Tipping Point Page 18

  Drake nodded and locked eyes with me. “All three.”

  Epilogue

  Demetri

  Two weeks later

  * * *

  Drake dropped into the lounge chair beside me and crossed his hands behind his head. He let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes.

  “This is the life, brother. Family, sun, and a drink in hand.” He nodded to the table between us, where our rather feminine cocktails sat, hosting blue umbrellas and wedges of pineapples on the rim.

  “I can’t complain, either,” I said as I flipped my sunglasses down against the glare of the sun beating down from above.

  “And that view?” Drake whistled.

  Sicily was swimming lengths in the pool in front of us. Her long dark hair fanned out behind her as she pushed herself through the water, which bubbled gently in her wake.

  “Don’t take this the wrong way,” I chuckled, “but the view is pretty nice.”

  “Watch it,” Drake warned.

  “Come off it. I have my woman, and you have yours. Speaking of which.” I twisted around to look back at the mansion. “Where the hell is Izzy?”

  “She said she was changing into her suit,” Drake said.

  “This day just keeps getting better,” I mused.

  Sicily popped up at the side of the pool and rested her arms on the ledge and her chin on her hands. “You boys enjoying your Pina Coladas?”

  “Is that what these are?” Drake asked, picking his up and taking a mouthful. “It’s like summer in a cup.”

  Sicily giggled and splashed water at him. He scolded her playfully and then nodded at the open chair beside him. “Come on up here. Let the sun kiss that beautiful body of yours.”

  Sicily rolled her eyes and blushed, but got out of the pool anyway. Little rivulets of water ran down her tanned legs, and she hopped onto the chair beside him. “You know, this is a lot better than what I was expecting when we moved here. It’s like being on a prolonged vacation.”

  “This is your life now, sweetheart,” Drake said.

  For now, I thought.

  Life in a syndicate never stayed calm for long. The four of us had agreed to enjoy it while we could. It was only a matter of time before we would have to dig in our heels and get back to work. But for now, I was happy to lounge by the pool with my family—my real family—and savor the moment for as long as I possibly could.

  We had put all the hard shit behind us.

  Joe’s funeral had been two weeks before, and once he was six feet under, Izzy seemed to return to her normal self. Her grief slipped away to be replaced with acceptance and determination to be better than her father. The service had been packed full, with over six hundred people, many of them flying in from all over the country. He didn’t deserve it, and everyone in attendance knew that.

  But it was how things were done in the syndicate.

  Sicily popped up out of her chair. “I’m going to go grab some of those lemon tarts I made last night. Either of you up for a sweet treat?”

  “Absolutely,” I said.

  Sicily giggled and padded away, her bare feet slapping on the stones of the pool patio. When she was out of earshot, I glanced at my brother.

  “So I heard from Edward this morning about how things are going at the Dimonzio.”

  “Oh?” Drake asked, pushing his sunglasses down his nose to peer at me over the top of the frames.

  “It looks like we have a new enemy. Someone who probably sensed a crack in the foundation and took advantage. Turns out they’ve been losing money for the last six months and just caught on to it. That’s one sly bastard, slipping money out from under Jesse and Eliza’s noses.”

  “I’d say,” Drake said. “How much have they stolen?”

  “Jesse isn’t sure yet. Edward has done some digging since I sent him over. He suspects the loss has surpassed the two million dollar mark.”

  “Holy shit,” Drake said, sitting up a little straighter in his chair. “And yet, you’re sitting here by the pool, not losing your fucking mind. What’s the deal, man?”

  I shrugged. “Izzy and I have agreed that we want to run things a little differently than Joe. We need to give our people a chance to handle shit on their own before we swoop in and start knocking heads. Edward thinks he can handle it. Izzy trusts him. If he needs help, he will reach out.”

  “And you trust Edward? Are we talking about the same guy right now? I thought you hated this fucker.”

  “I do, but that’s irrelevant. This is business. Personal shit doesn’t matter, and if Izabella says he’s good for the job, then I’m going with it.” I shrugged and tried to keep my composure. I had to start trusting people—like my woman—to make decisions that I didn’t question all the fucking time. Otherwise, I’d be sitting on a throne of dead bodies alone.

  “All right,” Drake said. “I’m impressed. And things in New York are being worked out?”

