The Italian Dom by N.J. Adel
CHAPTER 17
Domenico
Enzio helped me clean up the blood and examined my face in the bathroom mirror of my guest room. “I hope she’s worth it.”
I moved my jaw to make sure it wasn’t broken. Tino’s fist was like a sledgehammer. “How I’m gonna make her pay is.”
My cousin grunted. “You sure this is what it’s all about?”
“Yes. What else?” She made the biggest mistake of her life when she tried to trick me and drag me into her own game. If anyone tried to fool me, they paid with their lives. Her life was mine, and I’d do with it as I pleased.
“I’ll tell you what else. How much you want that blond pussy. I don’t blame you. That girl is a firecracker, and that body…oof…must have got some real moves in bed.”
My fists gripped at the sink edge, almost smashing it. Capo or not, nobody talked about my woman’s pussy. “Enzio, che cazzo?”
“Che cosa?
“Can you not talk about my fiancé like that? She’s about to be my wife.”
“Why? Isn’t she just a little toy to torture so you can heal your bruised pride? Why do you care if me or anybody trashes her?”
“Because I…” I wasn’t going to just play her like she played me and walk away. I wanted her forever. Mine to torture, to possess. Every part in every way possible. Even her pain and humiliation were to be mine to cause and mine alone. Yes, I was that possessive, and I wasn’t going to apologize for it. “Because she’ll have my name. She’ll have the respect that comes with it.”
He gave me a knowing smile, studying my face. “You sure you didn’t hit that pussy yet? I mean, you gotta know if she can take dick after—”
Swearing, I interrupted him before he finished. “No more talking about my wife’s pussy, per favore. You didn’t see me asking if you hit Bianca’s pussy before you made her your wife, you know, to make sure she can take your dick after you killed her husband.”
He grabbed my shirt, almost tearing it off my shoulders, and threw me at the bathroom wall. Then his forearm pressed against my throat as he pulled out his knife. Il Tagliatore’s knife.
I peered at him but didn’t fight back. Although I could, that wasn’t my intention. I just wanted to prove a point.
He didn’t move his blade either. He didn’t seem to have any intention to use it in the first place. If he did, he wouldn’t do it here. I’d be lying in the Chopping Block, Enzio’s torture room, where he’d take his time. This was just a power display, and we both knew it.
He kept the eye contact until he seemed to be satisfied, and then he laughed, putting his knife away. “That much, eh?”
Wait…was that what it was all about? Riling me up so he’d find out how far I’d go for Nicky? To know she wasn’t a whim or a simple retaliation? And I fell right into his trap.
I should have been more in control. I’d always been. But Nicky Baldi stirred something different in me. Something chaotic and impulsive that harbored on the edge of jeopardy. “That much what?” I tried to save some damage. “I’m protective of my honor? Si. She’s gonna be a Lanza, and you’ll be her capo. You’ll have to protect her honor, too, just like you protect yours.”
He gave me a slow nod. “That goes without saying. I don’t need you or anyone to remind me of what my duties are to la familglia.”
“Certamente. Mi dispiace.”
He removed his arm off me. “You’re a good man, Dom, and after my brother’s death, you’re the closest person della famiglia to me. You’re loyal and clever and not afraid to get your hands dirty. You do great things per la famiglia, and as my underboss, you’ll do even greater things.
“But for that to happen, I must know if your heart and mind are in the right place. Il Lupo is my best friend. The Bellomos are the strongest of our allies in the country. Disrupt that precious friendship, I’ll have to find another underboss to rebuild it. You hear me?”
“Si, capo. In front of the whole world, Tino’s daughter will be treated as the princess she is.” In my house, in my bed, that was a different story.
“Good, but Tino is a smart motherfucker. Don’t be fooled by the couple of punches he threw at you.”
“What do you mean? You think he didn’t buy it?”
“I know he didn’t. If he really thought you disgraced his girl, you’d be in a hospital right now or, if you weren’t my cousin, burned alive, and we’d be giving back that part of his turf he offered to let his boy go last year.”
“Then why did he play along?”
“Guess it’s your job to figure that out. All I’m saying is you gotta be careful when you play with the wolf, Coyote.”
“Capito.”
He patted my back. “I’ll tell them to get you some ice.” He spun and headed for the door. “And, Dom, if you ever speak of how Bianca became mine or mention my wife’s anything again, your new rank isn’t the only thing you’re gonna lose.”