NINE
I ’m not sure what the fuck I’m doing right now.
This morning, Henrick asked me to oversee a shipment. I don’t know if the Campbells know about the arms dealing working in our favor lately. If they do, they don’t seem to care much.
Especially since I now have two kilograms of cocaine in the trunk of my car.
I got everything done in record time. Not many people dare to mess with my family, and those who do never see the winning side. It pisses me off beyond belief that we’ve had trouble removing the Campbells from the picture entirely for five fucking generations.
Henrick has lost his mind; it’s official. I didn’t think he would follow the rules of that goddamn agreement that is older than him, but he doesn’t want to take even the slightest misstep.
He’s enforcing the rules too tightly for my liking.
However, just because I’m forced to work with Noelle and can’t kill her, doesn’t mean I can’t hurt her in other ways. As long as she’s alive while the common enemy is defeated, everything else is fair game.
That’s why I have found out every single thing there is about her.
She’s been engaged to that prick for years, and their wedding is set for summer. Since we will take down those who attacked our two families before summer, she will never get to walk down the aisle and be a bride.
Because she’ll be dead.
The most interesting thing about her is her past love life. Even during her engagement to Dylan, she’s had multiple affairs and never bothered to hide them. She’s been with more women than men, but then, something changed.
In the past nine months, she’s been oddly loyal to Dylan.
I’m curious if it’s an arranged marriage or a forced one. Since she’s so free-spirited and has suddenly calmed down, something must’ve happened. And it pisses me off that I can’t find out what.
That’s probably why I'm standing outside of one of the nicest Italian restaurants in the city. She’s friends with the younger daughter of the mafia don, and they own the restaurant, so it’s not a surprise she got a seat.
But she’s with Dylan.
On a date.
And something is too fishy about him.
I’m only here to make sure she doesn’t die before I get the chance to kill her.
She’s dressed in a short dress, exposing her long legs. However, she’s wearing a little scarf around her neck, and I can’t help but grin at that little detail.
Noelle’s neck still holds my mark, and she’s desperate to hide it.
Dylan is holding her hand across the table, and my eye twitches at the sight. He’s smiling ear to ear as he listens to whatever she’s talking about. They’re too far for me to lipread, and I can’t be angry enough at myself for not making a reservation next to their table.
Noelle also looks quite happy.
A smile is on her face as if it’s fucking glued to it. Can she not stop smiling like a fucking moron for one second? What’s so funny about that asshole for her to seem so content with him?
The waiter brings them another bottle of champagne, and I narrow my eyes at Dylan. He pushes her glass closer to her as if he’s eagerly waiting for her to drink it. Is he trying to get her drunk on purpose?
I know a lot about Noelle. I also know that half of a bottle is her limit, and that’s stretching it. She’s already had four glasses in less than forty minutes. By the time they finish, she’ll barely be able to stand on her feet.
I pause.
Why the fuck am I even here?
Why would I give a shit if he gets her drunk or not? Why should it be my problem that he’s acting suspicious?
I whip out my phone and send a message to Henrick before shutting it down and returning it to my pocket.
It crossed my mind a while ago that Dylan isn’t as sweet as he makes himself out to be. I didn’t have any reason to distrust him as I’ve never met the motherfucker. But now his behavior is oddly suspicious.
If he’s either giving information to the people who are after us or is one of them himself, Noelle won’t be able to see it. Given the expression she’s making, she’s head over heels for him.
Perhaps that’s why she stopped her other affairs and decided to focus on her future marriage. After all, in this life, it’s one partner for life. It’s not uncommon for people to cheat and have multiple partners aside from their spouse, but the spouse always comes first.
It makes me sick.
Anger slowly fills my veins, and my vision gets blurry.
Why the fuck am I thinking about this?
I shake my head.
It’s even better if Noelle is in love with this smug bastard. If he’s innocent, then he’s her weakness and the perfect pawn to use against her. Imagining her face stained with tears and his blood as I kill him in front of her brings me too much joy.
I’m almost too impatient to wait and confirm my suspicions.
I take a step backward and pull out my pack of cigarettes. I light one and inhale the nicotine. A cloud of vapor blurs my eyesight, and, for a few moments, I can’t see a damn thing until the smoke evaporates.
By the time my vision is clear again, Noelle is gone.
That motherfucker is still sitting at the table, scrolling through his phone with a passive expression. But she is nowhere to be seen. I stopped looking at her for approximately four seconds, and she disappears in the meantime?
This whole thing is insane.
What am I even doing here?
I take the few last drags of the cigarette before putting it out. Without glancing back at the restaurant, I turn to leave.
“What are you doing?”
