Page 14 of The Mafia's Property

“Why did you bring me to the party?” She asked after a moment of silence.

“You know, you weren’t this talkative on our way here.”

“I was nervous,” she said.

“To make Maeve jealous.” I did it again. Telling her my first thought wasn’t my intention, but that need to let her know everything overrode all system functions inside me and now I found myself uttering my poorly conceived plan. “She broke my heart, and I wanted her to see that I am over her.”

“Are you? You couldn’t take your eyes off her.”

Was that even true? My thoughts during the reception were of Freya. I was more preoccupied with what she was doing than Maeve. Looking back, even when I was dancing with Maeve, I wanted it to be Freya I was dancing with.

She sighed. “I kinda get it. She has an aloofness to her that’s attractive. Like an ice princess trapped atop a tower. But you failed.”

“Failed?”

“I doubt someone like me would make someone like her feel an ounce of insecurity. She’s all elegance and grace and I’m far, far from that.”

“That’s the thing: Maeve has always hated being the good girl. She loves the wild side and that man she married, Gage or whatever. He comes with a stamp of approval from her father. Clean. Good pedigree and works in a low-risk job. Not like—”

“You?”

I nodded. “Her pedigree was something she had always held against me. She thought I wanted to join that part of society, so seeing you with me basically showed her I don’t need her or her social status.” And in some ways, it worked. Besides the men, Maeve also had her eyes fixed on Freya. The envy in her voice was faint to the ear, but I heard it whenever she spoke about us.

Freya shook her head, laughing.

“What?” I asked.

“You’re never going to get her back if you use such underhanded tactics. And honestly, you should give up. She’s married! I don’t know if you noticed, but that was her wedding we attended.”

“People divorce all the time.”

“I guess. I don’t know anything about her, but she didn’t seem happy for a woman who had just got married.” Freya turned with her body to face me. “Is that why you didn’t fuck me?”

Was it? No. That was different. Maeve is wife potential. Old lady potential. That’s not Freya. The best Freya could ever be was a mistress. My not fucking her had nothing to do with Maeve. If anything, seeing Freya like that, all naked and offered to me on that bed, made me want to fuck her more. I didn’t do it then because, “I will fuck you, make no mistakes about it. But that back there was to show you where you belong on the totem pole,” I said. “You’re Property, nothing more.”

Her smile faded, and her face fell. I mean, truth be told; this arrangement was probably a game changer for her. I hope she didn’t think she’s going to mean anything more to me than a good fuck and a pawn to my plans.

The conversation petered out after that and we arrived at my Chicago apartment. I show her to my room and got to sleep on my own. I was too conflicted with my feelings to want to do anything with her. When I found no sleep, I picked up some work, something Rico does to get his mind off things, but it was not working for me. I gave up and return to bed.

♣

Rico was in the middle of watching a game on TV when we got back the next day. Some football match between his team and their longtime rivals. It took a while for him to register our presence, but when he did, he leaned back, surprised. “You’re back early.”

“The reception was mind-numbingly boring and there was nothing else to do in the city,” I said.

Rico shook his head and turned back to the game. “I don’t know why you like hanging out with those snobs.”

I was about to launch into a defense of my friends and how they are open-minded actually, but then I remembered how easy it was to insinuate that I was about to do something criminal simply by telling them I was leaving.

“That’s because he thinks he’s better than us.” I turned to my side to see Dante coming from the kitchen with a can of beer in hand. He was dressed a lot more casually than I’m used to seeing him. Rarely did Dante don jeans and a t-shirt. The look didn’t remove the inherent power he exudes when he wears his usual suit and tie. If anything, it made him more menacing. “The hell you doing here?” I asked.

“Is this the new girl?” he asked, a glint in his eye. Without thinking, I moved a little in front of Freya, partially shielding her from my brother. Freya however stepped to the side and extended her hand, “Freya.”

Dante tilted his head to the side, clearly enamored by her, and took her hand. Instead of shaking it, he kissed it. Freya did not have the decency to remove her hand and instead blushed prettily. I could have punched him if he was anyone else, but because he’s my brother, I hold back.

“No wonder Nico wasn’t answering his calls,” Dante said as he let go of her hand. “He was preoccupied with a much more worthwhile indulgence.”

“Don’t you have a wife?”

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