Lucian (14 page)

Lucian’s mother had called him a mafia prince, like all her sons. They considered their family a crime dynasty, ruled by name and blood. It was obvious to Jordyn that all of the Marcello boys were young men with focused goals regarding their business, but the fact remained that they were still considered young.

Possibly too young to be where they were.

But not if their father was the boss.

Lucian had been clear in his explanation of what it was like to be who he was in his family. It had just taken Jordyn a little while to catch up to speed and stick in the words he didn’t want to use himself.

“For us, La Cosa Nostra is more than a label, it’s a culture. From the moment we were born, we were thrown headfirst into it and raised as such with all the rules that came along with it. This is for life. Our status is a given right. I will always be this man. I will always be a Marcello.”

What Lucian meant, and Jordyn was only now realizing, was that he would always be considered mafia royalty in his world—a prince. Someone who was respected and adored simply because of who he was, though so much expectations and responsibility came with that title.

Dante had called Jordyn a princess first. Kate was doing it, now.

Lucian wasn’t even denying it, even if he was visibly annoyed.

He’d said it himself. For people like them, that word meant something entirely different than it did to the rest of the world.

Jordyn’s mind hadn’t put it all together, but it was, now.

It was too much.

Kate was zoning in on Jordyn again, bringing her out of her stunned thoughts.

“
Parla Italiano? Di dove è
?” Kate asked her.

Jordyn balked. “What?”

“She doesn’t speak—”

“No,” Lucian interrupted angrily. “Because she isn’t Italian. Leave it alone.”

“
Not
Italian?” Kate scoffed, nodding. “I get it. Now I understand why Cecelia didn’t want to tell me about her. It’d be just like you to pick one like this, Lucian.”

Finally, Jordyn snapped out of her stupor with a bang. “Excuse me? Like this? What does that mean?”

“Oh, child,” Kate practically cooed, though it was far too sickeningly sweet to be true. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand, because Lucian does. Just like Cecelia and Antony, or his brothers, for that matter. You’ve reached too high, sweetheart. You’ll figure it out soon enough.”

Then, Kate took another step forward, examining Jordyn closer. “And if those marks on your neck are any indication, I hope you figure it out quick and run. Seems he’s a lot like his father, more so than we thought. Does he kiss you after and tell you he’s sorry like all abusers, too?”

Jordyn’s next words were born solely of her shock and anger, and a need to protect Lucian, considering he had done nothing but be so good to her. This woman was vile.  “I don’t know you, and honestly, I don’t want to. I suggest, however, that you mind your business. Because if I understand correctly, you don’t have much say in anything. Certainly not anymore. Is that what pisses you off the most?”

Kate stepped back as if she’d been slapped. “You little bi—”

“Kate, it’s good to see you,” Antony said from the kitchen entrance, stopping the woman’s next words completely. His eyes instantly found his son’s, and Jordyn was caught glancing between the two rapidly, searching to see if she’d done something wrong. She didn’t think she did if the way Lucian was smiling back down at her was any indication. “I see you’ve met Jordyn. Beautiful, isn’t she?”

Jordyn swallowed her anger for a moment. Those were the first words Antony Marcello had spoken in her direct vicinity, and oddly, she knew they were important somehow.

“My wife is quite taken with her,” Antony continued, seemingly oblivious to the tension in the kitchen. “My son, too, though I should say
sons
, considering all the boys are watching this one carefully in their own ways. I hope you understand why we’ve kept her our little secret, as she’s still new to the family, and things are complicated.”

That was an understatement.

Again, they were talking about Jordyn like she was a permanent member of their family.

“How so?” Kate asked.

Antony smiled grimly. “That’s not your concern. It’s Lucian’s and mine.”

At her side, Jordyn felt Lucian’s hand squeeze hers reassuringly.

Antony passed Kate by in the same manner Gio had earlier, like he was dismissing her. Coming to stand in front of Jordyn, the older man offered her a soft smile as he spoke too low for Kate to hear.

“I’m sorry for not making time to speak to you earlier, Jordyn. I can watch over the stove for a bit until Cecelia is ready if you need a moment. Kate can have that kind of effect on people. Do you need a second?”

Jordyn nodded. She needed more than one. “Yes.”

“Go, then.”

Jordyn didn’t need to be told again. She was out of the kitchen in a flash, making her way through the large home with no idea as to where she was going. The only thing she tried to do was get as far away from the echoing sound of voices as she could, flying up a flight of stairs and taking the first turn she came to. She needed to think.

