Page 51 of Mafia Obsession

I notice small clothing adjustments: sleeves tugged lower, skirts looser, jackets staying on longer. I’m left with the distinct impression that she is counting down to an exit.

For a while, I believed we were getting close, but now I’m not so sure. Having her at a distance leaves a hollow ache in my chest. Before I think about what I’ll say to her, I’m up and moving.

“You’re quiet today,” I say, standing in the doorway of the private kitchen.

“I feel a cold coming on,” she starts. “But if my sneezing becomes an issue?—”

“Nothing you do is an issue.” I cut her off by bludgeoning the professional boundaries of a boss. Towering over her, I whisper, “Not with me. And it shouldn’t be with anyone else.”

I’d rather her here, sick with me, than under the same roof as that piece of human garbage.

For a fraction of a second, I consider telling her my plan for her husband. My plan for her. But the knowledge of her husband’s imminent demise could backfire.

Instead, I lift my hand and touch her face. I brush my thumb along her cheek and see part of the bruise she failed to cover up.

Rage ignites in my veins.

Her pulse jumps beneath my thumb. I can feel it. Something inside me stretches thin and feral. But she pulls my hand away.

“This is unacceptable,” I murmur, my voice lowering. “I told you, one more bruise. I will find him and warn him. You represent me. I cannot have?—”

“I can handle my husband,” she snaps.

I fucking hate it when someone interrupts me. But whenshedoes it…

Fuck, it gets me hard.

I have Quinlan on the job, but I should find her husband myself and slit his throat for laying a hand on Lourdes’s face after I specifically warned him.

I’m already going to end him.

I do not share women I want.

I lay a hand on her shoulder, the firmness jolting a thrill to me. “Trust me.”

“I’ll be fine,” she insists.

I study her a moment longer, then lower my head. “You already are,” I reply. “I wouldn’t want you if you weren’t strong enough to survive this.”

I don’t wait for a response. I return to my office, closing the door with deliberate calm. I’m already thinking three moves ahead, wondering whether she’ll hate me when she realizes I removed the cage she never knew she was inside.

And how she’s going to feel when she’s put inside another one.

Chapter 18

Ares

“Who’s the cheap date?” Daria asks me, pointing to the VIP section from my office at Club Wicked.

I stand up and join her at the smoky glass. “She’s David Sinclair’s last taste of freedom. I need a reason for him to stay long enough for me to get Quinlan here.”

I stare down at David pawing at the woman with big tits. Reaching for my phone, I call down to Atlas. “Table Six. Double the strength of the drinks and keep his glass filled. I’m making the call now.”

The assassin picks up. “What?”

I shake my head at his lack of personality. I really hope he starts banging that neighbor of his.

“My target is here. I’m getting him drunk. Be here in fifteen minutes. It’s happening. Tonight.” I hang up and push a hand through my hair.