I ignore her comment and instead ask, “Where’s little Victor?”
“He’s having a play date with Lia and Lara.” She grins. “Lara pretends that she’s the big sister and bosses him around. He just loves her, though.” The men are discussing a recent business deal that Lee closed when Jade peers around before leaning in and whispering, “Zola still despises me. She gushes all over Lee, but as soon as he turns his head, she narrows those beady eyes of hers at me. I wouldn’t be surprised if she runs her bony finger across her throat one day.”
The other woman walked off at some point while we were greeting each other. I grin despite the usual unease I feel around my sister. “She wasn’t thrilled to see me either, but she lit up like the Fourth of July for Tony.” I wince as I add, “What’s the deal with her makeup? She’s got enough strikes against her without making herself look like a vampire clown. Her eyebrows are double the size they should be.”
Jade snickers. “I’m not a fashion icon by any stretch of the imagination, but even I know that. She’d be better off not to use any.” Jade appears pensive for a moment. “I know it’s wrong to talk about someone this way, and I wouldn’t want to hurt her, but it’s just that she’s so flipping evil. Lee thinks I exaggerate since he rarely catches her being anything but nice.”
“You should stop eating here so often,” I point out. “You realize she’s probably done things to your food that would make you swear off eating.”
Jade runs her hands down her hips as she says, “That wouldn’t be such a bad thing. I could stand to lose some of this.” There’s no real distress in her tone, though. She’s come a long way in the past year. My sister is very much a woman who knows that her husband is insanely in love with her. And she’s blossomed because of it. Since you stopped tearing her down as well. I push that thought aside and study her when she turns her head to answer a question from Lee. She’s beautiful. Regardless of what I told her to the contrary, Jade has always been attractive. Whereas I am tall and bordering on too thin, she is shorter and full of curves. She’s a pinup girl from the days when women weren’t so obsessed with being thin. Men always gave her a second look, but she never knew. Thanks to you.
When Jade turns back to me, I’m tempted to change the subject, but I say, “You’re fine the way you are. If you’re comfortable and happy with yourself, then screw anyone who says differently. There are those who are so unhappy with themselves that they have to insult others to feel good.” I never enjoyed it. I hated myself with every single hateful word I said to you, and I wish I could tell that.
Jade smiles brilliantly, and I see Lee pause as if spellbound by his wife.
Oh, how I want that.
She is oblivious to it, though. She’s so thrilled over the compliment that she’s focused only on me. “Thank you for that. I like who I am now, and you know I haven’t always.” She glances at her hands as she says wistfully, “You and Mom were always so tiny. I felt like a giant in comparison.”
“I’m sorry,” I murmur softly, and she has no idea how many things those words encompass.
“It’s no big deal.” She waves away the apology airily. “It’s not like we have a say in those things. I mean, the build we’re born with. Although I could have certainly done more to improve it,” she says ruefully. She nods her head in Tony’s direction before asking, “I’d ask if you’re here on a date, but his uncle is with you.” Her eyes widen, “Wait, is this a meeting-the-parents moment?”
“Not really. I was at Tony’s place when his uncle called to invite him to lunch, so he asked me to come along.”
When a hand grasps my elbow, I look over my shoulder to find Tony there. “If you’re ready, we’ll take our seats now. I just heard my uncle’s stomach growl.” Marcel laughs ruefully and moves to a table a few feet away. Before we join him, Tony says Lee’s name to stop him from returning to Jade’s side. “We had a problem last night. Come by the club around one tomorrow?”
Lee’s eyes are assessing as he processes Tony’s vague request. But he asks no questions. “Of course.” I get his standard greeting and parting for me, “Jacey.”
“Thanks, brother.” Tony claps him on the shoulder, and we both bid farewell to Jade. Tony pulls out my chair before taking his own. Both he and Marcel order the chicken piccata with a side of pasta, while I settle on the cavatappi in a light cream sauce with fresh vegetables.
