MemoriesErasedTreachery Read online

  "There's no need to worry about me, Ewyn. This is what I need. I'll have the household staff there to help me, while giving them something to do. Rosa is looking forward to having family in the house all the time."

  "I could come over here and check on you." Ewyn looked to Devin for support. "I'm sure Mick will help out, and Tag, too, when he can."

  "Ewyn," Timothy interjected. "I need to know Gem isn't alone if I have to go out on an op."

  "Well, that's another point. How will it look if you move into the Calderone home, Tim?" Ewyn sighed. "Won't you compromise your position with the company?"

  "No. Everyone who needed the information knows I'm married to a Calderone, and it never has affected my principles or job performance," Timothy remarked. "Hell. In most syndicate families, Irish and Italian, half the members are mobsters and the other half, split between the priesthood and law enforcement. Besides, it's to be expected, as matriarch of what's left of this branch of the family, Gemma would take over the estate with Greg gone."

  "Yeah, I guess you're right."

  "Ewyn, you can't be with her all the time, but the staff can." Devin brushed his fingertips along the nape of Ewyn's neck. "She's family. You know damn well the household staff will look after Gemma with the same care and devotion they gave your mother, twenty-four/seven."

  "I know. I don't doubt their loyalty, but the family home is so far from the hospital…just in case."

  Devin grasped Ewyn's chin and turned his head. "What's up with all this apprehension?"

  "It seems as if I'm losing everybody just when we've come back together as a family."

  "Oh, baby." Gemma squeezed his hand. "You're not going to lose me or the girls, and Greg will be back." She looked at Timothy.

  "Ewyn, let me set your mind at ease," Timothy stated. "Greg left details for the remodeling to me. Part of the third floor conversion will include accommodations for a live-in RN, and any necessary medical equipment. Rosa's oldest daughter, Mycelia will be Gem's personal assistant."

  Devin watched the anxiety in those luminous green eyes fade to acquiescence. "Baby, your family's home is large enough to house a small platoon. Gemma will have as much room there as here. She'll be comfortable."

  "Okay." Ewyn managed a weak grin. "All of you can't be wrong."

  "Devin's right," Timothy declared. "Even with the conversion, the nursery will remain intact. Who knows, Gregorio might remarry and decide to have more children."

  Ewyn chuckled. "Yeah right, as if that will ever happen."

  "Hey, you never know. Greg isn't that old. He has a few good years left in him." Devin leaned over and brushed his lips across Ewyn's ear. "Or Nicole might marry and want to settle down at the homestead."

  "True." Ewyn turned to Gemma. "When are you going to move in?"

  "Next week. The construction will be complete, and Tim has the move arranged. It shouldn't take more than a day to get us settled. There's enough help at the house to keep the changeover to a minimum of hassle," Gemma explained. "Don't worry, I won't lift a finger."

  Ewyn leaned over and kissed his aunt's cheek, then stood. "Okay, you've convinced me, and I've taken up enough of your time with my tenuous worries. Get some rest, Gem." He nodded at Timothy and walked toward the door.

  Devin stood, looked from Gemma to Timothy, and shrugged. "He'll be all right." He bent and kissed Gemma's cheek, then headed for the door with Timothy close behind. "I'll see you at the office tomorrow. I hear something big is coming down the pike and you're going out with me."

  "Yeah, and that's the reason I need to get Gem settled." Timothy opened the door and scanned the corridor. "I guess Ewyn went down to the garage," he remarked. "All of this shit is coming at him hard and fast. He's come a long way, Devin, don't let him regress."

  "He won't. This isn't about insecurity. It's Mairianna's death. He still blames himself. He thinks he should have been able to second-guess Cecilia." Devin shook his head. "He insists Cecilia wouldn't have hurt his mother, if she hadn't been after him."

  "Bullshit. Mairianna was always her main target," Timothy stated. "As soon as Cecilia discovered the family home belonged to Mairianna for life. Considering Mairianna's age, it must have seemed as if she would live forever, and Cecilia wasn't getting any younger."

  "But Cecelia lived a life a luxury. Greg never interfered with anything she wanted to do."

