Page 111 of Unchained

“It was a joke, Colt.”

I grit my teeth. “That ain’t funny. Don’t play with Gianna. I mean it.”

He scoffs. “You want me to be nice to your fake wife?”

“There isn’t anything fake about it.”

I know he might find it hard to believe; he doesn’t believe in romantic relationships or staying with one person. And that is fine for him; it doesn’t mean he gets to mess with my wife.

He runs a hand through his black hair. “Right. Then I apologize. But don’t come back to me when this shoots you in the ass. You cannot trust her.”

“You don’t know her.”

I don’t think anyone does the way I do.

“Neither do you, Colten. I have no interest in your relationships; what we had was fun, but it meant nothing. But Enzo’s empire does mean something to me, and I will not allow anyone to sink their claws in where they don’t belong,” he huffs, checking his watch like he’s bored.

I clear my throat. “Perhaps you should give her a shot. You want a family to run LA? Then why can’t it be her? She has my vote.”

He lets out a laugh. “It isn’t a voting system, Colten. It’s Enzo’s decision. And until her father is out of the picture, that is who he is basing his assessment on. And Vito Milano is vermin.”

I chew on the inside of my mouth. “And what if I got rid of him? What if Gianna became head of the family officially? Would you take her seriously then?”

He shrugs. “If Gianna kills her own father, Enzo will take her seriously. LA is hers.”

I swallow, blood pumping in my ears. I don’t want Gianna to leave to head to LA, but it’s selfish of me to take that away from her. We can figure it out. I can help her. Doesn’t mean I’ll like her not being in my bed every morning. I want her to be happy.

“And if she doesn’t?” I ask.

“Then Vito will die regardless, but Enzo will fill the space with someone else, and Gianna… well, I guess what happens to her is her own choice. If she fights against it, then she is the enemy.”

“You know she’s going to fight against bringing in another family onto her territory,” I spit.

Rage floods through me.

“Then, you should probably give her the options if she wishes to survive, Colten. She thought an alliance through marriage would get her in, but all it’s doing is keeping her alive.” He pauses. “For now.”

The last part plays on loop in my head.

“No one touches my wife,” I growl. “Not you. Not Enzo. So long as she remains married to me, nothing will happen to her. And if it does, do you think the other families would agree with me? Do you not think they’d also fear for their loved ones if Enzo suddenly gave orders to kill our wives?”

Romeo’s nostrils flare because he knows I’m right. And he knows how fiercely the men will protect their women. If Enzo hurts mine, that’s a message he doesn’t want out in the world. Because that goes against everything we stand for.

“No matter what happens in LA, Gianna is safe. Give me your word,” I demand.

“I’ll speak to Enzo.”

“You’ve got three days; otherwise, I’ll be taking a trip to see Declan Quinn and Mikhail Volkov, and then perhaps on my travels, I’ll see Frankie Falcone, too. Get their take on this.”

Romeo pushes himself up to stand. “You’d do that for her? Put yourself on the line for a bit of pussy?”

“Yeah. I fuckin’ would.” I round the table and stop in front of him. “Call her that again, and I’ll put my fist through your jaw.”

He smirks in response. “You know I like it rough, Colten. Stop flirting with me.”

“Oh, fuck off.”

I back away before I really do kill him. Snatching the bag of trash, I shove it in a pile with the rest.