Arranged Mafia Marriage

Karma

“Whiskey, please,” the man a few chairs down from me at the bar orders, “Macallan’s reserve.”

It’s the same whiskey that my Capo favors. I glance down at my own drink. A glass of wine. I had arrived yesterday at the Four Seasons, checked in, and slept away most of the day. I’d woken up, only to get myself a quick dinner and feed Andy-who had been provided with his own food and water bowls and a designated litter area in the corner of the vast bath. Guess that’s what money can get you. The red carpet treatment, not only for you, but also for your pet.

The man glances around and spots me. His face lights up with interest. His eyes gleam-brown eyes, interested gaze. “Hello, you staying at the hotel too?” He nods toward me, and honestly, he seems all right. Not creepy or anything. Only I’m not in the mood to strike up a conversation with a stranger, and certainly not, in a hotel bar. Not that I am in the mood for speaking with any man right now. Strike that… Perhaps one man would fit the bill, one alphahole whom I want to strangle; one bastard whom I hate…and love… Damn it, I am still in love with him. Enough to still wear the wedding ring he gave me. The man’s gaze lowers to my left hand and his features close.

Good. At least, it’s serving some purpose, considering I had come this close to taking it off so many times since I had arrived in London. Massimo had flown me to the Capo’s personal private plane in Rome. Initially, I had refused to board it, but he had persuaded me. He’d told me this was the easiest and fastest way to get out of Italy. The ‘fastest’ part of it had done the trick. Not to mention, the fact that Andy could travel in relative comfort had helped.

Massimo had produced a passport for Andy, and when I had thanked him, he’d said it had been Michael who had seen to it. What the-? Had he been planning this for a while then? Before I could come to grips with that thought, Massimo had handed me a check. Which I had refused… And he’d said, it was only right that I be compensated for what I had been through. That had pissed me off. I mean, could my time and emotions actually have a price put on them?

Then, he had told me not to be stubborn. That I was going to need it to get back on my feet-which was true. He said I could put it toward my fashion designing business, to think of it as seed capital, and a loan which I could return to the Capo when I was up and running.

In all honesty, I had wanted to refuse it. I didn’t want anything to do with my husband’s money, but Massimo had been insistent. He’d told me to accept it, that I owed it to myself. After all, I had lost time, which I would have used to grow my business, and this was compensation for that.

Well, the 100, 000 check was much more than what I would have made in the past month if I had focused on growing my business. But I had decided not to argue that point. Instead, I had torn up the check He hadn’t been very surprised, which had surprised me, until he’d said that Michael had warned him that this would be the probable response.

He’d pulled out an envelope stuffed with money. I had stared at it, and he had insisted I take it. When I’d refused, he’d simply said that I’d need it to feed Andy, if nothing else. And of course, he’d been right.

I’d wondered, then, if this was the reason that Michael had given Andy to me… As a means of manipulating me… But it couldn’t be that, could it? Still, he’d made sense, so I’d accepted the cash… Also, I had run out of energy by then, wanting nothing more than to grab a drink-at least, I can drink now, so that’s a silver lining, eh? -and crawl into some dark corner where I wouldn’t have to think or do much.

Then Massimo had sprung the third surprise. He’d said there would be a car waiting for me in London and that it would take me to a flat where I could live until I found one of my own. That… I had vehemently refused. No way, was I going to stay in a place owned by my husband. Not after what he’d done to me. Asshole.

If he thinks he can still try to control my life…even when he’s not in it, he has another think coming. Why would he do that anyway, though? He’s the one who wanted me out of his life, so why is he now concerned about me, huh?Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

I had been firm on that point and Massimo had finally given up. He’d left and I had boarded the plane. I’d turned down the prosecco the stewardess had brought me, and instead, turned to vodka… It had seemed like a drink I could drown myself in. I had managed to down a couple, then taken a brief nap on the short flight to London, where I had disembarked and walked out of the airport…

And that’s when the enormity of what I had done…of what lay ahead of me had hit me. I’d wondered, then, if I should have accepted that offer of a car ride and an apartment to rent, but no… I’d made the right choice. If I had ended up in an apartment that he owned, then I would have never been able to meet my own gaze in the mirror again, if I’m being honest.

Which is how I’d come to stay at the Four Seasons. I’d woken up this morning and spent the day finding a flat for myself and Andy. I could have phoned my sister and gone over and met her… Only, I’m not ready.

Damn it. At some point, I am going to have to call her… But not today. I still need some time to come to grips with everything that happened. Also, in all honesty, I can’t bear to tell her that I’ve been married, lost a child, and separated from my husband, all in the matter of a month.

I swallow down another sip of wine, ignore the man who’s still glancing at me from the corner of his eye. Maybe it had been a bad choice to come down to the bar on my own, but I couldn’t stay in the room for another night on my own. Good thing I am moving out the day after Christmas though. I had managed to not only find a flat, but with the money I had accepted from Massimo, I had also paid an advance to secure the place for the next three months. At least, it gives me enough time to figure out what I want to do next, you know?

I place my half-filled drink on the bar counter, then leave. I take the elevator up to my room and use my keycard to open the door. Andy greets me with a loud purring. I sink down to my knees to pet him, and that’s when my phone rings.