Page 15 of Ruin
Matti, Vin, and I share a glance. None of us understand what is happening right now.
“No, you’re right. My Tommaso is not a good match for our Giovanna. But perhaps if you can find the time to manage Luminous & Co, Antonio can keep her entertained instead.”
WHAT THE FUCK?
I can barely see straight as my mind somersaults, trying tofigure out what the fuck is happening and why.
Matti and Vin move closer to me, ready to back me up if I make a move. Tony and I stare each other down, his face impassive as he shifts, ready to react as needed. My hand twitches toward my knife.
“We are agreed then, no?” Aurelio leans forward, pressing his palms on the desk and heaves himself to his feet.
“I don’t take well to threats.” Shaking with rage, Lorenzo can barely get the words out.
“No, no. You misunderstand. These are not threats. We are only discussing our children’s futures.” Aurelio drops the pretense of a smile. “Come, Lorenzo. Come with me. Let’s walk. If we do not have an agreement when we reach the plane, well, then we will have to come up with an alternate—”
“I’ll do it,” Lorenzo snarls. He stands suddenly, his chair tipping over and crashing to the ground. None of us moves as he pushes past me on his way out the door.
My blood pressure spikes again. Aurelio brought me here as a warning. But if these fuckers think their deals are going to keep me from Giovanna, they are sadly fucking mistaken.
Aurelio looks between me and Tony, taking in the tension between us, and chuckles to himself, a dry, evil sound, as he leaves the room.
My brothers and I stare down Tony. None of us move.
6
Tommy
No one speaks at first. The silence is thick, pressing against my eardrums. I count the seconds—four, five, six—before Tony finally breaks it.
“This wasn’t me,” he says finally.
I scoff, thumb flicking over the handle of my knife in my pocket. “Convenient. And immaterial.”
His brows snap together. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“It means,” I say, leaning forward a fraction, “that nobody tells me a fucking thing when it comes to Giovanna. Not my father. Not her father. And definitely not you.”
His jaw works as he shakes his head. “That’s where you’re wrong.”
Heat spikes in my chest, rage bubbling into a dull roar in my ears. I calculate the angles, the distance between us, the time it would take me to cross it. “You think because you fucked her, she’s yours? You’ll need to do a hell of a lot more than that.”
His lips peel back in a snarl. “You don’t fucking make therules here, Tommy—”
Before he can get the sentence out, I’m across the room, knife drawn, as I slam him against the wall. My forearm presses across his chest, my blade grazing the underside of his jaw.
“Are you saying you are?” I hiss.
Tony grips my hoodie in both fists, refusing to shrink. “I’m sayingsheis.”
I blink but don’t back down. Did she tell him she’s with him now?
I can’t read his face. His eyes are steady, his chin lifted like he’s daring me to cut him. I press harder, dragging the broadside of the knife up the column of his neck, watching for a tell. “The fuck does that mean?”
He doesn’t look away, his voice low and certain. “It means I’m in love with her, man.”
My pulse kicks hard, then harder. Love? I study the lines of his face, cataloging: steady breathing, pupils not dilated, no twitch in his jaw. Not lying.
And I hate him for it.
