"What is it?" Jordyn asked.
"If you'd drive it, then perhaps I would buy it," Lucian finished, hiding his grin by looking away.
Jordyn sighed. "Lucian."
"Well, if you like it and would use it, I'd have another reason to put up with the color."
"It's just a car."
"That I have to be seen in," Lucian said, scoffing playfully. "Dark colored cars look much better with women drivers."
"That's true," Fraser added, smiling encouragingly at Jordyn. "Typically I find women choose dark paints colors more often than they pick lighter ones."
"But I'm not picking a car today," Jordyn replied sweetly. "Lucian, stop trying to manipulate me into letting you buy me a car. It's ridiculous you think I'm naive enough to fall for it. I thought you understood how firm the bed in the guestroom is, but I guess not. Either you want this car, or you don't. Make a choice and stick to it."
Goddamn it.
There was nothing quite like Jordyn and her sarcasm when she wanted to make a point.
"Fine, I'll buy the fucking thing," he muttered unhappily. "I'm already tired of Antony's Mercedes."
"Good," Fraser said, clapping his hands together. "You're aware of the price, given I emailed you the details. All that's left is your choice of how to pay, Lucian."
It wasn't uncommon for Lucian, his brothers, or his father to pay for their vehicles in a rather unorthodox way, like straight cash the dealer could hide a few thousand worth under the table.
"Cash," he answered. "In full. Get the paperwork ready and you'll have the money."
"The Mercedes is safer, though," Jordyn pointed out too quietly for the dealer to hear as Fraser walked away. "At least for a little while longer."
"I know, but if someone really wants to kill me, sweetheart, bulletproof glass isn't going to save me."
Jordyn frowned. "Thanks for the reassurance."
Well, honesty was the best policy.
Lucian weaved his fingers with Jordyn's, tugging her closer into his side. "Forget about it."
"Right, like that's going to happen."
"Come on, let's take a walk back to the Mercedes to get the money. I bet he knew I was going to buy the car and already has the paperwork practically done but for my signature."
Jordyn didn't seem entirely pleased about his dismissal of the threat still looming over Lucian's life, but she followed him back through the parking lot without pushing it further. He was grateful, really, because whether he wanted to admit it or not, no one was any closer to figuring out who, or why, someone was looking to end his life.
There was nothing to gain from it, honestly.
Sure, Lucian's position as a capo in the Marcello Cosa Nostra put a bulls-eye on his back, but that was nothing. It would be more likely someone would came after him once Dante was boss and Lucian worked as his underboss. At least then his death would offer someone a chance to move up in the family. No one stood to inherit Lucian's wealth as of now, so that was out of the question.
It just didn't make sense.
His death would be pointless.
That made it all the more worse.
"Hey, where did you go?" Jordyn asked as Lucian popped the trunk to grab a black bag.
"Too far inside my head," Lucian replied.
Jordyn leaned into his side, her soft mouth pressing a kiss to his throat over his pulse point that made him shudder and his cock grow thick. "Well, stop it. The faster we get back to the condo, the quicker I'll get you out of your head and into something else."
Lucian smirked roguishly. "In you, I hope."
"Maybe, if you're good."
"If that's your standard, I have no chance, Jordyn."
Jordyn laughed lightly, her hand coming down to graze suggestively along his groin. "Good thing I like you when you're bad."
Cazzo, Lucian loved this woman.
"Let's not waste time, then."
On the trek back towards where the Lexus was situated in the lot, Lucian noticed Fraser intercepting their walk with paperwork and a pen in hand. Lucian didn't say a thing as he scrawled his name and date where the papers noted he needed to, and then handed the papers back over.
"I don't need to count it, do I?" Fraser asked, glancing down at the black bag before tossing a look over Lucian's shoulder.
The shake in the man's tone caught Lucian's interest. Never had he screwed the dealer around before, so even joking about it was offensive. Something prickled at the back of Lucian's neck, making his hair feel like it was standing on end.
Again, Fraser glanced somewhere behind Lucian, as if he was looking for something, or someone. It was only then Lucian noticed the dealer hadn't brought him out keys for the Lexus. Lucian dropped the bag of money to the ground, just to see what Fraser would do.
