Bulletproof Baby: An Age Gap, Surprise Pregnancy Mafia Romance (Mafia Mysteries)

Mine.

Control.

Conquer.

Succinct thoughts wavering between rage, possession, jealousy, and lust, plow into me like a freight train when I see the images of Lia in another man’s arms. He’s young, shirtless, and staring at her with a light in his eyes that infuriates me.

The people on my teams require my focus and attention, but the idea of Lia moving on so quickly after our weekend disturbs me. It distracts me. Logic wars with the emotions surging inside of me and forces me out of my office.

When my phone rings as I get to my car, I see Armande’s name and instantly second-guess my actions.

‘Val? We have a meeting in ten minutes, and you just bolted out of the office like your house was on fire. What’s up?’

‘Thanks for your quick work on that Bonetti situation. I’m running down an address that Greg sent to me. Handle the meeting on your own.’ I tell him. His laughter makes me want to hang up the phone, but instead, I press him for more information. ‘What’s so funny?’

‘You’re forgetting that I’ve known you for practically our entire lives. I saw the pic Greg sent you since I’m the one who put him on Miss Bonetti’s detail to gather the intel. I can handle the meeting until you get back to the office. Just letting you know that I have everything under control here.’

Armande ends the call as I rage through traffic. My ego and pride push me to drive faster. It feels like an out-of-body experience. I’m watching myself charge down the sidewalks of the Lower East Side toward a discreet door beside a flower shop window. There’s no restraint when I bang on the door. The expression on the young man’s face as he opens the door proves as much.

‘Well, good morning, um, Mr. Barrone. Hi,’ he says, glancing over his shoulder at Lia, who’s sitting on his sofa.

‘What are you doing here?’ Lia hisses the question at me with surprise etching across her face.

‘What are you doing here? Who is this guy? The construction site was broken into last night and your first task of the day is to get laid by this guy?’ I ask her, grasping for any explanation other than the one tearing away at my desire to have her, to own her.

‘Wow,’ Lia chuckles.

‘Wait a minute, Lia.’ The curly-haired guy interjects. ‘The site was broken into last night? You should have led with that before the pastries. What the hell is going on?’

‘What’s going on is Valentino here is making wild accusations. Let me introduce you two. Valentino Barrone, this is Francisco ‘Frankie’ Mirante, my cousin. Frankie, this is Valentino, purchaser of my virginity.’ She levels with her cousin and his face shifts angrily toward me.

‘I paid for your time.’ I remind her.

Her cousin, Frankie, doesn’t care as he charges me, lowering his shoulder to wrap his arm around my torso. The brunt of his shoulder colliding into my gut knocks the wind out of me for a moment, but not for long. My heel slides across the floor to a stop, anchoring me so I can lift Frankie, spin him, and pin him against the wall.

My forearm comes across his throat with Lia shrieking behind us from inside his apartment as I tell him, ‘Calm down. I don’t want to hurt you, but if you keep this up, I’m going to put you to sleep.’

Frankie’s turning red from the pressure I’m applying to his airway, but he still fights. ‘You fucked with the wrong girl.’

He raises his knee, not to my groin, but to the inside of my thigh. It causes my stance to buckle. My leg drops, forcing me to loosen my grip against his throat. Frankie coughs as he gasps for air. Lia comes out to stop us from doing any further damage to each other.

‘Stop it. Both of you.’ Lia demands. ‘Get inside.’

We release each other at the same time, holding our hands up to walk into the apartment. Once the door closes, questions fly at me from both of them.

‘How did you even find me?’ Lia asks.

Frankie tosses another question. ‘What did she mean you paid for her virginity?’

‘In an auction,’ Lia volunteers.

‘I paid for her time. And that was the last time I’ll justify that action. I would have never forced you, Lia.’ I tell her. My gaze shifts back to her cousin, pointing at him as I speak. ‘I thought you were here to see him.’

Lia grumbles. ‘I am. He is my cousin.’

‘I know that now.’ It’s rare for my face to heat from embarrassment, but this entire scenario is exactly what I get. I still try to justify my actions, telling them, ‘Kind of like what you said about Saul not wanting you if you weren’t as precious. It doesn’t make sense because Saul would still want you knowing that I had you first. He’d do it to get under my skin. But being with this guy? Before I knew you were related, he could have been another notch in your belt to stifle Saul’s lust.’

‘Saul, who?’ Frankie asks.

‘Caputo. Frankie, can you give us a moment to talk? Alone?’ Lia pleads with him.

‘This is my apartment,’ Frankie argues back.

