Sweet Temptation

I walked past him. “Elia will wait outside. What we have to discuss is private.”

Luca raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment as he closed the door. According to the rules in our world, this was inappropriate. A married woman wasn’t supposed to be alone with another man, but I’d never bothered with these rules and wasn’t going to start now. Luca motioned me toward the seating area of his suite. I sank down on the white sofa. Luca took a seat in an armchair across from me. He returned his gun to the holster around his chest, but the suspicion remained on his face. “Does Cassio know you’re here?”

I pursed my lips. “No, and I’d appreciate it if it would stay that way.” Luca narrowed his eyes. As my husband, Cassio had a right to know if I met with someone, especially a man, especially the Capo.

“What is it you need to discuss with me that you don’t want your husband to find out?”

He looked down at my belly and my eyes grew wide. “It’s not about this baby,” I said quickly. “It’s about Daniele and Simona.”

I hesitated. Cassio respected Luca. He called him the best Capo the Famiglia had ever had, but trust each other? No. Men like them couldn’t afford to trust many. But Luca was the only one who could silence my parents. I had to risk telling him because otherwise the truth would get out without a doubt.

“What about them?”

“They aren’t Cassio’s.”

Surprise crossed Luca’s face. Then his expression became even harsher. “How would you know?”

“Because Mansueto told me. He did a paternal test after the thing with Andrea and Gaia.”

The moment the words left my mouth, I realized my mistake. Luca didn’t know. Every muscle in his body became taught as he leaned forward. “The thing with Gaia and Andrea?”

I blinked. Cassio had never told Luca what happened? I thought Luca knew about Gaia’s death and why she’d killed herself.

“Giulia.” The word cut through me like a blade.

I looked away. It was too late to lie. But what would the truth mean for Cassio? I swallowed. “Gaia had an affair with her half-brother, and Cassio found out. Mansueto suspected Andrea was the father and the test confirmed his suspicions.”

“And now you’re here because you want your son to become Cassio’s rightful heir instead of Daniele.”

“No,” I whispered, horrified. “I don’t want Cassio to find out. I don’t want anyone to find out, which is why I’m here. I’m asking you to force my parents into silence. They know and they’re eager to spread the news.”

Luca regarded me, and some of the brutality slipped away. “You don’t want your son to become Underboss.”

“Daniele is my son too.”

Luca stared off to the side for a couple of heartbeats. “Keeping this kind of news a secret is difficult.”

“Nobody knows except for my parents, my brother, and Mansueto. Mansueto won’t tell anyone because he fears Cassio’s reaction, but my parents will. My father is terrified of you. If you talk to him, he’ll keep his silence.”

A dark smile curled his lips. “You want me to threaten your parents?”

“It’s enough if you threaten my father. My mother will do as he says. She’s obedient.”

“A trait you didn’t inherit, obviously.”

I flushed, unsure if it was praise or not. “I do what I think is right.”

Luca stood, towering over me. “Your husband told me he killed Andrea because he was a rat. Now I find out he killed the man who fucked his wife. Cassio lied to me about one of my soldiers. I need to talk to him.”

The ground opened up under me as I realized what it meant. Cassio had lied to his Capo. That could be construed as betrayal.

I stumbled to my feet and staggered toward Luca, grabbing his arm. I didn’t care if his expression brought grown men to their knees, if he was one of the most feared men in the States, only rivaled in his cruelness by the monsters in Vegas. Luca wouldn’t kill his pregnant cousin, but he might kill the father of an unborn child. “He was broken up over Gaia, out of his mind from pain and anger. He didn’t know what he was doing.”

Luca’s expression didn’t change. Maybe my words only made things worse? If Luca thought Cassio acted on impulse, spurred on by his emotions, he might remove him even faster.

Bile traveled up my throat. “Andrea might have been a rat anyway. I don’t know.”

Luca pulled his arm out of my grip. “I’ll talk to Cassio and he’ll explain everything to me.”

I stared up at him. “You won’t kill the father of my unborn baby.” It was meant as a question but somehow it came out as a threat, and for a moment I wanted to laugh at the insanity of the situation.