Page 9 of Saint Of Envy (Tangled Hearts, Sinful Hands #2)

LUC

“ I t’s too dangerous,” I say when Valentina mentions wanting to leave the hotel suite. “Just because Leonardo has done nothing yet, doesn’t mean that he won’t. And now, with you being pregnant, it risks too much.”

“I know that you’re worried, and I am too,” she says, pleading with me to reconsider the strict security protocols that I have her under. “But who knows how long it will be before Leonardo acts? I can’t stay cooped up in here any longer, Luc. It’s been days and I’m going stir-crazy.”

“I can have whatever your heart desires brought into the suite for you,” I offer.

“I want nothing brought in,” she argues. “I want some freedom. It’s necessary for me to leave this room and the building. I can’t continue to be caged, Luciano.”

“I’m not trying to cage you. I’m trying to keep you safe.”

“I know you are, and I’m beyond grateful to you for that. And you know I want to stay here with you, but I also need to feel like I can have a life outside of these walls too—even if there are some risks involved.”

As much as I hate to admit it, and as much as it worries me, I know that what she’s saying is true.

What kind of life is it for her to stay trapped in here, as she lived with Leonardo at his estate?

Still, the thought of her being exposed to the eyes and ears of the city makes me feel increasingly tense and vulnerable, even more so now that she’s pregnant with my child.

“Alright,” I concede. “But first, I want to know what prompted the arranged marriage to Leonardo to begin with. Every time I’ve asked you about it, you’ve only given me vague answers before changing the subject.

And if I’m going to protect you, even whilst giving you more freedom with Leonardo still out there seeking his revenge, I need to know exactly what I’m dealing with. No more secrets.”

She sighs, but then concedes and fills in the gaps of what I’d already suspected.

“My father’s hotel business was failing.

His pride was based on that business venture.

It meant the world to him to keep up our family’s reputation and to uphold the status and legacy of his family name.

But when the business struggled, he took out a loan that he couldn’t repay. ”

“Let me guess,” I say. “That financial arrangement led him straight to Leonardo Conti.”

“Yes,” she nods. “He needed the help. And as much as my father has always struggled to show his affection for his family, I think he was trying to do right by us. He wasn’t looking for power or wealth; he was simply trying to survive for our family.”

“What father marries off his daughter to a wicked man like Leonardo Conti?” I ask, getting angrier by the moment as I hear her describe Giovanni’s failings as a father.

“The kind that was attempting to secure a material future for me.” Valentina’s voice is saddened.

I can tell that she would have preferred a closer relationship with her father and a life of emotional happiness to a life of financial security.

If only her father had taken that into account before trying to make her choices for her.

But Giovanni Ricci is not a man suited for mafia life.

The demands of a mafia alliance of this magnitude aren’t for the faint of heart, nor those without the constitution to overcome internal conflicts—I should know.

“Initially, I think my father viewed his alliance with Leonardo as a beneficial one. Their relationship was transactional, to help save my father’s business, secure a stable life for me, and then hope for the best. My happiness was never a factor.”

I wonder silently whether Giovanni feels any guilt over that.

I wonder if he thinks it’s worth it to dress in tailored suits and luxury accessories, to play at being a successful hotelier with a family of status, if it means sacrificing his daughter’s freedom over it.

That will not be the father that I am with my child.

Especially not after seeing how much that sort of emotionally detached relationship has hurt Valentina.

There is a small part of me that feels bad for the man and the fact that Leonardo Coni could manipulate his financial desperation, leveraging loans over the poor guy to force the arrangement of marriage to Valentina.

But Giovanni should have known that Leonardo wasn’t worth getting involved with.

Surely, he must have known how much Leonardo disdains men he deems to be “beneath” him.

“Have you heard from your father at all since we left Italy?” I ask.

Valentina shakes her head. Her eyes speak volumes regarding her conflicted feelings about her father and whether she’s glad or saddened that he hasn’t attempted to contact her.

“He has always respected you, Luc,” she adds. “I’m sure he knows that if I’m with you, then I’m safe.”

I say nothing, as I wouldn’t be so sure of that. A man who will sell out someone he cares about once can do it a second time, too. At the moment, I don’t trust anyone other than those within my small inner circle. Which leads me to the next thing I want to talk to Valentina about.

“I think that it’s time we stopped hiding our relationship,” I say, to her surprise.

“I know I said it would be best to keep our involvement with each other a secret, but I think that openly acknowledging that our friendship has transformed into something more is more of an asset now than a weakness.”

“How so?”

“Despite Leonardo Conti’s constant attempts to degrade me, he’s well aware that my reputation might be one of calm but also one of brutality when need be.

Despite the chance of dangerous societal repercussions when those around us and in the mafia find out about our relationship, I think it will serve as another layer of protection for you.

Anyone who attempts to come at you will know that they will have to deal with me.

Getting to you now means going through me first.”

After we talk a bit more and I’m assured that Valentina and I are on the same page about how we’re going to approach this.

I agree to let her go out of the hotel suite, and I suggest taking her on an actual date in the city.

That way, people around us can see that we’re indeed together, and I can keep an eye on her while also letting her have a night outside of this hotel.

The delight on her face at the thought of it makes the risk we are taking almost worth it.

The following day, I have a dress sent up to the suite for her while I finish up a bit of business. I will have the maid bring it up to Valentina, along with a note telling her to be ready to go out for our date at seven o’clock in the evening.

