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“Francesca knows I want a whore in my bed. She sees to my needs.”
Nausea churned in my stomach. On the eve of our engagement, his thoughts were of his mistress? Something sticky and bitter coated my tongue, something that tasted like jealousy.
“I’ll need to deal with Giada. She doesn’t want the marriage to take place, but my father insists there are no more delays.”
Oh, there were going to be delays. We hadn’t said our vows, yet.
“Giada doesn’t like sharing the Bruno men,” the other man said.
“No, she would prefer the Bruno men share her. Speaking of Bruno men… Keep a short leash on Orlando tonight. The last thing I need to worry about is him fucking the bored wife of one of Jilani’s soldiers. And keep him away from the sister. The family reeks of desperation. Marriage to one Jilani will be enough.”
“If Allegra is as you describe, Giada has no reason to be jealous.”
A flash of resentment surged through me. Who was Giada? And how dare they speak of Deidre as if she’d climb into bed with Orlando Bruno? Although far from naïve, she was only sixteen. Her rebelliousness extended to sneaking an occasional glass of wine and falsifying her age online so she could have a bit of fun on social media.
On the other point, sadly, they weren’t wrong. My family was desperate for the alliance.
I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. My brother wanted power, and my future husband wanted a war with the Irish. All he needed now was a stronger army of soldiers and a bigger footprint in the city.
Knox’s haunting words ghosted through my mind.Mafia men take what they want.
“Giada is jealous of every woman, even my sister. Allegra will be my wife. You’ll need to keep Giada away from her.”
“And you’ll keep the lights off when you fuck her, imagining she’s Francesca.”
“Thoughts of Francesca aren’t going to give my future wife tits and an ass.”
Tapping sounded above me. I lifted my gaze. Dressed and ready for the party, Deidre frantically waved me up. She mouthed, “Mom.”
I grimaced, glancing down at the men, still debating whether I was fuckable. I wasn’t some vapid virgin content to be fucked in the dark.
I clung to the trellis and remained whisper quiet, listening to the man with my fiancé.
He rested a hand on Marco’s shoulder. “You need another drink to dull your reactions.”
“Agreed,” he said as they walked away.
I released a breath and climbed.
“Hurry,” Deidre said. Grabbing my hoodie, she tugged to haul me over the railing. “Oh, shit, Ally.”
I squealed, and she laughed. The fabric caught on my ponytail, then jerked free. I scrambled to hoist my leg over the rail as my torso disappeared into the heavy fleece of the hoodie. “I can’t see,” I said.
She laughed, clutched my belt loops, and pulled. We both tumbled to the floor of the balcony.
We flopped to our backs. Deidre’s dress was bunched around her waist. She covered her face and laughed. When she stood, she brushed a smudge of dirt from the dress.
“Mom has hollered at you twice to get out of the shower. She’s going to have your ass if you aren’t downstairs—now.”
I rolled to my hands and knees, then stumbled into my room. A simple three-quarter sleeve dress had been selected for tonight. Prim and proper, with a flounce skirt draping below the knee and a scoop neckline to give a hint of cleavage. The cream color showed off my olive skin and cinnamon hair. But the huge flower pattern resembled my grandmother’s curtains.
“I need your help.” I tossed the dress to the bed. “I’m not wearing that.”
“If you don’t, you’re never going to convince him you can be a good little wife to him.”
“I don’t care anymore.” I’d been prepared to live my carefully constructed life, but he didn’t want the perfect wife. He didn’t really want me at all. Less work for me. I wasn’t weak and timid, and I wasn’t going to pretend to be.
“You should. And what took you so long?” she hissed.