Then, as Fraser made a move to retrieve the bag, the man took a step back from Lucian as quickly as he could. When the dealer looked for a third time over Lucian's shoulder, he knew something was so wrong about the situation. He had the distinct feeling if he tried to seek out what Fraser was looking for, it wouldn't end well.
Some people called it instinct, but Lucian knew the sensation bubbling up in his chest was more about the sudden oddness in his surroundings than anything else.
Silencers only muffled the sound of a gun going off. It wasn't soft, but more like a muted pop. Lucian barely registered the sound of the gun blowing somewhere behind him in the quiet car lot in time, but he heard it.
Lucian reacted in what felt like milliseconds. Jordyn's chest met Lucian's arm, taking her down to the ground. She tried to catch herself as Lucian fell, her cry of pain and surprise hitting him straight in the heart as her blue eyes met his, terrified.
"Lucian?"
"Shhh," he whispered, soothingly. "S'okay, sweetheart."
It was only then he noticed Fraser was beginning to move farther away from their spot.
"Don't move!" Lucian snarled at the man. "I'll put a bullet between your eyes before you even get the chance to run, you bastard."
Oh, someone was in a lot of trouble. Lucian was pissed.
Knowing that while they were on the ground whoever had had taken the shot didn't have a second chance to take another, Lucian forced Jordyn to stay there until the screech of tires squealed in the near distance. Quickly, he popped up from the ground only to catch a glimpse of a dark colored sedan that wouldn't have caught his attention before it disappeared out of sight.
"Up," Lucian ordered Jordyn, offering his hands for her to take and keeping his sharp gaze on Fraser. "Go to the Mercedes."
"Lucian-"
"Go!"
She was practically vibrating, her eyes drawn to his arm as tears welled. "But-"
"Jordyn, not the time to argue!"
"But your arm!" she cried.
As Lucian attempted to pull his cell phone from his pocket, a faint sting radiated though his upper right arm. A warm, wetness seeped into his suit jacket. Glancing down, he knew immediately what had happened, but his adrenaline was running too high to really feel the pain, or care.
The bullet had nicked his arm before continuing on to wherever it finally landed.
Merda. It'd been close.
They were aiming for his back.
• • •
Jordyn paced back and forth in the bedroom, listening to Lucian cuss at Paulie as loud as he could while the doctor stitched his arm up in the connecting bathroom. Apparently her lack of patience and constant voicing of her worry wasn't needed in the bathroom, so she'd been designated to bedroom and told to stay there. She didn't appreciate that.
Dante slipped out of the bathroom with a roll of his eyes just as Lucian cursed angrily again.
"Cazzo. Stick me with that fucking needle one more time, Paulie, and I swear to God … "
"Shut up. Grit your teeth. You get shot, you get stitches. You know this."
Jordyn flinched. "Is he-"
"Fine," Dante interrupted, giving her a look. "Just acting like a child because he needs a few stitches."
Jordyn released a shaky breath, wishing the desire to cry would go away. "Where's Gio?"
Usually if one brother showed up, the other one did, too. Lucian refused to go to a hospital, vaguely explaining it would be reported and the police would get involved. They ended up back at the condo instead.
"Questioning Fraser," Dante said darkly.
A shiver crawled up Jordyn's spine at what those words implied.
"Antony?" she asked.
Where were these people, Jordyn wanted to scream.
"With Gio," Dante explained. "Probably having a grand time getting the man to talk."
Oh.
"And before you ask," he continued, cocking a brow. "My mother was hysterical to the point of a breakdown, so Antony demanded Paulie sedate her. She won't be happy when she wakes up, and you can be sure she'll come here without invitation, breaking down the damned doors to see Lucian."
"I don't care," Jordyn mumbled. "She's his mother. She has a right to be concerned."
"Not all women would feel the same. Anyway, Paulie is almost finished. Lucian is pissed off to the high heavens, so you might want to give him a while to chill out and let the painkillers kick in. Go have a nap or something. We're going to be here for a while."