Page 103 of Of Desire And Deception

“Do you need something?” Cosimo’s brother, Romeo, jumped up from his spot, his brows furrowing with concern. He looked like a slightly shorter, more muscular version of my psycho, but he had a penchant for wearing gym clothes.

We’d finished dinner a few hours ago, and I was contemplating whether I should have them help me up to bed. My husband had practically made his little brother move in over the last week as I’d been recovering.

His wife, Riona, rolled her eyes. She sat on the other end of the couch, curled up in sweats and a sweatshirt, her red hair piled in a bun on her head. “Remi can use her voice and ask for something when she needs it.”

“I’m just trying to get comfortable,” I explained, pressing a pillow to my side for support.

That didn’t stop Romeo from carefully lifting me under my arms and helping me sit up more. Before he’d finished, the door flew open, and Cosimo walked in, freezing at the sight.

“What the hell are you doing to my wife?” he growled, fisting his hands at his side. It looked like he’d been running his hands through his hair, and there was a dark stain on his black t-shirt. The man had been relentless in his pursuit of Madden, taking out every River Raider he could find. For every kill, he penned a love note in their blood. They weren’t typical sentiments, but to me, they were everything. It was a shame that he burned them in front of me after I took a picture.

“Shut up, psycho.” I glared at him. “He’s not trying to feel me up in front of his wife. Come kiss me.”

Cosimo obeyed, his hand wrapping around my throat as he planted his lips on mine.

“Ew,” Romeo whined. “Get a room, why don’t you? I don’t want to see that.”

Cosimo grunted and pulled away. “If I survived seeing a bowtie on your dick, you can put up with me kissing my wife.”

Riona burst into a fit of giggles, and Romeo turned a dark shade of crimson. I raised my brows and looked at my husband. “What’s the story there?”

“I swear, if you tell her while I’m here, I’ll make sure your contact for cleaning supplies goes missing,” Romeo threatened.

“I’ll tell you later.” Cosimo chuckled and kissed my forehead. “But for now, are you up for a little drive? The River Raiders dumped Madden at Dante’s house an hour ago. He’s waiting in the dungeon.”

My head shot up. “Really?”

“Yeah, I thought you might want to help me question him,” Cosimo said softly.

“Hell, yes! I can’t wait to watch him bleed.” I held my hands out, and he slowly helped me up.

“Fuck, there are two of them now,” Romeo lamented, plopping down on the couch beside Riona.

Cosimo ignored his brother and helped me toward the door, lining my shoes up at my feet and bending to tie the laces. “Ready to commit murder?”

“Do you carry a knife?” I shot back sarcastically. The gleam in his eyes promised a punishment later for my sass. He helped me to the SUV, lifting me into my seat and buckling me in.

Classical notes from an orchestra filled the air when Cosimo started the engine, the violins building tension in whatever piece he’d chosen to play. He was in the zone, his face set hard, eyes distant as he drove to Deception. I watched the street lights pass outside the tinted windows and let my mind wander to revenge.

My career had been a lie. There could never be true justice in a legal system bought by greed. Trey had been a traitor, and Madden was no better. The life of a vigilante allowed me to eliminate men who would bring harm to others. Those who didn’t care about women and children, who would use them as commodities in the business of flesh.

My fingers wrapped around the door handle when Cosimo pulled up to the club, but before I could open it, Cosimo’s hand landed heavily on my thigh and squeezed. “Don’t. Wait for me.”

He was out of his seat before I could answer, jogging around the vehicle and pulling my door open, carefully lifting me down to the pavement. There was only a slight twinge of pain when I stood upright, the sutures pulling where my wound still healed. He kept a sedate pace with me, then helped me down the stairs once we were inside.

I bit my lip anxiously when Cosimo punched in the dungeon code and held the door for me. It was dark inside, save for a single light focused on my former boss wearing only green boxer briefs, strung up by chains. It looked different from before, with the stage taking up part of the room. I’d seen the pictures of Cosimo’s speed renovation. The wood floors and furniture were gone again, and plastic tarp covered the walls and cement floor.

“Is he unconscious?” I asked as I crept closer, expecting Madden to lunge at me when he realized where he was.

“I’m not taking any chances with guests,” Cosimo assured me. “Not after one particularly naughty woman outsmarted me.”

I giggled and gave him an innocent shrug. “I can’t help it if I’m smarter than you, psycho. It had to happen sometime. You should really be grateful it was me and not one of the men you bring down here.”

“Sure,” he said dryly, removing his jacket and hanging it in one of the lockers. “I’m so grateful for that FBI raid. Do you have any idea how fucking fast I had to work to transform this place?”

I couldn’t resist poking at my grumpy husband. “Now, when I ask you to do house projects, I’ll know you can get things done quickly.”

“If you’re not careful with that mouth, I’ll find a way to keep you silent,” Cosimo threatened playfully, drawing something from a vial into a syringe. He stabbed it into Madden’s neck, and it didn’t take long for the man to come back to consciousness.

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