Slipping inside of the hall, I tug the door closed, making sure that it latches before I turn toward my bags and gather them in each of my hands. Walking down the long hall, each step that I take, I wish that I wouldn’t have bought heavy jeans and boxes of shoes.
When I reach the door of the small apartment where I’m staying, I turn the knob, kind of surprised to find it unlocked. Slipping inside, I hear it click closed. I reach for a deadbolt, but I don’t find one.
Biting the corner of my bottom lip, I wonder how I was locked in here last night and if I’ll be locked in again tonight. I wish that I had Mia’s number to call and ask her, but I don’t.
Taking all of my clothes into the small bedroom, I close the door behind me and let out a sigh of relief to find that the door has a lock. Flipping the lock, I feel all of my anxiety leave my body, knowing that I’ll at least be locked inside of the bedroom when I’m asleep tonight.
Slipping my hand into my back pocket, I take out my phone and walk over to the bed. Sinking down on the edge of the mattress, I scroll through the numbers on my phone until I find Rosana’s.
It only rings twice and then I hear her voice. “Where are you?” she practically screams.
“I’m safe,” I say.
“Where?”
Closing my eyes, I decide that I can’t lie to her, but I also cannot tell her the truth. “I’m going to get married,” I whisper.
I hear her scream, then she asks me a million questions at hyper-speed. I don’t lie about any of them, I also don’t go into detail or tell her the entire truth of the matter.
“So, will you meet me in the East Village tomorrow at the shop?” I ask.
“We’ll be there,” she says.
I want to tell her not to bring Aunt Irene, but I know that she doesn’t have a choice. If she wants to go at all, Irene has to take her. Before I can say anything else, I hear fabric and rustling around.
“What the hell is going on?” Irene snaps.
Clearing my throat, I pinch my eyes closed. “I’m getting married in two weeks. Tomorrow, I’m going dress shopping and I would love to have my sister with me.” My last words are said on a whisper.
Irene lets out a bark of laughter. “Oh, we’ll be there. I can’t wait to hear the rest of this story.”
Before I can say anything else, she ends the call. I text my sister the address of the dress store before I forget. I spend the rest of the evening unpacking my bags, organizing everything in the empty dresser drawers and closet, then I take a long hot bath before I climb into the bed before I promptly pass out cold.
MASSIMO
Pippa Mazzilli.
Just hearing her name makes my cock twitch. Thinking about her makes my cock hard. The thought of having her as my wife, well that fucking hurts as my dick presses against the zipper of my slacks.
“Are you fucking with me?” I ask Gavino.
I watch as my boss throws back his head in laughter. “Not even I could ever be that fucking cruel, cugino,” he says between his laughs.
“Explain,” I demand.
Arlo snorts. Gavino shifts his gaze from mine, turning his head slightly to look up at Arlo. “Go ahead, Arlo. Tell him what happened.”
I watch as Arlo presses his lips together, then he shrugs a shoulder. “She came to me last night. She came with nothing but the clothes on her back and a proposition. Apparently, Irene kicked her out.”
“What was her proposition?” I grind out.
“One that you would beat the shit out of me for had I accepted, judging by your reaction.”
Arching my brow, I grind my teeth together and wait for him to answer. I can’t speak, a million different scenarios are running through my head and none of them I like. In fact, they all make me completely fucking homicidal.
“She wanted me to auction off her virginity,” he says.
Immediately, I stand to my feet and my body lurches forward. Gavino stands. He slams his fist down on the desk and my body jerks. “Sit,” he growls.
My body does what Gavino demands. I flop down in the chair, my hands balled into fists.
“Do you think that I would let Pippa Mazzilli be auctioned off that way? Do you think that I don’t know the connection you have with her? The way you’ve kept tabs on her? Watched her over the years?”
“How?” I grind out.
He shakes his head once. “I keep all the men in my inner circle close, Massimo. I know all of your movements, just like I know all of Arlo’s, Benicio’s, and Salvatore’s. It’s just fucking smart business,” Gavino snorts. “Plus, I saw the way you looked at her when we took her to see Bellarosa.”
“Yes. Fine. I have always had a thing for her. She was given her freedom. She’s too young, and she deserves to be happy. So, I’ve always stayed away.”
Arlo dips his chin in a nod. My eyes flick back and forth between the men. “What now?” I ask.
“You must decide. Do you want to marry her? She doesn’t know that it’s you, just that I’ve offered her up for marriage to a Made Man. I gave her three options, knowing that she would choose this one.”
Sinking my teeth into my bottom lip, I bite until I taste the tang of blood. “Two weeks,” I grunt.
“What?” Gavino asks.
Finding his eyes with my own, I release my lip and jut my chin forward. “Two weeks. That’s when the wedding will take place. I’m not going to allow anyone else to have her. She’s mine and this just proves that she’s meant for me.”
Gavino’s lips twitch. “So it does, my cugino.”
Jerking my chin, I stand to my feet. Arlo takes a step forward, his lips slowly curving into a smile. But it is Gavino who speaks to me.
“You deserve to have her, Massimo. You’ve been a good soldier, a better Street Boss. She is who you desire. She is untouched, pure, saved just for you. A true prize to be had by a man who has sacrificed and lost so much in life for the famiglia.”
His words make me choke up. Dipping my chin, I wonder if Pippa will feel the same or if she’ll be disappointed that I am the man who she’ll spend the rest of her life with. I decide that I don’t give a damn. I’m taking her. In two weeks, she’ll have my last name and I’ll own her body.
Chapter Five
PIPPA
Smiling down at the cooing baby, I wonder if there is hope in my future of having my own child. I have no clue who this man is that I’m marrying, so I don’t know if he’ll want children with me or not. I want them though. If I can’t have love with a husband, I want that love with children.
I almost ask Lenora, but decide against it. Not only does it not matter, it is not my decision and it will change nothing about my circumstances. Besides, I have more of a chance of becoming a mother if I am married, than if I work for Arlo and Gavino. I know that I am making the right decision.
The door of the bridal store opens and the opportunity to ask is taken from me, I’m glad for it. Lifting my eyes, I smile at the lady on the other side of the door. Her gaze flicks from me to Lenora. She gives her a tentative smile as she stands to the side to allow us entrance.
I hear my name being called and my steps falter. Turning around, I see Rosana and Aunt Irene making their way toward me. Rosana is waving her hand like a crazy girl and I can feel Irene’s anger even from a distance.