Page 12 of His Playground (Owning Vegas #2)

Chapter Eleven

I look down at my phone. Did she really just ask for a separate fucking house? My wife of only a week already wants to move out. I haven’t even touched her, barely spoken to her. I’ve given her space, figuring she’d need it to settle in. And she wants to fucking move out?

“Problem?” Louie asks.

I glance over at him. We’re in his office.

I just set Jazzy up on his sofa with some coloring books and an iPad, hoping it’ll keep her entertained long enough to get through this meeting.

It’s been an adjustment, having a kid around all the time, but I also hate leaving her with anyone unless it’s absolutely necessary.

There are obviously parts of my world I’ll never let her see. She has enough nightmares. Learning that her father is a monster? Well, I don’t want that for her. She looks to me to keep her safe. The last thing I need is for her to be afraid of me.

“Yeah,” I grunt, plopping into the empty chair opposite Louie’s desk. Sammie spread out on the one next to me. I turn back to my daughter. “Jazz, headphones on.” I bought her noise-canceling headphones so she doesn’t hear everything we discuss in these meetings.

“Okay,” she says.

I wait for her to get settled and turn back to Louie. “I think we’re going to stop making pancakes for breakfast and start having cereal every morning.”

Louie peers over at Jazzy. The kid is addicted to pancakes. I never thought I’d be sick of eating them. Until now. “We’re good,” he says when Jazzy doesn’t react.

“My wife wants a separate house.” I sigh.

“What?” Sammie laughs. “How long you been married? A week?”

“A week.” I nod.

“Wow, man. If you need pointers on how to keep a woman satisfied, you should have come to me sooner,” he says.

“Fuck off. It’s not that.” At least I don’t think it is. I haven’t touched her since that day in her bedroom at her father’s house. Her body still responds to me, even if her mind doesn’t want it to.

“You can’t let her move out,” Louie states the obvious.

“Wasn’t planning on it,” I grunt. “What are we doing about the shipment?”

We’re expecting a delivery. It was supposed to be here two nights ago and got held up. Some fucker from customs attempted to blackmail Louie. Needless to say that didn’t turn out too well for him.

Before the bossman can answer my question, there’s a knock on the door and then it’s opening. I’m on my feet, gun in my hand, only to quickly lower it when Emmanuel saunters inside.

“Tío E!” Jazzy jumps up from the sofa, rips off her headphones, and runs towards him.

I turn back to Louie and Sammie. “ Tío E? When did that happen?” I ask them.

“Since I decided I’m going to be her favorite uncle,” Emmanuel says, walking over with my daughter in his arms. He sits her on the desk. “Why are you here listening to these boring old men have a meeting, princesa?”

“I’m not listening. I have my headphones.” Jazzy points to the sofa where she just discarded them.

“Jazzy, tell Tío E he’s never going to be number one. I’ve already beaten him to it.” Louie stands and walks around the desk.

“But that will make him feel bad, Uncle Louie.” She looks genuinely concerned.

“He’ll live,” Louie replies.

“Are you going to die like my…” She stops speaking and covers her mouth.

“No one here is dying, Jazzy. How about you go and watch your show on the iPad? As soon as we’re finished, we can go get ice cream,” I say.

“Promise?”

“I wouldn’t lie about ice cream, Jazz,” I assure her.

“No.” She shakes her head. “Promise that you’re all not going to die?”

I can’t promise her that, because it would be a lie. “I promise that we will do our very best to make sure we don’t die,” I tell her instead. She seems satisfied and jumps off the desk before running back over to the sofa.

“Who she talking about? The death shit?” Emmanuel asks as soon as she has her headphones back on.

“I suspect her mother, but I’ve checked the records of every hospital in the state.

There are none. This woman doesn’t exist.” I’m frustrated that I can’t find Penelope or uncover what happened to her.

And the fact that Jasmine thinks she can’t say anything pisses me off.

Whatever secrets my daughter is keeping are taking a toll on her.

“I thought you left town,” Sammie directs to Emmanuel.

“I did. I’m back. I heard your wife is getting a visitor tonight.” Emmanuel looks at Louie.

“Is she?” Louie smiles.

“Figured I’d stick around and come for dinner.” Emmanuel shrugs.

“Sure, the more the merrier.” Louie shakes his head and then glances over to me. “Bring Antonia and Jazzy. He won’t go doing anything stupid if Jazzy’s there.” He points at Emmanuel.

“Cool, use my daughter in place of the antipsychotics we all know he needs. Why not?” I laugh.

“After dinner, we’ll go deal with the shipment,” Louie adds.

“Great. Now, I’ve gotta go home and tell my wife she’s not getting her own house.” I stand and button my jacket.

“I’ll take Jazzy for ice cream and bring her back later,” Sammie offers.

“Why?” I ask him.

“Because I’ve got competition for the fav uncle spot, and I’m not letting these two fools beat me,” he says, gesturing to Louie and Emmanuel.

After explaining to Jazzy that Sammie was going to take her for ice cream, which she was over the moon about, she convinced him to stop and visit Lailani to give her ice cream too. Jazzy has really taken to the girl, and something tells me so has Sammie.

I get back to Aces and find Antonia in the living room. Alone, thank god. “Separate houses? Really? I know you’re not that fucking stupid.”

She spins around at the sound of my voice. “I was stupid enough to get involved with you so let’s not pretend I’m smarter than I am,” she hisses.

I smile. I love when she’s feisty. The fact that she’s comfortable enough to even speak to me like this shows that she trusts me—at least enough not to physically hurt her. Emotionally? I don’t think I’ll ever get that trust back.

“Yeah, well, you said forever in your vows, babe, so guess what? Separate houses aren’t ever going to happen.”

“Why not?” she asks.

“Because you’re my wife,” I tell her.

“On paper.” She rolls her eyes. “We are not married in the real sense, Carlo. It’s for show. No one will even know if we don’t live together.”

“I’ll know. And this .” I wave a hand between us as I close the gap. “Is not just for show.”

Antonia huffs. “Please, Carlo, you don’t want me here any more than I want to be here.”

“You’re wrong. I’ve always wanted you here,” I admit. “There hasn’t been a day that’s gone by that I didn’t fucking want you, Antonia.”

“Yeah?” She laughs. “You have a real funny way of showing it. Is that what the blonde bimbo was? You wanting me?”

I flinch. I didn’t even touch that chick. I paid her to look like we’d fucked around, though, because I knew that would be the one way the woman I love would agree to keep her distance from me.

I was stupid. I know that. I should have fought harder for us back then. But the timing wasn’t right for us. “No. That was… We need to leave the past in the past. This is our future, Antonia. You and me. We’re stuck together whether you like it or not, so you might as well let yourself enjoy it.”

“ Let myself ? I don’t like you, Carlo. I don’t love you. I married you because it was that or death. I don’t want to die. But keep pushing and I might just change my mind.”

My heart skips a beat. “Antonia, I swear to god if you try to do something stupid, if you try to hurt yourself, I will have you locked in a padded room.”

“Don’t flatter yourself, Carlo. You don’t affect me that much.” She steps to the side and attempts to walk around me. I scoop her up and throw her over my shoulder. “Oof, fuck, what are you doing? Put me down.” Her fists hit my back as I make my way into the bedroom.

“Why? I don’t affect you, Antonia, which means you won’t be affected when I do this,” I tell her, throwing her down in the middle of the bed. I quickly jump on top of her before she can move. “I think it’s time we make this more than just a marriage on paper, don’t you?”