Page 36 of One Wild Night

"What do you want me to say, Tony? That all is forgiven? Because it's not. I am pissed as hell at you for so many reasons. I don't want to sit here and eat with you, or listen to you tell me that you love me when it's not true. You don't love me, no matter what you say. You treat me more like your property than your girlfriend, and I'm sick of it. I won't put up with it anymore." I was so angry with him that I wanted to scream. If he honestly thought that he could plan a romantic meal and it would solve all our problems, he was sorely mistaken.

"What are you saying, Trixie?" he asked, looking at me intently.

I sighed heavily, trying to figure out how to put my thoughts into words. "I'm saying that I can't do this right now. I need time, Tony. I need space. That means that I don’t want you to treat me to your idea of a romantic dinner, or try to take me out on dates. I. NEED. TIME! Time away from you and all your bullshit!" I shoved my chair away from the table and stood up, so frustrated that I felt tears of anger welling up in my eyes. I refused to let him see me cry, though, for fear he would misinterpret my tears. I wasn't crying over him and I never would. He was an asshole, through and through. I wanted nothing more than to pack my bags and get as far away from him as I could. That was impossible, however, and even though I didn't want to admit it, I had a reason for staying.Ryan. He might not love me either, but at least he treated me like a person and not a possession.

Without another word, I left Tony in the dining room and made my way upstairs to my new room. Once I was inside, I locked the door and collapsed on the bed, my tears finally making their way down my cheeks unchecked. I needed to come up with a plan to get the hell out of this place. I had continued to put some money aside for the last two years, and had quite a nest egg saved up, but I didn't know if it would be enough. I didn't know how far I would have to run, or for how long. All I knew was that I was going to get the hell out of Chicago and as far away from Tony Valenti as I could.

Later that night there was a knock on my door. I knew it was probably Tony, or one of his men bringing me a message from him, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with it so I ignored it. Whoever it was didn't give up, though, and continued to knock. So fed up with the bullshit, I stormed to the door and threw it open. "What the hell do you..." I fell silent when I saw that it was Carlo at my door. "Carlo, I'm so sorry. Please excuse my attitude. I thought you were.... Never mind, it doesn't matter. What can I do for you?"

Carlo chuckled and shook his head. "It's alright, Trixie. You thought I was my son. I understand, and don't blame you at all for your attitude. May I come in? I would like to speak with you for a few minutes if that's okay."

Would Tony really sink so low as to send his father to my door on his behalf? What other motive could Carlo have besides that? "Where's Tony?" I decided to ask.

Carlo laughed again, this time more genuinely, and I immediately relaxed. He obviously didn't come here to talk on behalf of his son. "I sent him to take care of some business at the docks. He'll probably be gone most of the night, my dear. You can speak freely, and I would hope that you do."

I stepped aside to allow Carlo entry to the room. Even though it was his house, he always respected me and my space, and I appreciated that. "Please, have a seat," I said, motioning to the small sofa in the corner of the room as I took my own seat at the desk. "What's on your mind?"

"I have come to know you quite well in the last two years, and I will be forever grateful that you accepted my offer to work at Cherries. I was thrilled at first that you and Tony started dating. I thought he would settle down and keep his dick in his pants, but that hasn't happened, as I'm sure you are well aware. If anything, his promiscuity has gotten worse." I stared at Carlo, not sure what to say to that. Luckily, he continued on after a short beat of silence. "I know you don't deserve to be treated like that, dear—no one does—but there's only so much I can do. I wanted to tell you how much respect I have for you, though. There are very few people who would stand up to Tony and put him in his place like you did tonight. I only hope it's enough that he sees his juvenile behavior for what it is, and corrects it soon. Trixie, you have become like a daughter to me, and even though I love my son dearly, I hate to see you get hurt. You deserve far better than that."

His words brought tears to my eyes. Here was a man who was known for his ruthlessness, and he was telling me that he cared about me, that he didn't like to see his son treat me the way he had been. "Thank you, Carlo. I do care for Tony, but you're right. I'm tired of being treated like shit day in and day out, and I'm not going to put up with it anymore. Recent events have proven to me that I am better than that—I deserve so much more—and until Tony realizes that, there isn't much hope for us." I knew I couldn't tell Carlo that there would never be hope for us again, but it wasn't possible. I valued my life, after all, and no matter what he said about thinking of me as a daughter, Tony was his flesh and blood. I had no doubt that Carlo would choose him over me when it came down to it.

"Ah, yes. Speaking of recent events..." he said with a grin on his face, "I hear you had quite the weekend with Ryan. Tell me, did he respect you and your wishes?"

I could feel my face burning at the fact that my boyfriend's father was asking about my weekend of passion with another man. I didn't want to reveal too much, but I couldn'tnotsay anything. "Ryan has always shown me respect, unlike Tony." Carlo chuckled at that, shaking his head.

"Ryan is a good man but he has it bad for you. He always has. If it wasn't for my son getting in his way, I'm sure the two of you would have gotten together and been quite happy." With a heavy sigh, Carlo continued. "You should know that Tony will not tolerate unfaithfulness. While he feels he is free to parade around with any whore he wants, he expects you to remain his and only his. That is part of the reason I made the decision to send Ryan and his men to Brazil for a while. Like you, Tony needs time to cool off. He threatened to kill Ryan this afternoon if he ever even looked at you inappropriately again."

"Wait...Ryan went to Brazil?" Why did I feel my heart sink at the news?

