Page 7

CHAPTER

SEVEN

MARCO

I t was a respect thing—or at least that was what I told the others when I had gone back to the booth with my hand dripping with an imbecile’s blood earlier that evening.

I had decked that stupid little twerp with the shitty tattoos and God-awful spikey hair not because of his blatant disrespect toward Adalyn—like I had told everyone else was the case—but because I had merely wanted to. And fucking hell had it felt good.

Just not as good as what had come after I’d punched him.

Ada’s sweet ass bent over in front of me and her lips brushing my skin had me stiff as a blade and wound up so tightly that I needed to either fight or fuck to calm down. This time I had chosen the latter, picking up one of the girls that had swarmed around me and my men all evening like goddamn buzzards.

It was an easy fuck until Ada came storming to the door dressed in nothing but a scrap of black silk and lace. I had to force myself to slam the door in her face, her audacious confidence a second away from snapping any self-restraint I had left.

I wanted to fuck her so bad in that moment I could barely think straight.

But instead of giving into the screaming urge to take her, I had forced myself to turn my attention to the female that had still been wrapped up in my bedsheets. I gave into my carnal need for release by pounding into her. Imagining sleek blonde hair and wide doe-like eyes staring up at me while fucking the mousey looking woman I never truly wanted.

When we had finished, I promptly booted her ass out and took a hot shower. I worked my neck and shoulders under the steam, needing to ease the tension that a quick fuck had done nothing to sate, but it was no use.

I’m losing my goddamn mind.

I sighed and pressed my forehead against the cool tiles, adjusting the water until it ran cold.

ADALYN

“Get your grumpy ass up! Breakfast is here.”

Jesse’s familiar voice rang out across the room, rousing me from sleep. He had flung open the door and was waiting impatiently just inside it, bathing the room in bright light.

“Get lost, Jesse!” I groaned, turning and burying my head back into the pillows.

“It’s ten thirty! If your grouchy ass isn’t in here in the next ten minutes, then I’ll drag you out myself.” He threatened and shut the door behind him.

I sighed and unwillingly pulled myself out of bed, finally lured by the smell of breakfast and coffee that wafted into the room. I shuffled into some black leggings and threw on the oversized shirt I’d packed, pulling my hair into a bun and dabbing a bit of concealer under my puffy eyes before giving myself a once over in the mirror.

Yup… still look hung over.

I shrugged it off, giving up on making myself look half decent for the sake of my growling stomach.

I heaved my way out of the door and almost balked.

I had grown so used to eating alone with Jesse that it hadn’t occurred to me that Marco would join us for breakfast. Yet there he was, seated at the head of the table in front of a plate of pancakes and bacon.

Thankfully, he hadn’t noticed my entrance yet, as he tapped away on his phone.

“You look like shit.” Jesse chuckled around a bite of sausage meat.

“Gee, thanks Jess.” I smiled back sarcastically, plating some pancakes for myself and downing a few painkillers.

“Have fun last night?” Jesse mocked.

“It was…alright. Though I remember dancing with an uncoordinated twit most of the evening so that was a bit of a dampener.” I taunted and he gave me the male equivalent of a resting bitch face.

“I’ll have you know I am a great dancer.” He argued, pointing a fork in my direction.

“Hmm… I’ve been with better.”

“Wow, Bandit, just wow.” I couldn’t help but giggle at him, earning me a wink.

“Bandit?” Marco frowned, directing his question to the man on his right.

“It’s just a nickname, Marco.” I answered instead, rolling my eyes. “I guess we don’t need to ask whether y ou had a good night seeing as the whole of the city could hear it.”

His frown turned into a glare as he gave me a look, and Jesse burst into laughter across the table.

“She sounded like…quite… something ?” Jesse winced at his own word choice and I hid a chuckle behind my hand.

“Hee-Haw. Hee-Haw.” I did my best donkey imitation, causing both Jesse and I to erupt into peals of laughter.

Marco, on the other hand, did not look amused.

“Oh, lighten up. It’s a joke.” I said once I’d managed to get a hold of myself.

“That was that Amanda girl, right?” Jesse suddenly asked, intrigued.

I bit into my pancake and pretended to look interested at the label on the back of the ketchup bottle. Yes, this is ketchup. Ke-t-chup.

“Yes.” Marco sighed. “At least I think that was her name. No mentioning it to Lexi.”

Who’s Lexi? I fought the scowl forming on my brow.

“Gottcha.”

“The last thing I need is her getting an excuse to keep coming over.” Irritation seeped into his voice.

