“You were heartbroken.”
“Yes. And it didn’t start to heal until I met you, Aldo, and that is the truth.”
Aldo leaned over and pressed his lips against hers, apparently not caring that she’d been kissing Indio only minutes back. But Elli cared. Indio’s lips were so different. Aldo’s lips held a kind of despair of their own, though, she realized as he kissed her hard again and then pulled back. “Elli …we’ve both made mistakes. Maybe your brother discovered Indio’s true nature. I don’t know. But, god, Elli, please, don’t go near him again. For your own safety. I couldn’t bear it if he hurt you. I still see the blood on Yvetta’s dress …there were so many stab wounds, the medical examiner had to check and recheck he’d counted right. He gutted her. Indio Navarro gutted Yvetta because she wouldn’t leave me. If he were to do the same to you …” Aldo dropped his head in his hands and gave a sob, and Elli wrapped her arms around him.
“He won’t, Aldo. I swear. It’s over now. I have closure.”
Elli wondered just how many times she would have to tell herself that before she believed it.
A bottle of scotch and two packs of cigarettes, both now empty, lay on the ground next to Indio. He sat back against the stone wall surrounding his property, staring into the inky black night. He was aware that it was still winter and that the temperature had dropped to just above freezing, but he didn’t care. He felt as if he had been hit by a sledgehammer, worse than when he’d seen Elli weeks back, dressed in lilac at the party.
Turning around and suddenly seeing his Elli Bella, his best friend’s little sister, looking more beautiful than he had ever dreamed, he’d been torn between storming over to her and running away. She was staring at him in that same way she had the last time they had seen each other, when she had told him she loved him and he had wanted so desperately to tell her that she was the love of his life, the one person he would never hurt and yet …he had done just that. That day he had broken not just his heart, but hers too, and he would never forgive himself.
Two steps, a voice told him. She’s two steps away. Go to her, kiss her, tell her you’re sorry, and never, ever let her go. Ever.
He had taken one step and then seen a man take Elli’s arm. The spell was broken. Indio had felt another sledgehammer, this time one filled with hatred and loathing.
Aldo Constanza.
You bastard. No, you don’t get to love her. You don’t get to touch my Elli.
But by the way Aldo was behaving, there had obviously been something more than friendship between them. He’d watched Aldo bend down and kiss her perfect mouth, then Elli’s shocked look of dismay as she looked back at Indio to see if he had seen it.
He had. And he had fled.
Indio rocked his head back against the stone wall, welcoming the light thud of pain.
Elli. His Elli Bella had come here, and finally, after all these years, he had felt joy. Her beautiful smile, the feel of her lips against his, and the way her body curved into his as he made love to her. No.
That wasn’t making love—it was the desperate fucking of a man who couldn’t be with the woman he loved. That wasn’t the tender lovemaking he’d dreamed about for years, that was the only comfort in his solitary world. He’d imagined the first time he and Elli would have sex to be a relaxed, fun time together, laughing just like they had in the old days. He had lived for the moments when the shy, young girl would come to see him. Enzo would roll his eyes and make himself scarce, and Elli would snuggle under the blanket with Indio to watch old movies. They had never even kissed until that terrible day when he’d gone away.
He knew she was in love with him, of course, because he felt the same way. He was done. He had the girl of his dreams and he was done. Elli was his entire world; there wasn’t one cell in his body that doubted they would be together forever.
Then Enzo’s girlfriend, Imelda, for whatever reason, had accused Indio of assaulting her. Indio denied it vehemently, but the damage to his and Enzo’s friendship was fatal, even if Indio could see that Enzo didn’t believe his girlfriend. He and Imelda had broken up anyway and Indio had been banished. There was no way Enzo would let him near Elli, regardless of his innocence. Indio had begged him not to send him away, but Enzo wouldn’t bend.
And so, Indio exiled himself. For years he worked everywhere else but Italy. He settled in Seattle for a time, making friends, but then he met Yvetta and his world fell apart.
