Page 116 of La Dolce Vita

Ghosts

Firenze, Italy

The chilled air from the A/C unit in the room seeped through the blankets and sheets. Carlo wasn't cold. He had the warmest body pressed against him. He opened his eyes when she stirred. Throughout the night she would push him off her in her sleep and roll away.Just like Shae.He'd drag her back into his arms. She'd wake, frown, but do as he insisted.Just like Shae.It must have been strange to her to have a man need such attention and not sex. He didn't care. It was the only way he could close his eyes and not see Shae.

Again she pushed him away in her sleep. The compromise for him was to have her rest on her side with her back pressed against his chest. He was faced with a mass of dark curly hair. She had washed out the pink streaks that she had the night before. That disappointed him. He stared at the curls. He buried his nose into the thick, silky locks and inhaled the essence of the woman in his arms. He relaxed on the edge of reclaiming sleep once more.

Carlo needed his sleep. A chance to just slip into nothingness. He ran his hand down her flat tummy and eased it over the hairy, but trimmed mound of her pussy, before cupping her sex. No piercing.Not like Shae.She stirred slightly and parted her thighs a fraction to grant him the permission. He stopped himself. His instinct of a man was to partake in pleasure. But pleasure for him was different since Shae. A warm body wasn't what he wanted or needed. Shae was all he wanted. He moved his hand away and let sleep take hold of him again. He drifted on the sweet smell of Shalimar.

***

The sun woke Adara. She grabbed the sheet and covered her breasts with one hand while she shielded her eyes with the other. Carlo had snatched back the drapes in the room without a care to the searing glare that blinded her. He walked away from the window, and more sun was revealed to bathe her. Carlo stood by the bed observing her as she scrambled away to the shadows on the edge of the bed. In the daylight, she could see him clearly. He wore dark gray slacks and a matching blazer. A black silk shirt was tucked into his pants, with a Gucci belt fastened around his waist.

"What time is it?" she asked.

He didn't answer.

Adara moved her long ringlet curls from her face. She'd woken only twice in the night to go to the bathroom. Each time he released her with a groan or grunt. And when she returned he pulled her into his arms and buried his face against her breasts, or spooned her from behind with his heavy muscular thigh locked around her legs to keep her close. He even had an erection pressed thickly between her butt cheeks. However, besides a few touches and feels, he never once tried to have sex with her. Not once.

Carlo pulled out his money clip from his pocket. He fingered several bills and tossed a fat stack of them onto the top of the bed. "Buy yourself something decent to wear. Get something to eat. I don't know what time I'll be back."

"I'm not staying here. I have clothes at home. Thanks, but no thanks."

"What kind of whore doesn't want to get paid?" he asked. His brows lowered over his penetrating gaze. Adara glanced to the money and then him. She struggled to keep her pride in check when she found her voice to answer.

"What do you expect me to do? Hang around here after last night? After what I've been through? I don't know you. I don't trust you. And the money, what are you paying me for? We didn't even do anything but sleep last night."

"You did plenty for me," he mumbled. "I told you. We aren't done until I say we're done. I plan to see my Don and he'll decide your future." He picked up his gun and tucked it behind his back into his belt.

"I thought you said you called your boss last night, and he told you not to harm me?" she asked.

"I said I called my boss. My Don is the boss of all bosses," he winked. He started to the door and just as he reached for the door knob he paused. He cast his gaze back over his shoulder at her. "Wear your hair like you did before. Curly and with the pink stripes. Tonight. And the Shalimar. Wear it. You understand?"

She glanced at the bottle of perfume lotion and then to him. Before she could answer, he was gone. Adara dropped back on her pillows, both confused and curious. When she looked at her watch, she realized how late in the morning it was. There were a million and one things left for her to do. She found her dress on the floor and put it on. There were a few snags and rips to the shiny mini dress, but it was decent enough to escape this prison. She glanced to the bed at the stack of bills he left behind. It pissed her off that he tossed money at her like she was a piece of meat. But to his defense, he had no idea who she was. To him, she was nothing but some whore to enact his weird fantasies with.

One day she would take pleasure in teaching him a different lesson.

She collected the money. To leave it behind would blow her cover. When she found her purse and headed out of the door, she barely looked up because she was lost in thought. If she had, she would have been prepared for the man standing on the other side waiting. He was tall and lean with a birthmark that covered the right side of his face. He was there for her. She was certain.

"Carlo sent you?" she asked.

"I take you shopping and bring you back. Boss’s orders," the man replied.

"Change of plans," she said and started to walk off. He caught hold of her left elbow. It was a gentle gesture, not aggressive in nature. But the last of her patience snapped. She turned and shot her hand toward his throat. The young man gagged and stumbled back. The sudden eruption of violence overpowered him. Adara delivered three consecutive punches to his face and a chest kick. He went down. Then she fled. Without delay, she ran for the stairs and out of the hotel. She was down the street before she stopped to catch her breath. She dared to glance back. The man with the birthmark on his face was not in pursuit. A cab approached, and she waved down the driver. She got in the back seat and closed her eyes, but her heart kept racing.

***

"Boss, she's here."

Giovanni looked up from the ledger of checks he was signing. Dominic stood to his left with another folder of contracts that would take the rest of the day to review. He didn't have much time. The clan bosses would arrive after midnight for their meeting. Dividing up his territory legitimately on paper was a different task than taking it by gun. He had to get his house in order.

"We can stop for now, Gio," Dominic said.

He glanced up to his brother and gave him a weary smile. They could never stop. However, for his Bella, he would take this meeting and hold her hand. Armando had attempted to stop all imports and exports out of Sicily by the clans of theCamorra. Giovanni’s relationship with theLa Cosa Nostrablocked him at every move. And he was only beginning. He relished the future and Armando's demise.

The war was on.

"Take the doctor out to the terrace and keep a man on her. Ask the Donna to come here. They will meet her together," Dominic said to Umberto.

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