Free Riccardo by Elle Raven, Aimie Jennison Page A

scotch,” Ronnie offered.
    She slid a glass across the bar before I was even seated. “Cheers, Ronnie. I certainly need a drink tonight.”
    “I thought everyone was at the little man’s party? We’re closing up early.” She glanced down at her watch. “In about a half hour actually, so we can all join the celebration.”
    Looking around the room, I noticed that even though she planned to close early, there was a fairly large crowd enjoying the show, which gave me a believable excuse as to why I, The Capo, would be missing The Don’s son’s first birthday party. “I came to make sure none of the patrons give you any trouble when you kick them out early.”
    “Thanks for that,” she said as she took an order slip off one of the topless waitresses.
    "I really don't want to make your day any worse, but Uncle Joey was in here earlier. The things he was saying about Matias had me worried. He hates him and the fact that he'll take control of the famiglia after Sebastiano, leaving his son, Aldo, out in the cold.” She paused for a second only to carry on, "I'm scared he may resort to something nasty and hurt Matias.”
    "Thanks for the warning. I'll keep my eye on him. He won’t have a chance in hell to pull anything like that off. We are keeping close tabs on him and Aldo. We’ll be able to monitor everything he does.”
    As another topless waitress approached the bar to collect an order, I turned in my stool to watch Angel finish her segment. Angel was a stunner, yet she oozed innocence, and made her dances look so seductive and erotic. She was one of the best dancers we had. I couldn't help but imagine how Lorena would look up there, moving like that. There was no chance in hell that Lorena would be allowed to do that, whether she wanted to or not, but she would definitely put on one of the sexiest shows ever. If I lived in another world, where we could follow this attraction, maybe she’d put on a private show for me, but that would never happen in my lifetime. I already went way too far earlier and I wouldn’t let that happen again.
    The music quietened down and Ronnie turned on the lights as she spoke over the speaker. "We hope you've been thoroughly entertained tonight. Please could you finish your drinks and make your way towards the exit. As advertised, tonight is an early closing night. We hope that doesn't discourage you from coming back again soon."
    I observed as the customers all happily did as they were told. I was expecting a riot. One or two looked like they could have argued, but once they caught sight of me, they emptied their glasses and complied. Johnny, one of the security doormen, locked the doors as the last man exited the building.
    “Jesus, I can't believe that actually happened. I thought someone would have kicked up a stink about closing early," he said as he walked over to the bar to collect the beer Ronnie slid his way.
    "They all know not to cause a scene if any of the famiglia is here. I'm sure when they saw Capo, they knew not to argue,” Ronnie said with a glance at me. “Ain't that right, Capo?”
    I drained my glass before replying, “Maybe, maybe they could sense that I'm not in the mood to deal with any shit tonight."
    “You’re never in the mood to deal with shit, Capo,” Angel said with a giggle as she walked towards the bar; clean of makeup, wearing skinny jeans and a floral shirt. She looked nothing like the woman who had been dancing so provocatively on the stage before.
    “You got that right, sweetheart,” I agreed.
    Ronnie held up a beer, offering it to Angel. “You want one?”
    “No, thanks, I promised Nonna I would help with the cooking, so I need to leave now,” she answered. Johnny couldn’t seem to tear his eyes from her curves as she sashayed her way to the door. Sexy was natural for Angel.
    “I’ll see you to your car,” I offered, not wanting any of the customers to be hanging around in the carpark. Seeing as they had only just left, it wouldn’t