For Luca (Chicago Syndicate Book 2) (27 page)

Although my friends all help me, without Sylvia, I wouldn’t have ever gotten some sort of hold on my own life. She ensures I don’t become this aggrieved person and helps me quell the bitterness boiling inside; however, this doesn’t last for long.

As the police continue to do nothing, the fury slowly starts to resurface, and my way of thinking starts to change. How good and bad might not exist as I think. Cops are dismissing me and my parents’ case while a Mafia man has offered to help me.

It infuriates me that when Collopy died, they had a suspect – a wrong suspect, me – within a day and were on top of that case because she was one of them, even though she was a crooked cop! While the case regarding my parents, two innocent people who were murdered, is just thrown onto some pile. Apparently, unless you are a cop, you don’t count.

Salvatore still keeps me updated, but there’s not much to keep me updated on because the police handle this case like it’s not important, like they don’t care. The evidence isn’t conclusive enough to label it a burglary, but they haven’t made any effort to solve the case or found any leads as to whom the murderer is, even though I’m sure the killer is Ashton. Not once has Ashton or any other possible suspect’s name come up. And not once has Luca mentioned his offer to help me again – so far he hasn’t interfered with the investigation.

While I’m changing and evolving in those weeks after their death, the resentment grows inside of me. The disappointment at the world and at myself. And then comes the slow acceptance of how I want justice for my parents, justice the regular system might not provide. I’m tired of always looking over my shoulder because Ashton, the man who raped me and killed my parents, is still out there. 

I tighten the belt on my red wool trench coat when the freezing wind blows through my legs as I stand before my parents’ graves. It’s January first of the New Year, and the marble headstones are dusted with a light layer of snow.

As I deal with my grief, a sensation resembling revulsion and malevolence builds up. It’s a need for retaliation, for payback. Although I realize payback won’t bring them back, I ache for retribution while the police continue to let me down.

CHAPTER 25

Luca

I unlock the door of her apartment with the key I had made right after she changed her locks weeks ago. I knew exactly when she had them changed, and one of my soldiers was ordered to get me a copy of the new key. Fallon also knew I had a copy because that’s why she made a remark of how resourceful I can be. And since that night, I’ve been using the key I had in my possession; she never asked a question about it.

We spent Christmas and New Year’s Eve quietly at her apartment. Teagan went back to London after Christmas, and Fallon really misses her, so I try to spend as much time with her as possible, even though I have no idea where we stand.

It’s becoming more difficult every day for me to hide how much I want her physically. Damn, I want her bad. We shower together when I spend the night with her, and I need to relieve myself after our shower every time. If this goes on much longer, I might pound her in her sleep. I try to focus and put her well-being first by showing her that I’m much more than just the underboss of the Chicago Syndicate, and it’s working. She’s slowly letting me back in, but I’m still on guard with her, as she is with me. The betrayal and deceit we both placed on each other aren’t easily forgotten.

Almost a year has passed since she bumped into me that night in the club, and I’m pretty much in a similar place. James doesn’t know that she’s taking up most of my time because Adriano is working double shifts to make up for my lost hours. My best friend is the only person I trust indisputably, and he has done everything to give me more free time because he sees how much I still love her.

I’m using every Syndicate resource I have at my disposal to capture Ashton, but he always manages to stay a step ahead of us, and we don’t know how he’s doing it. Every time Henry follows a trail or when Fat Sal has a lead on where Ashton has been spotted, he’s always gone by the time we get there. Sal is currently investigating all of his club members because, chances are, there is another leak in his organization.

James isn’t happy with the way I use our resources, but he and I have grown apart to the point where we only speak over the phone and quickly discuss business. Adriano and I still don’t know what James was doing at Club 7 when we caught him walking out of the front entrance, but we’re keeping that information to ourselves a little longer. James is definitely up to something. Something that he’s keeping a secret from his underboss, me, and
Capo
, Adriano.

As I close the front door behind me, I’m pleased that she’s sitting on the floor and watching her favorite series about witches. A series with visuals that originated at the beginning of the previous decade if you ask me, and I enjoy teasing her about it. “I see you’re engrossed in your show with
King Kong
1930s special effects again.”

Her eyes are trained on the screen. “It’s not that bad.
And
– for your information – one of the characters reminds me of you, so you could be a little more grateful for this awesome show,” she replies sarcastically while waving me off.

I just laugh as I watch her. She wanted to visit her parents’ grave alone this morning, on the first day of the new year, and I was afraid it would depress her to go alone, but she seems relaxed, settled back against the sofa with a cup of tea in her hand.

Her flawless face lights with a smile from ear to ear when she finally does look at me after the scene ends. “You’re back soon.”

Non riesco a stare lontano da te
. I can’t stay away from you.

I’m in awe of how strong she actually is. She’s fighting so hard not to get lost in her grief. Most people drown themselves in sorrow, but not her. She continues on, and I definitely underestimated her strength and perseverance. I used to think that she could never survive a life with a man like me in my ruthless world, but I didn’t give her enough credit. She’s a fighter, like me, and I will do anything to keep her with me because there’s no way I will lose her again; that’s not an option for me. She’s been locked in my mind, body, and soul since I first laid eyes on her beautiful heart-shaped face. A familiar throbbing below pushes me to have her, to own her, to make her mine again. She belongs to me, but the need to mark her is painfully profound.

My disappointment with her lies vanished entirely within these two weeks after she drew me back into her life. It’s also partly due to my enormous guilt over ignoring her phone calls when she needed me most. I ignored her for hours while she was alone in that house with the dead bodies of her parents. 

