“I will. Be good, tesoro.”
Without another word, he spins around, unlocks the door and tugs it open before he completely disappears. I stay where I am, watching as women file into the bathroom, their eyes roaming over me with a mixture of disgust and curiosity.
I don’t blame them, I would be looking the same way if a handsome man just walked out of the bathroom and a woman, like me, looking like a hot mess was standing there, watching his retreating form.
“I am so fucked,” I whisper to myself.
“You totally are,” a woman hums as she brushes past me.
I ignore her comment. Turning around, I wash my hands and avoid my reflection in the mirror. Leaving the bathroom, I head back toward Massimo. I don’t have to go far to find him. He’s leaning against the wall, his gaze focused on the door and then on me.
He shakes his head once but thankfully doesn’t say anything. I’m seconds away from having a complete breakdown, if he says anything, I can’t promise that I can hold my shit together.
Wordlessly, we make our way toward Chloe and Luca who are cuddled together making out like teenagers.
ARLO
I shouldn’t have fucked her in the bathroom of a club like she was nothing more than a whore. But Christ, seeing her dancing with Massimo filled me with a rage that I’ve never felt before. It also made me want to remind her how only I can make her feel. Remind her what my cock feels like buried deep inside of her sweet body.
Making my way to the VIP area, I see Luciana, Vino, Tiziano, and a few other women hanging around. Security doesn’t bother me as I brush past them and make my way over to Vino and Luci.
“What’s wrong?” Luci asks immediately.
I can’t focus on her, I can’t feel her judgment right now. I fucked up, I’ve hurt Lenora and I just fucking can’t right now.
“You got anything on you?” I ask, turning to Vino.
He nods, then reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a few baggies and a blunt. I don’t care what their contents are right now. I just want to be high. I just want to forget that this is my life. That my woman just walked toward another man, that I’m married to someone that I hate, that I’ve ruined my whole life in just a matter of weeks.
I swallow whatever pills that Vino handed me, then walk over to the small bar and order a couple of whiskeys, one for each hand, then walk over to a small pub table that overlooks the dance floor.
Finishing one glass in a gulp, I bring the blunt to my lips and light it as my eyes roam the mass of bodies pressed together as they sweatily dance. A wave of guilt washes over me for ignoring Luci and her concern. I’m a fuckup though, so fucked up right now, I just need to breathe.
“She’s here, then?”
Turning my head, I look at Gavino’s profile. He’s watching the people dance as well, but I can tell that he’s not really seeing any of them.
“She is.” Inhaling, I let out my breath then snort. “She was dancing with Massimo. They practically looked like they were fucking.”
“And you made sure to piss on her leg, yeah?”
Chuckling, I inhale my smoke, then let it out slowly. “Fucked her in the bathroom.” I shrug.
“You’re an ass,” he points out. Then waits for a moment. “I would have done the same, but I wouldn’t have let her go back to him, I would have dragged her out by her hair if I needed to.”
“Can’t do that, yet. I need this shit with Wynter done. I can’t force Lenora to be the other woman, no matter how badly I want that.”
Gavino pushes away, taking a step back. “You can’t, but remember, you also can’t be mad at her if she moves on while you’re waiting for the opportunity to file, and then are forced to wait for the Tribunal with the church. Could take a year, Arlo. Are you prepared for that shit?”
He leaves, his words causing panic to flow throughout my entire body. Pinching my eyes closed, I inhale the smoke again trying to let it calm my rapidly beating heart, my anxiety and just me. Instead of walking back to my cousin and apologizing for ignoring her, I leave the club altogether.
I have some thinking to do, some plans to make. Gavino isn’t wrong, this entire process of annulling my marriage could take over a year to finalize. I can’t be without Lenora for a year and I can’t expect her to wait for me for that long either, that’s way too fucking much to ask of her.
Merda.