Indio pulled himself to his feet and shuffled into the house, falling fully clothed onto his bed. If he died right there, he couldn’t have cared less …except Elli was in trouble. Real, bad, desperate trouble, and he didn’t know if she knew it.
The terrifying thing, Indio thought as he gave into drunken unconsciousness, was that he didn’t know if he could save her—or if he would end up causing her a long, painful death.
Two months. Elli counted the days since she had seen Indio—touched him, kissed him, fucked him—and knew she shouldn’t torture herself. Things with Aldo had been steady, but now he wanted more from her. It had started with him insisting she join him for a business trip to America. Elli had arranged the time off from work, apologetically, as she knew they were busy.
Vivienne had taken her aside. “I’m worried about you, Els. You’re too pale and you’ve lost a ton of weight.”
“I’m good, honest.” Elli hadn’t told Viv about seeing—and sleeping with—Indio. She couldn’t bear to say his name aloud, not even to her close friend.
“Darling, Aldo isn’t being too controlling, is he? I’ve noticed. Lately, he’s around more, telling you what to do …”
Elli shook her head. “It’s fine. He’s worried about my psycho stalker, is all.”
“Well, I can understand that. Any news on that?”
Elli half-smiled. “Well, whoever he is, he’s certainly imaginative in the ways he’s thought of to kill me.”
Vivienne shuddered. “Don’t joke.”
“There, see? That’s how Aldo feels, so I’m handing over a little bit of control to make him feel better. He knows better than to push it.”
But Elli wondered if he did know the boundaries she had set. As they packed, he told her to bring certain dresses or clothes—mostly red or white—and in the end, she got annoyed. “Who made you Anna Wintour?” she half-joked, half-snapped at him.
He didn’t find it funny. “I’m just advising you because you haven’t traveled in the same circles as me and I don’t want you to be humiliated.”
Elli flushed with anger. “Are you concerned that I’ll be humiliated or you’ll be humiliated? I’m sorry I’m such an embarrassment to you, Aldo.” She threw some of her favorite clothes into the case—pinks, browns, blacks, and lilacs—and then left him alone. She went out to the balcony to seeth, but five minutes later, she felt his arms slide around her waist and his lips on her neck.
“Sorry,” he mumbled. “I’m a jerk.”
“Big jerk.”
“Big jerk.” He pulled her back against him, and she felt his erection press into the small of her back. “Got a bigger jerk for you, if you’re interested.”
Elli had to laugh, and then he was pushing up her skirt. “Don’t turn around. Play our game. Pretend there are men down there, all wanting to fuck you.”
He was inside her, but Elli felt strangely disconnected. Sex hadn’t been the same since Indio, but she didn’t want Aldo to know that so she made all the same noises. And it wasn’t as if the sex was bad—far from it. She just felt exhausted all the time, drained of emotion.
Now, as she sat on Aldo’s private jet, flying over Paris at night, she gazed down at the lights beneath her. Aldo was watching her, a smile on his face. “Have you ever been?”
“To Paris? Once, a couple of years ago. I was invited to interview a candidate in the election. Why, I don’t know. Anyway, I did it, and Le Monde picked it up after we published it.”
“Feather in your cap.”
Elli smiled at him. “It was, actually, althou
gh I never knew why he would choose an Italian journalist to cover his run in the French election. It did open a lot of doors for me.”
“Your talent did that, sweetheart. As for the Italian thing, your writing transcends nationality.”
She smiled at him. “Thank you, baby.”
Aldo got up and came to sit next to her. “Elli, we can be happy, can’t we?”
“Of course.”
“Because, right now, I don’t think you are happy.” He swept her hair back over her shoulder. It was on the tip of her tongue to lie to him, but then she just sighed.
“I’m trying, Aldo. I swear. It’s just with this stalker thing and the crap in the gossip rags about me …it’s getting to me.”
“And so is Indio Navaro.”
Elli leaned her head on his shoulder. “I’m trying, Aldo.”
“I know. We’ll have fun in Seattle, I swear. I have a few meetings, but after that, we’ll go do the tourist thing.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing Jess Storm, I have to say. I really liked her.”
