Fix You (The Irish Rogues #3)

Chapter One Raphael

P resent Day

“This is fucking torture,” I groaned into the ear of the leggy blonde currently gyrating her voluptuous ass against my crotch.

For the last ten minutes, Blondie, with her red-come-fuck-me-Louboutins and a scrap of a dress, had been dry humping me on the floor of my club, Inferno. Both the sexual tension and the mass of bodies had sweat running in rivulets down my back, causing my black dress shirt to stick to my body. My cock strained in my briefs, desperate for more than tortuous friction.

Flicking her gaze over her shoulder, Blondie shot me an erotic look that caused my dick to ache even harder. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, l a mia piccola tenatrice ,” I purred into her neck.

She moaned before grinding her ass harder against my dick. As she bent over, I could feel the scorching hot heat of her core beneath my slacks. When she righted herself, she turned her face towards mine. “You don’t know how much it turns me on when you speak Italian.”

“ Voglio scoparti con forza, voglio farti venire.”

“What does it mean?”

“First I called you my little temptress.”

Her ruby-red lips curled into a cat-like smile. “Am I tempting you?”

“You could tempt a dead man.”

She laughed. “And what about the other thing you said?”

“I want to fuck you hard. I want to make you come.”

Amusement faded from her expression and was replaced with white-hot lust. “Do you promise to fuck me hard and make me come?”

“I’m a man of my word.”

“Then let’s get out of here.”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Instead of going out the front of the club, I tugged her hand and began leading her to the employee hallway. To her credit, she didn’t pretend not to know I was part owner of Inferno. So many of my conquests sought me out because of my power and wealth but then they pretended to be surprised by my penthouse or me owning Inferno .

For almost a hundred years, the building had been owned by the Neretti family. It had started as a Speakeasy during Prohibition. Once liquor was legalized again, my great-grandfather, Adriano, had turned it into a Jazz club.

Over the decades, it had changed with the times and been rebranded numerous times. Under my vision, it had been renamed Inferno, one of New York’s most decadent clubs. The main floor featured the typical club experience of drinks and dancing. Like the levels of Dante’s Inferno, the next floor down featured strippers of both sexes.

When you reached the basement, or Lust as it was named, you found a truly hedonistic experience with voyeurism, BDSM, and other assorted kinks. It wasn’t so much a part of my own sexual nature, but more about offering what other clubs were afraid to offer. My last name and my family’s position ensured the police and civic leaders turned a blind eye to what went on in Lust.

At the sight of us coming down the hallway, a bouncer opened the door for us. As we stepped out in the alley, a SUV sat waiting for us. My bodyguard, Milos, stood waiting. “Impressive,” the blonde remarked.

After nodding at Milos, he opened the backdoor. Once we hopped inside, he locked us in. Running her fingertips over the double-plated glass, Blondie remarked, “Is this some kind of government car?”

Milos hit the gas, and the SUV took off out of the alley. “I’m a club owner and a businessman. How could I possibly work for the government?” I countered.

She grinned. “You definitely give off spy vibes.”

“Man in black, huh?” I teased. I then grabbed the nape of her neck. Jerking her forward, I slammed my lips against hers. For the next few minutes, I distracted her from any other questions she might have about who I really was.

When I finally pulled away, both of our chests heaved. “What’s your name again, bella?”

“Alyssa,” she panted.

“Hmm, are you Greek?”

Her blue eyes popped wide. “How did you know?”

“Because of your name.”

She gave me a lazy grin. “So your dick is as big as your brain, huh?”

With a chuckle, I replied, “Perhaps. It’s more about the fact I’m Sicilian, which has a lot of Greek in it.”

“Sicilian?” She blinked up at me. “Ooh, so the rumors are true, huh?”

Instead of answering her, I cupped her breast through her dress to distract her. With just a squeeze of her flesh, her mind was back on pleasure and not about my potential underworld life.

The last thing I needed was her asking questions. That was the problem in dating outsiders. Women in the famiglia were trained from an early age not to ask any questions relating to business.

As the SUV came to a stop, Alyssa pulled away to eye my building. “Where are we?”

“My penthouse.”

Her brows shot up in surprise. “You took me to your place?”

“Do you object?”

“No. I have two roommates, so we’d have an audience.”

