Chapter 42
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ENZO
“Just make sure to stand your ground. Whatever insults he spews, ignore them.”
Anastasia rolls her eyes, leaning back into my touch. “I know mom. It’ll be fine and Enzo will be here.” Kiara barely spares me a glance, but that small flicker is more than she’s offered since finding out the truth.
It’s been five weeks and she’s still the only Romano I have left to win over. I understand her hesitancy of course. The pain of our old wounds have been left in the past for Anastasia, but for Kiara, it’s still fresh and raw. I’m the bastard that broke her daughter's heart, so all I can do is use time to prove I’m now a man that loves her daughter more than anything.
Anastasia ushers her mom to the door. “He’s going to be here any minute and having my mommy in the room really won’t help things.”
“Fine, I’m going. Your father is waiting to meet me for coffee anyways but call me when it’s over. If the bastard gives you any grief, I’ll make sure to personally deal with him.”
Kiara Romano is still terrifying in her early retirement. The fire in her eyes is different to that of her husband’s but it mirrors her daughter’s, almost making me feel sorry for the bastard in both of their firing paths.
Pressing a chaste kiss to her daughter’s cheek, she hesitates for a moment before turning to me. “I’m glad you feel better Enzo…and I expect you both for family dinner tomorrow night. I’m cooking spaghetti.” I smile but she doesn’t return it and instead walks out, the sound of her heels clicking away into the distance. Baby steps.
“She’s warming up to you.” My beautiful wife coos, wrapping her arms around my neck and squeezing a little too tight. A sharp pain slices across my shoulder, forcing me to hold back a wince.
“Fuck, I’m sorry.” She moves away but I pull her back into me .
“You’re not escaping me that easily.” She doesn’t laugh at my stupid attempt at a joke and I sigh. “It’ll heal.”
Anastasia gently rests her fingers over the raised scars through my shirt. “Or not, and you’re in pain for the rest of your life because of me.”
I tilt her chin up. “Hey, what did Caitlin say?” Her aunt recently qualified as a therapist and started up her own clinic. Though it’s based in Scotland, she was happy to fly out and stay for a month to help Anastasia and I with our own baggage extending way past Aldo.
It was hard opening it all up again, especially since we both resisted the idea of therapy so much at first but it was actually Aaron that recommended it. Even the darkest of souls can find some kind of peace.
Anastasia sighs. “It was my only choice. I saved your life by shooting you and it was my only choice. We’re here. We won.”
“That’s right, baby.” I press a kiss to her beautiful forehead, cupping her soft cheeks. “We won and when Lawrence comes in here, we’re going to win again.” An obnoxious knock breaks our peace and we both sigh, stepping back as the door swings open.
Despite his height, Lawrence has always been a small man to me. Even as he sizes up my wife, who barely reaches his nose, his pathetic ego cripples him .
He’s just a rat — so easy to kill and dispose of, but difficult to catch.
Whatever we do, he just kept slipping away. Until now.
***
“You are fucking fired. Do you hear me or has your idiocy deafened you because I am not repeating myself again!” Fifteen minutes of a screaming match that refuses to quit, but I’m staying out of it because that’s what she wants. Besides it’s quite amusing to watch my wife put the rat in his place.
Lawrence takes a step closer to my wife and I clench my fist around the table, forcing myself to stay put. It’s a weak act of intimidation and Anastasia refuses to back down, her eyes blazing with a fire I’ve missed seeing in them.
“You can’t fire me! I’m an established member of this board and a third generation Lawerence. My family will not stand for this, the others will not stand for—”
“Actually, I have a signed contract right here requesting for your removal. Those are signatures from every member of the board which, if I'm correct, is the correct procedure to follow.”
God, I love this woman .
Power flares out of her from every angle as she impatiently taps her heel against the floor, probably trying to restrain herself from beating him senseless. I made sure to frisk her properly before coming into this meeting. Her two guns, dagger and a fucking star thrower — which I’m pretty sure is Demetri’s — are all sat on my desk.
Lawrence’s face drops as he scans over the contract. He’s probably wishing he wasn’t such a sexist asshole so he wouldn’t be out of a job now.
We need people we can trust on the board if we’re hoping to rebuild together and if Aldo did anything right, it was murdering three board members at our wedding who were all in support of Lawrence.
“You can’t…you can’t just…” But alas she could. Perks of being the boss.
Anastasia glances back at me, a smile playing on those perfect lips. She peeks her tongue out, letting it run across her bottom lip like she’s making me a promise we can’t fulfill right now.
Brat.
I want to throw her onto the desk and bury my face inside that sweet pussy right in-front of him. Show the bastard how a queen should be treated, but there would be time for that later, and there’s no way I’m letting the cute noises my wife makes just before she cums, his going away present.
Lawrence’s face blooms red, making him look like an overripe tomato. He narrows his beady eyes and shreds the paper, letting the pieces fall at her feet. Anastasia scoffs. “Do you not think I have copies?”
Of course, he knows but he’s got no leverage.
“Listen to me you pathetic whore!” He spits at my wife, the fat glob landing on her brand new shoes. Even God can’t save him now. “You can’t run this company, this empire! You’re just a girl. A slut that spread her legs for a rich man to save her position.”
Now he’s seriously pissing me off.
I bore my gaze into the back of Anastasia’s head, willing her to do something. Anything — hit him, kick him in the balls, curse him out, but instead she just stands there, the epitome of grace as he continues to spew his insults at her.
“You used to have worth, of course. All women do when their pussy is still tight but as soon as you let that foreign fucker inside of your cunt, you were ruined.”