“I swear that man is ageless.” Marcel grins as he inclines his head in Lee’s direction. “He looks very different than he did when he was a boy of less than half his age now. Even then, he was a force to be reckoned with.” He takes a drink from his wine glass and points it in Tony’s direction. “Your father was somewhat in awe of him. Said he was a child prodigy and that had he been born into a different life, he’d have been somewhere like Harvard by the time he was ten. I think both Victor and Draco were conflicted about it. They had the means to do something like that for him, yet they wanted him with them.”
We all glance toward Lee and Jade’s table for a moment before turning away. “Lee would have never been happy at an Ivy League school. He would have turned them down if they’d made the offer. Even as young as I was back then, I could see that.”
“He’s like you in a lot of ways, kid. You both walk just outside the family. Close enough to keep your ear to the ground but far enough away to protect your own interests.”
“That’s basically the gist of it,” Tony concurs. “It’s the best I can do. You know that. It’s nothing short of a miracle that I’ve managed to disassociate myself to the degree I have.” He’s looking at me now, and his next words sound like a mixture of warning and apology. “I’ll never be completely free, though.” Nor will I. Being held captive to who we are is the invisible tie that binds us together. I have more of a relationship with Edna and Mel than I do with the man I asked to father my child. Yet the link is there between us. It has been since I opened my eyes that night after passing out in his arms. With everything that happened, I should have been freaking out, but his presence had soothed me. I’d always scoffed at the idea of soul mates and love at first sight, yet the feeling of having known him forever was there. What was left of my soul had recognized him that night and with that had come a type of peace.
I’m pulled from my thoughts by Marcel's question. “Anything new with your side project? Or have you decided to leave it alone as I suggested?”
The waiter arrives with our food, and I’ve already forgotten the unanswered question, but apparently Tony has not. After a few bites, he picks up where the conversation had halted. “Actually, we had an issue last night with Marco.” Tony lowers his voice and briefly summarizes what had happened.
Marcel’s face is a picture of concern as he asks, “And Dr. Atwell believes it to be something other than food poison?”
“She couldn’t say for sure, but she’s going to run some bloodwork, and that should tell us more. I expect to hear from her soon.”
Marcel lays his fork down and puts a hand on Tony’s arm. “Son, you need to back off this. I also want answers, as he was my brother, and for the past twenty years, I’ve been haunted by what happened to him. It never really felt right to me. But I also realize he was from a different world. His normal and mine varied wildly.” Marcel picks up his glass, but instead of taking a drink from it, he simply stares at the liquid as if seeing something we’re not privy too. Finally, he says, “He’d grown overconfident those last years, whereas before he’d always been almost paranoid. In the end, I believe it was his downfall. No man in his position could afford to feel invincible. He and Victor were on top. They were both feared and revered, but they made the mistake of thinking they were untouchable, and it cost them their lives.” He lifts his head to study his nephew intently. “Don’t go down that same path. You are your father’s son and, as such, have been off limits. Yet greed and jealousy are powerful motivators. They will make a smart man do stupid things. In the end, just as the family couldn’t protect your father,
they can’t shield you.”
Tony doesn’t appear to be shaken by his uncle’s dire warning, but I have a lump in my throat the size of a small car. I’m not naïve; I know being a Moretti is dangerous. Yet Tony seems larger than life to me. I see him in a similar light to Marcel’s perception of his brother. Invincible. This reminder that he is anything but scares the hell out of me. I’ve survived so many things, yet losing Tony would break me. Other than my mother and sister, he’s the first person I’ve allowed myself to care about. The only man. As uneasy as it makes me, he sees the Jacey beneath the armor, and no one has ever cared enough to notice that I’m not who everyone perceives me to be. He has no idea. “I can’t stop,” Tony says quietly, but there is a note of finality in his tone. “But rest assured, I won’t let my guard down. Maybe my father was simply careless, and everything is as we’ve always been told. If that’s the case, then I’ll move on. He always told me never to accept anything at face value. To check it twice, then do it again until that weird feeling you get in your gut is gone.”
