The town car stopped in front of the club that was owned by people I didn’t care to know, and I glanced out the window as Alessandra was escorted over to my car by my men. It was going on nine at night, and I’d promised Sofia I would be back for dinner, but that was to be determined if Alessandra continued to do stupid things. Gael was out handling another call. I thought it would be best not to get him involved, especially the way Alessandra was dressed. Lenny opened the passenger door, and she slid across the seat, wearing a dress that showed too much skin.
“I’m an adult, Joaquin!” Alessandra fussed.
“Shut up,” I barked back.
“I’m telling Poppa!” she yelled, sniffing.
“You’re going back to Italy.”
“No!”
“The last thing I need to do is focus on my little sister getting drunk in clubs.”
“Weren’t you going at my age?”
“With protection. I knew not to drink around people I didn’t know.”
“All you care about is your work and nothing else,” she complained. The car pulled out into traffic. That was the same argument Sofia was throwing at me, but I heard the opposite from my men because they felt I was losing focus on the cartel business. In addition, since I'd gotten married, Gael was responsible for many of the tasks.
“I’m dating Gael,” she blurted out.
“He’s my second in command; understand that if you get involved with him.”
“He didn’t want to date me because of you, but I convinced him you would be fine.”
“Gael is much older than you.”
“He doesn’t treat me like a little girl.”
“Stop acting like one by doing stupid things!” As I shouted angrily, my face became red.
“School takes up a lot of my time; it was just a night of drinks.”
“If you can't handle yourself, I will have you shipped back to Italy.”
“I can handle myself.” With a roll of the eyes, she looked away.
“Tomorrow, I’m putting more guards on you.”
“What! That’s too much,” Alessandra spat.
“Either you take the guards, or you come live with me.”
“I’ll take the guards.”
She wiped the tears that welled up, and I hated to see my little sister cry, but she left me no choice as the oldest and her caregiver. I gave her money and paid for her apartment, thinking she would be on top of her classes, so I was shocked when I heard she was failing and partying more and more. If this was what I had to look forward to with Jianna, I’d keep her locked in her bedroom until she was thirty. We arrived at the front of her condo, and I unlocked the door to step out. I checked the time on my cell and wiped a hand down my face. Alessandra leaned her head on my shoulder.
“You don’t deserve her,” Alessandra mumbled.
“No more alcohol; it makes you look foolish,” I fussed, snatching her clutch and taking the keys out. I helped her through the doors and up to the elevator. Leaning her against the wall, I tapped on Sofia’s name. The phone rang with no answer, and I cursed under my breath. I needed to make this right before we became even more fractured.
Ding!
“Come on,” I told Alessandra and helped her inside the elevator. I hit the fifth floor and rode up, running all the thoughts of how Sofia would punish me for missing another dinner with our kids.
“I can make it from here, Joaquin.” Alessandra held out her hand for her purse, and I walked around her, took the key out, and slid it in. I watched her stroll in and pass out on the couch.
“No more drinking. If I hear about this again, you won’t like me.” I bent down, helped to remove her shoes, and picked up the blanket off the couch to cover her up.
“I promise,” Alessandra whispered.
Buzz! Buzz!
I glanced down at my vibrating phone and saw a text from Gael.
Gael: We have a problem.
Me: I’m handling something with Alessandra.
Gael: Is she all right?
Me: Drunk at a club.
Gael: She’s trying to act like she isn’t a part of the family.
Me: I’ll remind her.
Gael: This can’t wait.
Me: I’m leaving now.
Gael: It’s not good.
Approximately thirty minutes later, the car arrived at the address Gael texted to me, a small mom and pop shop, but there was something a little weird about it. As I walked to the door, Gael's men held the door open, and I stepped inside to look at the perfectly arranged food and drink display machines. A somber look came over Gabriel's face as he stood near the back door of the employee entrance. My attention was drawn to him as I waited for him to speak.
“You're not going to like this.”
“What?”
“We have a new player.”
My brow lifted in surprise. Everyone knew I ran the biggest gun ring in New York, on top of being the highest paid killer to get rid of any problem.
