Page 56 of Desire and Revenge

Sebastian chuckles. “I forgot how much of an asshole you are.”

Nero only smiles. “Forgive me, Sebastian, but I’m not really in the mood for late night guests.”

“You know,” my husband begins, “I wouldn’t mind if you brought women over. My men said you haven’t, and I just want you to know that my house is your house.”

“Hmm,” Nero lets out a non-committal hum, nodding. “I appreciate that.”

Through the keyhole, I glare at the two men; my husband for giving the idea and Nero for not turning it down immediately. I imagine another woman with her dirty hands on him, and my stomach sours. My reaction is enough proof to me that I’m in over my head.

Having an affair is bad enough, but am I seriously getting possessive over a man that’s not my husband? I’ve completely lost my mind.

“Have you seen Sofia?”

Nero blinks lazily, then his mouth curls up in one corner. “Have I seen your wife?”

“Stupid question, right?” He drags a hand through his hair, mussing it up. “She’s not in her—I mean,ourroom, and neitheris she in the library. I just wanted to know if she’s come around here or something.”

“Why would she?” I watch Nero dig out a pack of cigarettes from the pocket of his pants and then he makes a face and tosses it over his shoulder.

“Finally quit?”

“Maybe.”

Sebastian leans forward, and from the keyhole, I can see the curiosity on his face. “Let me guess, a woman is involved.”

I go perfectly still when the Nero’s eyes flick to the closet door and then he shrugs. “Maybe.”

My husband whistles. “I never thought I’d see the day, Castello. I want to meet the woman who finally made you quit smoking.”

I press my hand to my throat, feeling how uneven my breaths are coming out. He meansme. I don’t know how I know it for a fact, and maybe it’s arrogant of me to think that I’m capable of affecting any change in a man like Nero Castello, but I just know deep in my heart that he’s talking about me.

“I bet she would be unforgettable,” Sebastian continues. “The complete opposite of my wife.”

I jolt and press closer to the door.

“I don’t know what I was thinking when I agreed to marry her,” he sighs. “She’s the most unremarkable woman in the world. She’s beautiful alright, I’ll give her that, but Christ man, she’s just so drab.”

“Drab?”

“She’s two-dimensional,” he chuckles. “You’ve seen her, Castello, you must have noticed this. Don’t tell me you don’t see how boring she is. This is why the men always say a Mafia daughter is only pretty from a distance. She’s the biggest mistake of my life, and do you know what I wish? And trust me, Inever thought I’d think this, but I wish she’d just get pregnant already.”

I see Nero’s shoulders bunch with tension. “Eager to have kids, Sebastian? I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” My husband pinches the bridge of his nose. “I won’t have to bother with her anymore once I get her pregnant.”

I grit my teeth together and my hand instinctively slides to my stomach. I try to count the days since my last period, but my head has been in too much of a mess to get the days right. I make a mental note to take a pregnancy test as soon as I can.

The million-dollar question now, though, is: do I want the test to be positive or negative? Positive means I’ll get a break from my parents and Sebastian’s family. I’ll finally have done my duty. But it will also mean that I’ll be irrevocably tied to him. Not that I’m not already, but it will become so real and definite with a baby involved.

And Nero will never touch me again if he finds out I’m pregnant.

The thought lodges in my throat like a boulder and makes it difficult to swallow.

“You’re so lucky you don’t have to be involved in all of this marriage business, securing an heir and all of that. You are just free to ride around in that death trap and smoke your days away,” Sebastian laughs.

I wince at the way Nero’s eyes narrow at him.

“Unfortunately, I’m not free to smoke my days away anymore,” he drawls.

---