much more concerned with the outcome of placing a bet in the manner I did, but all I cared about was getting out of there as fast as possible before I ran into Bronze and did something I would regret. Like tell my dad what he did, because clearly he could handle my big brothers with no problem whatsoever. “Did I win or lose?” I asked and placed my hands on my hips.
Luca grinned and reached into his jacket. “You won, Ms. O’Shea,” he said and held out a stack of bills for me.
I looked at his outstretched hand like he was holding a pit viper instead of a wad of cash. “Did I win betting against Declan?” Because I didn’t want to take it if I did.
“You won. We’ll leave it at that,” he said and reached for my hand, placing the stack of money in my palm.
My eyes widened in shock. From one glance, I guessed I was holding at least five thousand dollars. I floundered for what to do with the money. It wouldn’t fit in the tiny purse I was carrying. As a last resort, I stepped closer to Luca so we were almost touching and made quick work of stuffing half of the bills in each bra cup.
When I stepped back, I almost laughed at the look on his face. Instead, I said what I was thinking. “I shudder to think how much I could’ve lost.”
“Let that be a lesson to you, Ms. O’Shea.”
“Oh, it has been. And it was well-received. Good night, Mr. Peccati,” I said and jogged up the stairs to meet my next escort.
The man Luca called Piero didn’t utter one word in my presence, but he kept his eyes trained on me. When we arrived at my car, he simply nodded and disappeared into the night once I locked the doors. Leaning back against the headrest, I closed my eyes and tried to process the events of the evening.
Bronze Black knocked out my brother.
Bronze Black was in Cherryfield.
Bronze Black was fighting in an underground fighting ring.
And Bronze Black lied to me, used me, and toyed with my emotions. A familiar anger bubbled in my chest. So much so that I considered going back inside to look for him until I remembered Luca’s warning.
Cranking my car, I yelped when someone knocked on the window. I turned to see who was knocking and was met with a pair of familiar stormy blue eyes. “What the fuck are you doing here?” he roared.
“What the fuck am I doing here?” I returned and got out to face him. That’s when I noticed the other two men standing beside three motorcycles, one I assumed belonged to Bronze. “What the fuck are you doing here?” I demanded and made a show of looking around the area. “What? You didn’t bring your brother to do your dirty work for you this time?”
“What?” he asked and seemed genuinely confused, but I knew how good of an actor he was.
I snorted in derision. “I fell for your act one time, but it won’t happen again.”
“The fuck are you—”
Bronze’s words were silenced by the audible chambering of a gun nearby.
“Is there a problem here?”
Quickly glancing toward the voice, I exhaled in relief when I saw Piero and Vincenzo, each holding a gun, though neither were pointed at anyone. “You need to leave. Right now. Luca will not be happy about this.”
“That’s what I was trying to do!” I shouted and threw my hands in the air.
“Why?” Bronze demanded at the same time.
Piero turned to Bronze and pinned him with a glare so harsh it made me shiver. Bronze held his hands out in a placating manner. “Look, man, her and I have some shit to sort out, and I’m not going anywhere until that happens.”
A throat cleared in the shadows, and Luca Peccati stepped into the light. “I’m not going to ask why you approached your opponent’s sister in the parking lot. I’m not going to point out what a poor decision you made. However, I am going to stand here while Ms. O’Shea drives away, and then the rest of us are going to my office to talk.”
“Works for me. Ta-ta!” I shouted and peeled out of the lot before my door was completely closed.
I hadn’t fully processed everything that happened by the time I got home, but I did know one thing for sure—there was no way in hell I wasn’t going back.
15
“Motherfucker!” I bellowed seconds after jumping out