Page 30 of The Apprentice
“Why?” I asked seriously.
Sloan ignored me for a moment as he leaned forward to lay a gentle kiss on Conall’s lips.
Conall moved toward Sloan, eyelashes fluttering closed as he let out a small moan of appreciation.
Sloan smirked and murmured something to him before he fell back in his chair and concentrated on me again. “Because relations between the Irish and the Italians have always been fragile. Remember what I told you about the war we had with them?”
I nodded. “Grandpa was the one who made peace. He nearly destroyed their empire, and when the Italians, or more specifically, Elio’s father, waved the white flag, Grandpa offered them a deal, and we became allies.”
“Exactly. If we go in there with guns blazing while demanding answers, it’ll get you killed.” He linked his fingers together and rested his elbows on his desk, lips pursed. “I won’t have that.”
My chest ached. It wasn’t often Sloan showed emotion toward me, but when he did, I drank in every second of his concern. After my father’s funeral, I’d felt lost. I’d swum in a sea of doubt and confusion and begun acting out at an early age. I had no father anymore. My mom couldn’t handle me, so she reached out to Sloan. I didn’t know what kind of agreement they’d come up with, but shortly after my father’s death, Sloan took me in and became my legal guardian. That was the last time my mom tried to be my parent.
While Sloan was very much a father figure, it wasn’t often that he showed me how proud he was or that he truly cared. He was a hard man. He showed more emotion to his pet than me.
“So, what do you want to do?” I asked.
Sloan sat back in his seat again and stared at me with a narrowed gaze. The scar across his left eye was more prominent today, and I thought it was because Sloan had been frowning a lot lately. The continued uprising of our enemies had plagued my uncle’s mind. Everything seemed to be happening at once.
“We let this die down for a few weeks. If the Italians know we visited their cop, they’ll be expecting us to show up immediately. When things have cooled down, you and Daire will go to Elio under the guise of a friendly visit.”
I frowned. “Is a few weeks long enough?”
“Yes.” Sloan tapped his finger on the desk in thought. “You’ll offer to help them rebuild the businesses that the Giordanos destroyed.”
“Elio is still pissed at us for making a deal with the Giordanos.” Conall laid his hand on top of Sloan’s, caressing his thumb across Sloan’s skin to gain his attention, as though he didn’t always have it. The action was enough to make me want to roll my eyes. “Do you think he’ll accept Fionn and Daire’s visit with open arms?”
“He’ll have no choice,” Sloan grunted out. He raised Conall’s hand to his mouth and laid a kiss on the palm, and I couldn’t look away. As much as I sought to despise Conall, I cravedthatkind of intimacy. I wanted to be adored like Sloan did his pet, but only by...Daire. “The boy has a lot to learn, but he knows his place. The Killough Company controls the East Coast.”
“That hasn’t stopped him from asking questions about the Company around the city.” Conall shifted in closer to Sloan, visibly shuddering when Sloan placed a kiss on the pulse point of his wrist. “You need to send a few guards with Fionn and Daire.”
“No,” I snapped before I could stop.
Sloan’s and Conall’s gazes shot to me, and I sat up straighter. I didn’t apologize for talking to Conall that way, even though Sloan would want me to, but I softened my voice, even as a bitter taste lay heavy on my tongue at the thought of giving Conall respect. “We need to show Elio we trust him or this won’t work. If we show up with soldiers, he’ll be suspicious.”
“He’s right, pet,” Sloan murmured, glancing at Conall from the corner of his eye. “We don’t want to appear as though we’re coming into his territory with an army.”
Conall frowned. “You show up in places with more guards than the couple I suggested. I want him to be protected. Fionnisthe heir to the Company.”
“And Sloan’s nephew.” My jaw tightened. I had the urge to add that point, though, it clearly didn’t mean anything to Conall. I was more than the future of the mob, I was also related to Sloan by blood. Iwasa Killough. “I can take care of myself.”
“Enough.” Sloan cut a hand through the air, and I swallowed down the anger that had lodged in my throat. “My pet is worried about you, nephew. He cares about your well-being, and you should be thankful.”
Bullshit. He was undermining me, but Sloan was too blind to see it. Conall hated me, like everyone else in this company.
Sloan’s attention moved back to Conall. “Pet, Fionn is right. There are certain situations where soldiers will do more harm than good. But we can compromise.”
“How?” I asked, surprised.
“You’ll take Mancini with you.”
My nose scrunched. “The hit man that Ardan’s fucking?”
I suspected it was more than sex with them by now. They hadn’t outright come out as being in a relationship, but they didn’t need to, either. It didn’t take a genius to figure out they cared for each other.
Sloan’s mouth twitched in amusement. “Yes. Mancini is Italian, and he’s worked with mobs. He knows what to expect.”
“Uncle—”
