Chapter 7 - Shifting Currents
The aftermath of the City Hall shooting was a total victory for the Marchetti family. The footage of Valenti’s assassin attempting to murder Ruby on live television destroyed the federal case against Luca, forcing the DOJ to launch a massive racketeering investigation into the Valenti family instead.
That evening, back at the estate, the atmosphere was different. The cold tension that usually hung over the house had melted away, replaced by a quiet, electric energy.
Ruby stood on the terrace, watching the dark waves of the bay crash against the rocks below. The night air was freezing, but she wore a heavy cashmere coat that Luca had left in her room.
Footsteps sounded behind her. Luca stepped out, holding two glasses of deep red wine. He handed one to her.
"Barolo. From my family’s vineyard in Piedmont," he said, leaning against the stone balustrade beside her.
"Thank you," Ruby said, taking a slow sip. The warmth spread down her throat. "Is it over?"
"The legal battle is," Luca said, staring out at the water. "The street battle is just beginning. Valenti is desperate now. He lost his political cover, his reputation, and his leverage. A desperate man is the most dangerous kind."
Caesar walked out onto the terrace, sat down between them, and rested his massive head across both of their feet—linking them together just as he had done on the floor of the clinic.
Luca looked down at the dog, a soft chuckle escaping his lips. "Look at him. The feared monster of Baltimore, reduced to a foot warmer."
"He's not a monster," Ruby said softly. "He was just forced to live in a world where he had to be one."
Luca turned his head to look at her. The moonlight caught the sharp angles of his face, softening them. "Are you talking about the dog, Ruby? Or me?"
Ruby met his gaze. Her breath hitched in her throat. Up close, Luca was devastatingly handsome, but it was the vulnerability in his eyes—a vulnerability he showed to no one else in the world—that made her chest ache.
"Both," she whispered.
Luca set his wine glass down on the stone ledge. He stepped closer, closing the distance between them until she was pressed gently against the balustrade. His hands came up, cupping her round, warm cheeks, his thumb tracing the curve of her lip.
"Everyone in this city looks at me and sees a Don. A killer. A king," Luca said, his voice dropping to a rough whisper. "You look at me and see a man who needs to be healed."
"Do you?" Ruby asked, her heart hammering against her ribs. "Need to be healed?"
"I didn't think I did," Luca murmured. "Until you walked into my life with dog biscuits on your sleeve and told me to get out of your way."
May you like
He leaned down and kissed her.
It wasn't a gentle kiss. It was deep, possessive, and filled with a desperate, buried hunger that swept through Ruby like a wildfire. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his heavy, muscular frame closer, burying her hands in his dark hair. Caesar whined softly beside them, tail wagging against the stone, as if approving of the union he had orchestrated from the start.