Lucian was right behind her the whole time.

Eventually, she stopped in a hallway on the second floor.

“I’m sorry about Kate,” Lucian said from behind her. “Don’t pay her any mind.”

“I don’t care about that awful woman. She can go to hell.” Then, Jordyn winced. “Your biological father, he didn’t really hit her, did he?”

“From what everyone believes because of her penchant to tell lies when she doesn’t get her way, no. There wasn’t anything visible, and being his wife, she was always treated with respect, besides the whole mistress thing. And I remember him with my mother, too. He never even raised his voice. John wasn’t a heavy handed man.”

“You remember him?”

“Sure. Even though he wanted to keep me and my mother a secret from his wife, which meant he needed to keep it from everyone else, too, he spent a lot of time with me. John signed my birth certificate, which wasn’t known to his friends and family until after he died, so he must have been at the hospital when I was born, or shortly after. That was how Antony found out about me. He knew of my mother, but had never met her, and when he went looking for her, he found the documentation of me. John taught me to read, actually, and I got most of my understanding of Italian language very young from him. The few memories I have are very good ones. I know he loved me, and that’s what matters.”

“You’re right, it is. Kate isn’t important to that at all.” Jordyn paced the hallway, her emotions threatening to spill over. “Why is she that hateful and bitter, though? What could you have done to her when you were just a little boy?”

Lucian shrugged. “Frankly, I gained seventy-five percent of my father’s estate after his murder. As his wife, she only gained twenty-five. Maybe it wasn’t fair, but that’s how John had his lawyers set things up if he had any children to care for. I was a proven child of his when he signed my birth certificate. She couldn’t fight it, but she tried. From the time I was eighteen, I’ve had full and total control over my portion of the estate and money, while she is in her late forties and still needs to live off a restricted portion given to her monthly. Otherwise, she’d squander it like she has everything else.”

“Oh, well …” Jordyn didn’t know what to say to that. Something else was bothering her terribly. “If that’s what that meant, you should have told me, Lucian.”

“What are you talking about?”

Jordyn turned on her heel, anger simmering. “
Principessa
? It’s like someone just hit fast forward on double speed all over again. Talk about throwing it around. You didn’t even bother to tell me, but everyone else seems to get it just fine!”

“Jesus, don’t do that,” Lucian snapped back. “Don’t let all of that bullshit bother you. It’s just practicalities, Jordyn. Semantics for the politics of the family. It’s not important.”

“You’re lying. It’s important to everyone here. Isn’t it?”

Lucian raked his fingers through his hair, sighing heavily. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean it has to be to us. Okay? That’s all I want you to understand. You and me, we get to go at whatever speed we want. Slow, fast, or rewind. I need you close to me. That’s what matters to me.”

He kept saying that.

Jordyn just didn’t know what it meant.

“What does that even mean?”

“It means whatever the hell I want it to. It means I liked waking up to you this morning, because I haven’t slept properly in two weeks. It means I like the way you kiss me, and how it doesn’t feel strange for me to do it at all. I like fucking you, because it doesn’t seem entirely like fucking. I like you sitting next to me in church. I like providing you with beautiful things. I like keeping you safe with me. That’s what it means. Does it have to be any more defined right now?”

“No. But they—”

“Don’t matter to this. They don’t. It’s that simple, sweetheart. Nothing about us is ever going to be completely normal. That’s something you need to understand today if we’re going to continue on with this. I have to play a part, too. And if I want to tell everyone you’re the first
principessa
chosen by a Marcello son because it’s true, then that’s exactly what I’ll do.”

Jordyn was speechless. “But … what does it even mean?”

“It means a lot of things, but mostly, it means a future,” Lucian said, his tone turning a lot quieter than it was before.

“That’s it, a future?”

“Basically. That in itself carries a lot of weight.”

Yeah, it did.

Jesus.

Why did Jordyn have to like the way that rolled off his lips so casually.

“We’re kind of strange, you and me,” Jordyn said.

Like the fact she couldn’t deny how her insides were mush when he was around, or that she felt him near even when he didn’t speak a word. Some people might call that chemistry, and others might call it destiny.

Jordyn called it frightening.

“Maybe we’re normal for us,” Lucian replied. “And so far, I like the way it’s going.”

“On fast forward, knocking me on my ass at every turn.”

“If it works …”

Jordyn chewed on the inside of her cheek. “Are you going to tell people that’s what I am to you?”

