Chasing His Brother's Bride
Chasing His Brother’s Bride – Chapter 49

The next two weeks passed by in a blur and she was settling down in her new life as the wife of a mob boss and his enforcer.

Every day they went to work together after dropping Pia off at her new school. Pia was loving the smaller class sizes, the zero tolerance for any kind of bullying and had even made a new best friend named Gina and they were inseparable. She knew despite Pia being at her new school, Malik had paid a visit to Norman’s parents and made it clear if he found out the boy continued to bully other students, he would be back and it wouldn’t be a friendly visit.

There was no longer any need for an afterschool program for Pia because Elio picked her up every day and when he couldn’t, Fabrizio did. Also, both Elio’s partner Rosa, a tall, elegant woman with salt and pepper hair, a sweet smile, and a heart as big as the entire country and Kendall, Fabrizio’s wife, were in love with Pia and were the Nonna’s she needed and deserved.

Elio and Fabrizio had both purchased houses on the same street. How they had convinced the current homeowners to leave and as quickly as they had, she didn’t know but she guessed they paid far over market value for the spots. Keely was thrilled because it meant her mom was nearby to her instead of in Vegas. Keely said she had her own reasons, including an ex-girlfriend, for hating the city but she was glad they were all settling in Boston. Brix had told her any future takeovers of new companies he would have handled by his VP of operations. They no longer had any need to live out of hotels. Keely had her own condo in the city center and was loving the life in Boston.

Jolie and Opal were thrilled to have Keely as part of their friendship circle and the three of them often took breaks together and most lunches. The HR department had settled down immensely once Brix himself had put final warnings in the files of six staff members stating one more violation would be grounds for termination.

As for her and her husbands, Jolie was replaceing they were voracious with their appetites but both had refused to let go of the all-or-none rule. There had been one evening on the weekend when Malik had been required to handle a situation and while Brix had played with her, no intercourse happened. She had woken in the morning to Malik coming home before dawn, waking her and Brix up and continuing where Brix had left off.

She had noted Malik, as he had said, was the jealous type. As she was getting more used to her security team, she was laughing and joking with them more easily. Malik had more than once reminded the men to not flirt and while he never said or did anything to her, she had overheard once during a sparring he had really laid a pummelling to one of the soldiers. She found out later from Opal the guy had made a comment about how lucky her husbands were to be able to tap her juicy a*s and he felt the need to educate him on respect.

Opal of course knew this because Trey, the ever-stoic man, was in the woman’s bed and life as if he had never not been there. He had also gone to Axl’s school one afternoon and made it clear to the principal of the high school if he heard of even one more derogatory comment pertaining to his son’s sexuality, he’d personally hold the principal accountable and deal with him directly. Opal had nearly swooned with Trey immediately claiming them both and Axl, never having had an example of a real man in his life, was thriving under Trey’s presence.

She still had the FBI agent who had been tailing her for years watching her from a distance but now she simply ignored his presence. He often showed up at the bakery where Mordecai’s favorite cupcakes came from or the coffee shop, she, Opal, and Keely often visited for lunch but he never spoke directly to her. At first, she’d wanted to rage and question what he wanted from her but she knew. He knew the story Brix had supplied to the world on their relationship was bullshit and he had the photographic evidence of her battered body to prove it. He had expected she would be able to turn state evidence for him against the Cacciola’s and now she was one of them. He was not happy about it in the least if his annoyed glares were anything to go by.

According to Brix, all of the Rueda family had been dealt with and any future thoughts of war were wiped out. She didn’t ask for specifics and he had not provided any. He had also assured her, any of the men loyal to Val were taken care of and there was no internal threat of harm to her. With Chiara gone it seemed the entire Cacciola family was far more settled than it had ever been.

As for her father, she had met with him the Monday after Brix and Malik had first come home. He’d flown to Boston and had spent a couple of days. Tension remained between them, but she was hopeful with time they could repair the hurt. He adored Pia and called them both every day but, he had returned to Vegas. It was where her mother was buried and he felt strongly he wasn’t ready to leave her body there alone with nobody to put flowers on her gravestone each week. She knew from Elio, her father felt tremendous guilt for not going to Elio and saving her from Val but she also knew it was his battle to sort through. She couldn’t make him forgive himself, despite the fact she made it clear she forgave him. She had met Chiara and knew how scary she could be. She understood why he did what he did but it seemed he was struggling. And so, he remained in Vegas, calling every day and working through his own demons.

