stick it out a bit longer, then bring it up.”

If I could take away all the weight from Dominic’s shoulders, I would have already.

There was no easy way to ask the one question swimming in my head since we lost Thomas. I hoped his position would stay vacant. Even if one of Dominic’s men earned such a spot, it wouldn’t feel right to replace Thomas. The brotherhood between them made their positions sacred. Dominic didn’t trust anyone else like he did his brothers, not even me. Along with Thomas, every bit of trust and loyalty among us was earned. Fought for. It wouldn’t feel right to just put anyone else in that spot. I was sure that there was a silent, mutual consensus within our group.

“Does he plan to put anyone else in Thomas’s place?”

Shaking his head, Dino said, “Not for the foreseeable future.”

Oh, thank God.

As we approached the end of the hall, Katrina bolted past us, her Barbies in her arms. Dino chuckled, removing his hand from my back.