“Make sure that she has everything she needs,” I instruct the maid. “And if there’s anything else that Valentina wants, please let me know so that I can get it to her before our date tonight.”

“Yes, of course, Mr. Moretti.” The maid nods as she lowers her head. “Are the two of you celebrating something special?”

How she asks almost seems as if she’s got a sixth sense about it.

But then again, how could she know anything about Valentina expecting a child?

All she does is clean the suite and keep to herself.

I don’t even think she knows she works for a mafia family, considering Vincent and I have never let the lower staff in on our more interior business dealings.

“Just celebrating being able to spend some time out in the city together,” I smile at her as I glance at her name tag. “Thank you for taking the dress up, Maria.”

“My pleasure, sir.”

After a long day of business meetings, a chat at the bar with Gabriel and Alonzo, and a few loose ends tied up that Vincent wanted me to tend to, I am more than ready to take Valentina out for a nice date somewhere.

And when I return to the hotel suite and see her step into view, she is nothing short of breathtaking.

I stand in the hallway, frozen and speechless as I stare at her.

Valentina blushes and smiles as she walks toward me. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a powerful man at such a loss for words,” she teases as she stands in front of me and runs her finger down the front of my chest.

She makes me feel as if I’m the most powerful man in the world.

Who needs a title when I have the affections of such a goddess?

To think that Leonardo Conti, a man who would have perversely enjoyed psychologically manipulating her for his own sadistic tendencies, almost trapped her in a loveless marriage.

He will never again dominate her emotionally.

He will never lay a finger on Valentina.

She is mine now, and she is free to do as she pleases.

“So, where are we going?” She asks, with a gleam of excitement in her eyes.

“Well, not to a bar in your current condition,” I tease her. “But how about a very nice restaurant and a delectable virgin cocktail?”

She grins and threads her arm in mine as we head out together.

I chose the most expensive restaurant in all of Vegas, one that usually requires a reservation months in advance.

But I mention the Moretti name, and within minutes, they seat us at one of the nicest tables in the whole place.

We talk and laugh and sample several items off the menu, and for a few hours, it feels like everything else melts away.

I’d like to think that Leonardo would simply be disillusioned with Valentina now, that he might just let her move on to torment some new woman that he can exert power over.

But I’m not foolish enough to believe that.

At least for the moment, we can enjoy some time tonight and not think of such things.

“People are looking at us,” she whispers as she leans across the table toward me.

“Who?”

“Those people over there.” She lifts her finger inconspicuously to point to a couple sitting in a corner booth.

I recognize them instantly. They’re friends of Alonzo.

Good, that means that word will spread quickly that Valentina and I are a couple and that she is not only under my protection but is my woman to protect.

I can only imagine how enraged that will make Leonardo.

I try to put thoughts of him out of my head and enjoy this evening out with the beautiful mother of my unborn child.

“Do you have any idea how much I’m in love with you, Valentina?” I ask, hoping that she does.

“No,” she says with a subtle smirk. “I think maybe you should tell me.”

“I love you more than the moon loves the night,” I say, trying my best to be poetic and hoping that I don’t sound ridiculous. “More than a camera loves the perfect view.”

“Oh, that’s a good one,” she grins.

We both share a small laugh, but I’m so in love with her I would give anything to see Valentina happy and content.

“You have always been important to me,” I say as I reach across the table to hold her hand between my palms. “Ever since the first moment I laid eyes on you, and within the spaces of each time we saw each other. When I came to see you at the Conti estate, it wasn’t just because I wanted to.

It was because I needed to. I think that perhaps you and I have been meant to be together this whole time.

And now that we are, I intend never to let you go. ”

After I say it, I feel the need to clarify to make sure that she knows she will always be free with me.

“Unless, of course, you want to go. I will never hold you hostage, Valentina. Your happiness means the world to me.”

She smiles and lifts my hand to her lips, kissing the top of my knuckles as she stares across the table into my eyes. “There is no place that I would ever want to go other than at your side.”

The waiter comes to clear our plates and offer dessert.

Valentina eyes the dessert menu eagerly, and I tell the waiter to bring a taste of all the offerings.

She is eating for two, after all. And if she can no longer enjoy a sip of wine, then there must be some sort of decadence to replace the indulgence of things.

“Luciano,” she says, carefully using my full name, which I automatically assume means that what she’s about to ask me is important.

“Are you truly happy about this pregnancy? Are you sure that it’s not something that you’re worried about?

Others, like Vincent, will eventually notice and learn about it, which I imagine will lead to entirely new discussions about your position in his hierarchy. ”

“I absolutely cannot wait to start a family with you,” I assure her.

“I will remain Vincent’s consigliere, and he will accept the choices that I make.

Just because I serve as his advisor doesn’t mean that he controls my life.

You can trust me when I tell you that you and our unborn child are the most important things in my life now.

There is nothing I want more and nothing that I will guard and protect more fiercely.

And one day, I will be the one waiting for you at the altar.

If, of course, you will want to marry me. ”

She giggles and tosses her hair over her shoulder. “Well now, it’s not like I would run away from my wedding ceremony again—because if I did, who would be there to pick me up like you did the last time?”

Her playful banter makes me grin, and for the first time in my entire life, I feel complete and want nothing more.