Chapter Twenty-Six
ARLO
Whatever Gavino gave me, it’s fucking good. I feel a million times better than I did just an hour ago. Pulling into the parking garage of the home that I share with Wynter, I kill my engine and look ahead at the building.
It’s a beautiful building, modern, expensive and nice, but it’s not me. I only bought it to appease her, so that I wouldn’t have to hear her complain. Exiting my car, I click the lock and activate the alarm.
Clearing my throat, I reach for my phone in my pocket and scroll through a couple of messages that Mia sent me about the auction.
I respond to her, then tell her that Tiziano is no longer her concern, that I have him handled and I’ll let her know which woman he’ll be taking when the time is closer. I can tell by her response that she’s hesitant about what we’ve just done.
Dipping our toes into true human trafficking isn’t something we would typically do, however, we’re walking a fine line with the women from Ireland, so what’s one more sin under our belts?
The apartment is quiet when I make my way inside, dark too. That is, until I turn a corner down the hall, and notice light spilling from the master bedroom.
I don’t know why I’m here, really. I know that emotionally, I’ve hit rock bottom. I want this marriage done and I’m a bit desperate. If I can find out what Wynter wants, maybe we can broker our own deal of sorts.
Maybe it’s all wishful thinking. I forget that I fucked her over as well. Granted, she’s no innocent, but I’ve been in the wrong as well. Wrapping my fingers around the door, I push it open and freeze at the sight in front of me.
My body moves faster than my brain. Lifting my phone, I touch the camera icon and begin to snap pictures of my wife, fucking another man.
She’s sitting astride a mountain of a man, her hands splayed against his hairy chest, her head tipped back and her mouth parted as she rolls her hips and searches for her orgasm.
“What the fuck?” the man growls.
I watch as if it’s all happening in slow motion. Wynter lifts her head, turning to face me, she lets out a scream and scrambles off her fuck toy. The man stands, using one of his hands to cover his dick.
“What a welcome home, wife,” I hiss.
The stranger’s eyes widen, he looks back at Wynter who is standing unashamed and completely naked against the wall. The surprise at being caught has left her face and now she’s just watching with amusement.
If she thinks I’m going to get jealous, or even care, that she was fucking someone else, she’s wrong. All she’s done is given me the perfect reason to file for an annulment.
An annulment for infidelity, according to our contract, means that she doesn’t get a dime from me when everything is all settled and done. For the church, it means that I’m free to marry Lenora.
“You decided to grace me with your presence, how kind, now leave. I’m not finished with what I was doing,” she smirks.
“Tell me,” I begin. “Is this the man you’ve been giving cash to out of your secret account? What is the last deposit for? I’m just so curious.”
I watch the color drain out of both of their faces and I can’t help but feel extremely victorious in this moment. Though, it all feels just a little too easy.
“God, you are such an asshole,” she screeches.
“Because I’m one step ahead of you? Because I figured you out? Or because I won’t be your lapdog?”
She stomps her foot, which I notice does not cause her tits to bounce. She’s fake, head-to-toe, inside and out. She’s nothing like the woman I love, and instead
, everything I hate.
Shoving my phone back in my pocket, I reach for my gun and tug it out, pointing it at the Neanderthal in front of me.
“Do tell, what is your name?” I ask.
He gulps, his eyes focusing on the barrel of my gun before they lift to my face. “Harvey,” he breathes. “I work security for Senator McClain.”
I almost laugh at how easily he gave up exactly who he was and how he knew the bitch. Tilting my head to the side, I wonder if the senator is in on all of this. If he knew about my affair and about Wynter’s plan to sabotage, frighten, and possibly harm an innocent woman.
“You’re going to talk to me, Harvey,” I announce.
His eyes widen even more than I thought possible. Lifting my chin toward Wynter, I grin. “Put on a robe, get this man some pants, but first, I want both of your phones in my hand and whatever weapon he has in his clothes as well.”
“Fuck you,” Wynter seethes.
“Never again,” I quip. “I shouldn’t have the first time.”