“Agreed. That woman is like a human moth.” Jesse snickered.

“You’re both pigs.” I grumbled.

By early afternoon, Jesse and I had driven back to the mansion. The moment the tires rolled to a stop outside the familiar sandy stone walls, I had traipsed inside and collapsed on my bed, desperate to catch up on last night’s lost sleep.

I slept peacefully for a few hours, waking up shortly before four and throwing on a couple of mindless shows to keep myself busy. Jesse had found me a couple of hours later, informing me that I was invited to a formal dinner with Marco, which was surprising. I didn’t think a young Don like himself would be in the habit of having a formal dinner every evening…but apparently, he did. It was just this time I was also invited.

With only an hour to get ready, I jumped into the shower, blow-dried my hair and put on a fresh layer of barely-there makeup. Not knowing quite how formal this ‘formal dinner’ was, I settled on a floral mid-length camisole style dress and paired it with wedge sandals.

At precisely eight o’clock, I walked into the extravagant dining hall I had only been in once before when on my tour with Lucia. When I entered, a butler in a white-tailed coat approached, escorting me to one end of the colossal table at the room’s center. It could quite easily have seated sixteen people, but tonight only two places had been laid out at opposite ends.

A tall glass of champagne accompanied me shortly after I had taken my seat.

“Good evening, Adalyn.” Marco greeted.

The coldness in his tone now, as opposed to how it had been just the previous night at the club, was like night and day. How he could switch between the two personas within himself so easily, I had no clue. I could barely keep up with it myself.

“What’s all this about?” I waved at the room and four waiters standing silently nearby.

“Dinner.” He shrugged, pulling his tie loose from around his neck and settling back into his chair.

“I meant why am I here?” His sullen eyes met mine across the expanse. Before he could answer, the doors opened, and two more waiters approached with a steaming bowl of soup and freshly baked bread.

It was only once they had left again that he set about answering my question.

“I thought I owed you the truth.”

The truth?

That was surprising. I had long since given up with the idea that Mafia men cared about the truth.

“The truth about your ransom.” He continued, picking up his spoon simultaneously.

A few seconds of silence passed while he seemed to consider his next words.

“My men made contact with your father, Alberto, and commenced discussions about your ransom before my jet even landed at O’Hare International. Your capture had been planned for months, Ada. I was just waiting for the right time to take you.” He spoke measuredly as if he were unsure of my reaction.

He had hinted when I’d first arrived here that his men had been watching me for a while, but months? All the while my family were oblivious to the silent threat lurking amongst the shadows…

“My turning up at The Venetian Prince that night was your doing then, I take it.” I guessed, thinking back to the VIP passes we had scored for the night and how my friends and I could not believe our luck.

“I see why you would think that, but no. It was merely a coincidence that you ended up at my club that night.” He said nonchalant.

“Your club? In Las Vegas ?” I wasn’t sure I had heard him right.

Las Vegas was Mannino and Romano territory.

The city was divided right down the almost-middle, with my family owning the majority. The Romano’s were a small family with less manpower, less ruthlessness, and less history in the city than ours. Our agreement over territory had been in effect for many years and left no room for anyone else. Or so we’d thought.

Did my family even know that the La Torre’s had moved right into their backyard? I doubted it, from the smug smile on his face.

Marco really hadn’t been lying when he said he wasn’t afraid of starting a war.

He shot me a knowing look.

“Initial talks did not go as well as anticipated. Abducting you did not seem to be enough motive to force Alberto’s hand, so I had my men deliver a package to your home in Boulder City as well. It contained images of your family going about their various daily routines. Your Mamma sleeping with the handyman at her shop. Your father meeting with his men at one of his restaurants, you driving around in your Hellcat and so on and so forth. We thought that it might give him the… nudge he needed to submit to our demands.” He chuckled darkly. “It seems we were wrong once again.”

The safety of his family were on the line…and that wasn’t enough?

I was so lost in the thought that I scarcely registered a new plate of food being set before me.

“Your family promptly abandoned their residences and cut off all forms of communication. I believe their argument for not financing your release was that you are not an heir to your family’s empire nor have any useful information that they would want to keep out of my hands.”

The truth of his words cut deep.

I had long since resigned myself to the knowledge that I wasn’t worth a lot to my family. It had been a truth I had tucked away for most of my adult life…but it didn’t make it any less painful when confronted by it.

No! I was his daughter. That had to count for something!

“My fa?—"

“Your father is as abhorrent as he ever has been.” His words cut like ice. “If you think he cares about you Ada, you are wrong.”

