Scorned Obsession (Scorned Fate)

I saw Tommy first. “Where’s Sandro? Is he hurt?”

But his eyes were on Sloane. “Good, you’re here. Study. Now.”

Tommy’s voice was grim. “He’s fine. It’s Al.”

He turned away from us. Sloane hurriedly buttoned up her coveralls and rushed alongside him while being briefed. Maybe margarita night hadn’t been such a good idea.

More men poured into the house, all chatty and boisterous.

Well, hell, maybe it was just the right idea, especially when working for the mob.

I clasped Divina’s hand and tugged her along. “Come on. Make a note that we need to stock up on medical supplies.” Probably have enough to do minor surgery. I thought about Renz again.

Everyone congregated in the study and it was chaos. Probably because a man was shouting.

Some were laughing.

What the fuck?

“Ugh, that son of a bitch!” he yelled. “That double-crossing son of a bitch.”

Someone chortled, “Good thing he didn’t get you in the ass, Al.”

“Fuck you, Arnie.”

Al and Arnie? The Scavo brothers. Tommy and Griselda’s uncles and the ones who had a scuffle with Ivy last year. My marriage ceremony to Sandro was still a blur, but I remembered them in the front row.

“Look who’s here…baby De Lucci.” Gian walked up to us, but before he got to within a foot of me, Sandro appeared and shoved at him.

“That’s Mrs. Rossi to you.”

I quickly scanned my husband and the relief was immediate. He didn’t appear to be bleeding. He was in all black, but he wasn’t tracking blood.

I steeled my spine in case Sandro asked me and Divina to leave, but his attention was on Gian.

“Look at you,” Gian sneered.

“Look at me, what?” Sandro got in his face. “Your faulty intel almost got us killed.”

“What’s the matter, Sandro? Can’t take a little heat?”

What I’d learned dealing with older brothers and the mafia was not to get in between their egos. But my role as Sandro’s wife became clear. Like a beacon, it signaled me what to do. Or what I wanted to do.

I pushed through the crowd of Rossi soldiers.

Sloane was looking over Al. He was lying on his chest across the desk. He was the lankier and taller between the two brothers. But the way I identified them was through their hair. I wasn’t sure who was older but Al’s hair was black, while Arnie’s was gray.

Papers and books were strewn over the floor like they’d been shoved off the desk to make room for Al.

“What do you need?” I asked her.

“I need my kit. It’s in the van, but I might not have enough gauze.”

“We have medical supplies in the bunkhouse,” Sticks piped in.

Sloane handed Divina her keys. “Get the kit. You know what it looks like.”

“I’ll go with you,” I told Divina.

Sandro gripped my arm. “I need to talk to you. Let Divina handle it. Sticks, get your stash in the bunkhouse.”

“On it, boss.”

Sloane walked past us. “I need to wash my hands.”

“Good idea,” Al called. “Don’t want to die of an infection.”

I lunged to yell at Al, but Sandro hauled me from the room. Hand firm on my biceps, he led me up the stairs, after which he dragged me into his bedroom and shut the door. Then he backed me against it, pressing his body to mine.

I was breathing hard, mostly from matching Sandro’s strides, but my heart almost skipped out of my chest when he lowered his face close to mine.

His eyes were dark and furious.

Before he could say anything, I burst out, “I don’t have control over everything, but I will not have women spoken to that way in my presence.”

“Got it.”

“Then why did we leave the study?”

“Al’s got a smart mouth that’s going to get him killed. You don’t want me shooting Al for insulting you.”

I stilled. I didn’t want someone dying for simply insulting me. “The answer is removing me from the scene? How about talking to them about respecting women not only in the family, but in general? Don’t think just because the Scavo brothers are friends now of the De Luccis, I haven’t forgotten that he almost hit Ivy. If hitting women is an accepted practice of the Rossis, that is not okay with me. I understand the business of protection money, but if I’m going to be identified as a Rossi whether it’s temporary or not, then I’m not going to stand for that.”

“Got it.”

But the tension that was thick between us didn’t seem to have anything to do with Al. “Anything else?” My voice had fallen into a whisper.

His eyes were no longer angry, but no less intense, with an unnamed emotion that sent my senses skittering into overdrive.

It was heat. It was yearning. A yearning similar to mine until the last few days obliterated that emotion and left me with conflicted pieces.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I gnashed my teeth. I was determined not to fall for Sandro’s magnetic pull. I refused…refused to drown in my obsession with him again.

I lost his eyes when he dropped his forehead to mine. I held my breath in suspense on what he was going to do next.

“This was a fucked-up day and I hated seeing you in the bloody aftermath of family business.” He exhaled a ragged breath that sounded like surrender. “But a selfish part of me loved coming home to you.”

Oh my God. And damn him!

“Sandro…” Why did he have to say the sweetest things at the worst time? Why? Why? Why couldn’t he have said this years ago when I threw myself at him?