  "True, but the woman was a selfish bitch. If Gemma, Mairianna, and the servants hadn't intervened, I believe Cecilia would have hurt her daughters when they were young. She never wanted them. She wanted a boy to secure her position in the family and the syndicate. Hell. By the time Niki was ten, she must have realized her mother didn't like her or Caro, and from then on, Niki refused to leave Caro alone with Cecilia."

  "Damn. I can't fathom what the girls felt, growing up knowing their mother didn't want them, or love them."

  Timothy nodded. "As for Ewyn, heir to the family's personal wealth, Cecilia despised him and did little to hide her feelings. She banked on the hook up between Varvarinski and Ewyn to take care of the problem, thinking one of them would kill the other. She'd done her homework, knew what Varvarinski was, and she had watched Ewyn growing up, knew passivity wasn't a character trait, so she expected he'd eventually fight back."

  "Hoping to trigger a mob war, but instead, Ewyn came back into the fold, and he wasn't alone." Devin grinned. "Bet it surprised the hell out of Cecilia and her cohorts when Ewyn refused to become easy prey."

  Timothy snorted. "Oh yeah, she had to re-evaluate her plans for him, but never altered her campaign against her mother-in-law."

  "I know, and I've explained it to Ewyn, numerous times." Devin sighed. "Don't worry, we'll work it out."

  Devin rode the elevator to the underground garage. He reached the Escalade and found Ewyn sitting in the passenger seat staring straight ahead, unblinking. Devin knew that look--Ewyn's give me my space look--which meant Ewyn required time to work out the uncertainty on his own.

  Climbing into the truck, Devin buckled up, and they rode home in silence. At their destination, he drove into the parking structure and eased into his space next to Ewyn's Mustang. The penthouse condos had private enclosures at the back on either side of the garage. Two slots each, which afforded the owners a measure of privacy, and kept vehicle damage to a minimum. Devin put the gear in park then turned to Ewyn just as baby-boy released his seat belt, green eyes dancing with mischief, and sexy smirk in place.

  Devin recognized this particular look, too. He reached down and pressed a button, lowering the back of his seat as Ewyn clambered over the console. Mouths merged and Ewyn's little round ass settled right into place. After several satisfying moments, Devin drew back. "Worked it out, have you?"

  "Sorry, Dev." Ewyn swooped in for another quick kiss. "It's just, when I think everything is under control…"

  "I know, but you're handling it." Devin clasped Ewyn's face. "Do you know how proud I am of you? With the amount of responsibility thrust on you recently, going from baby to head of the Calderone family, I believe you'll do all right, no matter what comes at you." Thumbs teasing the corners of the seductive mouth, Devin stared into spellbinding green eyes full of love. Times like this, he experienced feelings of invincibility, being the recipient of such unconditional love he wholeheartedly reciprocated.

  Leaning forward, he recaptured Ewyn's mouth. Tongues sparred, sliding and teasing until he caught the tip of Ewyn's tongue with his teeth. Sucking, lips curling, he drew the tender flesh into his mouth and fed on the tantalizing flavor for several minutes then retreated. He nibbled the succulent bottom lip and mumbled, "Family issues aside, at the moment, we have a more pressing concern."

  "Oh." Ewyn leaned away. "What?"

  "Baby, if you keep squirming, I'll take your bad ass right here."

  He shifted beneath the wriggling butt and watched a jagged tinge of color streak its way across Ewyn's cheeks as a glint of pleasure lit up the jungle green eyes. No longer indicative of embarrassment,
Ewyn's blushes had become the precursors to imagined pleasure.

  Over the past two years, Devin watched Ewyn evolve from an abused apprehensive novice to become a bold adventurous lover. Having lost most of his naiveté, Ewyn had learned to accept and enjoy Devin's creative times, places, and approach to sexual proclivities. More often than not, Ewyn instigated the onset of those encounters. Hell. The kinky acrobatics Ewyn initiated on the bidet had come as a refreshing surprise. Devin hadn't known getting clean could be so enjoyable, and those antics had become an addictive habit.

  Conversely, before today, Ewyn had confined his daring to the privacy of their home. His arrogant dismissal of Devin's warning and bold behavior in a public venue amazed Devin, prompting him to test the bounds of Ewyn's bravado.

