I haven’t had sex in two days and I am absolutely craving connection from my loves. Using your hand is definitely not the same, especially when I have multiple lovers who could help, but refuse to, so as not to pop one of my stitches. I love that they care so much about me, but fuck, can’t a guy get some action? I don’t blame them, but I need to heal faster.
We need to regroup and end Andrei before he goes too far.
“Alright, let’s call him. Let me get my phone,” Dario announces, reaching for the nightstand and grabbing his phone. I climb off the bed, grab my phone from the nightstand on my side, and sit beside Dario.
He redials Marcello’s number and he immediately picks up. “Considering we just got off the phone with each other, this must be important,” he quips.
“I told Niccolo about Nash and your girlfriend. He mentioned he and Maeve found some shit out about the other member of your relationship, Zamir,” Dario declares.
I grab Dario’s phone as Marcello replies, “Zamir, huh? I’ve had my suspicions. What do you have on him?”
“Well, not specifically on him, but on his family. We learned a week ago that Andrei Sokolov had broken the alliance by tainting Dario’s product and involving himself in the skin trade with the Albanians. I don’t know if Zamir is in touch with his family, but I just wanted you to know to be on the lookout. We already eliminated Andrei’s sons, so he’s going to be out for blood. And if he’s involved with the Albanians, he might be keeping your girlfriend and Nash in one of his safe houses to appease the Albanians.” Marcello groans on the other side of the line, frustrated by the news that he has his work is cut out for him even more than he thought.
“Fanculo. Grazie per avermelo detto. Do you know the locations of his safe houses?” Marcello asks.
“Yes, Maeve sent them over via encrypted chat. I’ll ask October to send it to Noah in case we are under surveillance. We need to be careful. Andrei’s out for blood and we don’t need to give him any more ammunition that will cause a bigger war.Ciao, amico,” I state.
“Grazie. I’ll let you know when we find them or if we need your help.Ciao, amico.” He ends the call and we’re left reeling at the possibilitythat Willow might not see her brother again if Andrei and the Albanians are involved.
“Text Willow to come to our room so we can talk,” Dario remarks, getting up from the bed and putting on some clothes. I quickly do the same, then text Willow to join us.
A minute later, Willow comes barging into the room with a first aid kit in tow. “What’s wrong? Did something happen to your stitches? Did you and Dario have sex and you popped a stitch?”
Dario and I chuckle for a second, but then I grab her hands and sit her down as Dario and I stand. Fuck, I wish that had happened instead of what we have to tell her, because this is going to be so much worse.
“No,Mama. He’s fine. We got a call earlier from one of our friends in Vegas. It turns out your brother has a girlfriend, who’s also dating our friend and another of your brother’s teammates,” Dario starts.
“Aww, so my brother finally found some love and a relationship like mine, too.” She smirks.
“Yeah, but unfortunately, that’s not what we wanted to tell you,amorina. Our friend told us that…um. Your brother and his girlfriendwere kidnapped last night. Our friend is the head of the Italian mafia in Vegas, so he has resources and he’ll find them. If he needs any help, we’ll be there to help him. Anything to find your brother and his girlfriend, okay?” I reassure her, rubbing my hands up and down her arms.
“Wh-what? Why? Who would do this? What happened?” she mutters, her eyes pooling with tears.
“We don’t know all the details, baby. He’s still trying to figure everything out, but he wanted you to know immediately. He thinks he knows who it is and we gave him some information that could help him. We are in touch with him, so if anything happens, he’ll let us know, okay?” Dario declares, sitting beside Willow.
“Thank you for telling me. I think I need some time alone to gather my thoughts. I appreciate y’all for telling me,” she whispers, rising from the bed and heading to the door.
I grab her arm and bring her into my arms as Dario joins us, kissing the top of her head. Her body shakes violently as she silently withholds her emotions, trying to be strong and keep it together.
“We’re here for you,Mama. Whatever you need, just ask, okay?” Dario declares as Willow nods. We let go of our embrace and open the door for her as she walks out, heading to the kitchen.
Fuck, we really need to end this war and find her brother, because I hate seeing her like that. Her usual bubbly self was immediately gone as soon as we told her. I just know she’s going to cry and shut down. I just hope if she doesn’t feel as comfortable doing that in front of us, she will go to Sonny. After all, he knows her brother better than we do. Hopefully, he can help Willow deal with this situation.
Feel For Me by Foy Vance
Wednesday 10 a.m.
It’sbeen chaos on a semi-lockdown protocol here at Dario’s ranch, but it’s time to get back to the real world. I’ve been getting calls from work and I feel like I’ve reached a decision. I’m going to hand off my cases to the assistant district attorney and finally let go of who my father wanted me to be.
I want to do something more meaningful in my life and I think I’ve found out what that is. Dario insisted that Willow and I don’t have to work, but if we do, we should do something we love, not because we need money or it’s expected of us. So, after this transition, I will be working pro bono for those needing a lawyer, but don’t have the means for it. It’s time I do something I love.
My phone buzzes beside me, waking me up from a much-needed nap. Catalina shifts beside me, patting my chest to get up.
“Answer it, baby. You wore me out and I can’t handle the noise right now,” she groans. I chuckle and reach for my phone on the nightstand. Grabbing it, I get up from Catalina’s bed and head to the living room in my boxers.
I see the caller ID, and surprisingly, it’s my mother. She hasn’t been answering my calls and texts as often, only to tell me she’s fine and ask if I’m okay—very out-of-the-ordinary behavior for my mother. I slide the answer button, and before I even get to put the phone near my ear, I can hear my mother’s cries on the other end.
“Mom, what’s wrong?” I ask, on high alert.