Lucian shrugged. “Not yet.”

“Why?”

Better yet, why did it matter if he didn’t
, something inside demanded. 

Jordyn ignored her inner voice.

“Because, I need you to want it, too.”

Jordyn didn’t have the time to respond. Cecelia called from the downstairs, telling anyone who wasn’t in the dining room that dinner was ready to be served.

“Come on,” Lucian said, offering his hand. “There are more people for you to meet.”

Jordyn didn’t hesitate to take it.

• • •

Antony dabbed a roll into the sauce he’d poured over his pasta, taking a bite. Instantly, his brow furrowed and he looked to where his wife sat waiting down the long table. “Something’s different,
Tesoro
.”

“Is it good?” Cecelia asked.

Jordyn hid her grin with her wine glass. Lucian took notice of that immediately, shaking his head with a knowing wink.

How in love was a man with his wife that he noticed something as simple as her sauce recipe changing even a little bit from what it had always been?

It was cute, really, even if Jordyn was the one who added the spices.

In that moment, Jordyn realized she wanted what these two people had. A love like this with a man who noticed everything about her, even if it was silly and ridiculous. Jordyn’s heart sped up when Lucian’s hand found her knee under the table, squeezing gently.

“You okay?” Lucian asked quietly. “It’s been crazy today, I know.”

“More than okay,” Jordyn said, truthfully.

Antony continued staring at his wife like the rest of the people at the table weren’t watching their exchange with rapt attention. “I didn’t say it wasn’t good. It’s very good. I said it was different. It is, isn’t it?”

Cecelia nodded. “It is.”

“Is that all you’re going to give me? I’d like to know why the sudden change.”

“Eat your food, Antony. I can’t give anyone specifics unless it’s a Marcello woman, you know this. Change is good.”

“It’s just an old family recipe. You should get over this secrecy thing. I’m your husband, and even I can’t know?” Cecelia still refused to say a thing. Antony shook his head, sighing. “I love you, but sometimes you’re so difficult to understand,
Tesoro
.”

“And you didn’t say grace, either,” Cecelia added with a smile, ignoring his remark. “Be quick about it. The rest of us are hungry.”

Chapter Thirteen

Jordyn was in love with Lucian’s Manhattan condo.

Well, he called it a condo, but it was more like a penthouse with partial roof access that doubled as a large deck for entertaining. It couldn’t be just a condo, as far as Jordyn was concerned, because it was much too big. The kitchen and living room alone were sizeable enough to fit her apartment inside. That didn’t include the three bedrooms, one of which was locked. There was also an office with a library, a room that doubled as a gym, and an entertainment room sporting a flat screen big enough to be in a theater and two rows of plush seating to sit back and enjoy the view.

It might as well have been a professionally decorated home inside a high-rise.

According to Lucian, his condo wasn’t even the biggest in the building.

Jordyn doubted that.

In the early morning, the wide wall-to-wall windows lit up the rooms with natural light. By pressing a little button by the light switches, all of the window shades in that particular room would rise automatically. Jordyn didn’t need to turn on a single light bulb.

She hadn’t gotten the chance to explore Lucian’s home when they arrived the night before. After the dinner with his family three nights ago, he brought up the topic of his place in Manhattan, which he preferred for a few different reasons. It was where he was most comfortable, for one, and it was safer, for two.

Jordyn didn’t mind. The one thing she knew was the life she lived before, she couldn’t go back to. Not if she wanted to live, and she did, so badly. It certainly helped with the hazel-eyed man sporting a cocky smirk who didn’t seem to ever leave her side, now.

She really didn’t want him to, either.

When Lucian offered to give her what she needed, and she asked for safety, he jumped into that totally.

Jordyn wasn’t sure what she and Lucian were. Together, or not. A couple, or just companions. Lovers, definitely. Comfortable being close, yes. She adored the way his mouth felt on her skin in the morning, and couldn’t help but get lost in looking at him when he wasn’t paying attention. Lucian was sometimes secretive, even if he didn’t mean to be. That confident, dangerous aura of his was almost suffocating in a way that fueled her darker desires. Jordyn was a little more than spun by this man.

Confusing? A bit.

It was easier not to define them, and instead, just enjoy it for what it did to them both.

Whatever they were, it was working.

Jordyn had become so accustomed to Lucian waking her up in the mornings over the last week, that when she woke up earlier and he wasn’t there, she was confused. It didn’t take her long to figure out where he was. The en-suite bathroom was wide open and the shower was running. He’d also set out a sharp looking, black suit at the end of the bed.

