8. Under his table

One hour after Dante left, five people arrived with clothes and a cupboard and set them up properly in the room. There were all kinds of dresses, from short to full, and I was actually surprised to find the undergarments in my size.

I didn't expect Dante to scan me so perfectly.

Hehe.

I have spent the entire day on stolen green apples, grapes, and lukewarm water because Dante has given strict orders to his staff not to treat me as anything more than a prisoner. His staff didn't let me even set foot in the kitchen to make something for myself.

Puff.

But I am not here to complain or sit idle like a pretty prisoner. I have very limited days before Dante swears in as a Mafia King. I need to end his dirty games before it even begins and get out of this place as soon as possible.

I miss him so badly.

My train of thought broke when I heard murmurs. Barefoot and silent, I hid myself behind a wall and saw a few high-ranking syndicate capos walking inside the study.

I immediately hid myself when Dante came into view.

His eyes were eagle-sharp!

My teeth chewed my lower lip as I walked back and forth, thinking of the way to make my way into the study.

My lips curved into a slow, wicked smirk when I saw a timid maid walking towards his study with a silver tray in her hand. I confidently walked to her and blocked her way.

"I'll take that," I told her.

She was surprised and reluctant at the same time.

"Ma'am, but sir..."

"I will take care of that," I interrupted her, and before she could argue any further, I took the tray with several cups and a steaming pot of dark espresso, and pushed the double doors open with my hip.

The moment the doors opened, their heads turned to me, and the rumbling hum of male voices instantly died

Oh, deja vu!

Their eyes moved down my body in surprise, but the most surprised one was the man sitting straight in my sight.

My dear husband.

His jaw clenched, and his fist tightened as he saw me still wearing his grey oversized T-shirt even after him sending all those clothes.

Okay, this time I was wearing undergarments. My assets are exclusively for him, not for an exhibition.

I cleared my throat to break the awkward silence and catwalked inside confidently.

"Good evening, everyone." I smiled and placed the tray in the middle of the mahogany table before starting to serve them tea.

Oops, coffee.

I could feel a few pairs of eyes on my bare shoulder and thighs, but more intense gaze of Dante on those eyes. His jaw clamped shut so hard I heard the audible snap. The pen in his hand snapped clean in half under his grip, clattering against the mahogany, which caught everyone's attention.

"What are you doing here?" Dante asked in a low but dangerous voice.

If looks could kill, I would be dead by now.

"Serving coffee to your guests," I flashed him the most innocent smile I could muster.

"Yeah, thank you, Clara," Daniel said, taking a sip.

I smiled at him too.

I am not getting why my happiness is burning Dante's ass.

Nevertheless!

I made myself comfortable on a vacant chair beside Dante.

"Thank you," I mumbled to him before turning my head to the others. "You were discussing the dock routing issues, weren't you? Please, continue. Don't let me interrupt."

Marcello, the senior-most syndicate, cleared his throat, already done with the little drama.

"As I was saying, Don Salvatore... the federal blockades on the western port are tightening. If we redirect the arms shipments through the north, we lose forty percent of our margin to taxes and local muscle. We are stuck."

After a few seconds of silence, others also started giving their input. Dante was listening to them all the time, so was I. I knew half of his attention was on me, but my whole attention was on the meeting.

When everyone was done, a deep silence spread across the meeting hall, waiting for Dante to speak. I leaned forward and rested my elbows on the table.

"I guess we are thinking like a smuggler, not a strategist"

All the heads once again turned to me, including Dante's.

"Instead of redirecting the cargo to the north, we should split the manifest into three commercial shell companies. As they expect a sea delivery, they won't look at a land transit line that's been cleared by their own department."

Once again, silence stretched across the room. From the end of the table, Daniel let out a low, appreciative hum, leaning back and resting his chin on his fist as he stared at me with open fascination.

Marcello's eyes lit up at my offer, but he didn't let it show on his face.

"We can consider this strategy," he said. "What do you think about that, Don?" He asked Dante.

I leaned back and looked at Dante's body thrumming in his neck.

Saying he was furious would be an understatement.

So to relax him, I slowly slipped my right hand underneath the edge of the mahogany table and placed it softly on his thigh.

Dante's back straightened up suddenly as he lost his composure for a second.

I smirked internally.

Every single pair of eyes was on him, waiting for him to say something, but all I heard was a soft breath when I began to move my hand slowly upward along his trousers.

Dante’s knuckles turned bone-white where he gripped the armrests of his chair. I chuckled when the flush crept up his neck.

"Don Salvatore?" Marcello asked, completely unaware of the war happening inches below the table. "What do you think about the proposal?" He asked again.

And just when Dante opened his lips, I squeezed his inner thigh and pressed my thumb lightly near his zipper.

"Not even a don can speak in front of his wife," Daniel mumbled, but the silence let every single word of his be crystal clear.

I could bet Dante was burning from inside, but he didn't look at anyone, not even Dan, to remark on him. His eyes were locked sideways on my face, and they were burning with a lethal mix of lust and fury as my fingers stroked him under the table, slowly and teasingly.

"Meeting adjourned," Dante rasped out, all of a sudden taking everyone, including me, by surprise.

"Don? We haven't finalized the-"

"I said, get the hell out," Dante roared, slamming his palm onto the table with a sound like thunder. "All of you. Now!"

The capos scrambled out of their chairs, terrified by the sudden volcanic eruption of Dante's temper. Daniel slowly stood up, gave Dante an amused look, and walked out after sweeping his gaze over me one last time.

The doors clicked shut.

Before I could even blink, with one hand he hauled me out of my chair and swept the stuff off the table with the other.

"Dant-"

The word died in my throat when he grabbed my throat, slammed me down onto the center of the massive mahogany conference table, and hovered above me like a starved beast.