Page 77 of Ruthless Roses
“Ernest showed up to Nirvana. He and Clay laid it all out in front of me what was going on. I’ve got them at my compound.”
Her eyes close and she releases a labored breath. Her hand touches the small bump that’s her belly as if she’s seeking comfort.
I cross the room to go to her. “You’re not involved. Neither is Dom. I’ll handle it. But you know what this means.”
Delphine doesn’t answer me. I draw her to me, giving her time to digest the information, and let it sink in. My normally rough and violent hands glide across her soft skin. Touches that soothe and express tenderness.
“Phi, for you,” I say, “I’ll make it quick. But he has to be eliminated. There’s no other way this ends—it’s us or it’s him. He’s not going to let it go, and it’s escalating. Dom and I could’ve died.”
Eyes still closed, she answers me with her fingers gripping the fabric of my shirt. The tighter she grips, the more I know she’s slowly working through the grim inevitability of what I’m going to do.
“How could he?” she whispers.
I cup her cheek and bow my head so I can rest my brow to hers. “Phi, your father hates my guts so much, he’ll do anything to destroy what we have. The family we’ve created together. It doesn’t matter that it’d be hurting you in the process. So long as I lose, then he considers it a win. Even if you and Dom lose too.”
“I want to be there.”
“No—”
“He’s my father,” she says, her eyes opening to look up into mine. “He’s my father, Jon. I want to be there when you do it. I want him to know he’s made the biggest mistake of his life… and I supportyou.”
“It could be upsetting for you. That’s not good for youorthe baby.”
“He deserves what he has coming, Jon. I’m only sad he’s made his bed. Now he has to lie in it.”
In this moment, I’m acutely reminded of the past. Years ago, I had insisted Delphine remain upstairs in the loft with the cats while I interrogated a man we suspected could be her attacker. It would’ve been easier for her to not have to see what brutality he would be subjected to. Delphine had insisted on coming with me, wanting to confront the man herself.
Now is no different. There’s a dark element that lingers around us, that’s laced in the air as we come together in a kiss. We’re a team through and through, even as I prepare to do something that would horrify most.
“Go rest, Phi,” I say. “You spent half the day upset about what’s happened. You can be there, but you still need to make sure you’re taking care of yourself and the baby.”
The corners of her lips tip up in a vague smile. She grabs my hand and brings it down to her small belly. “The baby kicked earlier.”
I kiss her jaw, rubbing my hand along the little bump. “He or she knew his mother needed to calm down.”
“When will you do it?”
“Tomorrow. The sooner this is over, the better.”
She releases a soft sigh and then nods. “I can’t believe it’s come to this. But thank you, Jon. Thank you for always doing what’s necessary to protect Dominic and me.”
“Always, Phi. So long as I’m alive.”
22
salvatore
“Gentlemen,”I say upon strolling into the cell. My men remain behind me, armed and ready to shoot. “I see we’re getting along, are we?”
Ernest and Clay push off each other, separating from yet another wrestling match. Their fourth fight within the last day. They go to their respective corners. The hostility between them still charges the air in the room. So much so they seem to forget I’mbothof their enemies.
I grin. “I’ve thought long and hard about what to do with you. What’s deserving of men who came for my family?”
Clay scoffs, his arms folded out of defiance. “You think I’m about to be scared? Of who? You? Nothing you do is gonna faze me.”
“A tough guy,” I say, stepping toward him. “You’re not scared of anything, is that right?”
“I really don’t give a fuck, Mancino,” Clay blurts out in another fit of foolish defiance. “You think you’re some big and bad mobster? You wouldn’t last five minutes with the old school crew. You must not know about Killer Clay ’cuz I’m not somebody you’re gonna shakedown. Take that shit somewhere—ARGH!”