Page 40 of The Don's Secret Heir

“We trust everybody,” I say flatly. “It could be one of the new guys, some of the muscle we hired?—”

“The muscle didn’t know about the Vasquez shipment,” Giovanni points out.

“And look, Dario, I know you love your family but some of your cousins are...”

“Finish that sentence,” I dare him, and Rocco shrugs.

“I’m just saying, man, they’re not all saints. God knows I’m not, either, but I’m loyal. There’s a difference.”

“What about Alessandro?” Giovanni asks.

I shake my head. “He’s out of the country, has been for months. Couldn’t have been him.”

“Frankie?” Rocco suggests.

“I doubt it,” I say hesitantly. “He’s got a new baby and he hasn’t even done a job for me in months.”

Giovanni throws up his hands in defeat. “I’m at a loss.”

“Me too,” I admit, trying to wrack my brain for any perceived disloyalty from my family.

I can’t think of any. Even Beth, who hates me, would never betray me. The Conte family has always been about trust and loyalty.

“You know what we need to do,” Rocco says. “Set up a fake shipment. A meet. If one of our enemies shows up, then we know it’s family.”

I sigh. I hate to do this, but it’s the only way.

“Alright. Set it up for next week. Giovanni, you and Rocco will be there, yeah?”

They both nod in unison, and since there’s not much that Giovanni and Rocco agree on, I’m happy to see it.

I make the calls, send the text messages, tell only our family group chat about the meet. I use code words, but they all know what they mean.

Giovanni and Rocco exit the room, with Rocco hanging back just for a minute.

“I know you don’t want to talk about it, Dario, but... with Liana... be careful, alright?”

I swallow hard. “Yeah. Alright. I’ll be careful.”

It sounds like a lie even to my own ears.

I give Sofia, my cook, the night off and head into the kitchen around dinnertime. Liana and Sonny have been in her room all day. I guess she’s still pissed off.

I can’t really blame her. I shouldn’t be worried about who she’s dating, about who’s touching her... but I am. It drives me crazy even to think about it, so the only way we can have this arrangement to get her back on her feet and to give me a temporary relief from the IRS is to be celibate.

And I can totally do that.

But for now, I need her to quit being mad at me, because I can’t spend the next six months with her a ghost in my home.

Rocco’s words ring in my ear. “Be careful, alright?”

I’m being careful. I was drunk last night and I kissed her, but I didn’t take it further. Well. Notmuchfurther.

My dick twitches when I remember how hot her core was under my palm.

No. Nope.

I just want to help Liana and Sonny because she used to mean something to me. I’m not going to have sex with her. I’m not going to fall in love with her again.