I’m met with Noelle’s fiery gaze. She’s in front of me without a coat on, wearing only her little dress and the scarf that’s barely covering all of her bruises. A smile forms on my face at the sight of the scowl that forms on hers.
“Taking a walk.”
Noelle snorts. “Is there a reason you’ve been stalking me and staring at me for the past hour?”
“Oh, you’ve noticed?”
“How could I not notice someone burning holes in the side of my head? Didn’t expect it to be you, though.”
Her demeanor is different. Just a minute ago, she was laughing and smiling like the happiest person in the world. Now, her stare is deathly, poisonous, and unwavering. She’s looking at me with contempt, like I’m dirt beneath her shoes.
And that pisses the fuck out of me.
“Well, I had some business in this area, saw you, and decided to stick around.”
Noelle raises a brow, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “Uh-huh. You had business at eight in the evening on a Tuesday night? If it’s a contract, it’s not in the busiest street of New York, that’s for sure. So cut the shit and tell me: what do you want?”
Always so direct.
That’s when I notice the pathetic attempt to hide her pretty scar on her right cheek. It’s been a few days, and it’s still red and sore. The makeup did a minimal job of covering it, but it’s there, and I see it clearly.
I’m reminded of that night all over again, and my cock throbs in my pants.
Noelle probably isn’t aware of this—or if she is, she’ll never admit to it—but she cried. I got to see her pretty face stained with tears that I caused, and that seemed to lessen the anger.
She’s so pretty when she cries.
I don’t dare to think about the other thing I did.
For the second time in less than twenty-four hours, I touched a part of her face with my tongue, both times licking blood off her. I don’t even want to remember the sweet cherry taste mixed with the metallic flavor from her lips.
I can’t allow myself to ever be too involved with her.
Yet here I am, stalking her and keeping an eye out for her. She is capable of defending and protecting herself, so it’s not because I think she’s weak. I can’t understand why I’m doing this or how to stop it.
“I came to see what you’re up to.” I shrug. “Did I interrupt your little date?”
Noelle frowns. “You did. So scram.”
I chuckle. “Meet me tomorrow.”
“No.”
“I know you don’t have anything planned for tomorrow.”
She narrows her eyes. “I don’t. I just don’t want to see you.”
“Why not?”
“Do I need a reason? You’re not exactly someone I’d willingly be spending time with.”
“Your loss.” I sigh. “But I’ll be going to that bar just to see what it’s all about.”
Her ears perk up, and her eyes glisten in excitement. She forces the smile to fall from her face, but it was there, even if only for a moment.
“Alright.” She swallows her pride. “Send me the address and meet me there.”
“I can just pick you up.”
Noelle laughs. “And risk being seen with someone like you? No, thanks.”
“You’re being too difficult.”
“And you’re not being difficult enough.” She steps around me, walking back to the restaurant. “Careful, little De Santis. One might think you like spending time with the enemy.”
Noelle leaves me in her dust, alone in the middle of the street. I’m frozen in shock at the audacity of her words and can’t help but laugh in disbelief. She realizes I’m doing this so everything gets done quicker, right?
She must know that I don’t want to be near her any more than necessary, right?
Right?
She sits back across from that shithead, and they resume their conversation. However, something is… odd.
The excited smile that she showed me a moment earlier was one of the most genuine emotions that I’ve seen on her face.
But now, the smile isn’t reaching her eyes. It’s forced and if she continues grinning like that, her face muscles will contort. Her eyes are dull, though, as if she’s waiting for the moment she can finally leave the restaurant.
Did I misunderstand this entire night?
Has she been faking their lovey-dovey relationship all this time? It’s an arranged marriage, but the possibility of it being forced now weighs on my mind. And that smug-looking bastard doesn’t notice the desperation to leave in her eyes.
I make the decision at the utmost speed. Asking Noelle directly isn’t an option, so I have to use my best judgment.
Instead of leaving, I return to my car and wait.
If I can’t find out what the bastard is doing or thinking, I’ll have to ask him myself. He won’t have the chance of not responding because the setting will be… forcing him to tell me all I need to know and more.
I’m not doing this for Noelle.
I’m doing this to give myself a clear conscience. If he’s up to something and I don’t figure out in time what it’s all about, I’ll face the wrath of my father and hers, and that’s not something I want in the near future.
For now, Noelle will have to work with me, whether she likes it or not. And I’ll make sure she understands that the moment this is all over, she’ll be dead by my hand. I never hesitate when it comes to my job, and this one is the highest of them all.
Soon, Noelle.
Soon you’ll fall by my hand, with nothing but the depths of despair surrounding you. I’ll cut your lifeline and ensure you’re left all alone in the darkness of your mind. It will consume you and drive you to the brink of insanity before I kill you.