Page 76 of She Belongs to Me

“Yes, sir. Fine. I’m fine with that.”

I was shocked he’d managed to huff out the words, although I couldn’t recognize his voice any longer. “Very good. Maybe you are a quick learner. Lastly in this lesson in respect, you will never touch one of my female employees again or I’ll have your hand cut off. Understood?”

Gio’s eyes opened wide and he did appear as if he was going to cry. But he nodded.

I shifted my eyes toward Luca and he brought the man’s anguish to level three just for a few seconds. It was enough to make a final point.

When my second in command let go, Gio stumbled forward, immediately wrapping one hand around the other.

“The pain will subside quickly. Now sit down. We’re going to discuss me taking a much larger percentage of business in New York, Washington DC, and Philadelphia.”

Given the Greeks were in Philadelphia and I’d come close to confirming Mattia was working with them, I threw out the additional carrot. At minimum, I knew Mattia wanted a new slice of the pie, one that wasn’t tarnished by his bad business decisions. That would take heading into another country.

Adonis would be furious, and possibly scared. If he had some list he was using to knock off bothersome people, that would curtail his activities.

Or speed them up.

The news would travel fast.

I’d done what I’d set out to do already.

Although I’d made another rather fun decision to continue turning up the heat.

It should put Mattia and Adonis on guard.

If I was still good at what I did.

Mattia had selected the Villa Igiea hotel to spend some time in. The location was considered five stars and very romantic, the layout and rooms designed with lovers in mind. He’d been married for five years, an arranged contract between a smaller crime syndicate within Italy. Both families likely hoped the union would provide additional clout within the five families.

It hadn’t.

No one cared any longer about marriage. Yes, they were considered holy, families the most important aspect of every regime, but the outdated ways of the Don selecting who the son or daughter would marry was almost never done any longer.

It was simply something else that had failed for Mattia.

He was batting zero at this point.

What his choice of hotels meant was that he wasn’t spending time alone while in Palermo. I’d heard the gossip, the man enjoying the company of at least one mistress while his wife looked the other way.

Honestly, I couldn’t care less what he did in his private time other than his behavior was repulsive. But his proclivity would prove to be useful at this point. Next to an Italian boy’s mother was his adoration of his mistress. He would find time to spend with her.

I’d sent another one of my soldiers to discover whether Mattia was still in the hotel and if I was right.

My soldier should have been a detective. I was correct in my assumptions. I did so love when I was right. It was time to rattle Mattia’s chain my way.

I headed into the hotel, shoving aside Luca’s push to join me. Mattia wasn’t going to kill me in the middle of broad daylight with his mistress on his arm. While I was playing on a hunch, given the late morning, I had a feeling the two would be down for brunch in the opulent restaurant before hitting the heated pool, perhaps the beach later in the day. It was certainly a very warm day, perfect for lounging and fucking.

The thought brought a twitch in my cock. It shouldn’t, but the moment I’d walked into the kitchen that morning, Alexandra’s simple, classic beauty had once again caught me off guard. Hell, I think I’d been rude.

What the hell had come over me?

I was half smiling as I headed to the fancy bistro. I wasn’t hungry, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy a cup of coffee and perhaps a Bloody Mary for a change. I’d even managed to snag one of the local newspapers that still existed in the city on my way in.

The hostess seemed enamored the moment I’d walked in, slightly flustered as she allowed me to select the perfect seat in the restaurant. Not only did I have a bird’s-eye view of the only elevators leading to the suites up above, but the happy, salacious party would need to walk right by me.

“Mr. Marciano. Please. Please enjoy your stay. If there is anything I can do, let me know.”

She was speaking in English without a heavy accent. That could mean she was an exchange student. Perhaps that write-up in the Sicilian men’s magazine had caught her eye. And here my brother had made fun of me for daring to sit for an interview.