Page 41 of His to Bedevil

I shrug. “Other than a nice lunch with your mother, uneventful.”

He frowns at me in displeasure. “You’re bored?”

I throw my head back and laugh. “Yes, I’m bored! Wouldn’t you be? Being cooped up inside a bedroom all day?”

He wipes his mouth with the cloth napkin. “I have to leave for Russia tomorrow, but my brother is now home. So, he can take you down to the beach or the pool. Would you like that?” he asks with sincerity.

“Your brother? Lucas Martinez?”

His lips twitch. “Yes, Lucas.”

“What’s wrong with leaving me with Berto or Diego?” I challenge.

“Berto will be with me, and I trust Lucas more than anyone.”

“You don’t trust Diego?”

“I do trust him.”

“But not with me.”

His jaw ticks before he takes a sip of wine. “Eat your dinner,mi pequita.”

Interesting.It may not seem like much, but every little bit of information helps. Diego is someone he trusts, but not enough with me. I wonder if it has anything to do with him being attractive. Because Diego is. He’s hot. Not as hot as Alejo, but he’s also probably closer in age to me as well. Alejo is eleven years older than me, though it doesn’t bother me. The man himself is what bothers me. A man that runs an empire built off of organized crime.

I pick up my fork and knife, realizing it’s the first time I’ve been given them with my food. Is he already letting his guard down? Or is he testing me? Pretending not to notice, I cut into my food and begin eating.

“So, do you have an answer for me, my love?”

“An answer to your marriage proposal?” He nods his head as he sets his utensils down and wipes his mouth again with the napkin. The gesture is somehow sexy. Sighing, I lean back with my glass of wine. “I need some questions answered first.”

“Of course.” He smirks and mimics me. Leaning back, glass of wine in hand. “What do you need to know?”

“Why do you want to get married?”

“I want to marryyoubecause I want everything with you, Irma. Including marriage.”

“So, you don’t get anything out of this? Nothing for marrying me?”

“I getyou, my love.”

“So, that’s it. You think by marrying me, you can fuck me whenever you want to.”

“Only when you want to, and if that happens to be any time I want to, then”—he shrugs—“I guess so.”

Sidestepping that pile of shit, I go on to my next concern. “And monogamy. Have you ever even had that?”

He shakes his head. “Not until you. I told you I do not have a wandering eye. You are more than enough for me.” He sips his wine casually.

More than enough for him? We haven’t even had sex yet!“You seem to have a lot of pretty women work for you.” I drain the rest of my glass and set the empty glass down. “You mean to tell me that you don’t have them around for a reason? That if any of them were to make an advance toward you, you would turn them down?”

He grins, obviously taking this the wrong way. He thinks I’m jealous, and that’s not the case. I just don’t want to look like a total loser of a wife that is cheated on left and right. Leaning forward, he looks me square in the eye. “Even if they were to walk around naked, I would not take notice. They are not you.”Yeah, fucking right. That’s total bullshit.“I’ll have Juanita and my mother hire new staff tomorrow.”

My eyes bug out, and my jaw drops. “What! No! Don’t go and fire them just because they’re pretty!” He quirks an eyebrow at my little outburst. “Maybe just the ones you’ve already fucked,” I murmur, feeling my cheeks heat.

He tosses his head back and laughs, andooohhh boy. It’s a very sexy sight, and a dreamy sound. It makes my own lips curve into a dopey grin. I love the way the skin around his eyes crinkles and his white teeth glimmer. “My love, I was already planning on replacing the staff. We usually do every so often. To keep anyone from getting too comfortable or friendly here. My brother is the one who insists we keep beautiful women on staff, but I’m the one in charge, so I’ll see to it that we hire only unattractive women.” He smirks, making me feel extremely petty.

“That’s not what I meant,” I mutter as I look away. “You’re mocking me.”