“Let me go get all your stuff from the porch.”

“No, not right now. I want to stay like this for a bit longer.”

“Sounds good to me,” I say softly, drumming my fingers down to the hem of my t-shirt. “I hated this shirt up until now. Now it’s my favorite.”

She hums into my chest in agreement.

“It is ugly, isn’t it?”

“It was. Now, it’s not only my new favorite, it’s also one I’m very jealous of.”

I stop talking and splay my hand wide across her smooth stomach. I can feel her flesh break out into tiny goose bumps. She sucks in a breath.

“The truth is, if I could be anything right now, baby, I would be this shirt.”

I tilt her head back so we make eye contact.

“You’re crazy,” she smiles weakly.

“Been called worse.”

My eyes never leave hers. She is looking at me right now as if I’m her world. As if I could make all of this disappear. If only I truly could.

When I look down her body, her nipples start to poke out. I know full well I could take advantage and have her beneath me in a matter of minutes, but I won’t. When I have her again, it won’t be just carnal fucking. We can fuck anytime we want. I both need and want to make love to my wife.

“So tell me, why would you be this shirt?” she asks playfully. Her sense of humor is one thing I definitely missed about her.

“It’s resting up against your heart. A heart I hope belongs to me. Or at least, will again.”

A smile slants the corner of her sinfully delicious mouth.

“I told you. You aren’t as much of a badass as you think you are.”

“I’m well known as a hard-ass and a bastard to all of those people out there. I may have pushed you a little too hard when you first got here. Said shit to you I didn’t mean. But I can’t be that with you,” I say solemnly. “Just don’t tell any of them, or you’ll really get that spanking I warned you about. Now, I think you need some time to yourself.”

She doesn’t protest when she gets up on her feet and I follow.

“Go take a shower. I’ll bring you your girly stuff and leave the rest on the bed, okay?”

I slide my hand down to hers, the one where her wedding ring should be. It’s bare. It shouldn’t be. My rings should be there. It pains me knowing I never got the chance to properly put any on her finger.

We married so hastily, so damn tired of everyone trying to keep us apart, especially our fathers.

But what she doesn’t know is that John knew about us the entire time. It would kill her even more if she knew he was the one that told my dad to do whatever the hell he needed to in order to get her away from here.

I hook my fingers through hers and bring them up to my lips, casually kissing each knuckle, lingering a little longer on her ring finger. If she notices, she doesn’t say anything.

I let her go and watch her retreat down the hall.

I’m a fucking sinner. An advocate to organized crime. Even so, each and every one of us would give our lives before we let anything happen to her. When she comes to terms with the situation, she will realize her identity hasn’t changed. She’s still their daughter. My wife. And the cold, hard fact of the matter is, there isn’t a damn thing she can do about it.

***

Both Manny and Bronzer are here while Calla cleans up. As soon as she left the room, I called Priscilla and asked her to bring me up a bottle of Johnny. I needed it after what went down today. Hell, I need about five more bottles of the shit.

“Fuck, man. I don’t even know what the hell I’m supposed to say to her when I see her now,” says Manny, looking distraught.

“Tell her the truth like the rest of us did, fucker. It’s your turn to take her wrath. She’s been through the meat grinder today. You grew up knowing who your family was; she grew up thinking her dad worked for a fucking bank. That every time he would leave for a few days, he was off doing business, when what he was really doing was blowing someone’s brains out. She’ll be glad to have someone to talk to about this. You know her better than most; she’s going to trust you and the things you tell her more than she will trust anyone else.”

He looks like a scared puppy who just got taken away from his mother. Bronzer pats him on the back and slides the bottle over to him.

“Damn, dude. She’s a chick, and on top of that, your cousin. Chill the hell out, you fucking pussy.”

I throw back my last shot and glare at Manny.

“Did you call your father yet?”

“Yup.”

He slams his shot glass on the table.

“And what the hell did he say?”

“He knew already. Cecily called him the minute they left here. He wants to meet her. Said to find a way to get her to New York, and get her there today. You know how he is. When he says do something, you do it. It doesn’t matter if you’re family or not.”

“Do you two realize how fucked up this is? We’ve got some crazy fucking sick bastard out there threatening to kill her. Even one of the world’s best assassins can’t find this sicko. Call him and tell him no. She’s not leaving here until we find Kryder. If he wants to see her, he’ll have to come here himself. Now that we’re back together-”

“Who says we’re back together?”

All three of our heads jolt in surprise when Calla gracefully strolls into the kitchen. She stops dead in her tracks when she sees Manny leaning against the counter.

She’s wearing a plain black tank top that stretches across her breasts, white shorts, and a pair of black flip-flops. Her hair is pulled back in a tight ponytail. Her makeup is flawless. I can smell her natural scent from where I’m standing and my testosterone level rises. All I want to do is kick these two out of here so I can cover her entire body with mine.

She smiles at Manny but doesn’t even look my way. If I didn’t know the two of them were cousins, I would beat his damn ass for her having eyes for only him right now. He stands tall, although he’s not the one to move first; she is. She greets him enthusiastically.

“Hey!”

“Hey...” Manny replies cautiously.

“You look great, Calla,” Bronzer acknowledges before turning to me. “I’m out.”

I push myself off of the counter.

“Hold up, man. I’ll walk out with you. I’ve got some shit to do up in the office. Give you two some time to talk, yeah?” I throw a meaningful look at Manny. “Bring her up to me when you’re done.”

“You got it.”

Calla never says a word. She nods her head, never taking her eyes off of the man she’s considered her friend since he first moved here at the age of sixteen; not by choice, that’s for damn sure. His parents wanted him to get an education. Manny, on the other hand, wanted to dig into the family business, feeling he was old enough to start blowing people’s fucking brains out.

But that’s his story to tell her if he wants to, not mine. I’ve got other things to tend to, like trying to find out who my mole is and getting Calla and I out of here safely.

“You look beautiful,” I whisper in her ear as I pass her by.

I grab my bottle and Bronzer and I casually walk outside. I look down for a moment to grab my phone out of my pocket and run smack dab into none other than Salvatore Diamond himself.

“Hello, Cain,” Salvatore greets me smugly in that way only he can.

I love this man, yet his presence here today is going to drive Calla nuts.

He gives me his usual ‘long-time-no-see’ hug, a medium squeeze with a pat on the back. I return the gesture along with a handshake to Beamer, who stands tall with one hell of a strange smile on his face.

“You know I mean no disrespect, but what the hell are you doing here? You’re going to tip her right over the damn edge, and you know it.”

He looks pleased with my sincerity concerning Calla’s well-being. He knows me, knows better than most people how much I love her and that I won’t ever back down when it comes to her.