Page 56 of The Leader

“Why didn’t you tell me you knew?” It should have been something to lead with, the moment he stepped inside their house.

His eyes softened as he stroked her hair. “I wanted to hear it from you,bella. I needed to know that you trusted me with this.”

And she did. And it wasn’t just because she was terrified, which she was, or she didn’t have any other options, which she did. Deep down, she’d known that Giovanni Detta wouldn’t let his wife get hurt, no matter how they fought like cats and dogs sometimes.

“I found him in Mary’s room,” she repeated. Jazzy bit the inside of her cheek before she turned away from him and forced herself to tell the truth to the wall. “By him, I mean, Uncle Marco. Later, I found out it was the first time he took it this far, actually trying to get into her bed instead of staring at her from her bedroom door. I didn’t immediately understand why Mary was crying, but I knew something was wrong. So, I went up to the bed and when he saw me, he told me to leave. Mary’s eyes were closed. She sat on the bed, her fingers white from clutching the bedsheets. There was no one at home that night, other than Mary’s nanny in the adjoining room. I went up to the bed, and”—she swallowed—“I leaned against him, and touched his arm to distract him from Mary. It worked. He was a bit drunk and sluggish. His hands were clumsy as he pulled my shirt from over my head, all the while, telling me how I would do for now. Mumbling to himself that I wanted this. I let him kiss and grope me, while trying not to throw up. As he ducked and fumbled with my pants, I saw a pair of scissors on Mary’s bedside table. She used to redesign the clothes of her dolls all the time. I grabbed the scissors and struck him. It wasn’t even intentional, but I hit him straight in the eye. He started bleeding like a stuck pig. His scream woke up Mary’s nanny. I fell off the bed and somehow ended up cutting my wrist, almost making me lose my arm. I don’t remember much about what happened next. I do remember the nanny bursting into the room, looking stark white when she saw the scene that met her.” And she remembered Marco’s words that he was going to make her bleed.

Silence echoed through the bedroom until Jazzy couldn’t stand it anymore. She turned to face Gio’s judgment, only to discover that there was none. All she saw in his deep blue eyes was compassion and anger on her behalf. His fingers lazily played with her hair.

“What are you going to do?” she asked.

“You know what I’m going to do.”

Yes, she did. And she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She certainly didn’t feel sorry for Marco. Given the chance, she would have cut off his balls herself, but she knew Gio would never let her get anywhere near that monster. “Would you consider not—”

“Don’t ask me to spare him,” Gio cut her off. “That’s not going to happen. He needs to be put down. He should’ve been years ago. Men who prey on children shouldn’t be allowed to walk the earth. Every day that fucker lives, he’s a danger to other kids.”

“I agree. I was just going to ask you to make it…quick. I don’t want him to be unrecognizable. That would kill mynonno. Think about his heart.”

“I don’t give a damn about Antonio’s heart.” He put his hand on her chest. “But I do care about my wife’s.”

Unsure about how to react to that statement, and her eyes getting suspiciously misty, she kissed him.

Of course, one kiss led to another, and before she knew it, they were groping each other, rekindling the flame that had been on a slow burn for so many days.

“Missed this,” he said with a hiss, as he slammed into her and started a hard and punishing rhythm.

As her toes curled, and the familiar heat zinged through her body, she realized that she’d missed this as well. The past few days had been torture. She was afraid of what that meant. She feared that in the end, it was going to leave her behind, heartbroken.

CHAPTER 27

JAZZY

Jazzy shifted to the left and right, viewing her dress from all angles in front of the mirror. Gio was taking her to a fundraiser tonight and she couldn’t wait. It was the first time they were going to a social gathering together, where she had to get all dressed up.

The same woman as on her wedding day had shown up, with a wide selection of dresses, and heaps and heaps of shoes, to choose from. In the end, she went for a silver sleeveless dress with a side split that hugged her curves and accented her ass. Gio loved her ass, bubbly or not. The entire ensemble was topped off by pumps, of course. The only jewelry she wore was the necklace he gave her.

She couldn’t keep her eyes off him when he emerged from his dressing room, wearing a tuxedo, looking smoking hot.

“I don’t think I want to go anymore,” she confessed. She just wanted to peel his clothes off and see him naked.

He came up to her and cupped her cheek. “That would deprive me of the chance to show off my wife.” When she cocked a brow, he added, “And sex in the backseat of the car.”

She couldn’t help but smile as he led her downstairs and into the limo. They were making out in the backseat when Gio suddenly pulled away.

“Give me your panties,” he ordered.

Drunk with desire, she did as he asked. Because, why not? She giggled when he opened the window and simply threw out her silk panties.

“I can’t believe you just did that.”

His hand went to her thigh high split, creeping up higher and higher, drawing circles. “Better believe it. I want you available for me all night. It will be the only thing getting me through this boring event.”

She nipped at his bottom lip. “Why are we going if it’s so boring?”

“Detta Enterprises is sponsoring one of the charities, so I have to show my face. It will be filled with people who pay a thousand-dollar entrance fee, and another thousand per platter. All so they don’t feel guilty living the good life, and can pretend to do something good out of the kindness of their hearts.”

“Sounds like you don’t like these people much.”

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