Dangerous Conceit by Ali Lee

Chapter 29

In the bedroom again, Lexi sifted through the closet and searched for a decent blouse to wear over jeans. Her choices were limited, so she finally settled for a white silk shirt that gathered under her breasts and landed at her hips. The shirt suited leggings better, but it would do. Maybe she would not feel too out of place next to Nina and Ella who both wore skirts.

Rafa walked in the room as she pushed the bottom of her jeans over the heeled black boots she wore. When she stood, the heels made her above average height seem that much taller. The top of Lexi's head almost touched Rafa's nose.

He fixed his eyes on her and appreciated her figure as the snug jeans wrapped around her glorious hips. He realized that others would also admire his woman. He hated that he could not take her shopping himself, but he did not mention the jealousy. Lexi would never give into that sort of thing—not when she knew who waited for her at home. He could trust her to stay sensible—he hoped.

“Hey,” Lexi said and slid two small oval earrings through her lobes. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay with Maura? I can take her with me, you know.”

He stood back and mocked an offended look. “You don't trust me with her?”

“It's not that. But you aren't used to her energy and you are in a lot of pain.”

“You have nothing to worry about. I’ve watched Lily for Angelo plenty of times. Besides, with Antonio here, we probably won't get to see much of the girls. You heard him. And by helping, he meant taking over.”

Lexi still seemed unsure but decided to shake off her concerns. “Well, I guess I should get going then.”

“Here.” Rafa handed her a credit card. “Since I can’t go with you, I want you to buy some more clothes when you're out…and whatever else you might need while you're at it. I’ve already talked to Ella and she agreed to help you choose. Angelo hardly ever lets her go anywhere so she’s pretty excited.”

Lexi did not take the card. She sighed and sat down on the bed. “I can't take that. It's not mine.”

“You’re still going to marry me, aren't you?” Holding the bed with his hands, he slowly sat down and slid his arm around her waist.

“Well, yes…”

“Then take it. I take care of what's mine.”

“Then what do you want me to buy? I can't—” She hesitated.

“There's enough on that card to purchase a house. Buy whatever you want.” Lexi cleared her throat as he forced the card in her hand and stood. “Don't argue; just do it, and buy Maura whatever she needs too.”

Lexi flipped the card back and forth in her hand and stared at it with shock. Her name was on the card—but how? Before she could dwell on it further, Rafa opened a small cabinet at the top of the entertainment center and laid a gun in her hand.

“Put that in your purse for protection. You never know when you’re going to run into trouble even with Jim and Ray with you. You’ll be picking up Brett and Abby on the way. I thought you might like to have her with you. Someone familiar.”

Lexi nodded. “I really would. Thank you.” She finally gave up the argument over the card. “Is there anything you need while I'm out?”

Rafa chuckled and wrapped his fingers around her cheeks. “Hurry back so I don't worry.” Then he kissed her lips before walking out of the room.

Lexi thought about the outing and closed her eyes, mentally trying to force time to pass. She did not want to go. She slid the gun in her purse as Rafa had said and gave one more look in the mirror. If nothing, at least Abby would be there for support.

She had opened the bedroom door when Ella appeared and disturbed her from her thoughts. “Are you ready to go? We have to hurry, before Angelo changes his mind about me going with you.”

Lexi smiled at Ella’s enthusiasm and followed her down the stairs. There was a brief exchange between Ella and Angelo, but he was talking too low for Lexi to hear. Letting Ella go shopping must have been calendar worthy. She almost felt bad for Ella.

***

Four hours later, Lexi sat empty handed with the other three women crowding around. Other than being measured for her wedding dress, Lexi could not decide on a single outfit. Nina grew tired more easily than the others did, so the men thought it was a good time to rest. They sat at the next table and kept a watch on the shoppers, leaving the women to talk.

“Are you excited about the wedding, Lexi,” asked Nina. “I love weddings. It’ll be beautiful at the hotel.”

“I’m still in shock.” Lexi reflected in thought of the banquet hall being arranged for her wedding. “I can barely believe it's really happening.”

Abby smiled with an adamant nod. “It's true. She was thinking about him constantly—always talking about him.”

“Hm,” Lexi hummed with a slight reminiscing smile creeping onto her face. “Giovanni had such a nice ring to it.”

“So why do you still call him Rafa then?” Abby looked across the table at her.

Lexi sighed, “because Rafael has a nice ring to it too. Gio. Rafa…” Lexi looked to the air. “I can't decide which I like better.”

“It’s unbelievable,” Ella added. “I never pictured Rafa serious about anyone. He was always so…so arrogant with women. It was like no one would ever be good enough for him.”

“Who knew,” Nina agreed. “This marriage should be better than his last.”

“Nina!” Ella's eyes darted toward her mother-in-law.

“What?” Ella’s objection startled her as Lexi looked off to the side. She clenched her nails against her palms until she was sure she drew blood. Rafa never mentioned being married. Her excitement turned to instant jealously as she wondered about the ex-wife in question. She hoped it was an ex-wife. No—she wished there was no ex-wife at all.

“Ella, sweetheart, I'm sure he already told her. There isn't anything to worry about with that.”

Lexi nodded, wanting to hear more. “Sure, Rafa let me know. We agreed to have no secrets between us,” and he’d better have a good reason for keeping this one.

“Of course you did. What kind of marriage would you start with secrets? Secrets will cause you too many problems.” Nina pointed and started to stand. “I’ll be back in a minute. One of these handsome young men needs to escort me to the restroom.” Nina smiled.