“That could be a good thing.”

“You’re a naughty boy, huh?”

“I can be.”

“I can’t wait.”

Milos opened the door then. After I stepped down, I helped Alyssa out. Taking her by the hand, I led her into the lobby of my building. On our way to the bank of elevators, her eyes popped wide. After her initial surprise, she quickly turned her attention back to me.

Or more importantly I should say, my dick.

I’d barely had time to swipe my keycard for the penthouse when she pounced on me. One hand gripped my bicep while the other trailed down my chest to cup my aching cock. I groaned as she worked me over my slacks.

When the elevator door slid open, we stumbled out in a tangle of arms and legs and tongues. I’d just started licking up the side of Alyssa’s neck when her moans of pleasure choked off into a squeak of alarm while her hand froze on my cock. “What’s wrong?”

“Uh, there’s a man in your foyer.”

Since I was accustomed to bodyguards and butlers in my home, I wasn’t concerned. Nibbling her earlobe, I thrust my hips back into her hand for friction. “Just ignore him, or if you like an audience, enjoy him.”

“Raphael,” a terse voice echoed through the foyer.

“Fuck,” I murmured as I began disentangling myself from Alyssa. In that moment, there wasn’t another man alive that would’ve torn me away from pussy.

But Alessio Neretti wasn’t any man. He was a ruthless businessman and an underworld king.

He was also my father.

As I turned to face him, I buttoned my suit jacket and tried to hide my hard-on as best I could. Forcing a smile to my face, I jerked a hand through my hair where Alyssa had tousled it.

“Father, to what do I owe this very unexpected pleasure?”

My father’s cool gaze cut from mine over to Alyssa. “Get rid of her.”

While Alyssa’s eyes bulged, I merely snorted. It irked my father when I was with anyone who lacked the potential of a marriage alliance. He preferred I only fucked Italian girls, although he wouldn’t object to an Irish or Russian or Greek girl with the right underworld connections. But any girl like that was locked down by her family, so she would remain pure for a marriage deal. And I wasn’t interested in anything but meaningless sex.

Cocking a brow at my father, I countered, “I believe you forget where you are. This is my home, and I’ll entertain who I want.”

Father’s lips curled in a sneer. “ Sono qui per discutere di affari, non per fare una chiamata sociale. ”

Fuck. He was here for business, not a social call. I knew it was imperative not to keep him, or the business that brought him out so late, waiting. Taking Alyssa by the hand, I began leading her back to the elevator.

“You’re sending me away?” she demanded.

After bringing her hand to my lips, I gave her a regretful smile. “Both my cock and myself are extremely sorry to cut our evening short, but I’m going to have to ask for a rain check.”

Suspicion flooded Alyssa’s face. “What kind of business could you possibly have after midnight?”

The smile slid from my lips. “That’s private.”

From the fear flashing in her eyes, I could tell she finally believed the voices of doubt in her head about who my family and myself really were. Her mind was reeling with the images of my bodyguard, the thick glass on the SUV, how I was a man in black.

At the shudder than ran through her, I could tell that she was grateful our time had been cut short because she wanted nothing to do with a man like me. Refusing to look at me, her trembling fingers punched the down button relentlessly until the doors finally closed.

Once the elevator had started back down, I turned to my father. “This better be a matter of life and death.”

“Ten minutes ago, I received a call from Tazio in Palermo.”

Tazio was one of our many cousins in Sicily who oversaw our businesses and alliances. As the son of Father’s younger brother, he was the highest-ranking member of the family there since my uncle’s death.

Slanting my brows, I asked, “Has there been an attack on one of our shipments or our other interests?”

Father shook his head. “It’s about Caterina.”

My heart twisted in agony at the mention of the only woman in the world I loved. As a range of terrifying scenarios played through my mind, I fought to breathe. Three years ago, my baby sister had joined the Sacred Heart–a missionary order of nuns. Her decision wasn’t about being an overly devout Catholic girl. It was her only way of escaping the impending arranged marriage sanctioned by our father.

As children of a capo, there was no running away in our world–you only left the mafia life in a bodybag. In Caterina’s case, her only way out came because the one thing my father remotely feared was God. He might’ve been torturing late into the night or fucking one of his mistresses, but you could bet his ass would be at mass in the morning.