Val’s murderer was still unknown and while she did not believe for a single, solitary second Brix’s hypothesis it was someone who had felt badly for her, she forced herself not to consider a person was out there knowing her relationship to him and who had seen what he’d done but had left her there as if expecting her to die along with him.

She was lost in her daydreams when fingers snapped in front of her face and she looked up to see Opal laughing. “What?”

“Where the hell were you?” Opal giggled. “I called your name three times. It’s lunch time. Keely is waiting for us downstairs. Did you get the file completed Mordecai wanted?”

“Yeah,” she shook her head to clear the cobwebs. “Was daydreaming, I guess. Let me email this to him and we can go. I’ll check too to see if he wants us to bring him a sandwich back.”

“He’ll definitely want cake. The realty group sent down their monthly receipts. He was cursing up a storm after I sent him the sorted folders. One of the guys has an expenditure for seven thousand dollars for a weekend with the mayor’s cousin.”

She stood up from behind her desk, “did he at least get the sale?”

“He did but it took four meals in three days, an entire weekend on the golf course for the cousin and his posse and pretty sure the party he threw involved strippers and hookers who were billed as freelance entertainment.”

She giggled. Mordecai was very straitlaced and the notion the entertainment was used to seal the deal was probably making him blush under his stern exterior. “What was the sale?”

“Ten-million-dollar estate.”

“Pay the hookers is what Brix would say,” she giggled. “That’s almost five hundred thousand in commission for the company and the realtor gets ten percent of it. Fifty grand for a payday? I’d expense the hookers too.”

“Why are you discussing hookers?” Mordecai came out of his office frowning.

“We were discussing whether you needed cake while sorting through new receipts.”

“It’s why I’m here. Bring a whole cake. Forget the cupcake.” He grunted and passed them cash. “Pastrami on rye too.”

“Yes boss,” Jolie winked and took his cash.

“And the biggest damn coffee you can replace. Black.”

“Black?”

“The cake will be enough sugar. I might dunk the cake in the coffee.” He g*****d and turned back into his office.

The girls giggled and made their way to the elevator. Mavis looked up from her desk and then looked back down, aware if she said anything it would be captured on the cameras overhead.

Macey came out of her office and saw the two women leaving. “Going for lunch?”

“Yes.” Jolie did her best to be civil as the woman smiled benignly at her. “It’s the day expenses are due. Mordecai needs cake.”

Macey was staring at her and Jolie shifted wondered what was going to come out of her mouth next.

“Would you mind bringing me back a coffee?” She sighed loudly, “Brix wanted a whole review of the performance appraisals done in the last two years and I’m drowning. I was going to walk down myself but if you’re already going.”

“Of course,” Jolie waved her off when she reached for her purse. “I got it. No biggie. What do you take in it?”

“Lots of milk.” She gave her a tight smile. “Thanks Jolie.”

“Anytime,” she nodded and got into the elevator with Opal. When the doors closed Opal snorted. “Be nice, Opal. She is trying. It’s hard to undo three years of bad leadership but she is trying.”

“She could at least button up her blouse.”

“Yours is open the same number of buttons,” Jolie scoffed at her.

“Yes, but your bodyguard is waiting for us downstairs and he left this morning before I could take advantage of morning wood so he needs to get a glimpse of what he’s missing out on.”

“Hey. He leaves my place at midnight and still manages to get to yours to sleep. He has a bedroom at my house and he leaves it to come to you. He also takes supper breaks with you.”

“I know. I just want him looking at my boobies while we eat.” Opal grinned and adjusted her chest as the elevator opened. Trey of course happened to be looking right at her as she hoisted her ample bosom into the air and he shook his head at her antics yet his demeanor never changed.

