Page 41 of Madness & Mercy (Deadly Sins #1)

NICO

The second Julian’s gone, I flip the laptop open again. The screen glows, lighting up something I shouldn’t be looking at. Something I’ve returned to more times than I want to admit.

I linger there, scrolling slow, like dragging a finger along the edge of a blade. I know it’s reckless. He’ll find out eventually—Julian’s too sharp, too restless to let secrets lie. And when he does… there’s no telling how he’ll react.

I minimize the page before I can spiral any further, switching over to the surveillance feeds, and there he is: restless, pacing upstairs, peeling his clothes off with no regard for the eyes on him.

He throws on a fitted gray shirt, black joggers slung low on his hips, lounging like he owns the place.

I smirk, watching him walk back downstairs and through the backyard doors, stretching out in one of the lawn chairs by the pool, legs sprawled, phone in hand. The screen in front of me flashes with his message.

JULIAN: Stop watching me.

My mouth curves slow.

NICO: Just enjoying the view.

JULIAN: Fuck off. Didn’t you kick me out a minute ago, said you had work to do?

NICO: That’s true. But you’re distracting.

JULIAN: And you’re an asshole.

NICO: How so?

The dots appear. Vanish. Appear again. Then stop.

JULIAN: Never mind.

NICO: Are you mad at me, piccolino? How should I make it up to you?

JULIAN: By leaving me the hell alone.

NICO: As you wish, amore mio.

I close the chat. My smirk lingers. Against my better judgment, I pull up that page again. As hard as I try to ignore it, my gaze sticks to it, burning like a brand.

Not yet.

But soon.

I shove the laptop aside and shift my focus to more immediate problems. Silvio and Braga are gone, but that only left us with a bigger target stamped across our backs.

Their men are still crawling around like roaches, nosing their way into shipments, poking at trade routes, tailing my people in the streets.

We’ve dealt with a few of them already. More will come.

My family comes first. Julian comes first.

But knowing him, he’ll find a way to throw himself into the fire again, whether I tell him the truth or not.

He’s suspicious, and he should be. There’s plenty I’m keeping from him.

He doesn’t need any more weight on his shoulders.

He deserves, for once in his life, to breathe without blood on his hands.

A sharp ping slices through my thoughts.

FRAUD ALERT – SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY.

Perfect. Just what I fucking need.

I pull up my accounts. My Primary and Savings accounts are clean. CDs are untouched. Money markets and stocks are solid. That just leaves the credit cards. Platinum, fine. Gold, fine. Silver, fine.

Black…not fucking fine.

There’s a pending charge for twenty thousand dollars.

That little shit.

My phone rings immediately, the fraud department flashing across the screen. I answer, my voice clipped.

“Yeah. No, don’t cancel it. That’s just my partner throwing a tantrum. Run it through.” I hang up before they can argue.

A low laugh slips out of me. Jesus Christ. Twenty grand? On what? Knowing him, it could be something stupid just to piss me off. Or maybe something darker, something I don’t see coming. Either way, the bastard knows exactly how to get under my skin.

My grip tightens on the phone as I open our text thread.

NICO: Get your ass in here. Now.

The reply comes quick.

JULIAN: Why would I? You kicked me out, remember?

I grit my teeth, but the smirk is already tugging at my mouth.

NICO: Don’t be a smart ass. You went over your monthly limit. What the fuck did you buy for twenty grand?

A pause. Then the reply.

JULIAN: None of your business. You’ve got your secrets, I’ve got mine.

Heat coils low in my gut—anger, irritation, and fucking arousal. Goddamn reckless little bastard.

NICO: Get in here, or I’ll come down and drag you by the throat.

He takes a moment before the final ping comes through.

JULIAN: Fine.

I drop the phone onto the desk and rub a hand over my jaw, exhaling through a laugh that’s equal parts pissed and…

maybe a little turned on. He really has no idea what kind of line he just crossed.

Twenty grand on my card without blinking.

Either he’s braver than I thought, or dumber. Probably both.

Part of me wants to tear into him for it. Another part, the darker one, likes the fight. Likes the fact that he keeps pushing, keeps testing my limits.

The office is quiet except for the hum of the laptop. My pulse kicks a little faster, anticipation crawling under my skin.

A sharp knock rattles the door.

Three times. Firm, almost defiant.

I smile to myself, leaning back in the chair.