  He leaned in for another kiss using Ewyn's pre-occupation to unfasten the button on his jeans and ease the zipper down. Baby-boy made no effort to climb off his lap, and Devin needed no further encouragement. Maneuvering his hands inside the snug material, he palmed the warm, taut ass cheeks.

  "Are you sure?" He fed the words into Ewyn's receptive warmth.

  "Mmm-hmm…taking a page from your book--private enclosure, dim lighting, tinted windows," Ewyn murmured as he rose up on his knees and wriggled out of his jeans and briefs.

  "Don't fuck with me, Ewyn," Devin growled and unzipped his trousers, his cock bounding out with precum seeping from the tip.

  Ewyn leaned close, staring into intense amber eyes, he whispered, "Oh, but Dev, it's exactly what I intend to do…fuck with you." He winked, smoothed his palm across the moist glans of Devin's cock, then down around the hardening, silky-smooth heat. Gazes locked, he grabbed Devin's hand, brought it to his lips, and eased the first two fingers into his mouth. Slowly and meticulously, he licked and sucked, moistening both digits before guiding them to his ass.

  "Mmm, I need this…you. Can't wait, hell, don't want to wait," he babbled as he eased down on the fingers, his hips working in tandem with Devin's every stroke. "Oh damn, Dev."

  Ewyn worked his hands under the hem of Devin's shirt, edging the material upward, he ran his fingers over a firm six-pack, inching them upward to well-defined pecs. His fingertips circled and teased the flat nipples until the soft nubs pebbled, and then his hands shifted to Devin's shoulders as his mouth followed the trail forged by his fingers. He inhaled Devin's musky scent, his tongue lapping at salty perspiration, his lips teased and sucked on taut skin. His mouth lingered on remnants of jagged scar tissue, a souvenir of the gunshot wound reminding him of his near loss.

  Ewyn reached down and pressed a button along the side of Devin's seat until they were fully reclined. He reversed his position, leaned forward, and braced his hands against the dashboard as Devin's cock replaced fingers and made a slow deliberate penetration. A shockwave of intense passion surged through Ewyn's body.

  "Shh-yit…"

  "Bring it, baby," Devin growled as he wrapped one hand around Ewyn's cock, and rested his other hand on the curvature of Ewyn's hip, then lay back.

  Ewyn did what he did best and all too soon, his body stiffened, his sphincter tightened, then his cum coated Devin's fingers as sperm flooded his ass.

  * * * *

  Damn it.

  Thought they would lead me to Nicole.

  After following them for days and watching their disgusting behavior in public, it wasn't a stretch of the imagination to know why it was taking so long for them to exit the Escalade. They're revolting.

  No wonder Nicole thought nothing of dating and fucking around outside her race. Did the family know about her repugnant behavior? Hell. Stupid question. Of course, they know. Her uncle and his partner are a classic example of repulsive acts the entire family condones as their lifestyle. Growing up in that type of environment, why should Nicole act any differently? Her actions are as vile as her uncle's behavior, and the way her father pampers both girls, neither bitch deserves what she has. The entire family has no boundaries.

  It was downright embarrassing to learn all of Nicole's friends on campus knew about her uncle. Nicole bragging about him as if he's some kind of hero. The little bastard should have died in the attempt on his life. Then, to find out Nicole is pregnant--damn humiliating. Campus rumor-control is reporting Nicole is pregnant by some bastard she had a thing with a few months ago. Some say the son of a bitch is Black, but no one can verify the allegation since the only thing Nicole has revealed to anybody is he attends one of the Ivy League schools back east.

  Nicole's roommate verified the pregnancy, but little else, because Nicole is very secretive about the baby's father. The roommate only knows what everyone else knows--while visiting someone on campus, the mystery man met Nicole, and he purportedly has relatives in Riverview. Those leads would be helpful if the man's so-called friends could be located, and they could supply the necessary information about the man's relatives.

  "Argh-hhh!" I could scream, nonstop, if only the headaches would quit. Have to remember to take the pills. Hell. I need a clear head for this. Okay…okay, let me think.