Val’s murderer was still unknown and while she did not believe for a single, solitary second Brix’s hypothesis it was someone who had felt badly for her, she forced herself not to consider a person was out there knowing her relationship to him and who had seen what he’d done but had left her there as if expecting her to die along with him.

Jolie giggled as Keely rushed over and ducked under Trey’s arm. “Hey Keely. Ready?”

“God damn yes. Those two men of yours are on my last f*****g nerve.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know,” she snorted angrily. “If I did, I would tell them to stop doing what they are doing and start behaving normally again. They’ve been whispering and then shutting up the minute I’m in earshot.” Keely looked to Trey. “Do you know what is going on?”

“Nope. My job is right here and it’s all I’m focussed on.” He looked to Jolie. “Let’s go.” The moment they stepped outside he nodded to a group of men all waiting to accompany them on the walk to the coffee shop which shared space with the bakery.

Jolie also noted the FBI agent leaning against his car across the street and before she could say anything Trey exhaled. “Leave it, Jolie. Not worth it.”

“Fine, but I hate him. He’s a snake. Only a cruel individual would interrogate a woman and point out all the injuries and psychological damages inflicted on her to get what he wants. A*****e.”

“He’s an FBI specialist. It is no different than what we do when we interrogate. You replace a weakness and you close in on it.” Trey said bluntly. “Keep moving.”

“How is Pia liking her new school?” Keely asked changing the subject.

“Great. She came home yesterday and recited her numbers to fifty. The smaller class sizes and more intensive learning program suit her well. She’s thriving there.”

“She’s such a funny little thing. When Elio had her at Dad’s yesterday after school, they videoed her dancing on the coffee table singing I’m a little teapot. My mother is grateful you allowed her to be pseudo-Nonna because she knows I’m never giving her a grandchild.”

“Your mother is not a pseudo-Nonna, she is Nonna. She also taught me how to make spaghetti and meatballs and Pia didn’t complain too much.”

“She still complained. They were shit.” Trey shot out from behind her. “You literally followed her step by step and the difference in your meatballs and Kendall’s were night and day. You even baked them in the same oven for the same time yet yours turned black. I don’t know how you do it.”

“It’s a talent,” Jolie looked over her shoulder grinning. He wasn’t lying. Poor Kendall had been stupefied at the end result. Her phone notified her of a text message and she looked at it and grimaced. “Brix wants to see me in his office when I get back. Something to do with the videos.”

“What videos?”

“The ones from Val’s,” she sighed as she answered Keely.

“Val had videos?” Keely asked curiously.

“When I told them about all the secret safes he had built into the walls during my kidnapping, they realized there could be more so they took the place down to the studs. How do you not know this?” She looked to Keely curiously.

“Because it’s none of her business,” Trey said sharply. “Need to know and her father does not like her knowing family business.”

“I literally work for the head of the family. I know a lot of the business,” Keely frowned at him. “Did Val have a secret porn stash or something? I feel he would have been into snuff films.”

Jolie slapped her. “Not funny. No. He had put a camera in his living room and nobody, not even me knew about it. CCTV and he recorded everything, stored it to a hard drive and shoved it in another safe.”

She was surprised by the way Keely grabbed her arm and stopped her walking. “Does this mean they know who shot him?”

“No. Weirdly, he shut it off the night he was killed.”

Keely released her hand and shook her head sadly, “too bad.”

Jolie looked to her curiously, “are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she waved her off. “I was simply thinking since all the other cameras were turned off maybe they caught the assassin. Guess not.”

“No. But they’ve been going through the images. I guess the full eight months of me being there were captured though. They’ve been destroyed. Brix ordered anything which had my image in it to be erased. Thank god. I hate knowing there was videography of him assaulting me.”

“So, the video is gone then?” Keely asked curiously.

“Yup. So not sure what he wants to talk to me about but I guess I’ll replace out when I get back.”

The topic changed to Axl’s upcoming performance as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz in the school play. Jolie however couldn’t get the text from Brix out of her head. Something must have popped up in one of the older videos but what? Her stomach had butterflies and she knew, whatever it was, was going to disrupt her suddenly peaceful life.