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“That brat is my wife, and you will address her with respect or refrain from speaking of her at all. I would prefer the latter, since she’s too good for the filth that you are.” I glared at him.
“Angelino, Matteo has already sullied our blood with that woman he married. You are our only hope of bringing forward a future generation that would make your grandfather proud. It isn’t too late to make the right decision. We can simply dispose of her, and you’ll be free to marry someone appropriate. Elena is still willing to marry you even though you’ve tainted yourself with a Jew—”
His words broke off when I vaulted forward, grasping him around the throat with one hand. When he stumbled away, his back hit the edge of the stage and he hissed through his teeth in pain. I pushed further, using my grip on his throat as leverage until he bent backward and his feet slipped out from underneath him. I used my hand on his neck to pin him to the stage as I leaned down into his face. “You will not ever suggest disposing of my wife again. You will not suggest anything to do with her. I will not divorce her. I will not marry or impregnate another woman if she disappears, and if anything happens to her I will come for your head. Am I clear?”
He gasped; his voice lost in the pressure of my hand at his throat. “Fucking nod.”
His face twisted, but he nodded his agreement regardless.
When I released him and stepped back, he collapsed to the floor in a pathetic pile. For all the times I’d suffered at his hands as a child, he’d never bothered to become anything better than a pathetic abuser who preyed on women and children.
I straightened my suit as I watched him stumble to his feet. “You would do well to remember that you have no power here. Keep our wives out of your filthy mouth, or you may quickly find you no longer have a tongue.”
I ignored his sneer, turning on my heel and leaving the room. I had a wife to collect from work, and I’d be damned if the man kept me from her for any longer than he already had.
Twenty-Six
Samara
There was one thing to be said about going back to work.
It made me miss Lino. Which seemed ridiculous. I'd gone through most of my life without seeing him constantly. Even on the days when I did see him, his work hours often made it such that I would meet him for lunch and that would be it until the next time. Brief stolen moments in time where he liked to pretend he was normal enough to just have lunch with his friend.
Where he pretended he wouldn't be off to make money for a criminal Kingpin as soon as we finished our meal. Or where he acted like he didn't stay up most of the night in the interest of running the hottest dance club in the city.
So I felt pathetic, and sure that I'd be sitting down to a takeout dinner alone that night. Having been so desperate to get back to work, I'd given zero thought to the implications of Lino returning to work. To the fact that I'd probably almost never see him. Never see my husband. He'd crawl into bed with me long after I went to sleep, and I'd wake up and leave before he woke up. Like two ships in the night, just passing each other and never really crossing paths in any meaningful way.
But I suspected in those moments where we did manage to connect, we'd crash into one another with a force that took my breath away.
I was wrapping up for the day, shutting down my computer and locking up all my confidential client files for the night. I hadn't anticipated just how much the temp's unfamiliarity with the clients could impact her work, taking my knowledge of them all for granted. I'd needed to rework Jasper's calendar, taking up most of my day because she'd scheduled meetings in inappropriate timeslots.
The widow who came onto Jasper constantly couldn't have the last spot of the day, because he needed another client to get her out the door.
The doctor who often canceled when he was on call couldn't have appointments early in the day because overnight surgeries turned him into a zombie who couldn't wrap his head around the numbers Jasper threw his way.
All the little details I'd learned over my few years at Lamb & Rowe. It was no wonder she hadn't been able to do her job to Jasper's satisfaction, because she'd never stood a chance without being armed with the kind of knowledge that no temporary employee would bother to learn.
When the door to the offices opened, I sighed. "Did Lino tell you I'm incapable of finding my way to the lobby?" I asked without facing our visitor. Given the timing, I had to assume it was Emilio coming to pick me up.
"I suppose I did, yes. We both know how well I like to be told what to do, Little Dove," Lino said, making my head snap up to find him staring at me. He wore the same grey suit he'd worn when I left the house that morning, the lighter fabric working miracles against his olive skin and dark hair.
"Hi," I breathed in surprise. Biting the corner of my lip, I glanced to Jasper's occupied office before stepping around the back of my desk and snatching my purse off the top. "What are you doing here?"
"I thought I'd surprise you," he murmured, shoving his hands into his pockets—waiting for me to take the lead. Respecting my place of business and the fact that I might want to keep some distance there. It only emboldened me, so I stepped into his chest and tilted my head up to give him my lips in a casual kiss. Those strong arms of his closed around me, wrapping me up until I immediately felt like I had found my way home.
"Color me surprised," I whispered with a smile.
"I missed you," he murmured. "I'm too attached to seeing this face anytime I feel like it. I don't like it when it isn't there for me to stare at."
I giggled, pressing my face into his chest as a flush crept up my neck. "I missed you too. So fucking much."
"Bellandi," Jasper's voice snapped through the otherwise silent space, and I turned in Lino's arms to glare at my boss.
"Rowe."
"Hurt her, and I won't give a shit what your last name is. I'll bury you. You got me?" Jasper warned.
"I would never hurt her, Rowe. I'm fairly certain you know that though," Lino smirked at the other man, and I breathed a sigh of relief when Jasper shook his head and rolled his eyes.