When Jim led her far enough away from the table, Ella turned to Lexi who sat next to her. “You didn't know, did you?”

“No, I didn’t.” Lexi shook her head; a grim expression spread throughout her face. “I didn't know, and that’s a problem. Why wouldn't he tell me something like that?”

“Look, please don't ask him about it. Then they’ll be mad at Nina.”

“So I’m supposed to pretend like I don't know. I mean, what else don't I know?”

“It meant nothing, I promise. I overheard them talking about it the same way as Nina. Rafa drank too much and woke up with a marriage certificate next to him. He annulled it that morning. Like I said before, Rafa wasn’t long-term. You’re the first, Lexi. Please keep this between us?”

Lexi ran her fingers through her hair, pulling one side to the front of her face; then she looked at Abby for help. “I don't think it's something to worry about, Lex. Let it go.”

“I guess…but if it meant nothing like you’re both saying, then why didn’t he say something in the first place? What was her name?”

Abby shrugged and looked at Ella who stared back at them both. “I can only tell you it was his assistant.”

“Fine. I won’t say anything.” Lexi dropped it.

Ella leaned her chin against her fist with interest and smiled at Lexi. “What was Rafa like back then? It’s hard to picture him being different than how he is now.”

“Intimidating. He scared me at first; I'm sure that’s not surprising. It was in his voice.”

“Not too much different from now, I guess,” said Ella.

“Maybe not…but I always felt safe with him. It's hard to explain.”

“How did it happen? How did you two finally get together?” Ella asked.

Lexi smiled at the thought, as she remembered him in a much different setting—a dark house in the middle of a cool winter’s night.

Two months after they met, she carefully entered the old two-story building. By now, she could easily feel her way up the stairway to the second floor. Rafa's room set at the end of the narrow walkway and she lightly stepped toward the door where he was likely asleep as usual when she came in the middle of the night. She heard noises from inside, muffled voices that sounded like moans. A sinking feeling filled her throat as she neared, the sounds becoming more distinct. One belonged to a girl, and that girl was not her.

What could she say? Gio never led her to believe that the two of them were together. He still had not kissed her, so why should she be surprised? She had repulsed everyone else. Why should he be the exception? She had entertained thoughts that she had a chance with him, but that chance shattered, bringing her the harsh reality of the truth. She could not even gain the interest of a factory worker without electricity.

The tears slid down her cheeks. She backed against the wall and silently pondered the goodbye. She was happy with the few memories they shared, but the heartbreak was too much for her to bear; coming back was out of the question.

As she readied her mind never to look back, a door slammed and heavy stomping skipped the steps to the top floor. Before she knew who entered the house, a shadowy figure of a man stormed by and thrust the door in front of her wide open, making a thundering crash and probably a gaping hole behind the knob where it hit. She was surprised that the window was not covered.

“You fucking asshole. It finally made sense why you wanted me to take your shift.” Gio approached the bed and grabbed the man by the throat. “You couldn't leave her alone, could you? You couldn't be satisfied with whatever whore you brought in the house. You had to have Em too.” He slammed the man's head against the cold wooden floor and jerked it back up, slamming him again. “I told you she was innocent, and I told you that she wasn't yours.” He kicked the man until he curled his body against the floor; a loud groan escaped his throat. “And you,” Gio pointed to the bed. “I can't believe you let this piece of shit seduce you. I thought you were smarter than that. Go home, Em.” Gio's voice softened as he ordered; but his tone bordered being possessed, as if it would swallow her whole with its darkness.

“Okay,” she muttered from outside of the doorway where her feet still glued to the floor. Gio whipped toward the door and stomped in front of her before she ever had the chance to move.

“How did you get out here so—”

His fingers reached around her shoulder and yanked her to his body when he realized she was fully clothed. “That wasn't you in there with him?” Too scared to say anything, she shook her head, afraid of his rage with the man.

He hesitated, comprehending the situation in front of him; then he looked back to his bed. “I'm giving you both two seconds to get out of my room. That will be all I give you.” He took out his gun and clicked it, pointing it at the unknown woman who scurried past as the man picked himself up off the floor. “If you ever try to come near Em again…if I even think you thought about her, I will shoot you—shoot you dead.”

As the man stumbled out of the room, he pulled Em inside and pushed her against the wall. “You and me—tonight.” He shut the door and locked it, resuming his place in front of her. “If you’ve been coming to see me for this long, I can only think you want to be with me.”

She made no reply as he slipped his hands around her face and brought his lips within a hair's length of her own. “Am I right?” He knew he was right. No woman would continue to visit a man if she did not feel anything.

“I thought you were with that—”

He cut her off. “I’m not innocent like you, but I don't fuck every woman who moves.” Her eyes widened in response; Gio had never talked to her in that way before. It made her heart pound against her skin as he closed the gap, brushing his lips against her mouth. “From now on, you’re with me.” He lifted her arms and started removing the sweatshirt that covered a see through tank over her breasts. “I’ve held out long enough.” His fingers strayed to unfasten the button on her jeans and loosen the zipper. “After tonight, you won’t think about me without blushing. I’ll give you exactly what your eyes have been asking me for.”

“How do you know?” She stated in weak protest when he suddenly let go.

“No? All right, I'll leave you alone then.” He took a smug step back, making her crave the return of his touch.

“Wait,” she cried, his hands instantly returning to the hem of her jeans.

“That's what I thought.” He pressed her between himself and the wall, fully dominating her with a kiss.