I believe we’ve both been hurt enough by each other’s lies and disloyalty. And since I could never let myself forget her, I’m done trying. Now my new goal is to open her eyes as well because I can tell she wants me just as much as I want her. I can see it in the way her eyes rake over my body. How her breathing grows shallow when I skim my fingers over her naked, soft skin as we lie in bed, but there’s something holding her back.

However, breaking down her barriers is not my only concern. After I’ve officially made her mine again, I still need to figure out how to keep her safe from the Syndicate, how to keep
us
safe from the Syndicate. Without James backing me, I’m not positive I can keep her safe.

“Luca!” she shouts while I’m lost in my thoughts. “Where did you go?”

“Nowhere. Come, let’s go shower.” I hold out my hand as the allure of her sparkling eyes holds me captive. Showering has become my new favorite past-time. Showering with Fallon of course.

“I don’t want to shower now.” But she still places her small hand in mine.

I tug her up and pull her flush against me, burying my nose in her sweet-smelling locks. “Then just keep me company in the bathroom.” And I trace the tip of my nose over her throat, up her chin.

I’m such a pussy when it comes to her because I just want her close to me. All. The. Fucking. Time. I’m an addict who’s missed his fix for too long.

She looks at me through her eyelashes and sighs as I brush our noses together ever so softly, making the hairs on my neck rise in anticipation. I graze my lips over hers while her arms hook around my waist, and I grin when she almost imperceptibly grinds against me, so I push my leg between hers and wind both hands in her hair, tilting her head back as her eyes fall shut.

“Don’t close them,” I order with a groan.

She stares at me with half-lidded eyes as I press my mouth to the corner of her lips then ghost over them to kiss the other corner. She starts to rub herself on my thigh, and I fist her hair harshly, making her gasp through her lazy smile.

“Tell me you want me,” I say tenderly, but she’s quiet as she pushes her breasts against my chest. I can feel the tips of her hardening nipples through my dress shirt, and I crush our mouths together.

Her nails dig into my back, and I plunge my tongue inside, tasting and licking every part of her warm, sweet mouth. I smirk when I taste sugar or some kind of cake icing. She loves to eat cake while watching her favorite TV show. Another low groan escapes as one hand travels down her back, over the curve of her ass, and I palm her cheek to press her against my growing hard-on. Then I pull her bottom lip between my teeth and release it slowly, causing her to moan and arch into me.

“I thought you were going to shower,” she whispers.

I bend down to press a kiss against the swell of her breasts. “Come.”

She follows behind me as I strip my suit on the way to her bathroom where I step out of my boxer briefs and into the shower.

Fallon leans against the sink, touching her kiss swollen lips, and stares at me through the glass doors, so I challenge her and stroke myself twice in my already semi-hard state while I return her lust-filled gaze.

I open the shower door and lean against it with one shoulder as I raise a brow. Is she joining me, or do I have to yank her in?

She and I are completely in tune because she answers my silent question. “No! You’re going to make me wet.”

“I was hoping for that, yes,” I joke and take one step out of the shower to quickly lock my fingers around her wrist, swiveling her around so that her back hits my naked chest and letting my fingers wander down the curves of her body. I drop my hand to her neckline and delve inside her thin lace bra until my grip possessively covers her breast, then I hurriedly pull the shirt over her head and tug her inside the shower.

She shrieks but bows into my touch, and I smile against her ear as I unclasp her bra and pull her sweatpants and panties down together. They fall in a wet heap, and I kick them into the corner of the stall as the steam of the hot water gathers around us.

“Now I have you how I want you: naked and wet.” I tilt her head back, letting the warm water rinse her dark strands of hair as I massage her scalp and press my lips against her exposed throat, grinding my hardening length against her ass.

“Hmmm…that feels so good.” She dreamily closes her eyes.

Bending her over in the shower, I brace her hands against the tiles, coax her legs wider apart, and watch the hot water run down her ass while I palm the softness of her skin.

Her loud, sensual moan almost has me shoving myself into her, but I’m going to tease her first. Let her make the first move for sex because I need to hear her say how much she wants me. I want that wall she has erected around herself to break and shatter as she gives herself to me completely. I want her to desire me just as much as I’ve craved her for so many months, and I can wait. But I do need to relieve myself because seeing her bent over has me almost shooting my load all over her lower back.

Spreading her cheeks open, I groan as I rub my hard-on up and down, making her body arch exquisitely, but I don’t drive into her.

I should get a fucking medal for holding myself back.

“Touch yourself,” I say in a rough tone as I entwine our fingers and tease her relentlessly between her legs. I stroke myself against her ass with my other hand, coming in a few violent spurts as I make sure she also climbs to release, rubbing and circling our intertwined fingers over her center until she bucks against me and screams my name as she rides the tide of pleasure.

Our heavy breathing cuts through the flow of water, and with my arm circled around her waist, I pull her back up to lean against the cold tiles, her hair plastered around her flushed face. We’re both lost in our thoughts as the water cascades over our naked skin.

***

“Update on Ashton?” I ask while rummaging through the papers strewn on my desk at Security Simplicity.

Adriano’s mouth tilts down, and he shakes his head. “No, and I’m starting to believe someone is fucking with us.”

“Fat Sal?” I question.

“What do you think?”

“Not Sal, I think he’s definitely in our corner. Most likely a member of the fight club. Maybe someone with intimate ties to Ashton?” I muse aloud.

“Could be…” He eases back in his chair. “Are you coming with me to the house today?”

“Why are you going?”

“James has another flow of cash we need to pump into Simplicity.”