“Who?”
He motioned to the left of him, and I peered around him and saw a crate on the floor. I bent down to lift the top and saw a logo of a skull and foreign words that I recognized as French.
“Lusting,” I mumbled.
“We need to see if more of those are around here.”
“How did you know this was here? Who owns this place?”
I lifted the automatic weapon, checked the grip, and found the serial numbers were scraped off.
“One of our customers was approached with a proposal.”
As I dropped the gun back in the crate, I stood and looked around the room. It was a normal back office with a desk, TV, chair, and an exit door.
“Did they purchase it?”
“No, but he’s interested in negotiations.”
My left brow perked at that request.
“We don't give discounts.”
“I told him that, and he’d like to speak with you directly.”
“Everyone knows you handle all the negotiations.”
“True, but if we want to keep this new problem from getting out of hand, we need to handle it now.”
“Set up a meeting.”
“You're giving him a discount.” Gael trailed behind me from the backroom to the front door.
“Set up the meeting.”
“Joaquin.” He gave me a worried look.
Gael knew me better than anyone. I didn’t let anyone steal from me or make my business look foolish.
“Call Alessandra tomorrow,” I called out.
“No arguing?”
“She’s an adult, but you know who I am and what I would do if something happened to her.”
“I would give my life for her.”
“Then we won’t have any problems, but she needs to understand the people she’s hanging with do her no good.”
“I’m trying to not force anything.”
“If she becomes a distraction for you or my life, I will send her back.”
“I’ll talk with her,” Gael explained.
“Call me when that meeting is ready.”
“What about our new friendly visitor?”
“Find out about Lusting.”
“If they want in our area…”
I shut the door of the backseat.
“They dictate their futures.”
“I thought you were stepping back on killing since the family has grown.”
“Never underestimate a Fuertes.”
Gael nodded and headed to his car. My driver pulled off down the road to head back home. I sighed and thought about the smile on my kid’s face when I wake them up in the morning, and have our alone time together and able to give them my attention. Those two made everything else disappear, and I needed to remember to take in those moments before they grew older, and I missed out on precious time.
Past midnight, I walked through a quiet house, heading upstairs to peek in on JJ. I noticed him sleeping on his stomach like I used to do when I was younger. I closed the door quietly and checked on Jianna in her crib. Her little hands were balled up at her sides. I kissed her forehead and stepped away so as not to wake her, making sure the door was closed. As I strolled a few doors down the hallway, I approached our bedroom and released a long-held breath. I pushed the door open gently and stared up at my beautiful wife lying in bed asleep. I dropped my jacket on the chair, removed my clothes, and headed to the bathroom. I turned the shower on the hottest temperature, stepped in, and let the night wash away from me with my head down in thought. Fifteen minutes later, I grabbed a towel off the door and dried off. Sliding on my boxers, I turned the light off, climbed in bed, and pulled her naked body close to me.
“Mmmmm… you missed dinner,” she muttered. I kissed her forehead. She slid her hand in my boxers and automatically, I got hard.
“It couldn’t be helped…” I groaned when she squeezed my dick.
“What happened with Alessandra?” she asked, pulled my thick girth out of the boxers, and sat up to ease down on him.
“Shit!” I gripped her hips as she slowly rocked back and forth. Her low eyes exposed she was ready to take control.
Sofia stretched her arms out, lifted her hips, leaned down to take my lips, and guided her tongue to my mouth.
“Ughhh!” My hand firmly grasped her waist as I tightened my grip and pumped into her. She moaned as her head dropped back, her body quivering. We both fought for dominance in the relationship, and I hated when Sofia tried to question me. I smacked her on the ass, rotated us with me on top, and picked up the pace. She scratched my arms and chest as she cried out. She was close to climax.
“Joaquin! Right there!”
“Do as I ask, mi amore.” Her hips bucked as her orgasm overwhelmed her. I released and fell on top of her, out of breath. She wrapped her arms around my back, and we fell asleep with me still inside of her.