It was on the tip of my tongue to tell her it was irrelevant because that would never happen, but I kept my mouth shut.
“You know, eventually you’ll have to tell me what’s going on. Ever since your first kill, you’ve been acting so… cold.” She shuddered. “You can’t just close yourself off like this, Desiderio. Human life is pointless to hold on to.”
She dug her nails into my shoulders, pulling me to her. “With how you’re acting now, I suggest you kill some more before you turn. What are you going to do, starve?” She smirked.
“I have no reason to kill more people.”
“No?” She let go of me and motioned around my room. “You think this is an acceptable place to live once we’re married? I can’t live in this dump. I want a mansion.”
“A mansion?”
“Why not?” She crossed her arms, pushing her tits up. The rim of her nipples peeked out, and I quickly looked away.Just a month before, it would have excited me. Now, it felt shameful.
“What makes you think you deserve that from me?”
“I don’t care who I get it from. I deserve it regardless. Our parents decided it was you.” She glared at me and stepped back, looking at the floor. “Where’s my shoes? We need to go before we’re late.”
“Do I have to?”
“Yes.” She gritted her teeth. “My father wants to start going over details for the wedding. I think they are more excited about our marriage than either of us are.”
For the first time in months, I agreed with her. During the drive, she lectured me on what she thought I should be doing while I waited my time to turn.
“You have a little under a year to prepare yourself. I bet if you ask my father, he can get you a gig taking care of some of his pesky clients. You know, the ones that don’t pay him. Daddy pays people really good money to do that.”
“Daddy?” I grimaced.
“I’ll talk to him tonight. You can start saving and we can pick out a house together. A bigger house on a better side of town.”
“Like your parents?”
“And yours. Don’t forget where you come from just because you’re slumming, Desiderio.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Randy, Mick, and the others,” she reminded me.
I let out a giant breath of relief. For a moment, I thought she knew about Scout.We pulled through the gates of her estate and parked in the long, curved driveway.
I got out first, then opened her door for her.
“I wish you had put something nicer on,” she complained, eyeing my jeans and boots, as we walked up the stairs.The front door swung open and their butler greeted us.
“Mr. And Mrs. Linotti are in the den, awaiting your visit.”
We followed him down the halls, past all the expensive antiques. 200-year-old paintings, vases, and statues from this famous artist or that famous politician. Mr. Linotti had given me a tour once, and the entire house reeked of pretension, much like its owners.
“Hello, Mr. And Mrs. Linotti.” I bowed slightly. “How are you doing tonight?”
“Could be better,” Aleida’s mother, Isabella, greeted us. “How are you, Desiderio?”
“Great.”Fucking fantastic.
Aleida came in behind me, beaming. “Hello! I’m so glad you invited us. Desiderio and I wanted to ask you for a favor.” She ran to her dad and threw her arms over him.He patted her on the back and gave me a stern look over her shoulder.
“Favor?”
“Yes, Daddy.” Aleida pulled away and beamed at me, then looked back at him. “Desiderio recently had his first kill. Someone paid him. We wanted to see if you could give him a job so that maybe we can start saving for a home to move into when we get married.”
