Page 50 of Deadly Don's Baby Contract

He’s wanted to take her from me since the start. Now he has a good reason to.

“No one makes a fool of me. Definitely not a whore.”

When he calls her a whore my blood boils two degrees hotter. “She is still my wife.”

“Divorce is cheap these days. I’ll get a lawyer for you.”

I hate him. “I’m not getting a divorce.” I won’t. “And I am not sending my wife and child away.” My phone keeps buzzing, non-fucking-stop. Anyone who is this persistent obviously has an urgent need to get hold of me. I take it out and there is a string of messages from Luca.

Luca—Boss, your wife is going after Vito,

Luca—What must I do?

Luca—Boss, I am going with her, but you really need to get out of whatever you’re doing and stop her,

Luca—I think we are in trouble here, Boss,

Luca—Dammit, FRANCO, where the fucking hell are you? Everything is turning to shit! Aria needs help.

He never calls me Franco unless he needs my attention—of course, she went after Vito. Aria thinks she can fix this. Why is she like this? What is wrong with her?

“Who is it?” Marco hates being interrupted. He believes phones have made people rude, and he’s not wrong.

“Luca,” I say, putting my phone back in my pocket. I need to get out of here. “Aria went after Vito.”

“Stupid woman.” He tuts and orders another drink. “Let her go. Vito has every right to get what is owed to him if she broke a contract.”

I am not going to let her go. Is he crazy? As I am pushing my chair back, he grips me by the collar, pulling me back down to sit beside him.

“I said leave it, Franco. You are not getting involved in their fight. She has done enough damage to this family.”

“If you think I am going to leave her alone with Vito, you are the stupid one, brother.” I peel his fingers off me. “That is my child and the woman I love. So, I will respectfully ignore you this time.” His jaw ticks, and I can see the violence in his eyes. “Let me go, Marco.”

“If you go, you better not come back,” he says, and I wonder how we became this way. Why we’d die for one another but cannot stand the sight of each other either. “You are walking into your funeral. Vito and Aria both have reasons to kill you. Don’t be stupid, Franco.” Marco is warning me of the danger I know I’m willing putting myself in.

“She would die for me before she ever killed me,” I say. He will never understand what I have with her. “Loyalty and family. You know what we should have.”

“Franco, I would die for you. But you have put her between us.”

In my heart, I know if I needed Marco, he would be there. I turn my back on my brother and call Aria’s phone, but there is no answer.

Chapter 20

Aria

"You're such a disappointment, you know dat?"

Vito's cold eyes betray his outward Joe Pesci demeanor. He's seemingly jovial and even smug, but I've dealt with him enough to know that he's simmering. I've seen what happens after this, and no one is left standing in the wake of his rage and violence.

"Aren't you going to say anything? Make a deal? Beg for your life or your child's," he asks, extending his hand and squeezing my belly. I cry out not because it hurts but because it's the only way to stop him from really hurting the baby.

Luca starts mouthing off, and Vito knocks him out with the butt of the gun.

Franco pulls against his restraints and starts swearing at Vito not to hurt me or the baby.

"Thank you. Now I know you're not just the bodyguard but the father, too." He smirks. "It's interesting what fatherhood will do to a made man. I myself have five kids. I'd die for any one of those little bastards." He laughs. "I'm kidding, of course. Only two of them are bastards, but nonetheless."

He turns his attention back to me and crouches down beside me.

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