Page 25 of Married to the Mafia

“The key to a position that all made men want.”

“I’m not the key to anything.”

“You’re the key to everything. In your possession is the chip that belongs to the daughter of the Capo dei Capi.”

She wrinkles up her forehead adorably. “Am I supposed to know what the hell that means?”

“The Capo dei Capi is the Don of Dons, leader of all the cosa Nostra families in the country. You are his daughter.”

“No, I’m not.”

“You have the chip. I found it in your house. There’s no point denying it, Rose.”

“Someone put that chip in my mom’s safe deposit box. I don’t know who it belongs to.”

“You are a good liar, I will give you that, but I’ve seen better. Lying will not save you, no matter how good you are. Only marrying me will do that.”

“But I don’t want to marry you.”

She sounds whiny, and I want to swat her ass for talking that way. “We must do things in life that we would prefer not to do.”

I think of all the things I’ve done to reach my position, things that would make her despise me if she heard them said out loud. Things I shall never forget. You do not reach the top without getting your hands dirty.

“It’s not like going to work when you want a lie in,” she replies. “This is marriage you’re talking about.”

“It will save your life. You marry me or Ricardo forces you into a lifetime of agony.”

“But why? I don’t understand.”

“You have the chip. Whoever marries you is next in line to take over as Capo dei Capi when your father retires.”

“My father’s a fisherman with a bad back. He’s no Capi de what’s it. You’ve gone the wrong woman.”

“This is happening, Rose. Accept it and stop the bullshit. We are getting married tomorrow. I become Capo dei Capi instead of that piece of shit from the Belucci famiglia. You get a lifetime of security and everything money can buy.”

She takes a step toward me and looks like she’s about to slap me. Where’s the fear gone that was there so recently? “I will never marry you,” she says.

“Yes, you will.”

“Listen to me. If I get married, it will be for love and for no other reason. I don’t know what you think you can do but I will never say yes in front of anyone official. I will sign nothing. You can’t make me do this.”

“Yes, I can.” I turn my voice cold and tower over her, not clenching my fists, but letting her see the man I can so easilybecome. She gives in at once, stepping back, her face turning white.

I take the silk blindfold from my pocket and place it over her head. “I’m trusting you to walk without trying anything,” I tell her, taking her hand and leading her out of the bathroom. The touch of her fingers on mine feels good.

She tries to resist, yanking her hand away. “Follow me or you’ll be tied up for the night,” I tell her, “and end up in the same place, anyway.”

She follows. I take her back downstairs. Her hand feels soft. I like it. As soft as she is, I will mold her into whatever woman I desire.

Once we’re in the basement, she again tries to reason with me. “Just let me go,” she says. “I won’t tell anyone what you’ve done to me. You can have the chip, keep it and go find out who it really belongs to. Just let me go, please.”

I take the blindfold from her eyes and she blinks in the light. “Your turn to listen,” I begin. “We are getting married tomorrow. It is happening whether you like it or not, so you better get used to the idea. You will say yes when the time comes. You will sign when it is needed.”

“Or what?” she says, still trying to look defiant.

I’m tired of this. It’s time to get across to her that she can’t change my plans. “Or I find every single person you ever cared about and I have them killed. The kids you grew up with, shot in the head. Your neighbors, drowned.

“The boy you had your first crush on, knifed so he bleeds out slowly with no one near to help him. Those cute kids you once babysat for, their house burned to the ground. That is what will happen if you don’t do exactly what I tell you.

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