Page 48 of Of Desire And Deception

What would my father say if he could see me now?

I could almost see his sad smile. The one that was full of disappointment he never verbalized. Instead, he’d remind me he loved me no matter what and tell me that tomorrow was another chance to do what needed to be done.

Taking a deep breath, I strengthened my resolve. So I’d fucked up. Royally, even. Nobody had to know. I could still salvage this operation.

Now that Cosimo was invested, I was in. He’d let me close, and I’d find enough evidence to send him to prison. For life, if the rumors about his murderous tendencies proved true.

I may have fucked Cosimo Neretti, but in the end, I would bury him with the rest of his vile family.

Chapter Fifteen

I was going to marry Wynn. She’d seen the part of me I kept safely hidden and hadn’t just accepted me… she’d taken all of me and given me herself. The sex had been more than physical. It had transcended logic and stirred something deep within me I didn’t know still existed. Perhaps it wasn’t love in the traditional sense, the way my brothers loved their wives. But it was all-consuming, like acid eating through flesh and bone.

She was my poison, and I’d take all of her until we were so completely melded that we didn’t exist as separate beings, but one twisted soul facing the darkness together. I didn’t feel the need to work my way into her life slowly. I’d barrel through her inhibitions and show her she belonged to me now. I couldn’t wait to claim her for the world to see.

First, I needed to talk to my brother. Dante was protective of us, even though I’d been fending for myself since I was young. I’d probably done more to save his ass than he’d ever done to spare mine, but I didn’t keep tally. That’s not how the family worked. I did whatever was necessary to keep us together, and with my father gone, we could finally work toward peace.

The gated drive came into view, and I slowed my car, waiting for the guards to open it. My visit was unplanned, but I dropped by my old home often enough that it was never a problem. Martina would try to feed me, and Dante would arch his brow and sigh, wondering what I’d done now. I’d intentionally waited until after the Thanksgiving holiday to break the news, and I’d been restless for the last week, knowing this day was approaching.

I parked in the circular drive and climbed out of the car, carefully avoiding lingering patches of ice from the overnight freeze. While I might be able to hold my own against most opponents, nature was another story. Statistically, I was more likely to meet my end after a simple fall than from a festering knife wound.

Dante’s man Stefano moved out of the way when I strode through the front door. He tilted his head toward the back of the house. “Mr. Neretti is in his office.”

I tipped my chin at him and proceeded, finding my brother where his man had said. Dante sat behind his desk, typing on his keyboard. He looked up when I dropped into a chair across from him, propping my ankle over the opposite knee and making myself comfortable.

“Cos,” he greeted me, leaning back in his chair and stretching. “What do you have for me?”

“Nothing work-related,” I explained. I’d never needed to have this kind of conversation with my older brother before, and it felt damn awkward. “I’m getting married.”

That got a reaction. Dante’s brows shot up, his mouth dropping open. “Repeat that.”

“I’m getting married.”

“You can’t just waltz in here and tell me you—as single as they fucking come, and for damn good reason—are getting fucking married.” He ran a hand through his hair, disheveling the carefully combed strands. “Have you even been dating?”

I shrugged. “I went on a date.”

“As in, singular?”

“Yes,” I confirmed. Watching him come undone was fascinating. I’d seen him angry and sad, but whatever emotion I was witnessing was new. “I think it went well.”

“So, of course, the obvious conclusion is marriage,” he scoffed, then ran a hand down his face and sighed. “Who is this woman you can’t live without?”

“Wynn.” I smiled at the thought of her. “You’ve seen her before. At Deception.”

Dante pinned me with a tired stare. “Please, please tell me this isn’t the same dancer you nearly hauled off the stage when Romeo and I were there.”

“Wynn isn’t a dancer,” I hissed through gritted teeth. My fingers tapped over my knife as rage clouded my brother’s form in front of me. That wouldn’t do. I didn’t get irrationally angry with my family. Taking a deep breath, I clarified, “She’s a bartender at Deception.”

“What else do you know about her?” Dante asked skeptically.

“Enough.” So what if I didn’t know her entire life story? I knew how our bodies fit together, the current that arced between us when we were close. “She grew up in New York. Dad is dead; mom is an alcoholic. She moved here and got a job at Deception. And she lives in a dump of an apartment that would be better off condemned.”

“So you’re saving her,” he concluded, tapping a pen on the desk.

Tap, tap, tap. The pen taunted me and turned into the drip, drip, drip of sour water in a rat-infested cellar. I lunged forward and slapped the pen out of my brother's hand.

Dante stilled, and I looked him in the eye. “I think she’s the one who will save me. Would you really deny me the happiness you and the others have found?”

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