Page 67 of His Vicious Vow
Carina flashes a saccharine sweet smile as she flutters her lashes at him. “Thank you.”
He blinks a few times in surprise. “You’re proud of being an airhead? Fascinating. No thought at all.”
I want to send my fist into his face. Carina feels my arm tense up under her hand she squeezes it without taking her eyes off him. “I have plenty of thoughts. This morning I thought about what pretty dress I was going to wear tonight and what sparkly jewelry I get to wear with it. I’m so lucky Sandro buys such pretty things. One thing I love about my husband is how generous he is.”
Does she know about his divorce, it happened more than five years ago. His wife shredded him in the press for how stingy he was with her and their children despite how much money he had and what he spent on himself.
His eyes narrow on her. “You must be quite talented in bed for him to pay for it with diamonds that big.”
A growl escapes me. Carina laughs. “Only he can say that. But I’m also lucky he’s so talented himself I am a very satisfied wife. And you would know about the cost of things, wouldn’t you? How is Amanda? Did she join you tonight?”
Amanda Dancy is the brothel madam his wife named in the divorce as one of many women he paid for sex. Many of the women, including Amanda claimed he was a minute man who was so bad at sex they charged him more than other clients to keep from having to fuck him. Amanda admitted the only reason she saw him more than a few times was because of how rich he was and she would never not charge him—and she continued to even after she moved in with him when the divorce was final.
William goes pale, he opens his mouth once then again before backing away without another word.
I laugh. “Airhead my ass. How the hell did you know all that?”
She shrugs with a smile. “I’ve spent the last two weeks with the events we’re supposed to go to and their likely guest list and did searches on them for something to talk about.”
The mayor appears, curious eyes on Carina. I like the mayor, she’s a bitch—in a good way. Fiercely intelligent and unrepentantly calculating. I’m not surprised in the least when the mayor compliments me on Carina after they chat for a few minutes.
The evening is going the way all these things go. Everyone has an agenda for being here. Dinner has ended, which as usual at these things was awful. I’m on the dance floor with Carina for the third time tonight loving the way she’s melting against me when I spot Lauren. Shit.
She’s walking toward me with a smile on her face, barely caring of the confused guy following her.
“Who is she?” Carina exhales the words.
Her face says she already knows. She’s stiff now in my arms. Fucking hell.
“Sandro, lovely seeing you here tonight. The mayor’s office sent over an invitation. I think she was hoping me working for you means I owe her for her creating my job. Well, hello you must be the new Mrs. Leonetti.” Lauren is smiling so wide I can see her molars. I don’t trust her. She didn’t strike me as the one to start drama. Then again maybe Bianca wasn’t lying about Lauren calling her fat.
“Lynne, this is my wife Carina. Carina this is Lauren Harbaugh. She is responsible for coordinating the Van Gogh exhibit that will be held in the hotel in a year.” I introduce them.
I know Carina’s smile is fake, no one else would guess it. “How nice to meet you. I haven’t gotten a chance to meet Sandro’s employees of the hotel except housekeeping and the people kind enough to deliver our food. I look forward to seeing the result of your hard work. The better for your next project when it’s all over.”
My jaw tightens to keep from laughing. Lynne is suddenly sucking a lemon. Her smile is forced and everyone can tell. “Yes, lovely meeting you. Sandro, I see why you care for her. You have quite a young woman here.”
Anger surges through me. Carina giggles. “Thank you. Someone of your age saying that means so much. My mother told me, you don’t really become wise until you’re in your forties. Once a woman hits a certain age everything they’ve seen things become clearer. Lovely meeting you as well.”
Lauren was thirty-four on her last birthday a few months ago. The lemon she was sucking on becomes an unwashed ass and she walks away without another word.
The moment they’re out of earshot, I lower my head to Carina. “I apologize—”
“What for?” Ah fuck, the Carina of today is gone. She is back to looking through me. “I imagine I’ll spend a few hours every day running into the women you’ve fucked if I left the penthouse. I only ask you do your best to keep it to those in the past that I’m forced to smile for.” She attempts to leave the dance floor.
My hand around her arm keeps her in place. “What the hell are you talking about? I told you, I’m not interested in another woman.”
“That’s too bad, because that’s the only woman you’ll get.” Her eyes are on my shirt. The words are final. I believe them. I want to break something. I want to prove to her I can make her a liar but I do none of those things. The promise I made on the plane won’t let me.
We go back to the table for another hour before I deem it acceptable to leave, after writing a fat ass check for the mayor.
She doesn’t say a word, neither do I. When we get in the elevator I press the button for the floor my office is on and the penthouse. I get off when the doors open at my floor without looking back.
CHAPTER 26
Carina
The moment I open my eyes nausea sends me running for the bathroom. After I lose everything I’ve eaten since the last time I did this yesterday morning I can’t hide from it anymore—I’m pregnant.