We finish our meal in silence, each of us lost in our thoughts. Tony’s uncle shoots a look full of concern in his nephew’s direction several times but doesn’t broach the subject again. Lee and Jade left about fifteen minutes earlier, and we exchanged a brief goodbye, but it had done nothing to break the tension filling the air. Marcel pushes his chair back and pats his flat stomach. “I’m stuffed. This place never disappoints, does it?”
Tony finishes off his wine and sets the glass down. “No, it doesn’t. I’m glad you called today. I’ve been meaning to contact you. I won’t let it go so long the next time.”
Marcel smiles at his nephew before looking at me with a raised brow. “So how did you two meet? It seems an odd coincidence.” He doesn’t know? How could he not?
Tony puts a hand on the back of my chair, and even though I know it’s probably for his uncle’s benefit, I still feel pleasure as his fingers graze the nape of my neck. “Through Lee. I’m sure I’ve mentioned attending some of his family events. So, with Jade and Jacey being sisters, she was there of course.”
Marcel nods, then his expression sobers. “I didn’t know your father, and what I do know doesn’t make me think much of him. But I am sorry that you lost your last parent. That couldn’t have been easy.”
I have no idea how to respond. Why hadn’t Tony prepared me for this? I assumed that as close as he was to his uncle he would have told him some version of the truth. Yet I don’t want to blurt out something and contradict Tony’s story. “No. No, it wasn’t.” Well, that much is true. I have no intention of going into the reasons, though. Let him assume it’s simply grief.
I want to drop to my knees in gratitude when Tony pulls his wallet from his pocket and tosses some bills on the table. “I hate to, but I need to deal with a few things before it gets any later.” He turns to me, asking, “Are you ready?” I nod with probably a bit more enthusiasm than necessary, and we get to our feet.
We are waiting for the car to be brought around when Tony’s uncle gives him a hug goodbye, before doing the same to me. Having received so few hugs from a father figure in my life, I want to cling a little longer than is appropriate. I never realized how much human touch comforts. “I look forward to seeing you again, Jacey.” He elbows Tony in the side playfully. “Don’t screw this up, kid.” We both wave goodbye when Marcel gets into his non-descript sedan and drives off.
When Tony’s Range Rover arrives, we both get settled inside, and Tony pulls away from the curb. “You don’t have to say it,” he says dryly. “I know you were put in an awkward spot several times, but if it’s any consolation, you handled it like an ace.”
I roll my eyes. “Gee, thanks. I felt like I was swimming in the ocean with weights tied around my ankles when your uncle brought up my parents at the end. What does he know? We should have had this conversation ahead of time, don’t you think? Or were you going to leave off my last name if he hadn’t recognized me?”
“Truthfully, I didn’t think that far ahead,” he says. “And that’s on me. I don’t normally overlook details, but then again, this is not a situation I’ve ever been in before.”
“What do you mean? I gather you see your uncle on a regular basis.”
“I do, but I was referring to having a woman with me and specifically you. I’ve never brought anyone other than one of the guys to a meal with my uncle. So, this was very much an unprecedented event.” A commitment phobe like most men—shocker. I keep that thought to myself, because I really have no room to talk. Although my reasons probably differ wildly from his. “My uncle assumed that one of the Moretti men handled your father, and I never corrected that assumption. It’s safer for everyone involved that he keeps his distance from the family. He is my uncle, so it’s impossible to disassociate him completely, but he is not privy to most things concerning the daily operations of the Morettis.”
“But he knows about whatever it is that you and Marco are doing? And he’s warning you against it.”
“It’s unfortunate that I had to tell him a bit about it because he is one of the few people with inside information about my father. Most of the family knew him only in a generic sort of way. They might have been related, but he was basically their boss. He only let them see what he wanted them to.”
“The whole thing sounds dangerous,” I say softly as we drive through the downtown district and back to Tony’s club.
