Emiliano
Men in the cartel didn’t take women home to spend the night. That wasn’t only because I lived with my parents and my father was a lieutenant. It was because truly no one could be trusted. As I woke to sunlight streaming through the open curtains and the glass doors opened, a primitive and unexpected feeling filled my chest.
It was trust.
Pure, unadulterated trust.
Isabella trusted me, and I trusted her.
As I turned to my side, Isabella’s beautiful face was inches away, her eyes closed, golden hair a tangled mess over the pillow, and her lips slightly parted. For a moment, I simply stared in awe that she was mine. Memories of the night before flooded my thoughts.
There was no question that the timid girl back at the capo’s was no longer a caterpillar. She was a beautiful butterfly, no longer caught in her cocoon. While I’d watched Isabella spread her wings at the apartments, I didn’t know what to expect on our wedding night. I’d heard stories of couples who didn’t consummate their marriage until further down the road. If my wife had asked for us to wait, I would have complied. I might be a monster when it came to running our streets and dealing with our enemies, but I wasn’t and never would be with the woman I wanted at my side for the rest of my life.
Not only did my wife willingly participate, but she also initiated. The idea of spending fifty more years with her in my bed brought a smile to my face.
Battling with myself about whether to wake her or not, I gently teased strands of her hair from her cheek. Her long eyelashes fluttered, yet she didn’t move.
A check of the clock told me it was nearly seven thirty, Saturday morning. That was much later than I usually slept. No doubt, Jano would want to meet soon with the lieutenants. Hopefully, everyone had a late night—taking the edge off.
Isabella and I hadn’t closed our eyes until after two. I leaned closer, hearing her even breathing and gently kissed her cheek. Again, she didn’t move. If it wasn’t for seeing her eyelashes flutter and hearing her breathing, I might panic.
Quietly, I eased out of bed.
Walking nude to the glass doors, I closed them and shut the curtains, giving Isabella darkness to continue her slumber.
Once in the bathroom, I closed the door. The bloody washcloth on the vanity satisfied an animalistic need in me. I hadn’t set out to marry a virgin, but now that I had, I couldn’t deny the knowledge that no other man had ever been near her moist pink pussy satisfied me. My fingers were the first. My tongue was the first, and my cock will be the last. As I ran the cloth under warm water, rinsing away the blood, I recalled Father Gallo’s question.
Fuck him for asking Isabella and not asking me. Her virginity wasn’t what she pledged to me, although she had given it to me. She pledged her complete self. That was what I wanted—all of her.
After a quick shower, I entered the bedroom. My wife was still sleeping in the exact position she was when I woke. Going into the closet, I scanned the clothes racks. I would need to move my things around to make room for Isabella’s things. Dressing in clean jeans and a different black t-shirt, I picked up my socks and shoes.
While I hated to leave with Isabella asleep, I also couldn’t bring myself to wake her. The flowers on the table caught my eye. I found a piece of paper in my desk and wrote a note. Plucking a yellow and white daisy from the bouquet, I left the flower and note on my pillow before stealthily making my way out of the bedroom, closing the door behind me.
In the kitchen, I poured myself a cup of coffee and turned to the stares of both Mom and Lola. Mom’s eyebrow quirked, and Lola smiled. “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” Mom said. “How is Isabella?”
“She’s asleep.”
“Did everything go well?”
I shook my head. “Not a conversation I’m having with my mom.” I had a thought. “Are there any of Cat’s or Camila’s clothes still here?”
“Sí,” Lola said. “There were things Camila didn’t want anymore. I was supposed to donate them.” She turned to Mom. “Lo siento. I haven’t.”
“No, that’s a good thing,” I said.
Both women looked at me. “Isabella came here last night with literally only the clothes on her back. Could you take her a few things” —I shook my head— “I don’t know. Whatever women need. Later today, she can retrieve her belongings from el Patrόn’s home. And we can send for her things from Kansas City. Fuck, she can buy a whole new wardrobe. I don’t give a shit.”
“Emiliano,” Mom scolded.
I pressed my lips together. “She just needs something for this morning.”
“Do you have a minute?” Lola asked me.
“I need to get to Jano’s. A minute for what?”
She hurried toward the back staircase. “Come with me. I know there are some items your wife might want. You could take them to her now so we’re not disturbing her.”
My wife.
Leaving my coffee, I followed Lola up the back stairs past the door to Isabella’s and my room and into what used to be Camila’s room.
Lola first went to the dresser. “I only saw your wife from a distance last night.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. You should have joined us.”
Lola shook her head. “It was family.”
“On Sunday, you’ll be a guest.”
Pink filled her cheeks. “Gracias, Emiliano.” She opened the top drawer of the dresser and removed a pair of my sister’s panties and a bra.
“Whoa.” I lifted my hands and turned.
“Señor Emiliano, you are a husband. Husbands know about things like their wives’ underclothes.”
“But those aren’t Isabella’s. They’re Camila’s.”
Lola nodded her chin. “Once you give them to Señora Isabella, they’ll be hers.”
I inhaled. “You’re right, Lola, as usual.”
Opening Camila’s closet, she came out with a soft long robe and slippers. She also had a sundress and sandals.
“I’ve never seen her wear a dress.” And then I remembered. “Oh, she did have a dress on at the birthday party.”
“You take these to her, so she’ll find them when she wakes. Once she comes downstairs, I’ll offer her anything else she would like from Camila’s things. If your sister wanted these things, they would be in Missouri.”
“Thank you, Lola.”
