Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 96808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
“Jealous?”
His eyes light up as he looks me over. I squirm in my seat, feeling flustered. Not wanting to answer him, I turn and start the car to take off.
Rico roars with laughter beside me. I’m glad he’s so amused. I’m starting to wonder if this was such a great idea.
But what other option did I have?
He reaches to brush my braids from my face and tuck them behind my ear. I shiver a bit, causing him to chuckle, making me feel stupid. I need to get my shit together.
I’m here for the summer to pay my debts and stay alive. Nothing more, nothing less. I’m not a silly girl.
I have one weakness: cars. I’m not about to add a second. Catching feelings for Rico Gallo is out of the question.
“Stop overthinking, Oni. I’m here for business. Pleasure is the last thing on my mind. I have to keep focused. If I want to sit at the top, I have to set myself apart and prove to my uncle I’m the one.”
“Your uncle?”
“Yeah, I want more than my father’s capo position. I want to be Don.”
Rico
“Do you mind if I ask you a question?” Oni says as she wipes gravy from her mouth.
I got us some pasta from my favorite spot. Since my family owns the place, I was able to walk right in and collect our order before heading home to come out here by the pool to sit and eat. Oni is sitting cross-legged with her plate in her lap.
I shrug my shoulders as I chew my food then clean my teeth with my tongue. She tilts her head and stares at me. I can’t help feeling like she sees through me.
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“You said you want to be don, right?” she whispers.
I smile and nod my head. I don’t miss that she understands this isn’t something to go around yelling about. I’m liking this chick the more I’m around her.
That’s probably why I’m sitting here with her, instead of making sure that car is unloaded. My guys will get it done. They all know the consequences if they don’t.
“Yeah, you got it.”
“What’s the difference?”
“As Capo, I will only run things in my father’s New York territory. As Don, I get it all. Italy, New York, Miami, Vegas. I’d sit at the top and run shit. None of this small-time shit to prove myself.”
“Okay, I think I get it. Capo, we’re stuck in New York. Don, we-own-the-world-type shit,” she says.
I can see the wheels turning in her head. I’m not going to lie. I love hearing her include herself in the equation.
“Something like that.” I nod.
“Okay, how do we get you the world? I’ve always wanted to go to Italy. Maybe I can come back next summer too.” She looks around and smiles. “This place is nice. It’s been so long since I’ve lived like this.”
I lean in and reach to wipe the gravy she missed with her napkin. Her lips part as she looks back at me with wide eyes. I pull my finger back and stick it into my mouth.
“It’s simple. I run the product I’ve been put in charge of and keep the businesses on my books earning until my twenty-first birthday, and then I get a promotion. My uncle doesn’t have sons of his own, so he’s going to choose between me and one of my cousins.
“I’m in the lead so far, but I’m also the oldest. Al, and Fredo haven’t turned eighteen yet. Ed just did. I have a head start, so I’m making the best of that,” I explain.
“How old are you?”
“Nineteen, but I’ve been running point since I turned eighteen. My uncle is grooming me. Has been since I could walk and talk.”
“Do your cousins want it?”
I shrug. “Not Aldo or Eduardo. Fredo, now that’s another story.”
I’m not in the mood to get into that, so I change the subject. My family can be complicated at times. One minute, you think you know where you and everyone else stand. Then, in the blink of an eye, it all changes.
I’ve learned to keep my head down and bring in my earnings. As long as my uncle gets his points, he doesn’t give me shit. I prefer it that way.
“Let me ask you a question.”
“Okay, shoot,” she says over a mouthful of garlic bread.
She’s cute while she eats. I could watch her like this all night. I did a lot of digging to find out more about this girl. My father was as impressed and intrigued as I was. When her father and uncle came up, my pop knew of them.
That’s how I got permission to spare her and collect my debt some way other than in blood. Oni lucked out because we run a chop shop that runs parallel with our pharmaceutical business. We scrape the VINs on the more expensive cars that can fetch us a nice price. Then load them with product before they’re shipped out.