Silvia’s tensed shoulders eased off at Asher’s words, "There’s a lot you don’t know," She matched his teasing tone, taking her seat after him.
Asher didn’t chase the line of conversation further, moving on to the reason he wanted to see Silvia. "There is," He agreed easily, leaning back. "I wanted to ask you about someone."
Silvia was in an unlikely good mood from Asher’s earlier words, "You know how much I charge for information," She reminded him with a smile, "But I could tell you a thing or two for a few drinks."
Asher didn’t turn down the generous offer, getting down to business. "I’m curious about a Luis Caddel," He asked casually, asking because Silvia happened to be right there.
He felt neutral towards the man in question, as long as he stayed away from his turf, then they would have no issues.
Silvia’s easy smile fell off her face, "What do you want to know about him?" She asked with narrowed eyes, her defenses high.
Asher didn’t mind giving her what information he had, after all, this was more of a casual conversation than a business transaction. "Jael bumped into him yesterday, downtown, he was asking about Nikolai, seemed to be keeping an eye on him.
"Never thought I would see the day you would be worried about Nikolai," Silvia said lightly to cover how shaken she was by Asher’s words.
Nikolai had only told her to have Angelo stay with her until he took care of Luis, she didn’t know that the bastard had already begun to make moves of his own.
"He spooked Jael, that was pretty impressive of him, can’t hurt to be curious." Asher shrugged.
Silvia thought about it, she didn’t bank on Asher risking his skin for Nikolai but when it came to the High Council, the governing body was a mutual enemy of all the Mafia Kings.
"He was right to be spooked, Luis Caddel is the High Council’s attack dog." She gave up some information, wondering just how much to tell Asher. Nikolai probably wouldn’t appreciate her running her mouth to another Mafia King, but she could see how much Angelo cared for him, she would rather he didn’t turn up dead.
Asher’s hazel eyes seemed to glow, "And why was he sniffing around for Nikolai? Did he go piss off the High Council without inviting me to tag along?"
"It’s more complicated than that," Silvia muttered, visibly troubled.
"You know more than you’re letting on," Asher noted, his tone didn’t hold anger, just curiosity.
"I can’t say much right now," Silvia inadvertently agreed to hiding information, "The reason is very important, to me and Nikolai. If it all burns down to the ground... could you... could you help out?"
Asher was quiet, Silvia always seemed to be perfectly in control, this was a side of the Beta he had never seen before. The pleading look in Silvia’s eyes were concerning, he never thought anything could rattle her. "If I can, sure." He accepted carefully.
After all, Silvia wasn’t telling him exactly what he was agreeing to, being careful was important. "What can you tell me about what’s going on?" He asked, unable to help his curiosity.
"That Nikolai is about to piss off the High Council," Silvia rose to her feet, feeling a bit lighter than when she had first heard Asher mention Luis Caddel.
Asher didn’t stop Silvia from leaving. He already knew that, she hadn’t told him anything new. He was curious, but not curious enough to dig deeper. It had to do with the High Council so he would hear about it sooner or later.
Silvia hurried back to Angelo, barely keeping her panic in check. Luis was closer than he had been in years, it made her uneasy, and it made her understand why Nikolai had suddenly made this request of her.
She got to the private room with her heart in her throat, her fright was unreasonable but she couldn’t calm down, not until she saw Angelo.
Her racing heartbeat calmed at the sight of Angelo curled up on one of the cushions, calmly waiting for her. He had ordered drinks but had made no move to start drinking without her.
"Did I keep you waiting long?" Silvia sat right next to him, sounding a little out of breath.
"No," Angelo replied calmly, resting his head against her shoulder. "Did you run here?"
Silvia’s took involuntary deep breaths, the weight of Angelo’s head and his scent soothing her. "I didn’t want my drink to get warm."
Angelo knew the true reason she was in a hurry was because she didn’t want to keep him waiting, but he said nothing about it, sitting up to pour them both drinks. He was still worried about Nikolai but Silvia’s words had soothed him.
He was no longer inclined to keep speaking about it, quietly sipping on his wine. Silvia’s perfume smelled as bewitching as she looked but it was familiar to Angelo. He slowly emptied his cup and then rested his head against her shoulder again.
They were never physically close even though he knew that Silvia wouldn’t hesitate to kill for him and vice versa, but there had been a slight shift since his attempt to assassinate Nikolai, and his heat only cemented the changes.
The wine wasn’t drugged and it was afternoon but Angelo soon felt drowsy, curled up beside Silvia, he let himself sleep, his guard completely down.
Silvia made her breaths shallow, scared that if she breathed too deeply, she would chase off Angelo. It was like having a cat choose to sleep on you.
She drank to distract herself, Angelo had brought the bottle of wine closer before curling up next to her. She almost couldn’t believe it when she heard and felt his breathing deepen, feeling him lean more of his weight against her as he fell fast asleep.
She had a bittersweet smile on her face as she carefully emptied her glass even though Angelo was already fast asleep. She hadn’t wanted a kid but she had gotten one anyway.
And to keep him safe, there was very little she wouldn’t do.