The Last Prince

a little morning recon

As I groaned and tugged on my hair for what felt like the thousandth time that morning, I finally stopped pacing, taking a seat on the edge of the bathtub before speaking into the phone.

"Seriously, Roc, what the fuck happened last night?! I mean, me and the guys went to the office to look over some papers for five minutes and the next thing I know, somebody starts shooting up the club?!"

"Well... thanks to Detective Boseley, last night's incident didn't raise any suspicions, so we shouldn't have anything to worry about."

I let out a sigh of relief, thankful that the dirtiest cop on the job was staying true to his word when it came to any activity related to DeLuca.

As long as he got his weekly cash-stuffed envelope.

"Remind me to put that bastard on my Christmas card list."

My sarcastic response sounded a bit hollow even to me as I continued questioning Rocco.

"And the shooter? What are we looking at here?"

"I went through each piece of camera footage and followed him from the second he walked into the club. I didn't instantly recognize him, so I'm running his picture through a few databases. If he pops up on one, I should know by the end of the day. But, in the meantime, I looked into what you wanted me to, and..."

My eyebrows knit together as Rocco's voice faded away. The next thing I knew, I was back on my feet, pacing across the tile until I was back on the rug in front of the tub.

"And what, Roc?! What is it?!"

"Right before the shooting, when Sky and Michaela were on the dancefloor, she was grabbing water at the bar, and..."

I peeked into the bedroom, my heart nearly thumping out of my chest when I saw my Bambina, lying facedown on the bed, the sheet draped over her waist as her bonnet was slightly slipping off her head.

"Just fuckin' tell me, man..."

I made sure I whisper-yelled as I quietly shut the bathroom door, not wanting to wake Sky up, but also wanting Rocco to get to the fucking point already.

"Alexei was there. He talks to Sky for a minute before the girls start heading back up to the VIP booth."

It felt like my heart stopped. My blood was already boiling over him popping up at the cafe, but this was taking it to a whole different level.

That little prick had the nerve to come into my family's club and talk to my girl.

"I swear, this fucker must have a death wish."

"What are you gonna do, Kid?"

Running my free hand over my face, I groaned and rolled my eyes, shaking my head before answering Rocco's question.

"I'm gonna take care of it."

The finality in my voice told Rocco instantly to move on.

"How's she doin'?"

I grimaced and let out a heavy breath.

"She was kinda shaken up last night, but I took care of her."

"I bet you did."

The suggestive tone in Rocco's voice lightened the mood for just a second before his next question rattled me.

"So, are you gonna tell her soon, or what? 'Cause you know the gala's, like, right around the corner."

Shutting my eyes, I took a deep breath and shook my head, already feeling like a jackass for what I was about to say.

"As far as she knows, the gala's a huge company party for all of Dad's eateries. She still has no clue about... anything else."

Rocco let out a small chuckle and I could just imagine the face he was making more than likely while shaking his head.

"The hell are you waiting for, Kid?"

Thinking back to the sleeping angel in my bed, I found myself sitting on the edge of the tub once again, my heart and stomach both flipping.

"Fuck, man... I mean, she's perfect. Like actually fucking perfect and the second she figures out who I-- what I am, she'll leave me. And I wouldn't even blame her. She deserves the world and when I tell her, she'll look at me like I'm a monster."

The bathroom doorknob jiggled and turned and a second later, my formerly sleeping beauty was standing there, as naked as the day she was born.

She sauntered over to me, seductively biting her lip as she began to smile and at that moment I wouldn't have been able to spell my own name with a gun to my head.

She walked over to the shower, leaning in to turn the knobs on, giving me the perfect chance to admire her round, perky little bottom.

I had stopped listening to Rocco the second she stepped into the bathroom, and as she looked over her shoulder back at me, she tilted her head towards the now steamy shower behind her.

"You comin'?"

She hopped in and I rushed off the phone, mumbling something to Rocco about meeting up with him later.

Right now my focus was on the girl in the shower and how I was going to show her exactly why she'd never be able to leave me.

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