Page 69 of The DeLuca Crime Family: Vol. 1

Conor tilted his head at me and only moved far enough into my office to lean against the wall by the door, his gaze hard as he looked at Brandon. “Shut the door,” I instructed, not wanting anyone to overhear my plans. I nodded in acknowledgment when Conor did as he was asked. I rounded my desk, sat in the chair, and folded my hands in front of me. I glanced up at Brandon to find him smiling down at me and took strength in knowing he believed in me. It was enough for me to claim Conor’s attention and get down to business.

“Take a seat, Conor.” I waved to the open chair next to where Tommy was seated. When he dropped into it, I realized my childhood friend’s choice of locations wasn’t a coincidence. The positioning was ideal, the desk between me and Conor with Tommy directly next to him, Aiden and Ewan behind him, and Brandon in front of him and slightly to his right. If he made any moves, he’d find himself surrounded.

“There’s going to be some changes around here,” I started. “Some of which I’ve already discussed with Tommy.”

“I’m assumin’ one o’ these changes has ta’ do with why the DeLuca’s enforcer is in the room while we’re discussin’ O’Reilly business?” Conor asked.

“I know we’re in bed with the DeLucas now that you have an alliance with them, but this is taking it a little too far, don’t ya think?” Aiden piped in.

Tommy snickered at Aiden’s turn of phrase, earning himself a glare from me.

“With the way he’s standin’ there, it makes it seem like you want him to be your second-in-command or something crazy like that.”

Tommy’s laughter died at Ewan’s comment, and he returned my glare. “If anyone in this room is going to serve as your second, it should be me.”

“You have nothing to fear from me in that regard, McKinnon. I’m not here as Carly’s second.”

I knew I’d recognize the right moment, and this one was perfect. Rising to my feet, I dug in my pocket and pulled out the ring I’d had made for Brandon. It was amazing what you could accomplish in a short amount of time when you had access to lots of money. “As qualified as he is, Brandon can’t serve as my second because that would imply I don’t see him as my equal. Nothing could be further from the truth considering I’ll be his wife in two days’ time.”

“You’re really planning to marry a DeLuca?” Aiden asked.

Brandon straightened, crossing his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes at Aiden. Unclenching my fist, I dropped the ring I had designed for him onto the desk. “You see this ring? I had it made from the bullet that killed my da.”

Everyone’s eyes were riveted on the brass bullet head with the words Winchester 45 Colt, surrounding an oval diamond in the center. “It’s going on the finger of the manI’vechosen as my husband. He’s not just a DeLuca, he’s the only man I know who would take a bullet for me, without any hesitation. I’d say that’s a huge improvement over the cocksucker my da tried to sell me off to.”

“That may cause problems with our traffickin’ business,” Conor pointed out.

“Not really, considering we aren’t in that business anymore.”

“I’m expected ta follow a woman, one who’s marryin’ a DeLuca,andwe’re dumpin’ a line o’ business that made us a shitload o’ money. Are ya changing everything then?” Conor asked.

“Not quite everything,” I murmured. “But the drugs are going, too. And we’re not going to fight the DeLuca’s for the weapons business anymore. I’m letting Nic take charge of the whole territory.”

Conor didn’t look happy with my answer. “That leaves us with what exactly?”

I rounded the desk, stopping at Brandon’s side when his arm snaked around my waist. “Three of our men are in prison right now, Conor. Ian’s serving hard time on weapons charges. Eric and Colin won’t be out for three more years with the amount of drugs they were caught with. Getting out of those lines of business is a smart move. It keeps my men out of the line of fire with the police.”

“And the trafficking?”

“My own father tried to sell me to another man,” I replied. “And I killed him for it. Do you really think after I did that I was just going to sit idly by and let the same thing or worse happen to other women under my watch?” Conor started to speak, and I held my hand up to let him know I wasn’t done. “Human trafficking is wrong, plain and simple. Once you’ve crossed every line, you don’t even see them anymore. Then you end up willing to do crazy things, like selling off your own flesh and blood. I won’t have it happen again, and the only way to ensure it is to cut the trafficking business out like the cancer it is. Before it touches any other women or girls in our family. Like your granddaughter.”

“Is that a threat?” he growled.

“Never,” I promised. “It’s a reminder of who I’m trying to protect with the decisions I’ve made.”

His eyes narrowed, but I still saw a hint of interest in them. “I’m all for keeping Chloe safe, but how will I keep her healthy and happy if I don’t have enough money coming in? The pubs don’t bring in enough money to support us all.”

“One of the first things a good leader learns is to build on their strengths, and so we’re going to expand our pubs and bootlegging business. Also, we’ve already got a stake in smuggling of jewels and antiquities. We’ll just have to train more people and lucky for us”—I grinned widely—“I’m an excellent thief.”

Chapter Fifteen

BRANDON

When the meeting ended, Carly and I left for home. We were meeting up with Nic and Anna for a pre-wedding night out.

Once we were in the car and on the road, I brought up Carly’s little fib. “Kitten, we both know you didn’t go digging the bullet out of your father’s forehead. Where did it really come from?”

Carly snickered, but when I glanced over at her, she blushed. I wasn’t sure what to make of her reaction.

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