“Come in.”

The handle turns slowly. Julian steps inside.

He lingers by the doorway like he’s debating bolting. His arms are crossed, chin tilted up in that way he always does when he wants to look tougher than he feels.

“Don’t look so nervous,” I murmur. “I don’t bite.”

He scowls, but he walks in, shutting the door behind him.

I let him sweat a little before I finally speak.

“Twenty thousand dollars,” I say slowly, savoring each syllable. “You care to explain to me what the fuck you bought?”

His jaw tightens. “Didn’t realize I had to run every little thing by you.”

“Little thing?” My laugh is low and sharp. “You think twenty grand is a little thing?” I lean back, watching him fidget even as he tries not to. “You’ve got balls, piccolino. I’ll give you that.”

He shrugs, feigning indifference, which only fans the flames. And yet, there’s a tug in my gut too… because he’s standing here in my office, staring me down, daring me to punish him for it.

“I should cut you off completely,” I say, my voice softer now. “Freeze the card. Take away your toys until you learn some respect.”

Julian’s mouth twitches into a half smirk, half grimace. “Go ahead. Doesn’t scare me.”

The reckless bastard. My hand tightens into a fist, but what I feel isn’t just anger. It’s heat. A dark, slow burn spreading through me.

“Careful,” I murmur, keeping my eyes locked on his. “Keep pushing me, and you’ll find out just how creative I can get with the consequences.”

He steps closer, leaning over my desk with that cocky glint in his eye—like I didn’t just fuck him over it a couple hours ago.

“You tell me yours,” he murmurs, “and I’ll tell you mine.”

Goddamn him. I should be pissed—hell, I am pissed—but the anger tangles with heat, winding tighter in my gut. I can already feel my cock hardening, and judging by the way his gaze flicks downward, he knows it. He’s baiting me, pushing, wanting to see how far he can twist the knife before I snap.

I lean back in my chair. “My secrets aren’t yours to bargain with, caro mio. And as of this moment, consider your card frozen. No more twenty-thousand-dollar stunts this month.”

His jaw tightens, but his voice is steady, sharp enough to cut.

“You can freeze whatever the hell you want. Doesn’t change the fact that you can’t control me.”

My jaw flexes. “I’m not trying to control you.”

He laughs without humor. “Then what? This some twisted way of protecting me? Spare me the bullshit.”

My voice drops low. “I’m taking care of you.”

He shakes his head, scoffing. “Keep telling yourself that, Vitale.”

He pushes off my desk like he’s dismissing me, striding toward the door. My pulse spikes.

“Where the hell are you going?”

His hand rests on the knob, but his eyes cut back, sharp as glass. “I’m going for a drive. Need some air. Don’t follow me.”

The door slams, rattling the frame, and I pinch the bridge of my nose, dragging in a sharp breath. My hand finds the ashtray, then the lighter, and I take a long pull from a cigarette, smoke burning down my throat like it might smother the fire in my chest.

That fucking brat…

I should go after him. Drag him back here and remind him who the fuck he belongs to, but instead, I settle for compromise. I shoot a quick text to Enzo.

NICO: Tail him, don’t let him out of your sight. If anyone so much as looks at him wrong, I want them gone.

ENZO: On it.

Julian told me not to follow, and technically, I’m honoring that.

I turn back to the laptop, pretending to focus on the stack of problems threatening to destroy us, but my gaze drifts. Always back to that one tab.

It’s madness. Reckless. Completely irrational. But so are we.

I lean back, cigarette dangling between my fingers, and stare at the ring glowing on the screen.

Twelve perfect diamonds set in a platinum band, understated yet impossible to ignore.

Norman Silverman. Imported from London. Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, sitting in an online cart like it’s nothing.

Julian hates anything flashy. He’d spit curses if he knew how much it cost. Maybe he’ll slap me, maybe he’ll laugh, maybe he’ll look at me with those sharp, furious eyes that undo me every goddamn time. But when I put this ring on his finger, he’ll understand… he’s mine. Forever.

I click checkout with express shipping. It’ll be here in two days.

I take a long drag, exhaling slowly as the decision settles in my chest. He can run, curse me, hate me all he wants. None of it matters.

Because soon, Julian Cross won’t just be in my bed. He’ll be bound to me.

Two days…

Two days until everything changes. Two days until I find out whether Julian Cross says yes… or burns the world down around us both.