A groan rumbled deep in his chest before his mouth claimed mine.

Sandro

My control snapped.

I was tired of fighting it. I kissed Bianca with all the pent-up hunger I had kept in check for the past four years. My body trapped hers against the wall, and I could feel the pounding of her heart. Our tongues dueled and my fingers dug into her ass to bring her level, keeping her pinned.

When Bianca showed up in the study in the middle of blood and Rossi soldiers, I battled between my belief that she didn’t belong in my world and the overwhelming urge to keep her at my side.

I wanted her to belong.

I needed her to be mine.

Mine. Only mine.

Her body stiffened and her detachment from me wasn’t physical until in a split second it was. She yanked at my hair with one hand to break the kiss, while she pushed at my chest with the other.

I lost her mouth, and when I tried to capture it again, she twisted her head away.

I persisted, cupping her jaw to bring her lips back to mine, but the angry tears in her eyes stopped me from kissing her. “What?”

“You have to ask? We’re temporary. You’re going to disappear, remember? So why start something that will make it hard for us to leave each other?”

Leave each other? The possessive beast inside me reared its ugly head. Seeing Bianca in the midst of all the ugliness in my world sealed her fate. I was never letting her go. She’d had her chance. I kept my obsession with her at bay, but now it was too late for her. “You’re mine.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What are you playing at?”

Slowly, I eased my body from hers, letting her slide down the wall.

“I’m tired of fighting it, baby.”

She bit her bottom lip, and I groaned. “No. Don’t do that.”

She released her pouty lips, but suspicion etched her entire face. Fair enough. I hadn’t convinced her of my commitment, which was still new to me, anyway. If groveling was what she wanted for all the shit I put her through, I would slog through it. But at the end of it all, Bianca was mine.

“You know I don’t trust those words out of your mouth, right?”

I gave her a brief nod. “I just have to prove it.”

“Just yesterday, you told me you’re faking your death to set me free.”

“I want to find another way.”

Her brows rose, but before she could say anything, yelling from downstairs broke our moment.

She let out a resigned, if not irritated, sigh. “Your timing sucks, Alessandro Rossi.”

I dragged a hand down my face and emitted a pained chuckle. “Yeah, well, we better head back down there.”

“We better. I don’t want them thinking we went away for a quickie.”

“Come on. Before I change my mind and do just that.”

Blood had rushed to my groin, but I was thankful the jacket of my suit hid my erection. I clasped her hand and tugged her out the door.

We ran into Divina.

“Tommy sent me to get you.” The high color of her cheeks belied the relief in her eyes. It was as if she knew what we were doing.

“Don’t worry, Sandro didn’t ask for a blow job.”

Jesus.

Divina’s gaze flew to mine, and I gave a shake of my head. “Baby, you’re ruining my reputation.”

“Verdict’s out on that,” Bianca quipped.

“Hey.” I stopped walking and turned her to me. “I grit my teeth hard enough when men think of you in that way. So before I get a grip how this”—I pointed between us. And this meant my possessiveness—“is going to go, please have mercy on the man that would look at you the wrong way.”

“You’re serious?” There was an awestruck expression on her face.

I gave her a brief nod. I knew I had a big problem on my hands with the way I reacted to Miller. And tonight, when we were surrounded by the family, I had the urge to put a bullet through every single one of them who looked at Bianca in a disrespectful way. More than a few men leered at her. If they hadn’t backed off when they saw me head off Gian, there would have been a bloodbath. But then Bianca left us to our bullshit and took charge. Except Al decided to run his mouth, and I’d hate to shoot the man who had my back when everyone else ostracized me once Wilma revealed I wasn’t her son.

When we reached the top of the stairs, soldiers were heading for the door.

“I thought my husband was insane when he sent me to get you,” Divina said.

“Does Sloane have all that she needs?” Bianca asked.

“Yes, she’s working on getting the bullet out.”

I barked at one of the soldiers to clean up the blood on the floors.

“Sloane’s here,” the soldier whined.

“Sloane is busy with Al. Clean it up,” I ordered.

“They can use Sloane’s stuff. Let me show them.” Divina hurried down the steps ahead of us.

“And, Divina, don’t do it for them. If they complain, send them to me,” I said.

“No,” Bianca said. “I’ll talk to them.”

Tommy and Gian met us at the bottom of the steps.

There was a smirk on Gian’s face.

“Seems your wife is more important than debriefing your men,” Gian said.

“She is,” I returned evenly. I looked past him at the soldiers converging around us. “Listen up.” I glanced at Tommy. “Take note.”

When most of the men had gathered, I said, “This meeting with the Albanians didn’t go as planned. It seems they want to get rid of us rather than find another distributor for the drugs in our possession. Gian, Tommy, and I will talk tonight. The rest of you can go home. Good?”

There were mumblings of the affirmative.

“One more thing,” I said. “In this house, if my wife tells you to do something, you do it. No talking back. Got me?”