After she changed the bandage on her burn, which was finally beginning to look like it might actually be healing, Jordyn decided to go exploring. She grabbed the T-shirt Lucian left on the floor the night before that still smelled like his spicy self, pulled it on, and went on her merry way.

Lucian’s office was quickly becoming her favorite place.

With a high ceiling and books in every direction, Jordyn couldn’t possibly be bored in the room. There was always something new to find. Lucian collected little brass knickknacks, it seemed he liked football like every good American boy, and he was terribly organized in a disorganized fashion when it came to his work. If that were possible. She was scared to move or pick at the things on his large oak desk for fear he wouldn’t be able to find it again.

The photo albums stacked on one of the many bookshelves caught her attention. The first two on top were mostly Marcello family pictures. Each was dated and labeled below. The brothers when they were younger. Copies of Antony and Cecelia’s wedding day. Baby pictures, though there weren’t any of Lucian. Family trips and the like. Everyone looked so happy in the pictures.

Jordyn picked up another and began flipping through it, too.

The brothers were older in these ones. Clearly well into their teens. It was in these pictures Jordyn noticed the unique personalities between Dante, Gio, and Lucian had really started to take over. Privileged teenage boys, dressed in the very best, grinning and happy. As teens, they seemed to stick even closer together, and in the photos, their father was almost always present.

The prom photo of Lucian and a pretty, green-eyed blonde knocked Jordyn off balance for a moment. The girl was dressed in a pale pink sequined number that literally hugged every curve with a slit up to her right thigh. Lucian, in his black suit and matching vest and tie, didn’t seem to be too interested in the camera, but at something off to the side.

Below, the date was written and the names of the people in the photo.

Lucian and Reagan.

Jordyn hadn’t expected to see a photo of him with another woman, though every other minute of his life was documented in the albums. What was even more surprising, was the spark of jealousy fluttering up from her stomach.

“I hated prom.”

Jordyn nearly dropped the photo album as she spun around, coming face to face with a smirking Lucian.

“It was awful, but I really wanted that after party. Cecelia’s compromise was if I went, she’d give me the keys to the house. So, I went.”

Jordyn appraised the view of him in nothing but a towel, droplets of water still clinging to his skin and hair. Lust and desire raged, but she pushed it back. “With Reagan.”

“Apparently I needed a date. Going alone was not acceptable. She attended the same private school I did. It worked.”

“Huh. Was she your girlfriend?”

Way to be subtle
, Jordyn thought.

“Reagan?” Lucian laughed, taking the album from Jordyn and closing it up. “No. A friend of a friend. Her date cancelled last minute, or some nonsense. Cecelia had a fit when she figured out I was planning to go alone and leave right after arriving. So, Reagan and I hooked up for the prom.”

“Literally, or figuratively?” Jordyn asked.

Lucian’s smirk grew into a full blown grin. “You’re jealous of something that happened ten years ago?”

“No.”

“Liar, you are. You’re cheeks are even turning pink. I like it.”

“You like my
jealousy
?” Jordyn couldn’t quite get her head wrapped around that. 

Lucian took a step forward, crowding Jordyn against the bookshelf with his bulk, warmth, and fresh scent. She didn’t even try to move away, instead bracing both hands to the shelf behind her. The towel covering his lower half drew in her gaze once more, straight down to his defined rows of abs, and the hard cut V of his groin.

How much of Lucian was it going to take before Jordyn could feel like she was able to breathe again?

“Yes, I like it,” Lucian murmured low. “It’s a flash of heat. Straight in the gut. Instant anger and disbelief. That’s what it feels like, right?”

Jordyn nodded. “Yeah, just like that.”

“Possessiveness in one fell swoop. It’s intense. Takes over everything. It doesn’t have to be rational, or even satisfying. It just is. But, it does mean something good.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a clear sign you consider something, or someone, only yours, sweetheart.”

Lucian leaned forward, grazing his nose along hers before another knowing grin split his lips. “Like after the dinner at my parents, how I threatened to cut out Gio’s guest’s eyes if he looked at you one more time. At least my brother thought it was funny.”

Jordyn tried not to let it show how much his words affected her, and failed miserably. “You can’t be doing that.”

“Why not? You’re beautiful, I know. That doesn’t mean I want every other man in this world admiring something that isn’t his. Once is good enough, a second time is asking for trouble. And I am exactly the kind of man who likes a bit of trouble in his life. You’re certainly providing that.”

