Chapter 2
Hours had gone by, and Lucrezia”s head was throbbing. When she came to, her parents were standing over her.
Her mother fussed at her clothing, hurriedly pulling her skirt back over her knees to avoid her garters showing.
Mamma’s graying hair was pulled back in a severe bun, her permanent frown lines cutting further wrinkles in her skin. Lucrezia inherited her short stature from her, but not her biting tongue.
Papá’s heavy footsteps, followed by his worn cane, were a tell-tale sign that he was on the premises. He hobbled about, always grumbling and groaning about his pain. Lucrezia never recalled him smiling, let alone having a kind word to say.
Her fathers cheeks were puffed in frustration, and she figured Romero had already broken the news of Carlo”s demise.
Once Lucrezia could support herself upright, they were back in Romero Mancini”s office. She tried to ignore the disapproving look of her mother as she hesitantly accepted a glass of water by Romero”s guard. He was considerably kinder than the other poor soul she just put in the grave today
No, don”t think about it.
She shook her head, hoping she wouldn”t retch on this fine rug.
Papà dramatically waved his arm around as he and Romero spoke to each other in Italian.
Her mother”s lips were pressed in a thin white line to match her knuckles.
Between waves of nausea and fits of tears, Lucrezia picked up their words in bits and pieces.
”An unfortunate accident...Carlo was working on the roof and fell...I tried reviving him myself...it was too late....”
Lucrezia let her head fall in her hands to shield her sobs, but her shoulders gave her away.
”Lucrezia, you are slouching. Sit up, immediately.” Her mother glared daggers at her, which caught the attention of Romero.
Always the dutiful daughter, Lucrezia obeyed and sat up straight. She picked up more of Romero and her father”s conversation.
”When she got here, she was so upset that she fainted. I”m so sorry. They didn”t get a chance to say goodbye to one another. That was when I tracked the two of you down. I feel so awful about this, truly.”
When she looked up at Romero, she saw that he had changed his shirt.
Her stomach lurched again when she realized there may have been...evidence on it.
”Carlo was a decent man. He”d give me the shirt off his back. Such a hard worker, too. I told him it was dangerous work, going up there on the roof, and to let professionals handle it. He insisted, though.”
No matter how much Romero poured his heart out, even if it was fake, her parents were emotionless statues as they cast obvious judgment upon him. Even with a toned down, sobered exterior, Lucrezia knew he was still too flashy for them.
Romero made his way to Lucrezia, kneeling in front of her and swallowing her hands with his large ones.
Almost as if he was going to prostrate himself, the boss mustered up a single tear as he begged for her forgiveness.
”Mrs. Russo, I can”t say how sorry I am for your loss. He told me with his dying breath how much he loved you.”
Romero practically forced her body against him in an embrace.
Lucrezia hated that his cologne was burned into her memory now and that no matter how hard she scrubbed this dress later, it would always smell like him.
And it would be a comfort.
His lips dipped to her ear. ”You”re doing a great job, perla.”
His breath sent a shiver down her spine that his hand followed, his fingers feeling for the straps of her slip beneath her dress.
The praise felt alien to her. She couldn”t remember the last time anyone praised her for a single thing.
Lucrezia whimpered to let him know she heard him, and he released.
”Thank you...Mr. Mancini.”
Lucrezia sniffled and dabbed her nose with her handkerchief, offered to her again by Romero”s bodyguard. She decided she had to at least make this story believable on her part.
”Carlo was supposed to stay home today to work on the porch, but he said he would be right back. The next thing I know, I”m receiving a call that he”s gone.”
It made her uncomfortable how quickly she could spin this lie. But it needed to be done. The quicker they could get through this meeting, the better.
”You were supposed to have hired someone to take care of that! That is the job of the wife, to keep the home. What husband would have wanted to come home to work that needed to be done after working himself all day, Lucrezia!” her father snapped at her as he waved his gasper in the air.
Immediately, her body made itself smaller and smaller in her chair as her shoulders touched her earrings.
Lucrezia looked to Romero for guidance as she had decided to say no more.
Her father pocketed his rough hand as he paced the opulent office space.
”What are we going to do? There”s the house, funeral expenses, we need to notify his family.”
Her mother looked at her again in disdain.
”If you had been doing your part to keep him home, this would not have happened. A man should not have to look elsewhere for work! Now, look at you! A widow after only three months. Who will have you now? He was the only suitor you had, and God knows it will take even longer the second time around.”
Of course, Mamma had found a way to spin things around and make Lucrezia the scapegoat once again.
She was too frumpy
Too mousy.
Too thin.
But should she ever have tried to change her demeanor or appearance, she was laughing in the face of what God gave her.
There was no winning, and there was a laundry list of reasons why Lucrezia hadn”t yet been married until that past summer when Carlo came along.
At only 26, her mother claimed her to be too old to be single. They jumped all too fast at the chance to marry off their daughter and be rid of their burden.
She didn”t expect Romero to come to her rescue, but he did by holding up his hand, which was devoid of his larger rings save for one pearl.
