Page 216 of Sinfully Savage Mafia

“Did anyone give the approval to take over those clubs? Do we know anything about their operations and associates?”

“I checked out their operations. They look solid. Trust me, I got a good deal for us. It’ll make a shit ton of cash.

“At what cost, Sergio?” Alek grunts. “Matteo is your representative. He’s supposed to bring decisions like this to the group.”

“He didn’t think I could make the deal in the first place.”

“But you did.”

I yank my eyes away from his icy blue stare. “Not the first time I tried, but when I realized what they needed and how I could help, I knew we could land it. And we just did.”

“How’d you get them to change their minds? How’d you know about their issue with the cartel?”

“I, uh, kidnapped the girl.” Heat creeps up the sides of my neck because even as I say it, I know it’s grounds for Alek hitting me over the head with that glass jug of vodka.

His eyes darken and he takes another gulp of his drink. “I assume Matteo doesn’t know about that, either.” He claps an enormous hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “You know what, Sergio? I could put a bullet in your brain right here and now for opening us all up to your own personal shit.”

“I really don’t want you to do that,” I say. “I made some pretty stupid decisions over the past week, but I can fix everything. If you kill me now, I can’t take care of the problems I caused.”

He gives a swift nod. “You know, the static between you and Matteo…I’ve had the same thing with my own brothers. They were a lot like you, making stupid choices that didn’t get us very far, but caused a lot of headaches. Most of the time, it was because they were rebelling against me. They either didn’t like my plans, thought they could direct family business better, or they just didn’t appreciate my not-so-subtle way of telling them that they’re fucking morons when they screwed up.” He shrugs. “It’s not easy being the boss.”

I scrub a hand down the front of my face. “This isn’t on him. It’s all on me and I’ll accept the consequences.”

“That’s not how this works, Sergio. It’s like I said before, one person’s decisions impact all of us and our interests.”

“I’m going to fix this,” I repeat. “Tomorrow. It’ll be handled. I’ll do it by myself. I’ll swallow all the risk.”

“Again, not your call.” He rolls his eyes. “You really aren’t getting the whole syndicate concept, are you?”

“Look, Matteo can be a prick, but he and the others shouldn’t be punished for a bad move on my part.”

Alek stares at me for a long minute. “You want to know what I think you should do?”

“What?”

“Talk to Matteo. Tell him the truth about what you did and why. Level with him.”

“You at least spared my life before,” I grumble. “I don’t think he’d hesitate to shoot me if he knew all of this.”

“Maybe so, but if this syndicate is going to work, it requires each family to be united. That means no more petty bullshit. Christ, if I could reel in my own brothers, I’m sure you can fix things with Matteo.”

“This is feeling a lot like therapy,” I say with a snicker.

“I’m no stranger to family drama. And trust me, it doesn’t stop with my own immediate family. My in-laws, the Marcones, are worse.” He grins. “My wife included.”

I lean into the counter with a deep sigh. All for a goddamned seat at the table with the bosses.

But it’s what I want, so yeah, I’m going after it.

“Talk to Matteo. Take control of this. Own the dumbass moves you made. He’ll respect you for it. Eventually, maybe not tonight.” Another smirk. “Convince him that you made a smart move for the group and I’ll consider backing you up against the cartel. And if you ever think of fucking another woman in my safehouse, I will castrate you.”

“Thanks, Alek.” I stick out my hand and he pumps it hard.

“Now get the hell out of here. I’ve got work to do, and the images of you two are giving me a brain bleed. I don’t want to accidentally see or hear anything else out of you tonight, got it?”

A knock from inside of the room sounds and Jaelyn’s voice floats out into the hallway. “Is it safe to come out now?”

“Yeah,” I say.

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