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“Okay. I’ll wait for you. I won’t leave the store on my own.”
“Good.” He kisses me one last time before taking off.
The morning has been surprisingly busy considering the rain, but foot traffic slowed as the day continued. Sage and Juniper arrived earlier with sandwiches from our favorite deli down the block. The three of us ate and hung out until it was time for Juniper’s twelve-forty-five appointment. Since things were slow, I decided to take inventory and set up a display for some new products.
I’m stocking the shelves with some new rosemary mint candles I made over the weekend when the bell over the door alerts me to a customer. The newcomer surveys the store, looking out of place. Definitely not a local. The woman is tall and willowy. She has sleek, jet-black hair hanging several inches past her slender shoulders. Her skin is flawless, and even from twenty feet away, I can tell she must spend a fortune on skincare. Even with the pouring rain outside, her makeup is perfect, right down to her crimson-red lips.
The woman’s sharp honey-colored eyes land on me, and I smile. She doesn’t return the sentiment, and something about how she unapologetically appraises me sets me on edge. If not for that, it would be the apparent disdain on her face.
“Can I help you?” I force the words out of my mouth in what I hope is a professional tone.
“Yes, as a matter of fact, you can.”
I straighten as the woman approaches me; her hips, encased in a dark green pencil skirt, sway with each calculated step she takes. The closer she gets to me, the more I can see how beautiful the woman is. She’s so beautiful it’s downright intimidating, especially compared to me.
“You can stop sleeping with my husband.”
“Ex…excuse me? Your husband? I don’t know you, lady, and I assure you I don’t know your husband.”
The woman raises a brow. “No? Are you saying you are not currently fucking Luca DeSantis?”
The candle I hold slips from my grip and clatters to the floor, sending shards of broken glass everywhere. I reach to my left to grab hold of the shelf to keep from falling because my knees suddenly go weak. Surely, she is mistaken. There is no way this lady is talking about my Luca. I’ve never seen him with this woman.
“There must be some mistake,” I tell her.
The woman claiming to be Luca’s wife sneers at me like I’m a bug to be squashed. “There is no mistake. I suggest you heed my warning.” She takes a step closer to me, and it takes every ounce of strength I have in me not to cower. “Stay the hell away from Luca.”
I hold her stare, all while keeping my mouth shut. What is there to say? If what she says is true, Luca is a lying, cheating bastard, and I’m the other woman.
When Luca’s wife takes my silence as the answer she was seeking, she smiles almost sweetly. But we both know her smile is a disguise for the venom she spews next. “It’s pathetic that a mousy nobody like you thought she could compete against me for my husband’s affection.”
I cringe when she reaches for a strand of my hair and rubs it between her fingers. “Such a sad nobody.” She clicks her tongue.
I bite my lip to keep it from trembling and choke back a sob that threatens to escape while blinking back tears. I should have known the past few weeks were too good to be true. How stupid was I to think I could land a man like Luca? Why would he be serious with someone like me when he’s married to a woman who looks like she just stepped off a runway? All my past insecurities start to seep in under the appraisal.
With a flick of her slender wrist, she lets my hair fall. Without another word, she turns on her six-inch heels and walks out of my shop like she didn’t just send my world crashing down around me.
I don’t know how much time passes before I can move. When I do, it’s on autopilot. Making my way to the front counter, I grab my purse and cell. My hands are shaking, and there is no stopping the flow of tears streaming down my face as I walk out of Belladonna’s and straight to my car. Lost in my broken state, I forget to lock up the store. I ignore Sage calling my name from across the street, along with the worried look on her face as she takes in my appearance.
16
HARLEM
A storm of thoughts surrounds me as I lock up the tattoo shop. Several days have passed since my father re-entered my life, demanding I take my rightful place within the family, saying he forgives my betrayal and act of defiance.
Even though there’s been no sighting of him and his men, a real threat still looms over me and my entire club. He is the head of an empire built on bloodshed and fear. He won’t give up so easily. The club knows we can’t face this threat alone; we needed allies who shared our desire for wanting my father dead. It’s a long shot attempting to align ourselves with the man my father double-crossed, but it is the only option we have to work with. Being a DeSantis doesn’t necessarily weigh in our favor. In my father’s world, when the head of the family wrongs another, his entire bloodline is to blame. The sin of the father belongs to the son as well.
We need numbers to dismantle my father’s empire and Fallen Ravens alone don’t have them. Thoughts race through my mind, trying to stay one move ahead in the game my father is playing. The uncertainty of what my past brings upon the club weighs heavily on my shoulders.
Rain pelts against my leather jacket as I walk to my bike. Thunder echoes in the distance, mirroring the storm brewing inside me. My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I dig it out.
“Yeah?” I gruffly answer.
“Brother.” Salem’s clipped voice causes every muscle in my body to stiffen. “Something went down at your woman’s place of business. She’s bolted, upset and in tears.”
My chest tightens as concern washes over me. “Anyone see anything?”
“Nothin’. Sage tried stopping her to find out, but Sukie ignored her attempts. Do you have any idea where she could have gone?”