I took the items and headed across the hallway. Turning the doorknob, I opened the door quietly. To my surprise, the bed was empty. Laying the clothes on the bed, I looked out on the balcony. It was also empty. That was when I heard the water from the shower running.
The bathroom door was closed.
A flimsy doorhandle lock wouldn’t keep me out. Then again, if she wanted privacy, kicking in the bathroom door wasn’t a wise move. I debated before trying to turn the knob. To my relief, it turned. I pushed the door inward.
IsabellaIt was only a little after eight p.m. when Emiliano and I made our way up the stairs. While most of the guests were gone, there was an informal meeting occurring in Andrés’s office. Something big had happened, but I knew I wouldn’t get details until we were alone. Em closed the bedroom door and turned the lock in the knob. He was handsome with his suit coat gone, his tie loosened, and the sleeves of his white button-down rolled to near his elbows.I spun toward him and smiled. “I couldn’t be happier.”He stalked toward me and reached for my shoulders. “Do you have any idea how fucking stunning you are in that dress?”“I’m glad you like it.”“I’ve wanted to get you out of it since you appeared with your father.”I took a deep breath. “Thank you.”“For not killing him? You’re welcome.” “For giving him another chance. He apologized to me. And when he gave me away, he said it was with great pride.” I wiped a tear from my cheek. “Yesterday, he told me I was an embarrassment.”A v
IsabellaMy things from Mia’s house were now in our bedroom. My new home was filled with more people than I could imagine. The capo, Catalina, Ariadna Gia, Dante, and Camila arrived late last night, all of them staying here. If I had known that Dario was down the hall, I would have been a lot more self-conscious about the sounds that came from my lips during the night.It wasn’t my fault.According to Em, I was a good girl, and good girls get to come.I did, over and over.It’s strange how I’d been trying to prove to everyone that I was an adult and the words good girl from my husband caused my insides to twist and my nipples to bead. Em stayed true to his word; everything was oral. I told him I wanted to try part two again after our ceremony.He proclaimed he was going to exhaust me with orgasms so I would tell him about the wedding dress we bought. He did his part, but I stayed strong. Well, strong until I passed out in his protective arms. When I woke this morning, I found a note t
IsabellaDiego pulled our car into a parking space next to Rafaele’s. Horace turned, looking at me in the back seat. “Lieutenant Ruiz instructed us to stay with you. We’ll wait outside your parents’ room.”I nodded. “I’d like that.”Rafaele opened the door as Diego and Horace were getting out of the car. “Miss Izzy,” he said offering me his hand as he’d done a million times in my life.I laid my left hand in his.His gaze immediately went to the ring on my fourth finger. Yet, as I stepped out, he didn’t offer me congratulations. Once I was standing on the parking lot, all three men were surrounding me.Rafaele spoke, “Thank you for driving Miss Luciano. I can assure you she will be safe in my care as she has always been.”Horace shook his head. “We told you back at the house. Mrs. Ruiz is our responsibility, and we won’t be leaving here without her.”“Very well.” Rafaele gestured with his hand. “Enjoy the resort. You can even charge your drinks to Carmine Luciano. Miss Luciano may inf
EmilianoI stopped walking on the sidewalk in the Barrio Logan neighborhood. I was near the location where the raid went down last night. My job was to scout around to find out who was aware of what happened and if anyone saw our crew.There was something in my wife’s voice. “Isabella, are you all right?”“I don’t know.”I stepped to the side of the walk and leaned against a brick building. “Did something happen? Where’s Horace?”“My father just called…” She spoke fast, telling me about their phone call and her concerns.With each word, I gripped the phone tighter. If that son of a bitch thought he could come and take my wife away from me, to do something to dissolve our marriage… It would be over my dead body. No, make that his dead body.“Take a breath, beautiful.” I spoke as calmly as I could muster. “What’s Mia’s plan?” I nodded as she told me. “What do you want to do?”“I want to see them. I’ve missed them.”I sucked in a breath. This was one of those occasions where I could tell
IsabellaAlthough it felt wrong to shop for a wedding dress without my mother, I was a little excited. I’d told Mia the truth when I said I never dreamt of a big wedding. Valentina warned me that this wouldn’t be as big as Mia and el Patrόn’s. She also promised me that she and Mia would do their best to make it special.As the different associates from the boutique brought us an array of dresses, that small part of me who had possibly dreamed of a white dress took over. When I saw the dress with cap sleeves with the floral embroidery and shimmering embellishments that flowed over the bodice and tulle skirt, I had to try it on.When I came out of the dressing room, I was shocked to see Mia and Liliana sitting with Valentina. Tears came to my eyes as they all rushed me, filling my ears with their ecstatic reviews.The boutique assistant came closer, tugging here and there. “If we get you some high heels, I don’t think we’d need to do any further alterations.”“Not too high. I’d probably
EmilianoJano sat behind his desk with Rei and Silas at his side. The rest of the men in the office were the famiglia men on the mission; Adrian, Andros Ivanov’s second-in-command; and our local lieutenants. My father and my uncle were among most lieutenants hearing about last night’s operation for the first time. While there was an undertone of grumbling, most likely because they weren’t notified earlier, the news of Volkov’s demise was met with cheers.The local police had Dmitri Makarova in custody. His mug shot was making international news. Homeland Security was taking over the case. The preliminary investigation found surveillance footage from The Legend, showing Dmitri going into Volkov’s condo earlier Friday morning. The authorities suspect that someone altered the footage. Their report shows that the next ten hours were replaced by footage from a few days earlier. The cameras didn’t record live again until after 8:15 p.m. There were experts working to recover the missing data