She straightens her spine. “You sure didn’t act disgusted when you fucked me over and over, every night,” she announces.
I let out a sigh. Choosing to ignore her words, I wait for her to do what I asked. She takes her sweet ass time, pulling out a gun and a knife from Harvey’s jacket. She hands them to me before she tosses both of their phones at my feet.
Arching a brow, I wait for her to hand Harvey his pants, then put on her own robe. She does this last, maybe she thinks that by staying naked I’ll either get turned on or get jealous that Harvey is looking at her.
I am neither.
I really don’t give a fuck about her and that makes me feel funny. I should care about her for no other reason than she’s my wife, but I don’t. I feel absolutely nothing when I look at her.
“Stand next to him,” I demand. She does, I keep my gun trained on them while I fish my phone out of my pocket.
My first call is to my father, my second, Gavino. I hate to bother him when I know he’s enjoying an evening out with his wife, but I don’t have a choice, I need to go through the proper channels for this.
Then, finally, my last call is to Senator McClain himself. Only then does Wynter show some kind of emotion. Her face pales and that’s when I get the truth from her. She didn’t do any of this with her father’s knowledge.
A slow smile spreads across my face as her father confirms that he will be at our place in just thirty minutes.
“Well, well, well, wife, it seems like you’re surprising people all over the place today,” I grin.
“You had no right to involve my father,” she hisses.
Chuckling, I shrug one shoulder. “You had no right to involve Lenora,” I say, speaking her name in Wynter’s presence for the first time.
Wynter narrows her eyes, then smirks. “You did this to her, not me. If you would have just followed through with your promises to me, then none of this would have ever happened.”
Biting my bottom lip, I frown then my lips twitch. “I never promised you anything, Wynter. This is where you’re in the wrong. I promised to marry you, to give you money and a place to live and to one day put my babies in your belly. I never promised love, fidelity, or romance. If you wanted that, you should have never asked your daddy to set you up with a complete stranger.”
She stomps her foot, again, like the true spoiled bitch that she is. She opens her mouth to say something, but she’s cut off by the front door slamming. I know who it is since Gavino is the only other person who has a key to my place.
“Well, then,” he murmurs.
“Oh,” Luciana gasps.
“Meet my wife’s lover, he works security for her father and he’s the man she gave cash to. Now, here I am just trying to figure out what exactly she paid him to do, other than trash Lenora’s inventory.”
“Holy shit,” Harvey whispers.
All of our attention turns toward the man who has been otherwise silent. His eyes are focused on Gavino and he looks like he’s about to piss his pants. I snort, wondering just how much Wynter actually told this fucking idiot before she hired him to do her dirty work.
“Yes, holy shit. You’ve fucked with my Underboss and cousin,” Gavino announces.
I hear Harvey gulp, his gaze swinging to Wynter before it comes back to us. “I didn’t know. She didn’t tell me. All she said was her man was a piece of shit and she wanted this whore of his to pay for what she’d done. She paid me to rough her up, but when I got there, when I saw her, I couldn’t.”
“So, you destroyed her shop instead and hit her on the head with the butt of your gun?” I ask.
Harvey shrugs. “She looked like a nice girl,” he says, then he turns toward Wynter. “I’m sorry, baby, but I couldn’t hurt her. She was sweet looking, and she was so fucking scared.”
Wynter’s eyes narrow and I watch as she lifts her nose into the air as she crosses her arms beneath her chest. Her robe gapes slightly. My eyes automatically go toward the expanse of cleavage she’s showing.
I have no doubt that she knows she’s showing it and she’s doing it on purpose. Unfortunately for her, her tits don’t really distract me so if she’s trying to do that, she’s going to fail.
“What else did she hire you to do?” Gavino asks, gone is his amused curious tone. He’s starting to get angry and I don’t blame him, because I’m already fucking pissed off.
“Tell him and I’ll never fuck you again,” Wynter hisses.
