Mafia Heir

Chapter 5

Luca

When I finished up with Angelo, I made my way back to the kitchen. For better or worse, I had to finish my conversation with Charlotte and then send her on her way. In the scheme of things, I had much bigger issues that needed my attention.

It took a lot of work to keep things running as smoothly as they did around here, and there was no room for operations to slip. I had been groomed for this position my entire life, but I would always be plagued by the need to prove myself. Antonio Romano had been Don of our faction for nearly thirty years, and he had hand-picked me as his successor. My father was his Capo, and when business expanded to the US, my father took over that section of our group. When he died, it was left to me, and Antonio had been so happy with my work, that he had bypassed both of his sons and chosen me as his successor. One day, the entire international Romano family would be under my control. I knew I was good at what I did, and I was reaping the benefits of my success, but I still constantly felt the need to prove myself. That was a legacy my father had left behind for me. Nothing I ever did was good enough in his eyes, and I had taken on the same ironclad mentality. Anything less than perfection was a failure, and that just wasn't an option. It made me unstoppable as a Don, but anything outside of my work fell by the wayside, and always would.

Briefly, I had allowed Charlotte to distract me, but I couldn't afford to make that mistake long-term. Not when I was so close to taking over that I could almost taste it.

Charlotte's laugh bounced off of the walls as I got closer. They were still seated at the kitchen island, engrossed in conversation and she was laughing at something he had just said. I found myself a little jealous of the time Carlo had gotten to spend with her, and that feeling alone was precisely why I knew I needed to get her out of here.

"Thanks Carlo, we're good now." I shoved my hands into my pockets, walking into the kitchen.

Charlotte tensed up as she saw me, almost like I was the one she was scared of, and it bothered me more than it should have. It made me wonder what Carlo had been telling her since I had been gone.

"No problem, boss." Carlo said, standing up and tossing both of their dishes into the sink. "I'll see you later, Char."

Char? He had a nickname for her now?

"Bye Carlo." She smiled, giving him a small wave.

I grabbed myself a glass of water, and took the seat where Carlo had been.

"Did you handle whatever you needed to?" She glanced up at me, an uneasiness to her voice.

I nodded. "But now, you and I need to talk."

"I don't know who Silvano is." Charlotte blurted out, chewing on the inside of her cheek.

Her response caught me off guard. Is that what they had been talking about all morning? Had Carlo told her about my suspicions? I wanted to see her genuine reaction to hearing his name and now that had been tainted. Unless, they hadn't talked about that at all and she was about to tell me the truth.

"How do you know that name?" I asked, carefully.

"Carlo told me you think I ran away from him or something...Is he the one who attacked me?"

I rubbed my forehead. Of course, he had told her. "Silvano isn't the one who attacked you, but he sent his men to. You're sure you've never heard that name before?"

"Positive." She insisted.

"Have you ever worked as a prostitute or sex worker? Anything like that? No judgement, I just have to ask."

Charlotte's face twisted in irritation. "No, I haven't. Until a few months ago, I didn't even live in New York. And I don't understand why that would be any of your business anyway. Look, I'm really grateful for all you and your men have done for me, but I need to go now."