Page 46 of Devious Vows

“Go home, my heart.” He grabs my hand, pressing a kiss to my palm, inked fingertips trailing along the back as he lets it fall, before walking backward toward the door. “This party is over now.”

I frown in confusion. “You said it was still going.”

He grabs the edge of the open door, looking at someone in the hallway, probably Donatello. “Go home.” It’s the last thing he says before he disappears out of sight, leaving me standing there with a sense of unease I don’t understand swirling around my heart.

Chapter Nineteen

REMY

My eyes meet Donatello’s as I step out of the room, leaving Beverly standing alone and undoubtedly confused. “Where is the meeting?”

He starts to walk with me, thumb spinning the rings on his finger. He eyes me before he answers, probably knowing I won’t like the answer, “The cabin.”

I hum as we step outside, jaw ticking as we walk through the party toward our cars. I knew this was coming, I just hoped I could push this conversation off for longer. I’ve been punished numerous times already for not following orders, for continuing to neglect my obligations to Viva and the Famiglia contract we have in place with her father,Francis Delfino.

Knowing this was happening didn’t stop me from soaking up every moment with Beverly I could get. It made me want more. I’m not naïve enough to think I could convince that stubborn woman to stick around after the wedding; she doesn’t deserve to be a mistress.

She was supposed to be my wife.

“Remy!” My teeth grind at the sound of my name leaving Viva’s mouth. She’s the absolute last fucking thing I want to see right now. I keep walking even as Donatello throws me a sideways glance.

I almost make it to the SUV when her hand grabs my arm, forcing me to stop and look at her. She has a nasty red mark that still hasn’t faded on her cheek from Beverly’s slaps, and I can’t help but feel pleased about that. She deserved worse for talking to her like that. I wishcuore miowould have broken her fucking neck. “What?”

Her eyes shift between me and Donatello, hand still on my arm. I want to knock it off of me but stay still. I’m already in deep shit, I don’t need her crying to her daddy about anything else. “You’re just going to leave? After what that bitch did to me?”

I grip her jaw in my palm before I realize what I’m doing, fingers pinching into her cheeks as I turn to face her more fully.Fuck what I thought about her crying. If anyone were to look our way, it’d look like we were just sharing an intimate moment, not that I was on the cusp of breaking her fucking face. “I’m only going to say this once, Viva, so you better fucking listen.” Her eyes are wide as she looks at me, lips slightly parted from the pressure I have on her cheeks. “Lie to Beverly about us again and I’ll bury one of your fucking cronies for every word that left your mouth. I might be forced to be with a selfish little trophy brat like you, but I don’t have to make it pleasant. You will start treating Beverly with the respect she deserves. Even one more fucking incident and I swear on my life, I’ll make you hate every fucking day you are still breathing.”

She swallows under my palm, lips starting to tremble. I’d feel bad if I didn’t mean every word I’ve just said. She’s not as sweet and innocent as she appears to be. I tighten my fingers when she doesn’t respond, making her blink uncomfortably. “Okay, fine.”

I push her face away from me as soon as she says it, spinning to pass Donatello and get into his SUV. He gets in as I’m shutting my door. “You know she’s going to tattle on you, yeah?” He’s smirking despite the seriousness of the question, apparently finding this all amusing.

“I don’t fucking care. What can they possibly do to me? They need me for this contract.” I pull my phone out of my pocket and toss it into the center console, roughly running my hands over my face as Donatello pulls out of the lot.

“I don’t know, maybe make your life a living hell.”

Dropping my hands, I pinch my bottom lip between my fingers, looking out the window. “They’re already doing that. Being with that woman and not my fucking heart is already the worst punishment they could enforce.”

My father’s vehicle is already at the cabin when we get there, along with the consigliere’s and Capo Bastone’s. I share a look with Donatello before getting out, leaving my phone in the car. The gravel crunches under my feet as we walk toward the front deck, my chest starting to tighten with a slight anxiety. Just because I’m the boss’s son and future of the Famiglia, doesn’t mean I get any favoritism. My father is stricter with me because of it. I’ve learned there is a lesson in everything he does.

The door opens from the inside before we can reach for the handle and I step into the room in front of Donatello, eyes falling onto the back of the man they have strapped to a chair in the middle of the room, heart picking up in pace because I know exactly who it is. I find both my father and his consigliere, Geo Esposito, watching me when I look up, my father looking for a reaction I don’t give him. He’s the one who taught me how to use them against your adversary when doing business. I know all of his tricks to get what he wants and I know he’s doing this to make me obey the contract.

I raise my chin at his silence, leaving my hands at my sides instead of crossing them like I want to. “You requested a meeting, Capo Famiglia?”

He nods, gesturing with his fingers for one of his soldiers to get him a cigar. He doesn’t speak until it’s lit and a puff comes out of his mouth. “You’re a smart boy, Remy, you know why you’re here, but for everyone else in the room, I’ll embellish a little.” My jaw tics as I wait for him to continue, watching more smoke rise from him. “My boy has decided he doesn’t like his intended wife and has repeatedly gone against both me and the Famiglia contract where she is concerned. Now, I understand arranged marriages aren’t the most fun things, but he has an obligation to the Famiglia as the future of the Mafia to do everything he possibly can to help us succeed. Losing this contract would lose us billions of dollars, and that just simply doesn’t sit right with me.” More smoke and silence. “So, we’re here tonight because Remy needs a little more encouragement to keep up on his end of the contract.”

He waves his hand and the man in the middle of the room is spun to face me, wooden legs of his char scraping loudly in the room. Julian raises his brow at me, jaw working around the gag in his mouth as he silently tells me to get him the fuck out of this mess. I take a long breath through my nose, eyes finding my father once more, ignoring the look of silent rage Julian’s father is giving me. I am fairly certain my father isn’t going to kill him, if I make it clear I’ll do what is asked of me.

“I’m sorry I had to bring Julian in like this since he’s like a son to me, but considering how infatuated you are with his sister, I knew this was the only way to get your attention.” He takes a step forward, holding a hand out where a soldier drops a gun in his palm. He takes another puff of his cigar before lifting the gun to the back of Julian’s head, eyes on mine. “We’re going to make a deal.” I swallow, grinding my teeth in silent anger. A deal with the Capo Famiglia is nothing but a death contract. If I fail to deliver on my end, it costs me my life. Or in this case, Julian’s. “You will agree to end things with Beverly and start investing all your time into Viva and this wedding, or Julian here will die.”

My heart squeezes painfully in my chest, gut sinking with the cold words that are still ringing in the air. This is a deal but one I don’t benefit from. “I accept.” I avoid looking into Julian’s face, not wanting to see the pity there. He knew I wouldn’t risk his life just to be with his sister, that would break her even more than me leaving. My eyes meet Geo’s though, the anger in them no longer aimed at me, but my father.

“Good.” My father passes off the gun, smiling as he gestures for Julian to be untied. “Now that we’ve got that little bit out of the way, I’m allowing you twenty-four hours to end things or I’ll assume you’re breaking the deal.”

My hands are shaking in silent anger but I swallow it back, giving my father a single nod. “Understood.”

I’ve been standing outside of Bev’s condo far longer than I should have, struggling to get the steel that I need to walk in there and do what I have to do. I don’t have a fucking choice, I know that, but fuck, I don’t want to do it. Snubbing out my cigarette, I punch in the code for the doors, taking the stairs to her floor to prolong the inevitable. My hand pauses at the door, palm resting on the surface for a minute longer, before I actually knock.

“It’s open!” she yells it through the door and I close my eyes at her voice, grinding my teeth at the ache that’s already throbbing in my chest.

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