Boss (Chianti Kisses #2) Read Free Page B

me.
    I’m about to prove them wrong.
    I take a deep breath and pinch the bridge of my nose. V says I always do that when I’m stressed.
    “For now, let’s use whoever we got. I’ll make some more permanent arrangements later today. I don’t want men spread thin, leaving an ounce of opportunity.” My mind runs a mile a minute, knowing what arrangements I must make, and knowing that V is going to rage like hell when she finds out exactly what they entail.
    Jim straightens his exhausted frame, and pulls on his wrinkled uniform. “I volunteer for the first shift, Mr. D.”
    I attempt to smile, thanking my long-term head of security. “Thanks Jim. But, you look like I feel right now. Go home to your wife, get some rest. I’m gonna need to rely on you the next couple of days. Send Bobby up here for the day. I have something in mind for tomorrow and I’ll need all your men at your disposal from then on out.
    Jim’s been with me a long time, having seen a lot in his time before he retired from the NYPD. I can tell he gets the scope of what is starting to brew around here, and he knows how indispensable he’ll be in what’s to come, so he reluctantly follows my advice and leaves to return to his own home.
    The phone call I’m about tO make is one I’d never thought I’d have to. The alliances and associations are old ones. Ones I’d never thought I’d have to revive. But, I know that the call will not be without cost.
    And so I think hard and long about making it. I won’t be able to take it back. It’ll undermine almost every promise I’ve made to V. It’ll undermine everything I swore to myself. I saw firsthand what these connections did to my father, to V’s father.
    Maybe it’s not worth it. Maybe the cost is too high.
    I stare at the image on the screen… my wife. My life.
    No matter the cost, she’s worth it. Her safety is the only thing that matters now.
    And so I make the call.
     
    ~*~
     
    “Well! This is something I could get used to,” V declares as she saunters in to join me in the kitchen.
    I’m not a cook by any means, but with breakfast being one of the easier meals to prepare, I managed to hold my own. I mean… it’s pretty hard to screw up French toast. Add a little fruit salad on the side and some crispy turkey bacon and I’m practically a four-star chef.
    I balance the hot pan in one hand while scooping out the last slice of golden brown deliciousness onto a platter before discarding the skillet into the sink.
    “Yeah?” I ask cockily. “It’s all in the genes, baby. Natural-born master chef.” I wink while passing her a healthy-sized plate with extra crispy bacon just like she loves.
    Her hair is perfectly mussed up, cascading over the shoulders of one of my white button-down business shirts. A pair of neon pink fleece pajama pants with writing across her ass, clashes harshly, but adds to her laid-back beauty. She can slip into a lace teddy or a pair of footed pajamas and this woman would still be as sexy to me as she is in this moment.
    She eyes her food appreciatively. “Not bad. I think I might keep you around a bit.” She smile as she pours on some syrup and slinks onto a breakfast stool.
    “On that note,” I begin my sales pitch, matching her bite for bite. “There’s gonna be someone else I hope you might not mind keeping around.”
    The muscles around her mouth freeze, mid-chew. “Okay… and exactly who is this person that I may or may not mind keeping around?”
    I wash down that last bit of French toast with s stream of too-hot coffee.
    “Do you remember little Carmine Alberti? Mario’s nephew from Calabria? He used to come spend summers when he was younger, and work in the restaurant.”
    Holding my warm mug, I watch as her mind slips back to long ago. It might have been a stretch to call him “little Carmine.” Even though he’s much younger than me, he’s only a couple of years old than V herself. 
    “Was he the really cute one that pretended he