Plus she’ll hear I’m organizing a big contract with Jag. Jag and me go way back so she’s not gonna want to fuck her brother over, either, especially not knowing about his lucrative side-business. If there’s one thing about Jessa that’s real above and beyond her love of all things champagne wishes and caviar dreams, it’s her bond with Jag.
Some might think she’d devour Tony. But I happen to know the man well and before this fiasco, there’s a reason I trusted him. He’s unfailingly loyal but when it comes to women, he’s extremely possessive and old-fashioned. Tony has the type of old-school loyalty that could make him a made man if he joined the right organization. Lucky for me, he joined mine.
Risk management where Jessa is concerned could’ve been sticky, even with me investing in her business. But with the addition of Tony keeping Jessa in check?
“So, let’s get this straight. You’re proposing that Jessa’s yours and anything Jessa does to piss me off is on you? Is that what you’re proposing? Because Jagger is also a force to be reckoned with and he won’t be happy if he thinks his sister is in any danger.”
“That’s right, Kill.” He straightens up. Light in his eyes. “And I’ll make sure she knows it, too. As for Jag, he and I are tight. I’ll make sure he’s cool with me. He loves his sister, but I suspect he’ll be happy to find out she might actually settle down and not be his problem for once.”
He’s excited about this. I lean over and shake his hand. “Done.”
“Can I ask what’s being done about Iadanza? Or am I out of that because of my mistake? Whatever I can do to help, you let me know, Boss. I’d love to get my hands on that sticky little fuck.” He rubs his head, which still has a goose egg on it from where he hit the floor.
“I’m meeting with Tino tomorrow. There’s a plan in the works that’ll make sure Raymond is no longer my problem, no longer anyone’s.”
A wide smile spreads across Tony’s face.
“But whatever business we have, no pillow talk, Tony. I don’t know that I can ever fully trust Jess. And she’s wily. She likes to be in the know and she gets devious if she thinks she’s out of the loop. As you can tell.”
He nods slowly. He gets it.
I continue. “And when this shit is over, it’s back to boring day-to-day shit. Your job will still be the same, but you’ll work closely with Jag to make sure everything works like clockwork for security. No disrespect to you but with the growth of my business and the amount of security threats, I need Jag, so need you to report to him as well as me. This is outside what happened at the house on the weekend. It’s something I’ve been thinking on for a while.”
His smile slips. “No pillow talk about business. Ever. And Kill, I’m relieved. I’m lookin’ forward to less excitement. Believe me. I want my days to go back to being like they were, but with the difference bein’ that I’ve got Jessa in my bed when I get home at night. Jag trained me. I got no problem reporting to him as well as you.”
“Jessa Carson isn’t a girl that waits around for her man to get home at night. If you’re not wining and dining her, it might be an issue. We might need to switch you to dayshift.”
He waves his hand. “I work nights. That won’t change. Don’t worry. I’ll knock her up. Problem solved.” He sweeps one palm across the other
I laugh loud and give him a high five. He smiles and then picks up his cutlery. He saws off another bite of steak and shoves it into his mouth.
A minute later, he swallows his food, then looks me in the eyes. “Thanks for the second chance, Kill. Your respect means a lot to me. You’re the brother I never had. I hate that I let you down and I would never forgive myself if you didn’t forgive me. I still might have some trouble.”
I lean forward and slap him on the shoulder. “It’s in the past, Tone. We’re good. Now, let’s eat this food so I can head out and pick up ginger beef and broccoli for my pregnant wife.”
His eyes light up. “Violet’s pregnant?”
“Yeah.” I shoot him a grin before sipping my drink.
“Congratulations, man!” He holds his hand out.
I take it and shake. “Thank you. It’s still early, so only telling people we’re close to so far.”
He smiles wide. “I’m honored.”
“You’re a good friend,” I say.
“Be nice if we have kids that grow up together, eh, Kill?”
“It would. Don’t expect your woman to be on board with bein’ friends with mine though, Tony. Jessa isn’t exactly the type.”