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Marco crossed his arms over his chest. “Explain.”
With a pronounced hobble, I dragged the blanket with me and stopped in front of him. “Look at me, Marco.”
His jaw clenched as his whiskey eyes stared into mine.
“I want you to be faithful to me. No Giada. No Francesca. No beautiful women who enjoy sucking the cocks of powerful men. I don’t want anyone touching what I want. But I won’t ask it of you because I don’t want you to lie to me. I’m not a fool,” I whispered. “You went days without talking to me. I haven’t asked you why.”
The memory of him thinking of Giada first when he’d spoken with Stefano, learning of his father’s death, and rushing to her side, still burned into my mind.
“I buried my father and took control of my empire.” Marco grasped my arm. “Why are you good with Timoteo?”
I adjusted my stance, wincing from the weight on my ankle. “Because he’s loyal to both of us. I asked a favor of him.” I shrugged out of his hold. “I can’t make you trust me. My words won’t matter. Let me go.”
I tried to move past him, but he blocked my progress with his arm.
He took a deep breath, the tension slipped from his body, and his gaze softened on me. “You’ll explain, and I’ll listen.”
“In a few minutes, you’re going to feel like an asshole.”
“We’ll talk in bed,” he said.
“Talk, fight, fuck…and eat?” Already, I understood Marco enough to know he wouldn’t be deterred from anything he wanted. Money, power, information, and with the glint in his eyes, and the daring hint of a smile on his lips, he wanted me.
“Yes, all those things. And always in bed. I’ll get our dinner.”
I limped my way back to the bed but took position to one side. I wasn’t going to make this easy on him. How was I supposed to build a marriage when I had to continually defend myself? If I didn’t know him to be a ruthless and brutal mafia underboss, now boss, I’d say he was the one with insecurities.
But it wasn’t insecurity. It was control.
He brought the serving tray into the room and set it on the end of the bed. The burgers and seasoned potato wedges were under glass domes. Gooey baked cheese covered the rigatoni.
Marco crossed to the table in the corner and poured two glasses of wine.
“Tell me.” He handed me a glass.
I wasn’t going to get an apology from him. I took a sip of the wine and set the glass on the nightstand. “Dee has online friends. She’s lied about her age, although I don’t think she lies all the time. Mostly, she likes to talk to boys. And she spends a lot of time on a site for gamers.”
Marco sat on the bed and leaned against the headboard. “You know this, and you haven’t stopped her?”
“Don’t judge.” I dragged the food closer, keeping the tray between us. “You don’t know what it’s like. She has friends at school.” I popped a potato wedge into my mouth. “Santi is overly protective, my dad wants advantageous marriages, and you’ve met my mom.”
Marco groaned and took a hefty swallow of wine.
Here was where I muddied the truth a bit. “I found out she wasn’t being careful. Marco, she could be talking to anyone. She’s sixteen and under constant supervision. She never goes out with her friends from school.” Like me, she’d rather amputate her arm than have it anchored to one of Santi’s soldiers.
I took a bite of my burger. It was either the best burger I’d ever tasted, or I was starving. I took another big bite. Sauce dripped onto my lip. I caught it with my thumb and licked it.
When I refocused on Marco, his gaze focused on my mouth. I smiled as I pulled my thumb from my lips. Maybe he didn’t realize I could eat like a high school linebacker. I could devour a large pepperoni pizza on my own.
“I asked Tim to watch out for her.”
“No. Someone else will need to keep Deidre out of trouble. You’re Timoteo’s only responsibility. I don’t want distractions when it comes to your safety.”
I set the burger on the plate. “Tim checked her online activity to make sure she’s being safe. She’s upset with me. I wouldn’t let her come with me tonight because I wanted to be alone with you.”
He leaned his head back. “I feel like an asshole.”
“You are an asshole.” I sighed. “But Dee was right when she called me selfish. I don’t want to share you. She just wants to see Orlando and Emilio. Tim could’ve taken her home.”