  I nodded. “Marcus is working on it. Turns out the Bertinellis might be far more interested in developing a working relationship with the Castaletta and DeMarco syndicate now that they’ve heard about Joe’s death. Hopefully, there’s a way to shut things down for Marcus and Erik without too much bloodshed. I think we’re headed that way for sure.”

  “Then is your man coming back to help out here?”

  “You know, I’m not sure yet. Marcus seems happy out there, and I’m not going to lie. I like having someone on the ground in that neck of the woods I can trust. It’s straight shooting with that guy. He’s loyal as fuck, and he knows how to get a job done. It might be in everyone’s best interest to let him get into the club scene there. Give him more responsibility.”

  “If you trust him, I trust him.”

  “He’s one of the good ones.”

  “Who is?” Izabella’s voice floated over to me, and she stepped around the back of my chair to fall into my lap. I wrapped my arms around her and pressed my lips to her neck as she wiggled her ass in my crotch. She looked stunning in her skin-tight white one-piece with a plunging neckline almost all the way to her navel. Dainty gold jewelry winked at her throat, and a single chain hung between her breasts.

  “Marcus Blaine.”

  “Ah,” Izzy said knowingly. “The big, good-looking fucker. Yeah. I’m glad he’s on our side.”

  “He’s not that good looking.” I gave Izzy a look. She laughed, which caused my heart to swell. God, she was beautiful. So much more than I should have deserved.

  Sicily arrived with a plate of goodies and placed them on the table between us. All of us indulged in a couple. The tangy sweetness exploded along my taste buds, and I shook my head in wonder. “How you manage to make this shit taste so good, I’ll never know.”

  “She has magic hands,” Drake said.

  I arched an eyebrow at him.

  “That’s not what I mean,” he said hurriedly as Sicily swatted at him.

  I pinched Izzy’s ass, and she slapped my chest. “Come on, D. Let’s get wet.”

  Izzy rolled off my lap and walked languidly to the pool. I swept my eyes over her from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. I was a lucky fucking guy, and she was all mine.

  I smiled and wagged my eyebrows at my brother and his girl over Izzy’s comments. “She’s taken. Sorry, folks.”

  They chuckled.

  She lowered herself down to the edge of the pool and sat with her legs in the water. I came up behind her and shot Drake a look over my shoulder, winking. He rolled his eyes at me, and I pushed my knee between Izzy’s shoulder blades. She let out a surprised shout as I pushed her forward. When she fell into the water, I dove in after her.

  As soon as I broke the surface, she splashed me and her laughter filled the air around us. “You ass,” she said.

  “Your ass.”

  “Damn fucking straight. Now come here.” Izzy lifted a hand out of the water and curled her finger toward herself.

  I didn’t need to be asked twice. I swam to her and gathered her in my arms, l
ifting her off the bottom of the pool. She wrapped her legs around my waist, and blood instantly rushed to my cock.

  When her lips grazed mine, Drake stood from his lounge chair and took Sicily’s hand. “We’re going to give the two of you lovebirds some privacy. Just keep in mind that you’re not the only ones who swim in that pool, all right?”

  “Yeah, yeah,” I said, waving him away.

  “I’m going to start dinner,” Sicily called as the two of them disappeared into the house, leaving Izzy and I wrapped around each other in the water.

  I kissed the tip of her nose. “You shouldn’t be allowed to walk around here looking like this. You’re going to get me in fucking trouble.”

  “From who?” Izzy smiled. “There’s no one here to give you shit but me.”

  I turned her around in the water so that I was facing the sun and she didn’t have to squint. She leaned in to kiss me, and I paused.

  Izzy pulled away. “What are you thinking about?”

  What was I thinking about? Fuck, I think the better question was what wasn’t I thinking about? Everything I had known had changed inside of a month. Nothing was the same. It was hard to be present and conscious of how fucking good things felt at the moment. I wanted to make sure we were making the right decisions. I wanted to give her that goddamn ring back at my apartment, but I knew we needed some distance from the deaths to make it really special.

  “You sure you want to do this?” I asked.

  “Do what?” Izzy asked, cocking her head to the side. “Fuck in the pool?”

  “That’s happening whether you want it to or not. But that’s not what I meant. The syndicate. This is what you want?”

  “Yes. This is my legacy.” Izzy raked her fingers through my wet hair. “We rebuild under your name, Demetri DeMarco. Drake will manage things. You’ll be our leader. The Don of the Castaletta DeMarco syndicate. And I’ll be your gun.”

