Page 50 of Liberated By Sin
“I thought you said we weren’t a team,” I quipped, brushing mythumb against the soft skin just beneath her mask. She must have pulled it on before leaving my office and before I even realized she’d followed.
“You promised me a private jet, Mr. Leone. Just making sure you follow through.”
Despite my intentions when I entered the lounge, this woman managed to derail my focus with a single sentence. “So, that’s a yes?”
“He sees you coming,” she confirmed with a squeeze, ignoring my question.
Placing myself between Luca and Amara, I pulled my gun and held it against my thigh and out of the view of the other patrons.
“You will leave in two ways: walking or in a bag. And this will be the only time I allow you to choose.”
Luca chuckled under his breath and sat back, signaling toward the bar. Trusting the bartender to know better, I resisted the urge to turn around. I liked the guy and would hate to have to make an example out of him regarding the definition of loyalty.
“Santino, is that any way to treat family?” Gregorio clapped my cousin’s shoulder and stretched his arms along the back of his booth, eyes on me for merely a fraction before they settled over Amara.
“Blood is meaningless without loyalty and trust.” I positioned myself directly in the man’s line of sight. “And even that carries an expiration date the moment lines are crossed.”
His mouth tightened. Message received.
“Oh, come on,cugino. Let’s talk and put what happened behind us. Tensions were high. No hard feelings, eh?” He, too, peered around me, catching a glimpse of a silent Amara, and grinned. “There’s my best girl. I told you you’d like her, didn’t I?Bellissima!”
“Get out. And take your men.”
Cynical laughter shook his chest. “Every man has a price.” He slid out of the booth, adjusting the front of his suit as he stood. “And a breaking point. Remember that, Santino.”
The implicit threat behind his words pushed me over the edge, and I reached for my waistband. Again, Amara’s hand fell over mine, andwe locked eyes. This moment between us was significant because, while I knew we had miles to bridge before I gained her absolute trust, she was slowly sharing pieces of her she’d once reserved only for Cambri.
“It was nice to see you again, Gregorio.” Luca tipped his chin as he made his way toward the exit, and with one last glance my way, he motioned for his men to follow.
“Well, that was interesting.” The older man sat up, eyebrows pinched together. “I remember you and Luca as boys, and I see not much has changed.” There was a glint of amusement in his eyes as he lit a cigarette and tipped his chin, huffing a billowing cloud of smoke above his head. “But, like I said, family is family, and maybe you should hear him out. This was his father’s place, after all, no?”
“Respectfully, whatever he’s told you is probably true, but in any case, none of it is your business.”
Gregorio’s lips thinned, and he nodded. “Noted.” Again, his gaze rose to Amara, and a bastard grin split his face. He said nothing more and turned his attention to a female companion I hadn’t noticed until now.
“Come on.” I placed a hand on the small of Amara’s back. She stiffened briefly at the contact, but let me lead her back toward my office, where Blaise and Ash were waiting, eyes on the surveillance monitors.
“Who’s the bouncer on shift?”
“Alec, sir.”
“Take him downstairs.”
Every employee was under strict orders. Luca was not welcomed in this establishment. His waltzing in, flanked by his own security, was unforgivable. I didn’t tolerate incompetency. They all knew the consequences. It turned out, there would indeed be an example made tonight.
“What was that about?” I asked, twisting around and closing the door behind my men.
Amara pushed back her mask, a corner catching on her curls. I was at her side in an instant, carefully threading loose the tangled locks ofhair.
“What was what?” she asked in a surprisingly softer tone than her usual sarcasm.
As I gently freed the last strand, my gaze dropped to hers, our faces merely inches apart. I expected her to shuffle back and put distance between us, but she remained still, waiting for an answer she already knew. I humored her anyway.
“Twice you intervened on my behalf.”
“Well, you were going in there, guns blazing and causing a scene, which wouldn’t have been too smart. You were outnumbered.”
“And you were worried?”