He shrugs. “Just existing comes with certain risks for me, Jacey. It is a part of my life, and it’s not likely to get any better. If there is a coverup pertaining to my father’s death, I want to expose the guilty party, which might allow me to rest easier. After all, if someone didn’t like him in power, then they likely don’t like me moving around semi-freely with little oversight. I’m a liability if what I believe is true.” He runs a hand through his hair and snorts. “I shouldn’t be telling you any of this. It’s safer for you to be oblivious. Yet with the link between your father and mine, you’re connected regardless of how little you know. I don’t want to worry you, yet you need to understand why I’m concerned for your safety. If I’m a loose end, then you may very well be. And before you ask, Lee has taken precautions for his family. It would be a very stupid person who laid a hand on a Jacks. The family has always been wary of him. My father and Victor built him up as Satan himself, and that’s why he’s been allowed to live free of them. They want no part of him.”
“Then as a part of his family now by marriage, would that also offer me some protection? I mean, I know I’m not his wife, but I am his sister-in-law.”
Tony pulls up in front of the club and cuts the engine before turning in his seat to face me. “It’s possible,” he answers slowly. “It depends largely on the people involved and how good their information is.”
I glance out the window, not wanting him to see the pain. I consider not responding to his statement at all but think that may be more telling than a reply. So I pull the Duchess from within as I say emotionlessly, “You mean if it’s common knowledge that Lee detests me. If it is, then they might not fear retaliation.”
“That’s correct. You could easily be a warning kill. Someone close to Lee, yet not a direct hit on a Moretti. They might do it to rattle cages. To see what, if anything, happens.” As if he’d sugarcoat his words. He’s straightforward as always.
“You’re saying I could be bait. An attempt to lure you out or scare you into backing off without taking the risk of actually harming the Moretti prince.”
Tony inclines his head in agreement, and we sit quietly for a moment. The sound of an approaching vehicle has us both looking behind us. “That’ll be Marco.”
“Is he feeling well enough to be driving this soon after his…illness?” What else do I call it? I need to learn more mobster lingo.
A grin pulls at the corners of Tony’s mouth as he murmurs, “I won’t go into any details, but apparently, he’s gotten most of everything out of his system.”
I step
to the side and watch as Tony and Marco share the usual hug, then laugh at some shared joke. Probably more of Marco’s tales of woe from the past twenty-four hours. As I study Tony’s handsome profile while he speaks to the man he considers a brother, it hits me that even though Tony was an only child, he has more family than I’ll ever have. Sure, there’s Jade and Victor, but that is nothing like what Tony and Marco share. I don’t know how to have close relationships like others do. I’ve been in an isolation of my own making for so long that it’s physically painful for me to witness the camaraderie of others. It’s not simply that I’m jealous; it’s also that I don’t understand it. Jade wants that with me—it’s there in her eyes every time we’re together—but I can’t. Even as I yearn to experience it, I know in my heart that it’s too late for me. It would never be natural, and it would be yet another role I’m forced to play. You have that with him. There is the link with Tony, but it’s a different kind. And as much as I want to let down my walls and open myself fully to him, am I capable? I’ve been Hunter Wrenn’s daughter too long because I have no idea who Jacey Wrenn is anymore… maybe I never did. Tony motions for me to go inside with him and Marco, and I follow behind them on leaden legs. Maybe it would be a blessing to be the warning kill for some madman. Of all of us, I’m the only truly expendable one.
No one would grieve.
No one would notice the loss.
No one’s life would be altered.
Except mine.
And that would no longer matter.
7
Tony
Marco and I take a seat at the bar in my kitchen area. Normally, we opt for a beer at the very least, but his appetite hasn’t returned to normal, and after the few glasses of wine with my meal earlier, we’re both fine with water. Jacey went to the bedroom earlier and closed the door behind her. Probably to give us privacy as well as to have some of her own. Even though it’s temporary, she’s not used to this type of living arrangement, and neither am I. The two weeks she was here before were the closest I’ve ever come to living with a woman. “You still look kind of rough, brother,” I point out. “You should have let me come to you.”