Page 43 of Till Death Do Us Part

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Theridetothecasino is awkward, with Leonardo flicking curious glances my way the whole way. I keep my mouth shut, not wanting to be a hypocrite and call him out for giving me another woman’s clothes.

They fit me perfectly—which only makes me angrier.

Clearly the man has a type, and I’m not sure how to handle that right now.

Antonio waits in the lobby, holding a glass tumbler with a couple of fingers of amber liquid. He glances at us, his eyes narrowing when we walk towards him. I take another step away from Leonardo, putting more distance between us.

“Nice of you to finally make an appearance, Leo,” Antonio sneers, his mouth turning down as he stares at his consigliere. “And my wife too. I’m glad to see you alive, turns out you’re a hard woman to kill.”

“I didn’t realise you’ve tried,” I blurt before I can think better of it. With a wince, I step away from him, gesturing to the bartender for a wine. Angering the man isn’t in my best interest, nor is engaging in an argument I doubt I’d ever win.

“Dead, alive, what difference does it make? You’re hardly of any use to me at the moment.” He glances down at my flat stomach, a scowl on his face. My blood chills, his eyes like chips of ice on me. “The only thing you’ve done since you’ve come here is cause commotion and have my men killed.”

“Ant,” Leonardo warns, moving in front of the man and gesturing for the door to his office. “Let’s go talk in your office, away from prying eyes and ears.”

“Fine,” Antonio agrees, pushing off the bar and stalking to the office, he stares at me, raising a brow in question. Spending any amount of time with both these men together is not something I want to give up my morning for, but it’s not as if I have any choice. So I sigh, grab my glass from the bartender with a thank you, and follow them.

The door slams behind me, and I drop down into one of the seats, tipping a generous amount of liquid down my throat. The familiar burn is a welcome comfort while the two men stare angrily at one another.

“We need to do something, Leo,” Antonio says, running a hand through his hair. “I’m sick of Alexei having the upper hand. It’s time we go on the offensive.”

“You’re the boss,” Leonardo replies sardonically, a wry twist to his mouth, though Antonio doesn’t seem to notice. “But think wisely, Ant. How do you attack without word getting out? If we’re right and there’s a rat in our midst, Alexei will be forewarned.”

My eyes widen as they continue to talk. I’d heard the whispers of a rat when I was falling asleep last night, but I was too tired to think anything of it at that moment. If it’s true, then anyone within Antonio’s circle could be working for the Russians, and that means I’m not safe anywhere.

Or with anyone.

But Antonio.

The one man who makes me feel the least safe when I’m in his company.

My eyes travel to Leonardo, my heart speeding up when he sends me a wink while Antonio closes his eyes, squeezing the bridge of his nose. He’s the person who makes me feel the safest, and yet, could he be the rat?

No.

That’s impossible.

He’s the one who has had direct access to me for weeks, and if he was working for the men who wanted me, I’ve no doubts he’d have made sure they had me long before now.

“We only take a handful of men. Luca, Gio, Nico,” Antonio says, listing off the men who seem to be the closest to him. “I trust them with my life.”

“But then who watches the wife?” Their eyes lock on me at Leonardo’s question, their brows furrowed.

“I’m right here you know,” I snap, pushing off the chair and tipping the remaining liquid in my glass down my throat before continuing. “Take me with you.”

“Not a bad idea, actually,” Leonardo ponders despite Antonio’s insistence otherwise. His friend turns to him, an exasperated look on his face. He only shrugs, dropping into the seat beside me and resting his elbows on his thighs. “She can shoot pretty well, and she’s handy with a knife if things go south, but she can just sit in the car and be lookout otherwise.”

“We don’t bring women in, Leo,” Antonio comments, letting out a sigh.

“Leaving me behind is only going to leave me vulnerable if there isn’t anyone else you trust to sit me,” I tell them, moving over to the bar cart and pouring myself a generous amount of vodka from one of the opened bottles.

At this point, I couldn’t care less one way or another.

They go back and forth over the next few minutes, arguing the merits of leaving me alone in Leonardo’s penthouse, or letting me sit in a car and wait while they do God only knows what to get the upper hand.

When they finally look my way again, Leonardo wears a smug expression, his eyes alight with mischief and mayhem as he swipes his thumb over his full bottom lip. Antonio looks less happy, shaking his head in defeat as he sighs.

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