‘I promise to tell you as much as I possibly can that won’t put your life in danger,’ she says. ‘Please just give us a few minutes to talk.’

Frankie moves his mouth to say something, but no words come out. Instead, he stomps across the living room, grabbing a hoodie and walks out of the front door.

‘I apologize, Lia.’ The words leave my lips before the door slams shut behind her cousin.

‘Is that all you have to say? Can you tell me how you knew where I was? And what in the hell possessed you to think that Frankie and I would … ? That I would move on? I was a virgin when we met, and you’re the only person I’ve been with. You’re the only guy I want to be with. Well, you used to be. You need to answer my questions, Valentino. Now.’

I take a deep breath. ‘This is why I should have kept my dick in my pants. The auction was an impulse buy. You were an impulse fuck. I gave into what you wanted before truly considering what that would do to me. Once I crave something, someone, I don’t stop until that craving is satisfied, Lia. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of you.’

My phone chimes, pulling me away from the conversation. I have to take it. I am still the CEO of Barten Security. It doesn’t matter if the woman I’m craving is living her life without me at the center of it.

‘Fuck, you must think I’m insane,’ I mumble to myself as I scroll through the notifications on my phone. Emails, messages, calls—all need to be returned—but one alert sticks out more than the others. It’s labeled Bonetti in a private folder only Armande and I have access to.

The minute I open it, the names of Lia’s family and friends pop up in a neat little list with pictures. Frankie Mirante is listed as cousin/brother. I snicker and pull up the photo that got me out of the office and banging down a door to an apartment above a florist shop.

When I hold the phone up to show her, she smiles, running her hand across the screen. ‘Don’t you understand happiness and love when you see it, Valentino? I haven’t seen Frankie in months because of work and this shit with Saul. I’ve had to keep my distance from the people I care about; the people who care about me. Frankie’s always been there for me. He loves me like a sister and is fucking happy to see me. That’s what that picture is. Also, send it to me, he would love to see that.’

‘I see.’ I pull the phone away from her, scrolling through the rest of the file packet until I see the information I need to know. ‘Why does Saul Caputo have video footage of Saint Bartholomew’s construction site from four months ago? Why aren’t there any cameras set up now?’

‘You can’t just show up to my cousin’s place demanding answers about my life. I didn’t ask for your help beyond taking my virginity to get Saul off my back.’

She has no idea what Saul’s capable of. ‘How is that working out for you? Did your parents pay him? Did he turn over this footage to you guys so you can stop paying him his extortion money?’

‘How do you have that information?’

‘I’m the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar security firm, Lia. The woman I’m seeing? Her parents are indebted to a man I’d like to bury in every sense of the word, but I can’t because of my ties to La Familia. I won’t ignite a war unless it’s absolutely necessary. Which means I need to know what we’re fighting when it comes to Saul Caputo.’

She sighs. ‘You just gloss over details as if I’m inside of your head. When did I become the woman you’re seeing? This weekend was supposed to be just that. This weekend. Everything’s going to be fine with my parents. As a matter of fact, I think you should stay away from me.’

‘Why?’ I ask her.

Lia takes a timid step back, drawing me closer to her. A low-cut shirt, tight jeans that show off every thick curve, her jet-black hair in a low ponytail. It’s perfect for me to grab as I fantasize about guiding every inch of my cock in and out of her soft mouth.

I hook my index finger toward her, calling her to come closer. She gives me half a grin, still backing away, moving around the sofa as if this is a game of cat and mouse. Lia doesn’t know what I’ll do once I catch her, but I can play this game if she wants.

‘Tell me why I need to stay away from you, Lia?’ I ask her again.

She shakes her head. ‘My parents aren’t done with Caputo. The money doesn’t matter to him anymore. He wants me close to you to steal information, to figure out something he can use against you.’

‘Good girl. Now come here, Lia.’

She stops moving, but I don’t. The swiftness of me rounding the couch to get to her catches her by surprise. It’s something about her. I can’t be around Lia and not want to touch her, kiss her, taste her. We’ve been wasting too many words when I have to show her what it means when I tell her she is what I crave.

The flutter of her breaths makes her bottom lip tremble for a second before we’re face-to-face and I have to capture her lip, capture her. In the blink of an eye, one arm is around her waist while the other hand reaches behind her head, pulling her close enough to kiss.

Finally, her body pressing against mine feels like she’s where she’s supposed to be. In my arms, in my embrace, where our passion collides in a kiss that makes me want to fuck her here and now. Instead, I drop to my knees to give Lia a proper apology for my behavior.