Lucrezia shuddered.
”Mr. and Mrs. Sindetti, that”s enough! Your son in law came here because I called for him. Your daughter did nothing wrong. Now, I”ll be taking care of the funeral expenses. I know his family, so I”ll send for them myself. It”s only right. As for your daughter”s home and her well-being, since you”re so clearly concerned about that....”
Lucrezia shut her eyes tight. How was he going to explain the ownership of her home away?
”I propose a special arrangement.”
Romero offered her father another stick, which he greedily accepted.
”Your daughter is a lovely young woman who has just lost her husband. Times being what they are now, I have concerns about her ability to pay for her home. Yes, she could take in borders to make ends meet, but the property surely will need some fixing up. And I’d hate to see her suffer because of an unfortunate accident that happened under my watch.”
Mamma scoffed in Romero”s face.
”Pay for her home? We paid to build that house! The girl has no skills or higher education, so she”ll have a hard enough time finding a job. She couldn”t pay for a box on the streets.”
Lucrezia ground her teeth so hard her jaw clicked. She moved her hand to the pain in the joint and realized her palms were white from clenching the chair so hard.
”What are you suggesting, sir?” her father piped up with a suspicious raise of his brow.
”I”ll be having your daughter”s hand in marriage. It seems that I could only make this right by seeing to her care and providing her with everything she needs for the rest of her days. It seems only fitting that I wed her and have her live here with me in my home.”
Her parents” stunned silence spoke volumes. Somehow, that was worse than their stinging words.
”You want to marry my daughter?” Papà gestured to her with the bad smelling stick between his fingers.
”Sir, I will be marrying your daughter. I”m the cause of her widowhood. I will give her everything she wants and more. I believe Carlo would have wanted it that way.”
Romero passed another look at her, clearly through with her mother and father.
It was a brilliant story, almost too brilliant. She wasn”t sure they”d buy it, let alone agree to the marriage.
Lucrezia couldn”t help but notice that his carefully chosen words were not simply requesting to marry her but informing them that it would be so. Even if they refused, she didn”t put it past Romero to carry her over to the nearest church and get it done right then and there just to spite them. She was wearing white, afterall.
Mamma and Papà spoke amongst themselves for a moment, not paying attention to Romero. He chose that opportunity to wink at her behind his modest glass of water.
Lucrezia wanted to look away but felt pinned by his gaze.
”Lucrezia has no dowry. The land their home sits upon was all we had to give.” Her father nervously inhaled the smoke.
”I can assure you that isn”t my primary concern, nor do I deem it necessary. But if it makes you feel better, I”ll also accept the home as her dowry. I”m in the business of real-estate, as well as restaurants and other arenas of work. My profits are very promising, so I think you won”t need to worry about my ability to provide for her. She”ll be the very air I breathe. La mia piccola Perla.”
Her parents barely moved an inch. Of course, they didn”t care.
”Could you be pregnant, Lucrezia?” Her mother glared at her flat stomach, which she always commented couldn”t possibly hold a child. She hadn”t the hips for it, she claimed.
”No, Mamma.” She shook her head without taking her eyes off her lap.
”You”re sure? Because if you are, and you marry this man, people are going to talk. I won”t have the Sindetti name tainted!” Her father”s worry lines deepened as he shook his finger at her.
As if his treatment toward her didn”t taint it enough, she wanted to retort.
”I”d know, Papà! I”m not!”
She snapped at her father, earning her a punishing glare from Mamma.
Lucrezia could spin another lie, one that left out how Carlo never took her to bed. Not even once. He gave her a peck on the cheek on their wedding night, and that was the extent of her intimate married life.
He would stagger into the house in the wee hours of the morning with no money and bags under his eyes, collapsing into bed when she was up doing the daily chores. Then, he would be gone again when she was readying herself for bed.
But, of course, she could never tell her mother that, since it would surely also be her fault that she wasn”t pregnant.
Romero slammed his cigarette down on a glass tray, having had enough.
”I think your grown adult daughter doesn”t need to give you any more information beyond this simple fact. She is not currently with child. And based on what I”ve heard here today, you will receive no further information regarding Lucrezia”s well-being.”
Romero didn”t need to shout or get in her father”s face to make his point. His commanding tone was enough to shut him up.
”We have agreed to nothing yet,” her mother protested.
”Given your cold attitudes toward your grieving daughter, I will be taking this matter in hand from here on out. So, this is my offer. Take it or leave it. I will marry your daughter with or without your permission. Whether or not the two of you choose to be a part of her life, and the lives of the subsequent children we’ll have, is entirely up to you. So long as you both understand there are boundaries that won”t be crossed in my presence. Have I made myself perfectly clear?”
Romero planted both hands on his desk, shaking everything that sat upon it as a single vein began to bulge in his forehead. Still, he remained composed.
For once, her parents were put in their places, giving Lucrezia a newfound sense of joy. She had wanted to do that for years.
”Well, Mr. Sindetti, what do you say?”
