by Bethany-Kris
“To you, it wouldn’t.”
“How much profit are you going to have to give up to keep them?” Dante asked, honestly curious.
Antony refused to answer.
Dante didn’t mind. “And while Marcello Industries is taking money from a third-party as well as their own company’s bank for this proposal, Empire Developments is taking the cash directly from a private account. I might have a little work to do in order to get my company up to speed, but rest assured, everything I have is in this proposal. Literally.”
Antony’s irritation was starting to show as he drummed his fingers rapidly to the table. Dante didn’t relent.
“If Marcello Industries fails, it will be nothing to their bottom line. They have nothing to lose in this. Therefore, their personal investment into the contract can only be determined by the weight of their losses on a possible failure. Empire Developments has everything to lose if the contract fails on our end, so consequently we wouldn’t allow that to happen. At all.”
“Mr. Marcello?”
Both Antony and Dante broke their staring contest to give the middle investor—Leigh Denor—their attention, but the man was only regarding Antony.
“Do you have a rebuttal for that?” Leigh asked.
Antony couldn’t refute it. He didn’t have to say a word for Dante to be aware.
“I think we have all we need to begin considerations on the proposal,” Trina Sleen, the lone female investor, said. “No need to keep cutting at throats here, even if the show is fantastic to watch. But, if I may say so, well done, Empire Developments.”
Dante stared his father down. “I learned from the best.”
• • •
“Cristo, something smells fucking amazing,” Dante said as he walked into the condo.
Dante was maybe starting to get used to the fact he had no control in his kitchen anymore. He quickly crossed the room and tried to grab one of the fresh scones on the countertop.
Without even looking up from the bread she was kneading, Catrina reached out, grabbed a wooden spoon, and cracked the back of his hand with it. Hard.
Motherfucker that hurt. Dante hissed, hiding his hand from another potential smack. “Cazzo! I paid for this kitchen, Cat. It’s mine.”
“Maybe, but I’m the only one between us who actually uses it. By default, it now becomes mine. Stay out of my kitchen, Dante.”
“You’re awful.”
“I can be,” Catrina agreed. “Once the bread is done, you can eat.”
“But, I’m hungry now.”
“You should have thought of that when you refused breakfast this morning. I bet you were far too busy to eat lunch, like I said you would be.”
Dante sighed, knowing damn well he wasn’t going to win the battle. Catrina was ridiculously particular. “Did you get in contact with your men in LA?”
“Yes, Gae would like to see me in a week. Things are getting sticky.”
A week? “Can’t someone else—”
Catrina stopped kneading the bread, cutting Dante with a look. “That’s not how it goes. My supply and demand doesn’t work the same way yours does, Dante. My clients are not your average user on the streets. They don’t want whoever delivering their products, they want the queen. And so, they have to pay accordingly for her. Private charted flights. Exclusive parties. Politics. Major athletes. Hollywood names. Those are my game. They pay a certain price for a certain kind of dealer. So, if Gae wants me out there to smooth the waves for a couple of clients and check out the supply chain while I’m at it, I will do that.”
“All right,” Dante said quietly. “I get it.”
That didn’t mean he had to fucking like it, though.
Catrina went back to kneading the bread. “You shouldn’t worry.”
“I’m not worrying.”
“Liar, you are and you shouldn’t. I’ve been doing this for over a decade.”
“But you’re also my wife, Cat. You’re a bigger target, now. Especially for officials or even someone who wants to piss me off. Which means the game you played before isn’t going to work anymore. I’m considering sending along an enforcer or two with you.”
Catrina froze. “Absolutely not.”
“Cat—”
“No, Dante. I don’t need enforcers, never mind the fact they would be all in my business and my client’s. The answer is no. I can handle myself just fine.”
“I’m aware of what you can do.”
Or mostly, anyway. Catrina and her fucking knives.
“I’m serious, do not send men to trail me. It could ruin the client’s trust in my ability to stay invisible in their lives, and neither Gae nor Pao liked having your men around while they were here. If you do send men without my permission, I promise you will regret it.”
Dante blinked, stunned. “I beg your pardon?”
“You heard me, Dante.”
Dante felt his walls build up, defenses rising. “And just what in the hell would you do, dolce ragazza?”
Catrina’s hazel eyes flashed with warning. “Only one of us would return to New York.”
“You can’t kill my men.”
“There’s a difference between can’t and shouldn’t. I don’t care much for rules, and my ability to kill has worked just fine for years. Neither of us make empty promises, so let’s not start testing each other’s lines.”
She was serious. Dante didn’t understand this woman’s mindset to save his life. His frustration level climbed up a notch or two.
“By the way, how did it go today?” Catrina asked, placing a dish towel over the bread bowl while the dough set.
“We’re over it, just like that?”
“Arguing is pointless.”
“With you arguing is pointless.”
“Same difference,” Catrina said, smiling.
Dante hated how Catrina’s combative nature and stubbornness was entirely too appealing to him.
“Tell me how it went with the investors, Dante. I’ve been dying here all day waiting to know. I was going to call and ask, but I didn’t think you would want me to.”
Really?