“You didn’t really hurt him, did you?”

Lucian chuckled deeply, the sound rocking her straight to the core. “No, but I would have if he hadn’t been in the home he was. He didn’t take my threat seriously. I always follow through. Every single time.”

Something wicked and tantalizing teased Jordyn. Lucian was right, she liked his jealousy, even if it didn’t make a whole lot of sense.

Two fingers slipped under her chin, drawing her gaze up to his. Lucian’s other hand came to rest on her thigh, his fingers digging rough and good into her flesh, waking her desire up all over again. “Don’t be jealous, Jordyn.”

“Because I don’t need to, or because you’re not mine?” she asked quietly.

“Because I haven’t seen that girl in a decade. But I am looking at you every day.”

“The same could be said for you, then.”

Lucian laughed roguishly. “Sorry, sweetheart, but it doesn’t work that way for me. When it comes to you, it probably never will.”

• • •

“Come here,
bella
.”

At the bar, Jordyn sat on one of the many stools, legs crossed and head lost in one of the books she’d brought along. Lucian had work to do at Cazza, one of his many restaurants, and he also had an important meeting later with a city official. Instead of leaving her to her own devices for the entire day back at his condo, he offered for her to come along.

Sure, she’d be safe in Manhattan without him, at least for a little while longer, but Lucian didn’t like to see her too far from his side.

The little black dress, silver pumps, and light makeup she wore looked superb under the specialty lighting in the dining room. Especially as she walked across the hardwood floor to meet him at the table he had set up with papers and desserts.

“Sit, I want you to try these with me,” Lucian said, nodding at the tray of specialty desserts the chef brought out five minutes earlier. “I need a woman’s opinion. I think women have a better palate then men, honestly.”

Jordyn’s laugh was almost like wind chimes. “You think?”

“Sure. Women tend to focus more on the taste and texture than simply filling, chewing, and swallowing when they go out for dinner. Besides, I’m distracted, so expecting my full attention on this is pointless today. You might as well enjoy these. Cory needs my final say for the new dessert menu by tonight. I’ve been putting it off for a couple of weeks.”

Lucian was glad Jordyn didn’t ask what his distraction was because it revolved entirely around her. It hadn’t helped he’d been too busy that morning trying to get a start on his day to wake her up like he wanted to. Between her thighs, tasting her sex on his tongue, and driving her insane.

For now, Lucian’s insane infatuation was being satisfied in the way she propped her chin up in her palm when she read, or how she tapped her left foot when she reached a passage that interested her more than the rest.

Really, he just liked watching her.

Jordyn didn’t disappoint with the tiny fork and fifteen samples of desserts for the next half an hour, either.

Needless to say, Lucian got absolutely none of his orders completely finished for the restaurant. Cazza was his favorite of all his businesses. It was the place he spent most of his time when he worked, usually, since he didn’t need a fulltime office.

Not to mention the Cosa Nostra side of things.

Unlike the past couple of weeks in Brooklyn, collecting smaller payments from his street associates, having a place like Cazza was much better for the bigger deals. It was high class. Most of the men who walked through the doors to see him were of the same caliber. They certainly didn’t want to meet with a mafia capo in some dingy bar or back alley shop.

It needed to look on the up and up, after all.

“So, I have a meeting in ten minutes,” Lucian said, gaining Jordyn’s attention from the last dessert she was sampling.

“You want me to disappear in the back for a while?”

“Jesus, no. Why would I want that?”

“I don’t know. You’re the one who brought the meeting up.”

Lucian waved it off. “First of all, I was well aware of what I would be doing today, so if I thought you shouldn’t be involved, I could have asked someone else to keep you company.”

“You mean babysit,” Jordyn said, her nose crinkling at the thought.

“Jordyn, my mother doesn’t leave the house without two enforcers trailing close behind.”

Jordyn’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Really. They’ve been her personal bodyguards ever since Antony became boss. She rarely ever notices them, and they’ve only needed to step in a handful of times to deal with something. So no, I don’t consider it babysitting. Dante wasn’t busy today, and he likes your company.”

“He likes teasing me, Lucian. Mostly about you.”

“Because he’s my brother. It means he likes you.”

“Fantastic,” she replied drily.

“Anyway, the point is, I had this meeting set up for a while. I don’t mind you being here for it. I’ll introduce you, but after that, just let me do the talking. Smile, because you’re beautiful and I like to see it, and try not to get bored.”