Chapter Thirteen
Devious
T wo guards are perched by each side of the bright orange door. They nod as I tap the doorbell, and it dings a few times before Enzo’s wife, Penelope, opens it. She looks radiant with her white hair in a sleek bun, and she has on a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans. She’s like my second mother. A smile spreads across her face like butter as she swaddles her arms around my waist.
She pulls away. “How is my oldest son?”
The smell of fresh-cut onion wafts in the air. This house smells like home. My guards and I follow her into the kitchen. I remove the lid from the pot and stick my finger into it to taste the sauce. It tastes fresh and a little bitter.
“I’m doing okay.”
She pops me in the back of the head with a wooden spoon. “Get out of there, young man.”
I laugh. “Where is Enzo?”
She lifts the pot from the stove and pours the sauce into a small bowl. “He’s outside in the pool. Whatever you do, don’t say anything about his hairstyle.”
I saunter outside and tell my bodyguards to stand by the back door. Enzo sits on a lounge chair, reading the newspaper. His hair is dyed jet-black, and it looks like Edward Scissorhands chopped his hair. Shaking my head, I say, “Enzo.”
His eyes shoot up to mine, and he rests the newspaper on the glass table. I sit in the lounge chair next to him.
“What’s on your mind, son?” he asks.
Penelope ambles outside with a tray holding two glasses of punch.
When I want peace of mind, I always come here. Even when I was a little kid, I would ride my bike all the way here just to get away from the sounds of my mother’s screams when my father used to beat her.
I grab my drink, take a sip, and set it down on the table.
“Nothing. I wanted to see how you are doing,” I answer.
“You skipped our golf game yesterday,” he says, before taking another sip of his drink.
He would be very disappointed to learn I’m keeping Roselyn locked up in my mansion and I forced her to marry me to pay off a debt. Even if he knew about her trying to kill me, Enzo has always treated women like they walked on water, and it’s one of the reasons why Draco did not like him.
Exhaling, I rub my hands together. “I found out that Santo wasn’t mine and Cashel fathered him.”
He pats my hand. “That’s fucked up. I’m sorry, Devious. How are you feeling?”
“I’ll never trust a woman again.”
“Sometimes, people are shitty, and you didn’t deserve the betrayal that Cashel and Shelby put you through.” He raises an eyebrow. “At least you found someone else. How are you liking married life with the new wife?”
I never envisioned my marriage being a shit show. My marriage to Roselyn was a mistake, but I never thought I would marry again this soon anyway.
I don’t respond as I stare at the garden, next to the shed.
He rests his hand on my back. “What’s wrong, my boy?”
I want to tell him how much I hurt her. I’m not ashamed of what I’ve done to her. I admit how I’ve been treating her is wrong, but I feel bad. I want to make her life a living hell for trying to kill me, but at the same time, I think about her way too fucking much for my liking. I want to let this obsession go that I have of her. Every hour, I’m checking the cameras in the mansion to see what she’s doing. Marla bought her a kitten, and I’m allergic to fur. One of my maids informed me and wanted to get rid of the cat, but I told her no. I’ll just take some medication.
Roselyn makes me feel out of control. I hate feeling as if I’m not in control.
“I made a mistake marrying her,” I finally say.
“What happened?”
I wait several moments before responding. “She tried to kill me. So, I locked her in the mansion, and I won’t let her leave. I’m afraid that she’s going to leave me.”
He doesn’t look at me with anger or disappointment but with concern. “You need to treat her a lot better if you want things to work. Relationships are like fine wine—they take time to mature,” he states. Then he downs his drink before setting the glass down on the table. “The more you hurt her, the more she’s going to hate you. You saw how your mother and father turned out. Do you want the same thing?” He goes on, not giving me a chance to respond. “I don’t know why the men in the mafia like to treat women like shit and as if they’re a breeding animal.” He shakes his head. “You don’t want to come home to chaos. It’s already chaos in the things we do out in the world, but to bring it home…” He trails off. “Take her out on a date. Get to know her, Cayden. Treat her with respect.”
When he says my real name, it means I better do what he says or he’s sticking his foot up my ass.
Anger brews inside my chest. I still want to punish her for her stupid decision. I just want to fuck her—that’s it. Her feelings don’t mean shit to me.
“Did you not hear that she tried to kill me?” I snap.
“I don’t care, Cayden. You have to understand. She didn’t have a choice in marrying you, so she’s rebelling against you. Lex told me how rebellious she is. She wants to be her own person, not someone who just pops out babies. Have I not taught you anything about being a man and taking care of your wife? When I married Penelope, we couldn’t stand each other, but I worked so hard to earn her trust. And my home life has been blissful ever since. If you spared her life, then what’s the point of you continuing to treat her as a hostage?”
Maybe I need to listen to him. His marriage has worked in the mafia. And I want that. I want Roselyn to be happy and not filled with anger. And he’s right. If I spared her life, then why in the hell would I keep putting her through hell?
I rub the back of my head at his response.
Enzo and I chat for a while about what’s going on with the coke lab and gun deals. Then we eat lunch. I feel a lot better speaking to him and getting his advice.
On my way to meet Aiden regarding a gun trade, I call Marla and tell her to order over a hundred fresh flowers for Roselyn with a cute note.