“What about her?” I demanded.

“A group of men broke into the Sacred Heart and kidnapped her.”

Caterina’s smiling face flashed before my eyes, sending me staggering back. Fuck. This couldn’t be happening. “But I just spoke to her earlier today to wish her a happy birthday.”

During lunch, I’d dragged my younger brothers, Leandro and Gianni, into my office so we could Facetime her. While there hadn’t been much love between my parents and their children, the bond my siblings had with each other was intense. I’d do anything for them, and they would for me. As the baby and only girl, Caterina had always been spoiled by us. Although she should’ve been a brat, she had the kindest and purest heart of anyone I’d ever known.

It was still unfathomable that she was spending her twenty-first birthday in a religious order, or that in a few short years she would take her final vows and officially be a nun. While it was horrible to admit it, I held out hope something would happen to our father so that Caterina would be free. As long as I drew breath, I would never force my sister into a marriage.

“Tazio said it happened around midnight Palermo time.”

“He’s absolutely certain?”

“Yes. After the Mother Superior alerted the authorities in Palermo, they of course called Tazio.”

I ran my hand over my face. “Who would do such a thing? I mean, it can’t be as simple as retaliation against us considering she’s a civilian in a religious order.”

“It’s retaliation, but it’s not in the way you think. Caterina is a young woman of marriageable age from a powerful family.”

My chest tightened further. Caterina had tried to escape being a pawn in our world, and it had all been for nothing. “You think someone kidnapped her into marriage?”

“It’s the only answer.”

“Do we have any idea who it could be?”

“One of the sisters claimed the men had an Irish accent.”

“Fuck!” I snarled as I started pacing in the foyer. My anger and desperation converged on the floral arrangement on the table. Snatching it up, I flung it against the wall. The glass vase shattered, sending glass raining down onto the floor.

“ Stupido cazzo ! Get a hold of yourself!” Father shouted.

“I can’t help it. At the thought of what she’s been subjected to…the fear she has to be feeling…” I shook my head furiously from side to side. “I could destroy this entire place.”

“What a fucking failure of a capo you’ll be,” Father muttered.

“ Vaffanculo ,” I spat.

He stalked over to me, his feet crunching along the glass. Jabbing his finger into my chest, he said, “There’s no time to lose yourself in fucking theatrics. We have to keep our wits together and plan our next move.”

With a sneer, I bit out, “Fine. What’s the plan?”

“They’re readying the jet at the airport for me to fly to Palermo.”

I nodded. “I’ll grab my things.”

Father shook his head. “You’re not coming with me.”

Sweeping my hand to my hips, I demanded, “Why the hell not?”

“Because you’re needed here.”

“Fuck that. The only place I plan to be is on the ground in Sicily to search for Caterina.”

“As your capo, you will do as I tell you.”

“This isn’t business–this is my sister!” I growled.

“ Everything is business.”

“I yield to you on everything, but this is one thing I won’t do.”

Father grabbed me by the lapels of my suit. “Now you listen to me. Whatever mick bastards that have kidnapped Caterina are seeking an alliance. Either they want the strength of our name, or they want to weaken us. That’s why while I’m in Sicily, you will be ensuring our stability with a marital alliance.”

I sucked in a harsh breath. Only earlier today, Caterina had teased me about how I was still a bachelor at twenty-eight. In our world, especially with oldest sons, alliances were usually settled by the mid twenties. But my father felt a capo needed time to mature in his business before taking on a wife. It was why he’d given me freedom until I was thirty.

But apparently the whispers about father courting potential brides was true. “You’ve found me a wife?”

He nodded. “I hadn’t planned on broaching the subject for a while because the girl is soon to be twenty.”

While girls used to be married off as early as eighteen, modern times had stretched the coming of age to twenty-one. While some men liked the idea of a child bride, it wasn’t alluring to me. At my age, I would be expected to produce heirs as soon as possible, and young brides often weren’t fully ready for motherhood. The last thing I needed was to raise a wife and a child.

“Who is it?”

“Andrea Caruso, or Drea as they call her.”

Although I didn’t know Drea, I instantly recognized her last name. The Caruso’s were a strong Sicilian family with roots in Philadelphia. We’d done business with them over the years. It was a wise choice to align ourselves with them. It would unite two of the largest Sicilian/Italian families on the Eastern seaboard.

