“I’m on time,” I said, knowing what he meant but stalling.
“On your days off,” he said.
“I have to check-in now? When did this become a rule?” I tried to remove my arm from his grasp, but he held me even tighter.
“You’re getting married to Ben Dalton. He has a right to know.”
“What?” I breathed out. I sensed it coming, but still, it was like death. No matter how hard you prepare for it, it still jolts. “No—”
“No is not an option. You agreed to marry his brother.”
“He’s not his brother! And I don’trememberagreeing to any-fucking-thing!”
He stopped in a more secluded area but kept his grip tight on my arm. “Keep your voice down.” He shook me a little. “The Bible says he has a right, so who are you to say no?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but then I closed it. Then I opened it again. “IfI was married to his brother,” I said, “then he’d have the right.” Then I shook my head.
If I argued with him, that was only going to put me on the same level as him. The only reason he was trying to make sense, any at all, was because he wanted me to be amicable to the deal.
“Where were you?” he asked again.
“Out with Cilla. She’s—”
“I know who she is,” he said, his breath smelling of root beer and underlying halitosis.
“We went to New York for a girl’s trip. She’s been dealing with a lot. Retail therapy.”
He gazed into my eyes like he was trying to see into my soul. Not able to get past the armor, he shook his head and sighed. I tried not to scrunch up my nose.
“You’ll explain that to Ben,” he said, pulling on me again. We were close to his office. “After what happened, he still wants you. Though I’m rethinking the deal. His old man will probably keep his seat, but it doesn’t look good right now.”
For who?I wanted to say. Because I didn’t want to come face to face with Ben Dalton. He knew who I was in love with. How could he not? The pieces were all clicking into place, especially after what Aniello had done to his family, and I had no doubt that he was going to take it out on me to get back at him.
“Motherfucker is supposed to be protecting us,” he muttered. “He’s leading them right to our door instead. Listen to me.” He stopped once more. “I like you girls, so I’m going to give you a little advice to take with you when you go. Stay away from Warren if you can.”
The kinky bastardwas the remark ready on my tongue, but I held it. Then I swallowed hard when Ben stood as we entered Big Bismo’s office.
He smoothed his tie. His eyes narrowed. “You left,” he said, an accusing tone to his voice.
“She—”
He held up a hand to shut Big Bismo up. He stood between us, like a referee.
“I did,” I said, narrowing my eyes against his. My heart was about to burst out of my chest, and my feet were on unsteady ground, but I wouldn’t cower.
“Mind telling me where you went?”
“Yes,” I said. “I do.”
“Midnight Rose,” Big Bismo warned me.
“Her name is Rosalia,” Ben said, trying to copy Aniello’s accent when he said it, taking a step closer to me.
When I took a step back, the dance continued, until I was pressed against the wall and he was looking down at me. It was different from how Aniello looked at me. Aniello always looked like he wanted to offer me his hand to pull me up. Ben looked like he wanted to keep his hand on his tie while I was on the floor struggling to get up. Not because of who he was, or what he was worth, but because of the hate he had in his heart for another man who happened to need me.
I wondered if the resentment truly came from Richie being killed, or from a more selfish place. It was clear that he’d loved his life in England and who he was free to be there. Though I didn’t think it was selfish at all. I thought it was called living the life he’d been given.
“You don’t want this,” I whispered, trying to appeal to him as a person. “You don’t really want me.”
