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The word alone jarred him.He’d never considered children before.Never wanted any.His life had been too brutal, his rise from the streets too steeped in blood.Survival had been his only concern.He’d been the fastest, the meanest, the one who outlasted the rest.

But with her—he wasn’t sure if having children was possible.Or if the possibility terrified him more than the war he’d just started.

Now he had an entire network—men and women who kept Chicago operating smoothly, most of Illinois too.He’d never seriously considered expanding further.Wisconsin?Minnesota?Too cold, too full of beer and cheese.But now that Enrico had thrown down the gauntlet, now that Sal had married the Bianchi princess, maybe expansion wasn’t such a ridiculous idea.

Enrico ruled through fear, and fear had limits.Fear cracked.Loyalty, on the other hand, built empires.Loyalty made men fight for you, die for you.Fear only lasted until someone scarier came along.

It was an interesting thought.He’d need to do some additional research, figure out a strategy, develop careful steps.Why not widen his reach?He knew the players: Washington and Oregon were already claimed, the West Coast gridlocked.Luca Bernardi controlled Las Vegas and most of Utah.Dimitri De Luca had New York all the way up to Boston—an iron grip on the New England corridor.

Perhaps he’d grown complacent, Sal thought, as his eyes followed his wife across the room.

Catarina walked gracefully to his underboss.Tony actually took her hand, his usually hard features softening.Was that…a blush?No.Impossible.Tony was ruthless, battle-scarred, a man who’d once cut off another guy’s finger with a cigar cutter and not even blinked because the man had trafficked thirteen women, trying to sell them off to a guy who would sell their bodies for fifty dollars to any man who wanted a sexual release.The thought of big, bad Tony blushing like some schoolboy nearly made Sal snort.

A knock on the door dragged his attention elsewhere.He turned just as Luca Bernardi strode into the penthouse.

“Your plane is ready,” Luca announced.Then his gaze found Catarina, lingering for a beat.“Ah, Ms.Romano,” he said warmly, his tone softer, his mouth curving into that trademark Bernardi charm.He took her hands as though she were royalty.“I am delighted you are safely wed to this stupid, old bastard.”

Tony growled low in his throat, but Luca ignored him, lifting Catarina’s fingers to his lips in a mock-gallant kiss.“And might I add, Old Sal here is a far better choice than Caruso.”He made a face of exaggerated disgust.

Catarina burst out laughing, the sound bright and musical, transforming her tension into something lighter.

“He was such an ass!”she managed between laughs.

Sal did not like it.Not one bit.Where the hell this possessiveness had come from, he didn’t know.But before he realized what he was doing, he was moving—sliding an arm around her waist, reclaiming her hand, glaring at Luca with the kind of look that made lesser men reconsider their career choices.

Luca Bernardi, however, was no lesser man.The bastard only smirked, eyes glinting with mischief.

Sal traced his finger over Catarina’s bare arm, possessive, deliberate.“I’m taking my wife home today.Sorry to cut our meetings short,” he said flatly.

“I expected nothing less,” Luca replied, unruffled.There was still menace under his charm, but the edge was dulled these days.Marriage.Children.Domestic bliss had softened him—or at least that was the rumor.

Sal didn’t buy it.Not entirely.Luca might smile more now that he was married to the lovely Ava, but the man was still feared.Still respected.

“Sorry the meetings with the other bosses didn’t pan out,” Luca added.

Sal shrugged, pulling Catarina just a little closer, feeling her warmth against his side.“I don’t consider this week a failure.”

Luca’s grin widened, his gaze flicking down to Catarina.She managed a smile, though Sal noted the faint stiffness in her posture.Understandable.Luca Bernardi’s reputation wasn’t something you shrugged off, no matter how dazzling his charm.

“I’ll get out of your way,” Luca said smoothly, stepping back.Then, with a flash of a smile, he added, “I’ve already spoken to the air traffic control room.Your plane will be cleared for takeoff the moment you’re ready.Straight to the head of the line.”

Sal chuckled, shaking his head.“Ah, life in a small town,” he teased.“Pulling strings at McCarran like it’s your personal driveway.”He sipped the last of his champagne and smirked.“At O’Hare, I’d have to bribe three controllers and buy half their families vacation homes to get that treatment.”

Luca arched a brow.“That’s because Chicago doesn’t have taste.”

“Chicago has subtlety,” Sal shot back.“Vegas is just loud.”

“Loud,” Luca repeated, hand pressed to his chest in mock offense.“We prefer the termmemorable.”

Sal snorted.“You meangaudy.”

Luca’s eyes glittered, his mouth already opening with what was surely a string of colorful epithets—but his gaze caught Catarina’s, and he closed it with a snap, grinning instead.“Have a good flight,” he said smoothly, turning for the door.

At the penthouse threshold, he paused and glanced back, mischief lighting his features.“Me, Max, and Dimitri get together for poker every now and then.If you’re interested, I’ll let you know when the next game is.”

Sal’s mouth curved into a lazy half-smile.“An opportunity to take your money?I’m in.”

Luca laughed, throwing his head back, the sound booming through the room.“Careful, Romano.I play with men who don’t mind losing blood along with chips.”