Page 57 of Murder & Mayhem

Flicking on the light, I stand and stare at myself in the mirror. It’s jarring, to see the brown contacts with my red hair, which glows vibrantly under the bright bathroom lighting. Sighing, I remove the contacts and dispose of them before touching up my makeup.Thank god, I didn’t drop my handbag in today’s fiasco.With my armor back in place and my dazzling-blue eyes on display, I feel more like myself.

***

It’s dark out, and I’ve officially had enough of sitting around this house with nothing to do, by the time the sound of the front door is heard over the noise of Enzo working away in the kitchen, cooking something for dinner.

It’s been a challenge trying to stop my eyes from drifting in his direction as he’s moved about the kitchen, and I frequently find myself watching him as he chops vegetables and stirs pots. It would almost be a turn-on—what girl doesn't love a man who can cook?!—except that this is Enzo, and he’s a lying bastard whom I can’t trust.

The click of the front door snaps my attention away from the sight of Enzo’s forearm as it flexes and tenses while he stirs a pot—Dammit, I was leering. Again—and a few seconds later, Dante enters. His eyes scan the room, searching me out until he spots me sitting on a barstool at the breakfast bar. I tense under his scrutiny, wondering what he’s thinking as he takes in my newly revealed red hair and blue eyes. I’m a far cry from the woman he saved this morning… the woman he’s spent the last few weeks watching at the club. I’m not entirely sure how he felt about the club version of me, but there was undoubtedly some amount of fascination there that not only prevented him from killing me—if he so desired—but had him defending me. But what will his reaction be to the real me?

His expression gives nothing away, and I can’t tell if he’s angry by my deception or if he even recognizes me at all. He stands there for so long that I begin to squirm underneath his intense gaze, and my fingers grip the edge of the barstool. When he stalks toward me, his giant strides quickly eat up the distance between us. I can’t do anything but watch with bated breath as he draws closer. His hand grasps my chin aggressively, forcing my head back as his fingers dig into my cheeks. It’s not enough to hurt, but enough that I have no choice but to sit there and let him look his fill as he stares into my blue eyes. I meet his gaze unflinching, searching the murky depths forsomethingthat could give me any insight into this domineering man before me. Everything about him is cold, hard, unrelenting. The absence of emotion in his eyes is enough to stall the breath in my lungs, and I can only imagine that what I see in his reflection is the same as if I were looking into the eyes of a psychopath. That same blank, empty slate. And yet, I don’t recoil.God, I must be more damaged than I ever realized.

“Dante.” Enzo’s voice is a quiet command, but Dante doesn’t release me immediately. Slowly, his gaze shifts over to Enzo, holding it for a moment before letting go of me, his hand dropping to his side. He continues to hold Enzo’s gaze, some sort of silent conversation passing between them before he moves over to the drinks cart and pours himself a glass of whiskey.

With him no longer taking up all the oxygen in my personal space, I suck in a deep breath, sagging a little in my chair from the intensity of whatever that was. When I lift my head, I find Enzo watching me closely, but he turns back to the stove before I can read his expression.

Clearing my throat, I ignore the heavy weight in the air that has built since Dante’s return and push back my shoulders, intent on finally getting some answers out of him. Before I can so much as say a word, Enzo beats me to it. “Dinner’s ready.” He begins plating up the food, carrying it over to the dining table. Dante follows him over, setting his triple measure of scotch down as he claims the seat beside Enzo.Oh, great, I get to sit and eat with the two of them looking at me.

Grimacing, I slide out of my seat and move to sit opposite them, the three of us eating in silence for a long moment. It’s surreal. I repeatedly peer up at them both through my eyelashes, not sure what to make of all of this. The whole scene is just… weird. They’re painting this odd picture of domestic bliss, but I highly doubt these two made men sit and have dinner together regularly. Nevertheless, I do notice how familiar they are with one another. How comfortable they appear in one another's presence. Dante had told me one of his men was coming over, but from what I’m picking up on, Enzo isn’t just one of his soldiers. They are far too relaxed—if one could ever call Dante relaxed—around each other for a boss-subordinate relationship, and the authority in Enzo’s tone when he spoke Dante’s name earlier… they must have some sort of kinship.

“Is there any reason why one of my father’s men would want you dead?” Dante asks once he’s finished eating. He’s leaning back in his seat, scrutinizing me.

My gaze flicks briefly to Enzo before I meet his unrelenting stare. “Not that I can think of.”Other than, you know, the fact I’m working on trying to destroy you all.I’m not about to divulge any of that to either of them, but it’s the only reason I can think of for today’s planned attack. Except, how did anyone find out what I’m up to? Does that mean they know who I am? If they do, they obviously haven’t managed to link me to the Rejects. Everything sounded like business as usual on Oliver’s end.

“Has anything else happened at the club?”

My brows furrow as I think, but there hasn't been anything other than my run-in with Sam, which Dante was there for. Any other men who tried their luck when I first started, quickly stopped when Dante’s presence became a regular occurrence. Everyone saw what Chrissy had—Dante’s obsession with me.

Before I can respond, Enzo interjects, his gaze jumping between Dante and me. “What do you meananything else?”

For some reason, his question seems to pique Dante’s interest, and he removes his heavy gaze from me, looking at Enzo as if he can’t understand why he’s spoken.

I pipe up, not having any idea what’s going on and not wanting the conversation to get sidetracked. “It’s nothing. And no, nothing has happened. People barely speak to me. They know I’m the reason you’re always there.”

Dante gives a small nod. “I suspected as much.”

When it doesn’t look like he’s going to divulge anything further, I start asking my own questions, needing to know whyhethinks someone in his organization is after me. After all, he must be asking these probing questions with a theory in mind. “Why are you asking? Who was that man today? Why does one of your father’s men want me dead?”

An indecipherable emotion flashes behind his eyes, but it’s gone instantly. He watches me for a long moment as if he’s trying to figure out how to tell me whatever is going on. It makes me nervous—not only having his penetrating gaze on me for so long but wondering what conclusion he’s come to.

“You think someone told your father about her.” It’s Enzo who speaks up, the harsh tone of his voice catching me by surprise as I break off my stare with Dante to glance at him.

“Why would your dad give a shit about me?” I question, returning my focus to Dante.

“He wouldn’t… unless he thought you were a complicationfor me.”

My brows scrunch together as I look at him, confused. “Why would I be a complication for you? I don’t even know you.”

“It doesn’t matter.” I open my mouth to argue that it absolutely fucking does matter, but he cuts across me. “What matters is that we remove the target from your back.”

Fine. That’s an easy solution… I just have to kill his father. I know Cain wanted his death for himself, but I’m sure he will understand given the current situation. Even as I mentally try to construct my own plan of action, I ask, “And how do you plan on doing that?”

He gives a casual shrug, and a glint enters his eye that has me forgetting about the various brutal ways I’m going to kill Giovanni and focusing on the dark force of the man in front of me. As he continues to look at me, that glint shining in his eyes, I deliberately sit more upright in my chair, straightening my spine.Why the fuck is he looking at me like that?

“I’m going to marry you.”

Eh, he’s going to what now?!

“What?!” Enzo exclaims while I snort, “Hell no, you’re not!”

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