Page 44 of Useless Love

I run my fingers through his hair as he lowers his gaze and stares longingly at my breasts. Heat rushes through my body, and wetness pools inside my folds.

“Damn it,” he growls. “I’m going to have to sit through this entire dinner with a stiff cock.”

“I can eat fast,” I offer.

“Not fucking faster than me.”

CHAPTER 14 — BODY AND SOUL

Gaia

We arrive at a Japanese restaurant in lower Manhattan. Carmine and I walk past the crowd to the private room upstairs. My security waits outside of the door, per usual, and we take a seat. There are two personal chefs in the room, slicing and rolling. It’s all very decadent.

Carmine moves his chair close to mine, and I can smell his cologne. As I finish my second cup of sake, I’m feeling relaxed, so I tell him, “You smell sooo good. What is that?”

“Soap.”

I giggle. “Just soap?

Carmine grabs the tiny cup from my hands. “I never wear cologne. I’m guessing you’ve never drank sake before. I’m cutting you off; I want you sober.”

I turn my head and smile at him. “And what would I miss if I wasn’t sober?”

He lifts an eyebrow. “The best part, princess.”

He cups the back of my neck and pulls me closer. We kiss like he’s heading off to war in the morning. Eventually, Carmine lifts me onto his lap, where I sit the rest of the night. He orders for both of us. As I struggle to use chopsticks to pick up my salmon nigiri, Carmine’s phone buzzes.

He pulls the phone from his pocket, unlocking it by holding it up to his face. Casually, he checks his message that reads: Can’t wait to suck your cock tonight. Then a picture of the woman naked appears.

Instantly, I jump to my feet. My heart is a little broken, but I shouldn’t be surprised right? I’ve been groomed for this life, and the men in my world are notorious for sleeping around. It’s actually expected. I had only hoped Carmine would wait until after the marriage to cheat…whoever he ends up marrying.

I try to slip away, but Carmine grabs my hand. “She’s nothing.”

I swallow back my tears. “I understand. I’m just…going to the bathroom to give you some privacy with your woman.”

“She’s not my—”

“I’ll just be a few moments.” I pull my hand free and hurry off because I don’t want him to see me cry.

I go into the bathroom and fix myself, letting out a few tears and then freshening my makeup. I have no God-given right to be jealous. He isn’t even mine. Even if I want him, I don’t know if Arianna or Father will let me have him. And…if I do get him, I have to accept the cheating. All wives in organizations like mine learn to accept it.

Once I’m feeling a little stronger, I return to Carmine with a forced smile. I fumble with my chopsticks again.

“Let me explain,” Carmine says.

I give up on the chopsticks and set them down. “It’s okay. You don’t have to explain. You’re a grown man of thirty-two. Everyone in our world would expect you’d have other women.” I sip some water, forcing a knot down my throat before it grows larger.

Watching me closely, Carmine sighs deeply. “Yes, I’ve slept with a lot of women. But I started to lose interest during the war. ”

“Carmine, I don’t want to know,” I say flatly.

He opens his phone, showing me the conversation with the woman. “See, only she is sending messages. I’ve never typed anything back because I’m not interested. Yes, I fucked her once, but that was long before the war. She’s desperately trying to entice me but I don’t respond. She’s…connected to someone I do business with so I can’t just block her. But I ignore her attempts.”

Not believing him, I reach for his phone and scroll through all her desperate messages. In some, she marvels at the size of his dick and pleads for it one more time. Carmine watches calmly as I go through more of his messages, like he has nothing to hide. I try to catch him in some act again and again, but every message I open from a woman is all one-sided. The last message he responded to from another woman was over a year ago.

Carmine’s hand begins caressing my thigh under the table.

“You…get a lot of messages from women begging for it. They’re so pretty. Why not just say yes?”

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