at your place a few days ago.” When the tension in the conversation faded away, he turned back to the TV and scanned the people in the bar.
“I’m not a one-on-one kinda guy.”
“Not even for one night?”
I shook my head. “If I’m bored with two women, you don’t think I’ll be bored with one?”
He clinked his glass against mine again. “Touché.”
“And she won’t change her mind.”
“Must be a good girl.”
It seemed that way. She had the kind of beauty that could capture the soul of almost any man. The curves of her waist and lips weren’t the only sexy things about her. Her eyes drew me in the deepest. So bright and intelligent. And the way she strutted into every room like she owned it made me respect her. Instead of jumping into a threeway she didn’t want, she decided to walk out and find a better alternative. She wasn’t the kind of woman to make a sacrifice for someone else.
And I wasn’t the kind of man to make a sacrifice for anyone else.
Maybe the sex would be incredible. But we were just too stubborn to find out.
8
Siena
Bones sat across from me at the table in the bar, looking furious from the second he took his seat. Covered in tattoos and awash imminent threat as he was, not even his pretty eyes could make him seem harmless. His muscles stretched his t-shirt, and his broad shoulders looked like a solid wall. A glass of scotch sat in front of him, and he downed it quickly before he ordered another.
“Thanks for coming.” Now that I’d had a tour of Cato’s home, I realized it would be impossible for me to pull any kind of stunt—at least with my skill set. I could win a shootout and fight off a grown man, but to kidnap someone so protected was impossible.
“You aren’t welcome.” Both of his elbows rested on the table, and he sighed as he glared at me. “I’m only here as a favor to Crow. Make it quick.”
“How do you know him?” The Barsettis seemed to have a connection to everyone in Italy, from the Skull Kings, to the mob, and even politicians.
“He’s my father-in-law.”
It took a moment to process his confession. “You’re married to his daughter?” Bones seemed too dangerous to be part of the simple life Crow described. He was hostile and aggressive, a man with a reputation for blood lust.
“Yes.”
“Oh…I didn’t know that.”
“Don’t blame him for being ashamed. Now get on with it. My wife has a Barsetti attitude, so if I’m out too late, she’ll raise hell.”
“Yeah, of course.” I pulled out the rough drawing I’d made of Cato’s home in Tuscany. The dimensions weren’t perfect, but I had a good schematic of the place. “I got a good look at the house. It seems like there’re five staff members at all times, and the outside wall is protected by a security detail of at least thirty men.”
Bones didn’t even glance at the schematic. He kept staring at me, his hostility rising. “You’re kidding me with this bullshit, right?”
“Bullshit?” The only way I was going to pull this off was by collecting every ounce of information possible. Maybe Cato’s home in Tuscany wasn’t the best location, but his building in Florence was even worse.
Bones pressed his finger into the page, his eyes still focused on me. “You think you’re gonna overpower him and somehow sneak him past all these people?”
“Overpowering him will be the easy part.” Nothing a syringe couldn’t handle.
“So, your plan is to drag a 200-pound man out the front door?” His jaw tensed noticeably, filled with rage.
“No. I’m asking you for advice, which is why you’re here.”
“I already gave you my advice.” He pushed the paper toward me. “You want this guy? You need to fuck him.”
“And what will that accomplish? He’ll screw me then forget about me like all the others.”
“Then make sure he doesn’t forget you.”
The last time, just when things got hot and heavy, Cato threw a curveball and expected me to share his bed with another woman. Regardless of how open-minded I was, that wasn’t a course of action I would take. “Even if I could pull that off, what then? If I get him to like sleeping with me, how does that get me closer to saving my father?”
“When a man is obsessed with a woman, he can’t think straight. It’s the only situation where he can be manipulated or misled. Get him wrapped around your finger and deep