“You would say that though, wouldn’t you?” I argued.

He signed and pulled out a small silver device, laying it atop the table.

It crackled for a second before two familiar voices rang out from the speaker, and my heart sank.

“Do you really think your pictures would intimidate me, boy?” My father’s distinctive voice scoffed through the recorder. “It will take much more than that, I assure you!”

“I am merely demonstrating that your days of hiding are over. You are the one who instigated conflict between our families and ran like a coward when the fighting started. Well, now you know I can find you wherever you are.” Marco’s voice was venomous, making him sound every bit the powerful Don he was.

“ I am not the coward who kidnaps young women to extort for money! As if that would mean anything in a man’s game!” The words were biting, and I flinched.

“Your own daughter really means so little?” I could hear Marco chuckle through the recording, but it didn’t contain an ounce of humor. “One hundred million for her release and I will end this conflict.”

“And why would I pay you that? No one is worth such a high price. She is of no use to me or this family.” His dark, maniacal laugh bled through the speaker. “Keep her.”

My father was just about to speak again when Marco stopped the recording.

Tears lined my eyes, and I was suddenly grateful he’d stopped it before I could hear anymore. I patted at my tears with my fingertips as if I were able to wipe away the hurt overwhelming me.

Rejection and hopelessness crushed my chest painfully until I had to will myself to breathe through it.

I didn’t realize how worthless I was to my family.

“I’m sorry you had to hear that, but I felt you deserved the truth.” I could feel him watching me.

I replied with a weak ‘ Yup’ before gulping back the remainder of my champagne.

“Are you alright?” Concern resonated in Marco’s voice, his gaze still grazing my skin, but I refused to meet it. Couldn’t meet it.

“It’s not every day you find out how… worthless you are. Even to your own family.” I just shook my head sadly, unable to formulate the words without feeling my heart breaking all over again.

The room fell into a tormented silence as I looked at my hands numbly.

“I want to give you a chance to start over, Ada. Here in Chicago.”

Of all the things I was expecting to come out of his mouth, I wasn’t expecting that . It took my brain a full minute to catch up.

“Through marriage?” I guessed, fully aware of what ‘ fresh starts’ often meant in our society.

Marco didn’t respond right away, instead waving at the waiters who moved in unison to remove our plates and placing before us a warm chocolate dessert. Only once he had picked up his spoon and had taken a bite did he deign to continue.

“It’s something I am considering.”

I nodded, powerless to stop it even if I had wanted to…but I didn’t. It was the best I could hope for given my situation, and it was more than I could have expected. I doubted that any other Don would have considered it, given that I was the daughter of his enemy.

If I were married off to one of Marco’s men, it would mean that I’d be cared for financially and given a home. I could learn to care for my husband in time, perhaps even come to love him. If not, then at least I still had my children to live for and a home to run… It was my best chance at happiness.

“Until I can come to some kind of arrangement with that, you will live here. You are no longer confined to the estate, but you will take security with you when you leave and return here every evening. Other than that, you can go about your life just as every other female in my family does.”

A small spark of hope lit in my chest.

“Can I go shopping?” I asked tentatively.

“That constitutes going out, doesn’t it?” He responded dryly, wolfing down another mouthful.

“Can I get a job?”

Marco looked slightly insulted by my question, pausing mid-chew and meeting me with a curious expression on his face. “Do you want a job?”

I guess it wasn’t common for women in the Cosa Nostra to want to work, with many perceiving it as a blight on the male she was attached to. Indeed, my Mamma certainly never had to lift a finger before the ‘Parker Family’ ruse and even then, exactly what she did at her store couldn’t be considered work in the traditional sense. She had staff for that .

It just wasn’t the way in our society and while the rest of modern women have marched on with the times, most of us were happy enough with our traditions to not wish for more.

I contemplated my answer a moment. “Maybe. I will need some way of financing my wonderful new life in Chicago after all.” I finished sardonically.

“If that is your only reason for working, then you need not bother.”

Marco reached into his jacket and pulled out something small and black between his fingers. He then rose from his seat and slowly walked the distance to my end of the room, much like a Lion casually stalks its prey.

He came to a stop mere feet away and slid a shiny card across the table beside me.

“Abuse it and you will lose it.”

I stared cautiously at the onyx card while he retook his seat, feeling a swell of gratitude for the Don who was seemingly less of a monster with every day that passed.

I glanced over at him and met his gaze. A glass tumbler of whiskey already swirled in his hand.

“Thank you.”