Her father only passed a fearful glance to her mother, and they exchanged nods without looking at Lucrezia.
With firm handshakes, her future was secure and uncertain at the same time.
”I”ll make your daughter the luckiest girl alive.”
Lucrezia felt his eyes on her again, undressing her as the deal was set. It was remarkable how he could hold his focus to multiple things at once.
Once it was all said and done, her mother and father were shown out by an unspeaking guard
They didn”t even say goodbye to her. To them, this was just another transaction to get rid of their disappointment of a child.
Once Romero slammed and locked the door, he was on her.
Lucrezia yelped as she was lifted into his arms and pinned against the wall again.
”Christ Almighty, I thought my family was a little out there. Those two got sticks up both their asses or something?”
She bristled at his choice of words, no matter how right he was.
”They”re...old fashioned. They wanted boys, but they just got me instead.”
His warm lips were pressed against hers, silencing her gasp.
”I don”t ever want to hear you speak negatively of yourself ever again, you hear me, piccola perla?”
She fisted his shirt and squirmed against the wall, but he was too strong for her.
And his hands that were beginning to roam her waist and hips were becoming hard to ignore.
”They have no fucking clue how lucky they are to have you, but I know how lucky I am now that you”re mine.”
A firm pull of her lower back drew her even closer to him. Lucrezia gasped at his audacity. Romero grinned before claiming her lips again.
”I lost count of how many lies we just told them.”
She pulled away for air, but his mouth trailed down her jawline and nipped on her throat. Gently, as not to leave a mark, but noticeable enough for her belly to tighten.
”You”ll get used to it, my good girl. Such a good little girl.”
Romero carefully averted his hands from any area too private, such as her chest or between her legs. Almost as if he was holding off on touching her. Like he wanted to savor it.
”This will never work. People will find out.”
”This will work if I say it will. For all intents and purposes, your husband came here today to fix a leak in my roof, then fell to his tragic death. And the mysterious entrepreneur who witnessed his dying breath took his beautiful young wife as his own bride in an act of penance. That is what the papers will print. But you and I know the truth, don’t we?”
Romero cupped her cheeks in one hand, turning her head to get a better view of her pulsing jugular.
Even though he was shaved, she felt just a twinge of stubble, reddening her throat as he feasted again.
Why did it feel so good?
Lucrezia shuffled her feet as she felt dampness between her legs, soaking her undergarments.
”It can”t work...the police...they”ll know.”
The sinister laugh against her skin sent her cold blood rushing back to her heart.
”Sweetheart, the chief of police and the governor himself will be at our wedding. It would only be fair of them, considering I helped them win their elections.”
”You wha-”
Romero silenced her with his lips again, this time harshly and impatiently.
”Hush.”
”Why are you so sure of yourself?”
The way his tongue lapped at her skin only stoked the fire that was beginning in her belly even more. Suddenly, her clothing was too restrictive and hot in his arms.
”Everything will be just fine, beautiful girl. God, I don”t want to let you out of my sight. If I had it my way, you”d be moved in here tonight. That is, if it wouldn”t give your mother a stroke.”
Lucrezia watched her new fiancé wrestle with himself. She couldn”t read him, and it made her uneasy, but almost...excited.
”I”m not a prize you”ve won. I don”t want to be treated like one.” Lucrezia frowned.
She was never treated like one with Carlo. Come to think of it, she was never even treated as a wife at all by him, nor had she been treated like a treasured daughter by her own parents. After all that, she certainly had no expectations now.
”I know that, sweetheart. But you”re still mine.”
He tucked one finger under her chin.
”Not until the wedding day!” Lucrezia tried to jerk her chin back from his fingers as he pulled her lower lip with his thumb.
”No, Perla. You”re already mine. You belong to Romero Mancini now.” An Italian accent broke through his words, reverting back to his roots.
”Now give Daddy a kiss goodbye before you go.”
Lucrezia wanted to resist this man so badly, but the way his words crawled through every pore in her body...it was nearly too much.
”You”ve kissed me enough.”
”No, not enough. It”ll never be enough now that I”ve had a taste.”
She obeyed him, but he deepened the kiss and encouraged her to open her mouth, letting their tongues dance.
Lucrezia pulled away, hot with shame.
She could feel his frown as he cupped her cheek, but he pushed her no more.
”I”ll walk you out and hail you a cab, sweet girl.”
Romero did just that, protectively holding her hand and even taking his place to her left so she could avoid looking out the back door.
In minutes, she was sitting in the cab being fussed over my Romero. He passed money to the driver - plus a few extra - to see that she got home safely and to ensure she was inside.
”You”ll wave to him through your window to let him know you”re all right. Then I want you going straight to bed. It”ll be a little time before I can arrange some protection for you, so I want your door locked. Understood?”
Left without a single shred of energy to argue with him, she submissively nodded.
Romero closed the door and tapped the roof, telling the driver to go.
She turned her body and watched him disappear the further they drove.
Lucrezia, what have you done?