  Nicole needs a reality check. She has learned all the wrong values, but it's not too late for her to grasp the concept of heritage. Still in her first trimester, abortion is a viable solution. While word on the street alleges her father has disappeared, and considering the bastard's profession, more than likely, one of the other crime families has disposed of him. Without her father's influence or protection, Nicole will learn to see reason.

  Just need to find the bitch.

  Chapter 2

  It was hot as hell.

  Yet, Devin lay awake fully clothed watching the reflection of the neon sign across the street illuminate the wall opposite his bed at regular intervals. It annoyed him, but he didn't dare get bare-assed naked--his preferred method of sleeping--or close his eyes for fear of falling asleep. This time out, the assignment required he remain on alert, clothes on. Besides, undressing didn't guarantee sleep.

  Since meeting Ewyn, when Devin went on prolonged ops, if he managed to close his eyes, thoughts and images of Ewyn would flood his mind. Unfastening his jeans, his hand would slip beneath the material, release his cock from its confinement, then relive their nights together, which always led to several bouts of satisfying masturbation. You'd think he'd fall asleep after, but sleep would remain elusive because memories of those other hellish events that became part of their lives would resurface, too.

  Damn.

  Devin sighed and rolled off the bed. Hands shoved down in his pockets, he strolled over to the window and stared out at the flickering neon light and the deserted streets.

  His first long-term op since the attempt on Ewyn's life, and hell, he missed Ewyn something fierce. It must be time to get off the front line when his operations didn't have his absolute focus because it unsettled him when he had to leave Ewyn alone. Shit. Mick and Taggart lived nearby and Ewyn had proven he could take care of himself with the skill and resolve of a covert op. Yet Devin couldn't shake the irrational fear Ewyn wasn't safe. Was he being paranoid, or what?

  Hell. After surviving those disturbing getting-to-know-each-other exploits, what else could happen?

  * * * *

  The ambulance pulled away just as Ewyn's Mustang screeched to a stop. He jumped from the car and rushed toward the people milling about the scene.

  This cannot be happening.

  Both nieces critically injured. What were they doing out on the highway at this time of night? Were they coming home, just before midterms, with no warning, no phone calls? They always called him or Gemma when they were coming home. How long had it been since he'd spoken to either of them, about a month? And if they weren't coming home--damn, babbling.

  Ewyn approached the cop cordoning off the accident scene.

  "Sir, you'll have to stay behind the tape."

  "I'm the uncle. Someone called me…how bad…" Holy hell. Ewyn stared in stunned disbelief. The car was a mangled mess. How could anyone have survived? "Where are they? Which hospital? Please!
"

  "St. Bernadine's and you'd better hurry. The paramedics had little hope of the young lady surviving and even less hope for the baby."

  "Young lady?" Ewyn snapped. "There's supposed to be two. The caller said two…weren't two women in the car. And what do you mean, baby," he growled. "Whose baby?"

  "Calm down, sir. The young lady is pregnant and pretty close to term according to the--"

  With tears welling up in his eyes, Ewyn took off running.

  "Sir…sir!"

  Ignoring shouts from the officer and other police personnel who scrambled to get out of his way, Ewyn hopped into his Mustang, swiped the tears from his cheeks, and peeled out.

  Damn. A baby. Which niece, and why didn't she tell him…hell, what was he thinking? Why would his nieces confide in him? He had spoken to Nicole on the phone every other month, but their conversations were primarily business discussions, and he hadn't seen them since spring break, a little over--oh, my God! Whichever niece was pregnant, she knew it then. She should have told him or at least Gemma.

  Wait a minute.

  The officer had said, one young woman. Not good. He reached for his cell phone. He had to call Timothy so he could contact MacGregor. Gregorio needed to come…damn. He flung his phone on the passenger seat. Timothy was out with Devin, so no help there. He was on his own. Tears of pain and frustration welled up in his eyes.

  His nieces, dead or dying, and a baby. What did he know about babies? Assuming the baby lived, what was he supposed to do with a baby until Gregorio returned? More to the point, what if his brother wasn't able to come home any time soon. It had been more than a year. Enough time for people to forget Gregorio's past, wasn't it? Maybe he'd find Gregorio himself. Was he still in the States, or did he go back to Italy. They still had distant relatives there. What name would Gregorio use…hell. What did any of that matter? Gregorio had to come home, now.