“Hmm.”
Elli looked up at him. “You don’t like her?”
“What’s not to like? She’s lovely. I just wonder at seeing someone who might remind you of the night at the party.”
Elli nuzzled his neck. “You know, seeing Indio wasn’t the only thing that happened that night.”
Aldo smiled genuinely then. “Yes, the Masquerade orgy …I was surprised you took to it so quickly.”
Was that a slur? She couldn’t tell, but chose to give him the benefit of the doubt. “I wanted to make you happy.”
He kissed her. “Watching you get fucked by those men …god, that was a turn on.”
Elli grinned at him. “Me and my vagina could tell.”
“Talking about your vagina …there’s a bedroom in the back and I’m feeling a little …”
Elli laughed, sliding her hand onto the growing bulge in his pants. “Well, well, well, hello.”
With a growl, he bore her off to the bedroom, Eli giggling as he tickled her while undressing her.
They made love slowly, kissing and enjoying the time together. This time, Elli actually felt something and was glad. Elli stroked the hair back from his forehead. “Your hair is getting so long,” she said, suddenly noticing how long and curly his previously short hair was. Why hadn’t she seen it before? She felt bad then; how self-involved she had been.
“You like it?”
She nodded. “I do.” She didn’t add that it reminded her of Indio’s unruly mess of hair. That would kill the mood in a minute.
***
After making love, Elli fell asleep, and when she woke, it was lighter outside the plane windows. Rubbing her eyes, she was suddenly aware of Aldo’s voice, angry and shouting in the main cabin. She pulled her dress back on and padded in to see what was wrong.
Aldo’s face was red and contorted with anger as he yelled into his phone. “What the fuck? Who got those records? Well, I want them in my office in Seattle tomorrow. I don’t fucking care if they’re in Sydney. Make it fucking happen. And find out who sold the story to the papers.”
He hadn’t seen her, and Elli watched him, with growing anxiety, beat his head with his hands, his face red and full of rage.
“Baby?” Her voice was small, and he looked up. For a second, the murderous rage in his eyes terrified her. But then his expression softened.
“I’m sorry, little one. I didn’t mean to wake you.” She went to him, and he kissed her. “Did you sleep okay?”
She nodded. “What is it, honey? What’s happened?”
Aldo drew in a lungful of air, obviously trying to keep his temper. “Someone sold a bullshit story about me in the papers. They’re saying my work in Uganda is a front for gun-running. Can you believe it? Why the hell would I need to sell weapons? I’m already a billionaire, for the love of god.”
There was a sharp pang of adrenaline spiking through Elli. “Why on Earth would anyone say something so …random, like that?”
Aldo sighed, pulling her into his arms. “Don’t worry about it, cara mia. I’ve had bad press before.”
“Aldo, it’s not just bad press, it’s libelous. Have you spoken to your lawyers? What are the records you were talking about?”
Aldo looked at her sharply, and for a second, she saw real anger. She took a step back.
“Aldo …”
“You don’t ever question me again, Elli. Do you understand? Ever.”
Elli swallowed hard as he stepped toward her, his voice low, dangerous. You’re not safe. Indio’s words came back to her. “It’s fine, Aldo. Forget I said anything.”
But he didn’t back down. Rather, he advanced, his hands gripping her shoulders painfully. “I have been patient. Very patient with you, Elli, and your first thought is to condemn me.”
What the hell? “I did no such thing,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady, though his fingers were biting into her flesh so hard that she knew they would leave bruises. “I was trying to figure out our next move.”
“That’s my job to figure out.” His hand was under her skirt, pushing her legs apart. “You know what your job is.” He freed his cock from his pants, and then he was in her, fucking her against the wall, his arm across her throat, his eyes fixed on hers. Elli was scared, scared of this man she was seeing for the first time. What the hell had happened? He’d changed in a flash.
She went along with his love-making, although it was far from love, feeling trapped and frightened, and afterward, when he’d withdrawn and immediately sat back down to his paperwork, she went back to the bedroom and let hot tears stream down her cheeks.