  “Not if we ever get married and you get pregnant, Bella. I won’t allow that. Not for a second.” I squeezed her ass and pressed my fingers between her legs, pulling her swimsuit to the side. I eased a finger inside her, and she bit her bottom lip as her eyes filled with lust. “After I put a baby in you, I want you to be home where you’ll be safe.”

  “When that happens, I’ll stay home. But not until I’m six months and waddling around. It’ll be hard to kill people when I have to pee all the time.”

  I slipped another finger inside her tight pussy, and she moaned, tightening herself around me. “I don’t want to put anyone at risk. Least of all you or our baby.”

  “D,” she sighed, sounding like sin incarnate. “We’re always at risk. Our child will be in the same position. It’s the price we pay for being who we are. Our son will be raised with danger around every corner, and he’ll embrace it and fight it like the rest of us. He’ll be the best of both of us, baby.”

  “He?” I pumped my fingers in and out of her as she let out a sensual moan. “You think it’ll be a boy?”

  Izzy rolled her hips, fucking herself against my hand. “I have a gut feeling, you know?”

  “What if I want a baby girl?” I paused, and she growled. “No girl?”

  “No, I don’t care. Just don’t stop fucking me.” She pulled back and rolled forward, fucking herself deeper. My cock danced in my swimsuit as I tried to keep myself from coming. The girl had always been too much for me. I played it off well, but fuck me. I wasn’t going to last with her dancing all over me.

  She kissed my throat and jaw and tightened her legs around my waist as I thrust my fingers in and out of her again—harder this time. “A baby girl would get away with everything with you as her daddy,” she said breathlessly.

  “Kind of like how you do?”

  “Exactly,” she said, nipping at my bottom lip. “Enough chit-chat, Demetri DeMarco. Fuck me already.”

  “With pleasure, Bella.”

  She undid the tie at the top of my shorts and pulled my cock out. She stroked me under water, the corner of her mouth curled up in a needy smile. I walked her backward until her back was against the edge of the pool. Then I leaned my hips into hers and slid inside her warm, wet body.

  She moaned gratefully and clung to my shoulders. Her nails pinched my skin as I decorated her chest and tits in kisses and nips. She reached behind her neck and undid the sash of her white swimsuit. Her tits floated in the water, and I cupped them with one hand, flicking my thumb over her nipples.

  “Harder,” she whispered.

  I obeyed, forcing her legs farther apart as I gave her all of me. Her breath hitched in her throat as she groaned my name and pressed her forehead to mine.

  “I fucking love you, Izabella,” I grated through clenched teeth.

  Izzy looked into my eyes and smiled a warm smile. There was joy in her eyes—something I hadn’t seen in her for a long time. But it was there almost every day now, and it was unabashed, free, and wild.

  “I love you, too,” she whispered.

  We were suspended in the moment together, wrapped around one another in pure bliss as we both reached our climax and kissed hungrily. She tasted like coconut and mangos and my future.

  A future that would be filled with love and family.

  And violence and death.

  But that was how things were for us in the syndicate. At least this time, things would be different. I was surrounded by people I could trust. In a way, Joe had purged the family as he desired. He’d forced us to take him out, the most toxic member of our organization. It had cost a lot of other lives, but in the end, we were still whole.

  We were ready for whatever came next. No matter how fucked up it got.

  With Izabella and my brother by my side, I would lead the syndicate through any storm, and I was ready to remake our name and remind our enemies that we were a formidable force to be reckoned with.

  I looked forward to meeting the first asshole with enough balls to challenge me and my own.

  And they would all tremble as they referred to me with respect.

  Don Demetri DeMarco.

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  About the Author

  Ali Parker is a full-time contemporary and new adult romance writer with more than a hundred and twenty books behind her. She loves coffee, watching a great movie and hanging out with her hubs. By hanging out, she means making out. Hanging out is for those little creepy elves at Christmas. No tight green stockings for her.

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  She’s an entrepreneur at heart and loves coming up with more ideas than any one person should be allowed to access. She lives in Texas with her hubs and three kiddos and looks forward to traveling the world in a few years. Writing under eleven pen names keeps her busy and allows her to explore all genres and types of writing.

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  Copyright © 2018 by Ali Parker

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  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and plot are all either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons – living or dead – is purely coincidental.

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