His walls crashed back down. Dante had no idea how Catrina managed to do that. One minute he could be ready to lock her in a room until she would see things from his perspective, and in the next, her sweeter side came into view and bled its way into his system.
Dante didn’t want a passionate affair with this crazy woman … or he hadn’t before. They were supposed to be partners. An advantage each could use. Somehow, he just knew they were going to fail at the first. Especially considering the way Catrina was grinning at him, eager to know how his meeting went, told Dante she cared. Most importantly, about him. How difficult would it be to get her to admit it?
“You could have called,” Dante said, leaning on the counter. “I wouldn’t have minded.”
It was another olive branch from his end. He was still waiting on one from her.
“I’ll keep that in mind for next time. So tell me.”
“It went okay. I won’t know for sure about the contract for a little while, but it went well.”
“Good. See, I told you your worries were useless.”
Dante grinned. “Maybe.”
“Oh, I forgot to mention it, but your moth—”
A ring of a cellphone in Dante’s jacket pocket interrupted Catrina. Dante held a finger up to ask her for a minute as he answered the call without checking the caller ID first. “Dante Marcello speaking.”
“Congratulations, son.”
Dante stilled at his father’s voice, turning his back to Catrina. “What did I do to deserve the praise?”
Besides pissing you off today, Dante thought.
“I just got the call five minutes ago on my way to meet Lucian for dinner letting me know they wouldn’t be needing my plans.”
“Weren’t you the one who told me you don’t appreciate word games today, Dad?”
Antony laughed deeply. “That I did. I asked them to let m
e deliver the news and they agreed.”
“Get on with it, Dad. I’m kind of busy here.”
“Mmhmm, sure you are. You need to work on that attitude of yours. Nonetheless, your bid beat out Marcello Industries. So again, congratulations, son.”
Dante felt like he swallowed his tongue. “What?”
“You heard me. They’ll be calling soon, I imagine, but I had to do it first.”
Of course, Antony did.
“Yeah?” Dante asked, still not quite believing it.
“Yes, Dante. Well done.”
Dante said goodbye to his father and hung up the phone, astounded. Setting the phone on the counter, his mind ran wild. The most prominent of all his thoughts to stand out was the fact his father didn’t sound the least bit pissed or contrite about losing the bid to his son’s start-up company. In fact, Antony seemed … proud.
And shit, his father sure as hell hadn’t let Dante win.
“Bello?” Catrina asked, drawing Dante from his thoughts.
“I got it,” Dante whispered.
“What?”
Dante’s palms slapped down on the granite counter, smacking loudly. “I got the fucking contract, Cat.”
Catrina’s grin melted into a brilliant smile across the island. “Really?”
“Yes! Holy shit, I didn’t think I would. I mean, the contract is solid and everything but I didn’t have the rep like Marcello Industries does and—”
“Stop rambling,” Catrina ordered, laughing.
Dante realized his excitement over winning the bid must have been terribly infectious, because Catrina seemed just as happy about his success as he was. He didn’t have the first clue of what came over him as he watched his wife’s face light up with happiness at the sight of his joy, but the undeniable urge to kiss Catrina slammed into Dante like a wrecking ball.
Not even bothering to think about his next move, Dante leaned over the island before he could second guess his choice, cupped Catrina’s jaw in his palms, and kissed her smiling lips. Her laughter died into a breathless gasp at the sudden kiss. She tasted like candied sugar and the moment her lips parted, he speared his tongue into the warm softness of her mouth to find more of that flavor.
Dante didn’t know what he anticipated from his wife when he broke the invisible barrier between them. After the one time they’d actually had sex on their wedding night, their lines were clearly drawn. The physical side of their non-existent emotional relationship didn’t need to be fed. Dante knew exactly why; they worked like this and that could be a bad thing.
He didn’t care at that moment, he just kept kissing her. Catrina’s fingers curled around his wrists, locking him in place. Her grin grew a little sexier when he began to pull away from the heaven that was her mouth. All the while, her heated gaze never left his.
“Oh!”
That one word from a voice Dante wasn’t expecting sent him stumbling back from the island and Catrina. He cringed and cursed loudly. Dante’s head whipped to the side, immediately finding his mother standing in the entryway between the living room and the kitchen. Something akin to mortification flooded Dante’s gut.
Cecelia shouldn’t be in his condo. Well, not alone with Dante’s wife, anyway. There had been little to no love between his wife and mother ever since that first introduction and he didn’t understand why she was standing there looking at him with a knowing smile and a quiet laugh.
Catrina cleared her throat. “I tried to tell you, but the phone call …”
Dante blindly waved at his wife, brushing off whatever it was she just said. “I’ve, uh, got shit to do.”
Yeah, that seemed like a good plan. Anything but what he was doing now sounded fucking perfect.
Chapter Eleven
Cat leaned in the doorway of the spare bedroom Dante used as a home gym. His fists slammed into the punching bag repeatedly with no pause between the hits.
“Dante?”
He either hadn’t heard her call of his name, or he was ignoring her. Cat didn’t mind if it was the latter. After earlier, she could understand his unwillingness to talk, especially with her. She should have told him straightaway his mother had come over at Cat’s invitation, but she didn’t think he would mind, really.