I smiled inwardly at Gian’s surprised look. There was hushed laughter and a few grumblings, so I added, “Any disrespect to her is a disrespect to me. However, if she asks for a phone or a connection outside the Rossis, that’s a negative.”

There was a louder round of laughter this time.

“You just had to clarify that, didn’t you?” Bianca griped.

I glanced over at her and grinned. She was more amused than angry. “Just fulfilling our deal with the Blind Don, baby.”

“Boss, it’s getting hard to give the De Luccis the runaround,” Arnie Scavo said.

“You’ve been in this business longer than me, Arnie. You can talk outta your ass and people are gonna believe you. Three weeks. Just stay away from De Lucci territory and you’ll be fine.”

“How about your club in Harlem?” Gian asked. “Why is it closed? Griselda’s been bitching that you’re bleeding money, paying temps and full-timers.”

“That’s none of your business, is it, Gian?”

I gave him a flat look. My club laundered money for the Rossis and other crime families, but it was at my discretion. I could easily shut him out, but since I was the boss, it would be more complication than it was worth just to spite him.

“Just saying,” he muttered. “You may want to give Griselda a call.”

Bianca muttered something I didn’t catch.

As for Gian, he was purposely causing problems between me and Bianca. I glanced at her. She had gone to Divina, who was looking pale.

“You guys can go.” I walked toward the study. “Gian, Tommy. Office now.”

“Al’s still in there with Sloane.” Tommy strode alongside me.

“That’s fine.”

I caught Bianca in the corner of my eye, but she wasn’t paying attention to me. She was talking to Divina. I tipped my chin at Sticks and he nodded in return to keep an eye on the girls.

The second Tommy, Gian, and I entered the office, I slammed the door and had Gian up against it.

“Sandro, what the f⁠—”

His eyes bulged when I pressed my forearm against his throat. He started choking, face turning purple. Tommy lunged toward us and put a restraining hand on my arm.

“Easy, Sandro,” Tommy warned.

“You try to cause trouble between me and my wife again, I’m putting you in an early grave,” I told him. I stepped back and let him go.

Gian wheezed, bent over, and clutched his knees. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” He was having trouble getting the words out. “Griselda is being a pain in my ass because you ditched her to marry a De Lucci. Might want to try to calm that bitch down.”

“Hey, that’s my sister you’re talking about,” Tommy snapped.

Griselda could be a bitch, but guilt tweaked at the center of my chest. I wished she wasn’t a Scavo so I could send her away.

“You shouldn’t have faked being the father of her baby,” Gian told me. “We had a good thing going with the Philly mob.”

“We want nothing to do with the Philly mob,” Tommy told him and I let him take the lead.

“No? Or should we discuss how Rossis should stop faking pregnancies?” Gian made a jab against my parents.

“Enough!” I growled.

“Guys,” Sloane piped in behind us. “I’m still here. If you’re going to discuss mob family secrets, I’d rather not hear it.”

I walked over to the couch where they’d transferred Al. “How is he?”

“He’s fine. The bullet lodged itself near the bone but I was able to extract it. No artery.” She blew out a breath. “Same with the one in his arm.”

“Thank you,” I told her. “Send Divina the bill and she’ll take care of it.”

Al groaned on the couch. “I want my bed and a warm body. Take me to my goomah, Tommy.”

“What? You don’t want Griselda taking care of you?”

“She’s going to drive me to an early grave with her nagging.” Al opened one eye. “She’s pissed at Sandro, and a pissed Griselda is not a picnic to be around.”

“Neither is a grouchy Al,” Tommy teased.

“Hey, show some respect, pup.”

When Sloane left the room, I said, “So what are we doing about your Albanian friends, Gian?”

“Got a text from them. They said it was a misunderstanding. They expected to see me, and not you. Thought you were there to whack a boss.”

“You serious? Didn’t you communicate that you’re no longer in charge?”

Gian scratched his chin. “They don’t like last-minute changes.”

“I don’t want that pallet of cocaine sitting in our warehouse. I want that out.”

“This has nothing to do with the change of plans,” Tommy said. “They don’t want to take it back because they’re going to lose money.”

“We’ll just have to sell them direct to dealers,” Gian said.

“That’s even worse than handing them off to the Albanians,” I said.

“Then you’ll have no choice but to eat the cost. We can dump it in the ocean, but if you ask me, that’s money we’d lose and we can’t afford it,” Gian said smugly. My cousin was up to his passive-aggressive attitude. Outwardly, he seemed to be all about the good of the family, but inwardly he was seething. However, he was strategic. There would always be doubts about him being the next boss unless I failed spectacularly, then no one would question if Gian took over. That was why he stepped aside without so much as a glare and a grumble.

“There’s always a choice,” I told them. I looked at Tommy. He wasn’t sure what I meant either, because we were out of options. I hated keeping my backup plan from him because I was going outside our crime family.