Page 9 of Ruthless Sinner
But try as I might, I can’t get the damn door to open. And in a fit of rage, I kick it. “Dante!” I scream as loud as I can. “Where the fuck are you?”
Chapter 9
Dante
Enzo’s face contorts in discomfort as he shifts in his seat. “This feels like an invasion of privacy.”
A tiny camera in the corner of the room captures Adalina’s every move. I see her the second she wakes up. He averts his eyes as she walks around naked. His loss. Adalina Martinelli has a gorgeous fucking body. The kind of body that makes a man willing to commit heinous atrocities.
I watch her enter the bathroom and come out a few moments later. I watch as she walks to the closet and stays inside for several minutes. When she exits in a pretty, ankle-length white floral dress, it brings a smile to my lips. “She went home with a stranger she barely knew. These are the consequences, Enzo.”
“I guess,” Enzo agrees. “I’m more used to blood and the cries of men than…that.”
We both stop and stare at the screen when Adalina begins to scream my name and kick the door in surround sound. The sound comes out of the iPad speakers, and at the same time, we hear it echo down the stairs. I flash my bodyguard a smile. “I think she’s figured out she’s locked in.”
He shakes his head warily. “I don’t understand how this happened. I thought you said you and Sal were going to bring her back and lock her in the dungeon. How did the situation change to retrofitting Lucia’s room with cameras and a door that locks from the outside?”
I tilt my head in mock contemplation, fingers tapping against my temple as I pretend to mull over his question. Finally, I snap my fingers with a dramatic flair. “Sal will tell you I let my dick run away with this one, but that’s simply not the case.”
Enzo raises a dubious eyebrow in my direction. “Are you sure?” He deadpans. “Because I walked in on you fucking her last night.”
“Actually, you walked in after we finished fucking, but I digress. She’s hot; I’m not saying she’s not,” I allow. “And maybe that played a role in my decision-making. But I am not ruled by my cock.”
“Speaking of,” Enzo winces, “Lucrezia came over last night.”
I recoil at the mention of my betrothed’s name and the fact that she came to my house unannounced. This isn’t the first time it’s happened. Knowing Lucrezia, it won’t be the last, either.
My father made an arrangement with her brother, Saverio Castiglione, that we would marry when she came of age. But sixteen-year-old Lucrezia has been a pain in my ass since the deal was signed. “What did she want?” My lips curl upward in disgust, my eyes narrowing with disdain. I’ve taken to pawning my bride-to-be off on Enzo when she shows up. She makes it a common enough occurrence to show up at the gates and harass my staff. While I often send my bodyguard to deal with her, I feel bad about it.
Enzo rubs his temples while shaking his head. “She wanted to get gelato at some new food truck in town.”
I like gelato, but not enough to waste a few hours with Lucrezia. I have no interest in my future wife. For starters, I don’t plan to marry her. There’s a year and a half until she turns eighteen, and I’ll spend every second of it trying to find a way out of this arranged marriage. I’m not marrying the sister of the most powerful Midwest boss. I don’t care what my father received in payment for securing Lucrezia a husband. I don’t care what was promised. The life I have planned for myself does not involve the whims of a teenage girl.
“What happened after that?” I ask.
“I told her you were busy, but she didn’t believe me. She searched every room of the house until she accepted that you weren’t here.”
God, she’s going to be the type of wife that accuses me of having an affair because I stayed out too late with my brothers one night. This is why I’m not marrying Lucrezia or anyone else.
“The next time she shows up, call Saverio. He knows how important it is to safeguard his sister’s virtue before marriage.” With all the rumors swirling about the men Lucrezia has fucked, Saverio is more aware than anyone of how important it is to keep her name from being further slandered.
Enzo’s fingers drum impatiently on the wooden table, the sound echoing in the small room. The tension grows as we pointedly ignore Adalina’s angry shouts from upstairs. If I didn’t know any better, I’d be worried about her breaking the door down. But short of fashioning the bedpost into a battering ram, she is a little too petite for that. “You know if Lucrezia finds that girl upstairs, she’ll lose it,” Enzo comments.
“That’s why she isn’t allowed on the grounds anymore. Call the guard shack and tell them she’s no longer allowed past.” If I thought I could get away with it, I’d have her shot on sight. But as much as I despise Lucrezia, I can’t risk igniting a feud. I am not steady enough in my position to handle a war right now.
Enzo’s brow furrows briefly before he lifts his hand to run it over his bald head. His eyes meet mine a second later as he reminds me, “You know that won’t stop her.”
My betrothed is a persistent little thing. Lucrezia Castiglione could make any man stop and second-guess himself. But I’m not any man. I’m Dante fucking Terlizzi, the chosen one for taking over the family when my father retires. Lesser men may crumble under Lucrezia’s withering stare, but not me. I do not stumble or fall; I bow to no one. She’ll learn that soon enough. “Let her break in. She won’t enjoy what she finds if she does.”
I’m done with this conversation. There is only so much I can do in a day, and dealing with Lucrezia isn’t at the top of my list. “Call Tommaso,” I say, changing the subject. I want to have a sit-down this afternoon.”
He nods his head. “Place?”
“Here,” I instruct as I get to my feet. “I want him to see his daughter. I’d hate for the man to think she ran away. I want him to know she’s safe and sound. And for the right price, she’ll remain that way.”
Enzo mirrors my movement, rising gracefully to his feet in a single fluid motion. His body language is a perfect reflection of mine, as if we are connected by an invisible thread. “Mind if I speak out of turn?”
I wave him forward. “Always, Enzo. You know that.”