Well, Dante probably wouldn’t have if he hadn’t …
Jesus, he kissed her. And it was magnificent.
Cat was done pretending as though Dante didn’t have some kind of crazy effect on her physically. Not that she could disregard it now if she really wanted to. Desperately, she needed more of that feeling from earlier. She didn’t care what it meant to want it, either.
“Dante?” Cat called again, firmer and louder the second time.
Dante turned on his heel, yanking out an earbud from his ear that Cat hadn’t noticed. The wire dangled over his shoulder, music still buzzing from the tiny speaker. While he stared at her with those piercing eyes of his, she took in the sight of his form damp with perspiration. Half-naked or clothed, it didn’t make a damn difference. Dante was gorgeous, and he was the only man who made Cat want to bend to his desires, something she kept fighting against.
Cat knew those hands of his could find every button to push on her without a lick of trouble. His arms, roped with bands of muscles, could lift, pin, or hold her. She’d had him once … and it was so, so good. It might have been easier if she hadn’t crossed that line in the first place but somehow, Cat doubted it.
“What, Catrina?” Dante asked, his breathing still harsh from his workout.
She didn’t bother to hide the shiver wracking her spine at the sound of her name in his mouth.
“I wanted to let you know your mother left a while ago.”
Dante frowned. “I would have said goodbye.”
Cat shrugged. “She said it was fine. You were … busy.”
“Embarrassed, you mean.”
“Well, that, too.” Cat offered him a smile that wasn’t returned. “There’s really nothing to be—”
“If you finish that sentence, I’ll physically throw your ass out of this room.”
Cat laughed. “You could try. Dante, you’re twenty-nine-years-old, you’re allowed to kiss your wife if you want. I don’t think Cecelia minded seeing it. She was more pleasant to me after than she was before, so maybe seeing it helped her.”
“That’s not my problem,” Dante muttered.
“Then what is?”
“I’m not in the mood for this right now.”
“Dante, enough.”
“Apparently we’re going to talk whether I want to or not,” he said, turning to her with crossed arms and a defensive stare.
“About earlier—”
“I’m sorry, I crossed a line. It won’t happen again.”
Cat shook her head, exasperated.
“I liked it,” Cat said, tossing her arms wide. “I didn’t mind you kissing me. Was it a shock? Yes, but that was okay, too. It’s fine, bello.”
Dante stared at her like she had grown a second head in the span of seconds. “Liked it.”
“Very much. I’ve never denied my attraction for you, Dante. I only said I didn’t want us to act on it.”
Clearing his throat, Dante glanced away from Cat. “Why was my mother here, anyway?”
“You’re deflecting again.”
“No, I’m honestly curious.”
“I invited her,” Cat admitted.
“God, why? She isn’t the nicest person to you, bella mia. I would understand if you wanted to keep your distance.”
“Maybe so, but I also haven’t made much of an effort to let her be, either.”
Dante raised a single brow as he regarded her again. “Between the two of you, she should be the one to make the first move, Cat.”
“For you, sure. For me, no. Today was my way of inviting her into our space, not hers. We’ve been married four months, and you’ve yet to invite your mother here even once. I understand why. At the same time, I’m aware that probably hurts her, regardless if she admi
ts it or not. So, I invited her over to cook with me.”
“If you think it will help, dolcezza.”
“I do because she’s your mother and she’s important to you. The more you push her away for my sake, the more she dislikes me, Dante. I want Cecelia to at least find some common ground with me where we can work from. Cooking seems like a good place to start.”
Dante chuckled. “She does like to cook.”
“So do I.”
“Mmm, I know.”
“I wish you hadn’t run off like that, though.”
“I’m sorry,” Dante said quietly. “She just … shocked me, that’s all. My problem wasn’t my mother, but she didn’t help.”
“What was the problem?”
“It was easy. Kissing you, I mean. I didn’t even have to think about it and if my mother hadn’t interrupted us, I wouldn’t have stopped. So you liked it, Cat. That’s great, but you made it clear what you wanted from me and it’s not a physical relationship.”
Cat tapped a beat to the floor with her foot. Before she lost her nerve, she asked, “Have you been faithful to me?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Have you been faithful to me since we married, Dante?”
“What does that have to do with anything?” he asked.
“For me, it has a lot to do with it.”
“Why?”
Cat didn’t like the tone of his voice or how defensive he seemed. “Can I assume, based on your reaction, that the answer is no, you haven’t been?”
“You can assume fucking nothing,” Dante snapped right back.
“Because you don’t think it’s my place to question your fidelity, or because you have been?”
“Not your place—”
“Don’t act surprised, Dante. It’s all too common in our culture for men to have mistresses on the side filling in for their wives and girlfriends.”
Dante looked as if he’d swallowed a wasp. “Not in my home it wasn’t.”
“Oh?”
“No, my father was always faithful to my mother and so are my brothers in regards to their wives.”
“But we’re not like them, Dante. We’re not in love, building a family, or any of those normal things that come along with marriage. It wouldn’t shock me to know you’ve been with other women since we married.”