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“You can’t tell us what to do,” snaps Callie, and I glare at her in disbelief. We just watched this guy end someone and she’s sassing him.
Dante suddenly leans over to her, pushing his face in hers. I squeeze my eyes closed in panic as I feel Callie tighten her grip on my hand. “You don’t know who I am, little girl, but you’re about to. I don’t get told no. Ever. People who tell me no, end up like your friend, Jase. So, I suggest you get a move on.”
I grab Callie by the hand and edge out of the booth with Emerson following. Something tells me it’s safer to do as he tells us.
Present day . . .
TESSA
I slice the beef as he likes it, sauté the vegetables just right, and cream the potatoes to perfection. I lay the hot dishes in the centre of the table just as Dante’s guests begin to arrive.
I join them in the living room and stand beside him with my head slightly lowered so that later, he can’t accuse me of eye-fucking his guests. The usual men are here. Kai is Dante’s right-hand man. He’s known him his whole life, and they’re more like blood brothers than friends. Enzo is Dante’s advisor and very good friend. And there’s another man I’ve never met, so I make sure not to be anywhere near him and glue myself to Dante’s side.
Eventually, he takes my hand and uses his other hand to tip my head up to look at him. “I want you to meet Nero. He’s going to be around a lot more.” I don’t move my eyes from Dante, not until he tells me I can. He smiles, placing a gentle kiss on my nose. “Good girl,” he whispers. “Nero, this is my wife, Tessa. Tessa, Nero is your new bodyguard.”
NERO
Bodyguard. Bodyguard. Fucking bodyguard. His wife looks just as surprised as me, but she shuts it down, giving me a neutral expression. “Boss?” I say like I’m asking the question, cos fuck knows he didn’t speak to me about this.
“Problem?” asks Dante, tipping his head to one side like he’s daring me to challenge him.
“No, Boss. Just wondering what my duties will entail.”
“My wife has prepared a meal. Shall we go eat?” he asks, turning back to his wife and running his hand through her hair. She winces slightly, giving the impression he’s tugging it. “Will you serve us, Tessa?”
She smiles politely. “Of course.”
The tension in the room is almost unbearable. I’ve sat with gangland killers, Mafia bosses, and nutters who would kill their own mother. Yet sitting here in silence while Tessa serves us food is worse than any of it. She’s nervous. Her entire body is stiff as she walks round to each of us to place beef on our plates. Dante has his eyes fixed on her the entire time, not moving them for a second.
Once our plates are full, she begins a retreat to the kitchen. “Aren’t you joining us?” I ask. All eyes turn to me, including Dante’s. “It’s just, she cooked us this food, isn’t she going to have some?”
“Why are you concerned with whether my wife eats?” asks Dante.
“Just a question,” I mutter.
***
I get back to my shitty little temporary apartment and throw my car keys on the side. Fuck, that was heavy. Minutes later, the door opens and Callie comes in. “So, how did it go?”
I shrug out of my jacket. “What the hell is going on with him and his wife?”
She sits on the couch. “Domestic violence. I told you.”
“Nah, it was weirder than that. I mean, she’s scared to death, it’s obvious, but you feel the tension in every room. It’s like the violence is clinging to every wall and silently screaming. He didn’t take his eyes off her the whole time she was around us. It’s like he was watching for the smallest mistake.”
“He probably was. Men like him enjoy complete control. Anyway, we’re not there to deal with the wife. Are you in?”
I nod, unable to suppress my smile. She claps her hands together. “Yessss!”
“But . . .” She flops back into the couch, groaning. “It’s not exactly what we hoped for.”
“We can’t keep dragging this out, Nero.”
“Hear me out,” I say, taking a seat beside her. “I’m the wife’s bodyguard.”
She sits up straight. “What?”
“Yeah, surprised me too. No word of warning. He introduced me, then told her I was her new guard. I’ve got to go back tomorrow for a full briefing.”