Carlo simply nodded his head and sighed. "Yes. I mentioned someissueswe were having down there, and Ryan volunteered to go and sort things out, like I knew he would. We have some matters that need to be dealt with in a certain way." Rising from his seat, Carlo walked over to me. "Thank you for talking with me tonight, my dear. I must leave you now to attend to some business, but I wanted to make sure you knew that I support your decisions regarding Tony. Whatever you choose to do, I will respect that." He leaned in and kissed my forehead before backing away.

"Thank you, Carlo. That really means a lot to me," I told him honestly. I wasn't used to a father figure being so kind and supportive, so it was like a breath of fresh air.

Carlo shook his head and smiled at me softly. "There is no need to thank me, Trixie. Have a good night." With that, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

Brazil. Ryan had voluntarily gone to Brazil, and if I was being honest, I was worried about him. I knew I shouldn't be, but I couldn't help it. When Carlo told me where Ryan and his boys had gone, I almost lost it. What if it had been a trap? What if something happened and I never got to see him again? My heart broke just thinking about it. Our weekend together had been just sex for Ryan, but to me it was so much more. I had fallen for him that night, hard and fast. It took me almost a week to realize it, but since then, I’d been unable to keep it from my mind. It had been three weeks since he walked out of the club to go to Brazil. In those three weeks, my need for him—to see him again and taste his lips, to feel his body hovering over mine as he thrust into me, to see the look in his eyes when he brushed my hair from my face—only grew.

I was still living in the guest bedroom of the mansion, doing my best to ignore Tony every chance I got. Yes, I was being somewhat childish, but I couldn't find it in myself to care. Tony was getting pathetic in his attempts, too. He would constantly arrange alone time for us, but I would always blow him off. I knew he was getting fed up with me turning him down all the time, but he was getting enough pussy from the whores at the club that I didn't really care. I would overhear the other dancers talking about things that no woman should have to hear about her so-called boyfriend, and that bitch, Barbie, was the worst one of all. She would never say his name or admit it to me directly, but I could see it in her eyes every time she looked at me. She was flaunting the fact that she was fucking Tony, constantly trying to throw it in my face. I didn't know what the fuck her problem was, or what I had ever done to her. I was secretly hoping that Tony would contract some sort of disease from her nasty snatch and his dick would fall off, though. After all, who knew what sort of disgusting shit she carried.

Star dropped me off at the mansion after our shift. I walked into the mansion to find a very pissed off Tony pacing in the foyer. The moment he saw me, he stormed up to me and grabbed me roughly by the arms. "Goddammit, Trixie! I am so fucking sick of all your bullshit!" he screamed at me, shaking me like a ragdoll. "You have turned me into the laughing stock of my own fucking men, and it's going to stop RIGHT FUCKING NOW! Do you understand me!?"

I had never seen this side of him before. Yes, I'd seen him angry, and yes, I'd seen him boss his men around and take no bullshit from anyone. Once, I'd even seen him beat a man half to death with his bare hands, but this was different. There was a feral look in his eyes that scared me. It was the same look that my sperm donor would get right before he beat the shit out of me. I could feel Tony's hands gripping tighter and tighter on my arms, almost to the point of cutting off all circulation. I couldn't think, I couldn't speak, I couldn't do anything. I was absolutely terrified of the man in front of me, afraid of what he would do if I denied him once again. That wasn't an option anymore. If I valued my life at all, which I did, I had to give in to his orders and do as he demanded.

With a shaky voice full of pain and tears, I spoke quietly. "Pl...please, Tony. You're hurting me," I cried. His grip only got tighter, his anger intensifying.

"I asked you a goddamn question, Trix! ANSWER ME!" he roared, towering over my small frame and shoving me up against the door.

"Y...ye...yes, I understand you. I'll do whatever you want me to do, just please let me go. You're really hurting me." I knew that once he removed his hands from my arms, there would be bruises already starting to form. He didn't seem to care.

"I will let go of you when I am damn good and ready," he hissed menacingly, and I didn't miss the double meaning of his words. Tony wasn't ever going to let me go willingly. "Now, I want you to go upstairs to my room and be ready for me when I get up there. You have ten minutes, Trixie, and then I'm going to come up there and take back what's mine. Adam!" he shouted behind him. "Make sure she doesn't try any bullshit. I have to speak to my father and then I'll be up. You better fucking be ready, Trixie, because I plan to reclaim that sweet pussy of yours tonight." Tony turned around and left without another word.

I had to give myself to him willingly, or things would be much worse now than they ever were in the past. Tony was completely bat-shit crazy, and a little voice inside my head was telling me I needed to do whatever he said if I wanted to live through the night.

With a heavy heart, I trudged up the stairs and into Tony's room, with Adam following right behind me. Once I was in the room, I heard a lock engage, and knew I was stuck. Nothing could save me now.

Last night wasn't as bad as I’d feared it would be. Tony was rough with me—he took what he wanted, how he wanted it—but I didn't resist him. I couldn't. I let him use my body, and he took pleasure in fucking me in every possible orifice. When I woke up this morning, I was alone and naked in his bed. Every inch of my skin was crawling and burning. I wanted nothing more than to drag myself into a hot shower and scrub my body from head to toe until I felt clean again.

When I stumbled my way to his bathroom and flipped on the light, I gasped at what I saw in the mirror in front of me. I had very clear handprint shaped bruises on each of my upper arms, and I knew there was no fucking way I was going to be able to cover them up any time soon. With a resigned sigh, I put on a tank top and a pair of yoga pants, and left the room in search of my boss. I needed to let Carlo know what happened, and why I wouldn't be able to work for at least a week. I just prayed that he would be understanding.

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