She fell into an uneasy sleep, only waking to feel him slip an arm around her waist. Elli immediately stiffened, afraid. “Scuzi, Elli Bella,” Aldo said softly. “Forgive me, my darling. I was riled up and angry. I would never hurt you.”
Still upset, Elli turned over to face him. “You treated me like a hole, Aldo. Just a hole to fuck.”
“I’m sorry.”
Elli was silent, studying his expression closely. He had all the appearance of contrition …but she didn’t believe he was sorry. She could see something else in his eyes …triumph. Nausea rose in her throat. She couldn’t speak, then, and just closed her eyes, wanting the pain to go away. She felt him kiss her, but she didn’t respond.
“Elli Bella?”
“Don’t call me that, please.” It hurt too much to hear Indio’s name for her in this man’s mouth.
This man. God, like she hadn’t been dating Aldo for months. This man. Like he was a stranger.
Elli sighed and turned away from him. Aldo curved his body to meet hers, spooning her, but she didn’t respond.
The tension between them remained as they landed in Seattle, and Elli was relieved when, after they had arrived at the hotel, Aldo excused himself to work. Elli went out into the city to walk around and see it for herself. She was excited to be there, and even more so when she saw the beauty of the place. The views over to the Olympic Mountains were breathtaking, Elliott Bay glittering in the late spring sun. It was a clear, blue-sky day, and Elli lost track of time, gathering tourist leaflets and mixing in with the Seattle crowds. In Pioneer Square, she found a small coffee house with outside seating and sat down to people-watch and catch her breath.
Soon her mind was drifting back to the scenes on the plane. Now that the shock had passed, she was left feeling angry. How dare Aldo treat her like that? He’d made her feel like a whore, and worse than that, like a stupid little girl. He knew she’d had experience with handling bad press—and very recently too—so why on earth would he behave like that?
The answer was in front of her, but she didn’t even want to consider it. There was no way, no way Aldo was a gunrunner. It was ridiculous …wasn’t it?
Elli drew in a deep lungful of breath. She was a journalist, right? So, go investigate, she told herself. Find out for yourself. She wondered if she could persuade Vivienne to sanct
ion a trip to Uganda—without Aldo knowing. Now that he was an investor, Elli didn’t know how privy he was to the magazine’s accounts records. He would know what was up immediately if a plane ticket to Uganda showed up.
Speaking of records …Elli’s investigative hackles were up now. Aldo worked from home …did he keep his records there? She would have to be careful, really careful. If he found out she was snooping …
Elli felt energized for a second before the realization hit—she was about to investigate her boyfriend. The man she loved—didn’t she? She stared unseeing out into the busy street. What if she found out something that could put Aldo away? What if he was corrupt? What if his humanitarian causes were a cover for something more insidious? She kept returning to what Indio had told her. Aldo Constanza is a dangerous man.
The familiar prickling started on the back of her neck, and she scanned the street for anyone who might be watching her. Elli had to admit; since Indio, her paranoia had been off the charts, and so she would have to make sure any investigation she made was balanced. She knew she could rely on Vivienne for that.
“Elliana Moretti, what the fuck are you doing in Seattle?”
Her heart suddenly soared and she jumped up, turning to see Tandy Lee grinning at her. Almost in tears, Elli hugged her friend. “Oh my god, Tandy …Tandy …”
Tandy hugged her, and when Elli released her, Tandy was frowning at her. “What’s up, bro? You look weird.”
Elli tried to smile, but her emotions were in turmoil now, and instead, much to her great embarrassment, she burst into tears.
***
Tandy whisked her friend to the nearest bar and bought them both double scotches, rubbing Elli’s arm as she tried to calm down. She had never seen her friend so distressed.
Tandy had come to Seattle straight from her trip to India to see an old friend, but, as her friend had a last-minute meeting for work, Tandy had decided to mooch around the city. She loved Seattle and always went there for a week or two to bookend a bigger trip. When she had seen Elli, of all people, sitting in that café and looking as unhappy as she’d ever seen her, she had been astonished.
Dark Masquerade: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance Page 10