AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My gaze dropped to her hand on my arm, then it darted to her face. Our eyes met and she must’ve seen the murderous look in mine because she flinched a little.
“I don’t like to hurt women, Sophia. But if you say one more hurtful thing to Mariana, I don’t know what I’ll do to you. Now get your fucking hand off me.”
She released, her eyes sparkling with tears. I didn’t care if she cried. “My father will kill you if you hurt me.”
I left the office, ignoring her threat. She was wrong, her father wouldn’t be able to kill me. We needed his alliance to keep the war with the Outfit at bay for now, but that didn’t mean we needed Vincent for survival. We still held the greatest power in Chicago.
I found Mariana in the club, holding a shot of whiskey and dancing. A guy stood behind her, rubbing his torso on her.
The image of his cock hard in his pants as he danced behind her flashed in my head, waking up something murderous inside me.
My chest burned with fury and jealousy coated my veins. I strode to the dancefloor before I could hold myself back, clenched my fist, and punched that bastard in the face.
He dropped to the ground whining and whimpering. “What the fuck…”
“Mind how you finish that sentence,” I warned him. “I’m not in a very good mood and you may have to pay for it with your life.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Mariana cried beside me. She reeked of alcohol and was staggering. Under her eyes were dark spots with mascara as if she’d been crying. She had too much to drink.
“Nothing is wrong with me,” I replied. “But you might want to explain why you’re dancing with a fool like him and letting him grind on you.”
“You’re engaged to a brat like Sophia. What right do you have to ask me a stupid question like that?” She ran a hand over her curly, blonde hair, then she whirled around and stomped away.
I ran after her, grabbing her wrist and hauling her closer. “It’s not my fault. I’m not marrying her because I love her. I care about you more than I care about her.”
She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Do you think I’m a fool? You care about me but it's her you’re marrying? Fine, go ahead and marry her. Prove how much you hate her by putting a ring on her finger.”
She tried to free herself from my grasp but I pulled her closer, lowering my lips and kissing her. This was the only way I could get her to calm down. Fuck, I hated that I was hurting her. I loathed myself for making her cry.
Her mouth tasted like whiskey and tears.
Mariana kissed me back for a moment, then she flattened her hand on my chest and pushed me away. “I hate you. I never want to see you again.”
I inched closer to her. “I can’t stay away from you, Mariana. I can’t.” I kissed her again. She tried to resist this time but she failed. She opened her mouth to let me in, then she kissed me back, her hands tugging my turtleneck sweater.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
We broke away from each other when we heard Christy’s voice. She was seething, glowering at me as if she would kill me if she could. She matched in our direction, ripping Mariana from me. “Get away from my friend you asshole! Go to your spoilt brat and leave Mariana alone.”
I exhaled, reminding myself she was Mariana’s friend, not someone I could hurt. “What will you do if I don’t?”
“I’ll probably die trying, but I’ll give you a scar you’ll remember for the rest of your life.” The brunette was just as feisty as her friend. “Can’t you see you hurt her too much already? You’re a coward, you’re no good for her.”
“Watch your tone with me.”
“Do your worse. Isn’t that what men like you live for anyway? Hurting women because you think we’re weak and worthless.”
I inched towards them, grabbing Christy’s jaw tightly. She didn’t flinch or back down. I liked her spirit. I liked that Mariana had someone like her, but I hated the disrespect. “The only reason I’m letting you leave in one piece is because of Mariana.”
I glanced at Mariana. She was staggering, the alcohol in her system completely taking over her. I wanted to hug her once last time, but I patted her hair instead, then I walked away.
The family came first.
Chapter 13 - Mariana
I woke up with a banging headache the next morning. I couldn’t tell if it was from drinking too much, the news of Vlad’s engagement, or both.
Narrowing my eyes, I pushed up from bed and staggered to the window, pulling the drapes together. My eyes hadn’t adjusted to the sunlight yet and it only made my headache worse.