Fuck it. I’ll deal with her anger later.
“Lawrence, if you utter another word about my wife, I’ll make sure to have your tongue surgically removed.” He startles back as if just realizing I was here. I scoff — yeah you should be fucking scared. “Actually I’ll also be doing all those poor girls you pay to fuck a favor, so they don’t have to hear your whiny cry when you cum after thirty seconds.”
Now I like what I see. Fear .
I tower over the man and watch as he scrambles back with every step I take towards him. Like a magnetic pull, I’m instantly drawn to Anastasia’s side, inhaling the rich scent of her perfume that warms my chest. Her eyes narrow into sharp daggers but instead of aiming the glare at the cowering fool before us, she looks at me instead. “I told you I had this.”
I fight the urge to roll my eyes, knowing that would just rile her up further. “I know that mi amore, but the terms were agreed before he started disrespecting you like that.”
She sighs. “He was always going to curse at me, Enzo. That’s what small-minded feeble cowards do to make themselves feel just a tiny bit bigger.”
Closing the gap between us, I cup her cheeks between my hands, drawing her in so she’s forced to look into my eyes.
“You’re mine. I don’t just mean that just because you’re my wife, but because you are part of my soul. I physically hurt when anyone else believes they have the power to insult you. I want to tear apart this room, smash his head into the wall, do anything and everything to protect your honor because you are mine in every sense possible.”
I catch that flicker of raw emotion in her eyes just before she masks it again. My lips tilt up, knowing that’s all I need to understand her wholly.
“Aw, how touching.” Fuck I almost forgot he was here. “How is this professional business supposed to remain intact with two lovesick fools heading the charge?” I clench my jaw, ready to swing my fist when Anastasia squeezes my arm.
Let me , she mouths, pushing me aside.
Leaning back against the wall, I fight a grin as I watch the show. “You’re finished, Lawerence. No respectable company will have you after my grandfather is finished destroying your name. Besides, the ethos behind Romano-Mancini is changing. We’re family orientated now. No more outsiders who don’t share our collective vision, so Dominic will be taking your place on the board. We trust him, he’s capable and oh yes, you’ll love this next part.” Her eyes spark as Lawrence crumbles and I can’t hide how my body reacts to seeing her excited like this. “My mother is taking her place back on the board. We want to see change, we want more women in higher positions within the company. Jas has just been promoted to head corporate lawyer and my Aunt Mia has been recruiting female tech analysts to work within the division. ”
“You can’t—”
“Oh but I can because you see, that’s the perk of being the boss.” I don’t even bother to hide my smile.
My woman is a force to be reckoned with and I almost pity those who try to fight against her.
Lawrence appears frozen, like a glitch on a television screen before lunging at Anastasia. “You fucking bitch!” He wraps his hands around her throat, shoving her back against the wall.
I step forward but she’s already whipping her hair clip out and stabbing the sharp edge into his jugular. Lawrence gasps, clutching at his neck as he chokes on his own blood. His eyes widen and he collapses on the floor, the last imprint on his retinas being my wife standing over him.
“Well, that was disappointing.” Anastasia remarks as she steps over his dead body, careful not to stain her shoes.
“Well, that wasn’t the plan.” I state, already reaching into my pocket to text Declan to clean up the mess. She rolls her eyes, perching her ass on the edge of the table “He attacked me.”
“I wouldn’t have let him choke you, mi amore.” I smirk, watching her lean back. “That’s my job.” A faint smile rises on her lips and her cheeks flush slightly. She folds her legs over one another and clenches them shut, yet arousal seeps from her pores .
Months ago, if you told me that killing a man would be the perfect foreplay I would have had myself committed, but now it just makes sense.
Killing is a passion.
It’s driven by heavy emotion and desire and once the act is over you need an outlet to relinquish the rush of hormones that course through your blood.
Sex is the best way to do that and I’m already thinking up a thousand ways to fuck my wife right now.
Anastasia tugs me away from the spreading pool of blood before it can reach my shoes. “I know we wanted to make it last longer, drag out the pain and the suffering but…that felt so good.”
“Oh, I bet.” I drag my hand through her hair, tugging it hard as I press my lips to her forehead. She sighs, eyes falling shut as she settles into my chest.
Then her stomach growls, slicing through the silence. I shake with silent laughter and she hits my chest, turning her head away. “Shut up.”
“Come on, let’s eat. It’ll take a few hours before Declan cleans this up. I bet the carpet will have to be replaced.” Her gaze turns to Lawrence and the mess of blood seeping into the floor .
Wincing, she nods and looks away as I lead her out of the room. Her need to scrub it clean is probably consuming her every thought but I’m proud of her for pushing against the urge. “So where to?”
The office is empty, yet the roar of the city outside prevails. “Uh, Lucky Rainbow.”
I groan. “Chinese again?”
“I love their Chow Mein.” She counters, as if it justifies eating it for the third time this week.
I shake my head, fighting a smile. “How about pizza?” To be honest, I couldn’t care less about where we eat but arguing with my wife has become my new favorite pastime.
Her face screws up all cute. “You’re Italian.”
“Your point being?”
Rolling her eyes, she ignores me. “Chinese.”
“Pizza.”
“Chinese.”
“Fine, we'll get Chinese.”
Her entire face brightens up like a kid on Christmas. She couldn’t care less about getting Chinese. Her happiness springs from winning the argument .
“Good, but don’t even think about trying to eat my spring rolls. Get your own this time.” She storms ahead of me, that tight ass swinging in-front of me.
Oh, I’m definitely eating her spring rolls.