“Let me guess. You want me to go to Philly and sign a marriage contract?”

“Precisely. Then as soon as we’ve sorted out this kidnapping bullshit, we’ll begin planning your wedding for next year.”

My fists clenched at my sides. “Caterina’s abduction is not bullshit. If I get wind that you aren’t doing everything you can to get her back safely, I swear to God I’ll end you.”

Father had the gall to smirk at me. “You’d have that sin on your immortal soul?”

I smirked back at him. “You’re the one with faith, not me.”

The amusement slid off of his face. It was replaced with his usual cool detachment. “To put our best foot forward, Leandro will accompany you as your second in command along with Milos.”

“What about Gianni?”

“He’s coming with me to Palermo.”

Although I hated to admit it, Father was right in taking Gianni. He was an expert computer hacker. If there was any way to track Caterina down through technology, he would do it.

After checking his watch, Father said, “I have to go. Pack your bags for at least a week-long stay.”

My brows shot up in alarm. “A week?”

“I don’t know what Edoardo will expect of you. They might insist on a party.” He narrowed his eyes. “Whatever is asked of you, do it. That includes romancing your future bride. Keeping her happy makes the alliance prosperous.”

With a shake of my head, I countered, “Bullshit.”

“Excuse me?”

“Edoardo doesn’t give a fuck about Drea’s happiness just like you didn’t give a fuck about Caterina’s. You knew what would happen to her if she married Carmine, but all you cared about was a fucking alliance. She was nothing more than a chess piece to move around in your game.” Standing toe to toe with him, I added, “It’s because of you and your damn choices that she’s been kidnapped.”

Father’s jaw clenched. “Do your duty, Raphael, or there will be repercussions.”

He then turned on his heels and stalked over to the elevator. After jabbing the button, the doors opened to reveal a bleary-eyed, slightly rumpled Leandro. He glanced between Father and me. “What the fuck is going on?”

“Raphael will fill you in,” Father replied before bypassing Leo into the elevator.

Yawning, Leandro dragged a hand through his jet-black hair as he joined me in the foyer. When the doors closed on Father, Leo rolled his eyes. “Don’t hold me in suspense. What was so important that it had Guilio dragging my ass out of bed?”

Like Milos, Giulio was Leo’s bodyguard. “He didn’t say anything?”

Leo shook his head. “Just told me Father had requested I come up here.”

Considering he only lived a floor below me, it wasn’t a hardship. Jerking my chin at the liquor cart, I said, “You’re going to need a drink for this one.”

Leo’s tanned face paled. “Gianni or Caterina?” he demanded in a hoarse whisper.

“Caterina.”

His eyes widened in horror while he swayed on his feet. “Not Kitty Cat,” he murmured.

My chest clenched at the mention of the nickname we’d given Caterina as children. To her chagrin, we still called her that. We’d even called her that earlier today.

After filling him in on what had happened, I took my own advice and made my way over to the liquor cart. I poured myself a Disaronno.

“Father is such a stronzo to send us as glorified errand boys for this alliance,” Leo growled.

“Until we know who has taken Caterina, we’ll be kissing a lot of ass.”

“What do you know about your future wife?”

“Does it really matter?” I grumbled.

Leo snorted. “I would say yes considering you’re going to have to fuck her for heirs.”

Rolling my eyes, I argued, “There’s more important things at stake than my future wife’s appearance.”

My words sobered Leo immediately. “I’ll go downstairs and pack.”

“Be ready in half an hour?”

“Works for me.”

As Leo started defeatedly to the elevator, I grabbed his arm. “We will get her back.” Although I sounded confident, I sure as hell didn’t feel it. But as the future capo, I had to show leadership. I had to believe in my father’s and family’s ability to find Caterina.

Cocking his brows at me, Leo countered, “Cut the bullshit. This is me you’re talking to.”

A welcomed laugh burst from my lips. “You know me too well.”

“I sure as hell do.” He clapped his hand on my back. “You don’t have to be strong for me. We’ll get through this together.”

He couldn’t have imagined how much I needed to hear that. “Don’t go soft on me now,” I replied with a grin.

Leo winked. “Never when it counts.”

“Fucker,” I muttered with a laugh.