I let out a bark of amusement. “You won’t be alive to fuck him again and neither will he. So, I would start talking if you want a chance at saving your own asses.”
“You won’t kill me,” she snorts.
I shake my head, my lips twitching in a smile that I can’t hide even if I wanted to. “Puttana, I can do whatever I want to you. That has already been established. However, with the position I just caught you in, and the evidence of you going behind my back the way that you have, I can kill you and nobody would say a goddamn word.”
“My father,” she begins.
“Won’t say shit,” another voice says and we all turn our heads to watch Senator McClain waltz into the room. “You used my man to go behind your husband’s back. I told you who Arlo was, the type of man that he was. You wanted the danger and power, you got it, but you are not immune to the consequence of your actions, Wynter.”
I’m surprised by his words, then again, he’s a politician and I have no doubt that the things he’s saying, they’re only for mine and Gavino’s benefit. He wants to stay in our good graces, especially since I have shit on him now with the commissioner deal that was brokered a few weeks ago.
“Daddy,” she gasps.
Holding a hand up. I decide we can’t go on like this. Nobody is telling me what she paid this man to do and if he’s put the wheels in motion on their plan or if I can kill it and him all at the same time.
“Tell me the plan,” I demand.
Harvey opens his mouth, but Wynter takes a step toward him and without so much as a blink of her eyes, I watch as she shoves a knife in the man’s neck. He reaches for the object as blood starts to bubble out of his open mouth before he falls to the ground in one slow move.
“That was a bit dramatic,” Gavino murmurs.
“Wynter,” Senator McClain scolds.
She turns to me, her body splattered in her lover’s blood. Looking into her eyes, I realize now what made me so uneasy about her from day one. She has no conscience. Zero. She smiles wickedly, almost as if to seduce and she takes a step toward me.
“Now that he’s gone, let’s just move on,” she purrs.
Turning toward her father, I lift a brow. “Did you forget to disclose that your daughter is a fucking psychopath?” I ask.
He shrugs a shoulder, his eyes leaving mine and shifting toward Wynter. “She is, but isn’t she wonderful in her element? She would make a wonder mafia wife, which is why I brokered the deal in the first place. You’re just too much of a pussy to see he
r full potential.”
Wynter smiles proudly under her father’s attention. I blink, shifting my gaze to Gavino who is frowning as he takes the pair in. Looking over to Luciana next, she isn’t looking so much in disapproval like Vino, but more in curiosity. She must sense me watching her because her eyes slowly move toward mine.
She shakes her head once before she whispers. “They’re sick, Arlo. Something is very wrong here,” she murmurs.
“McClain,” I bark, breaking their weird connection.
He jumps, then turns to face me. “What did you do?” I demand.
His lips twitch, then turn up into a smile. “I feel like I could tell you, but what fun would that be?”
I want to point my gun at him, I want to pull the trigger and end his life, but I can’t. McClain knows more than he’s letting on, he always has. That is almost scary. What does he truly know? Who does he know? What is he hiding?
There are a million questions and since it’s obvious he isn’t sane, I can’t ask him and expect any type of real answer.
“It may not be fun, but it would be in your best interest and that of your daughter’s,” Gavino announces, cool as a goddamn cucumber.
McClain’s gaze shifts from Gavino, then back to Wynter’s. I watch as something shifts inside of him, it’s as if something takes over his entire body. Wynter senses it too. She takes a step toward him, her entire demeanor changing in an instant.
“Fuck you,” she hisses before he can even say a single word.
He lifts his hand, flicking his wrist as he gives her a small wave. “You’re on your own, daughter.”
“As always,” she quips.
He ignores her, turning his back to her and then smiles. “I don’t know what she paid Harvey to do. I do know that she asked me to make sure the whore wasn’t ever heard from again. Since you’ve had her under guard, I haven’t had a chance to go through with the devised plan, that will soon change.”
“When? How?” I demand.
Becoming his Mistress: A Zanetti Famiglia Novel Page 20