Chapter 11
Caterina
I watched the sun kiss the horizon as I sloshed the amber liquid around my glass.
A drink wasn’t what I needed. What I needed was currently in therapy with Serena.
Harlow was healing physically; her ribs were still tender, and her bullet wound caused a little pain, but she was able to move more. The last three weeks were intense.
Mentally, she was trying. I could see the inner turmoil in her mind, and she tried to hide it.
She still laughed and lit up the room, but it was different, almost forced.
Harlow still found solace in me, which I was grateful for.
I let Harlow take everything at her pace, every kiss and every touch.
She spent some days in the cabin with the boys while I went ahead and planted a garden back there for her as well.
Harlow’s face lit up when she saw nature’s beauty.
Every day, Harlow took a step with life, and I was entranced at her strength. I felt like the luckiest woman in the world that she still chose to do this life with me.
I should be a villain in her story. My intentions weren’t the purest when I first learned about her, and I did keep her trapped in a gilded cage.
She let me become her sanctuary, the one who steadied her when panic overtook her.
The thing about healing was it wasn’t just her journey alone.
With every move she made and every step in her fight, she took me with her.
She wasn’t my captive, hadn’t been for a long time, but she was more of a compass, the reason I came home and the reason I fought.
I didn’t understand everything because Harlow was alive, but loving Harlow and having her in danger felt mortifying.
I felt fear like no other when I heard that gunshot and heard the fear in Harlow’s voice.
If it wasn’t for Luca and Lizzy’s GPS chips, they would still be missing—or worse.
I never wanted to push a subject more in my life, but I would ask her about that after we got back from New York.
Ultimately, it would be her choice—even if I wanted to do it in her sleep, that would breach our trust, and that was the last thing I wanted to do.
I finished my whiskey, setting my cup on the table before walking out of my office. It was time to see my wife. She should be back in our bedroom, getting ready for bed. Depending on her session with Serena, she might already be in bed. Sometimes she just needed to be alone for a moment.
Harlow was standing by the vanity, her dark hair loose around her shoulders.
She was in a blood-red silk nightgown that stopped just above her thigh.
Ever since she learned my favorite color was red, her wardrobe slowly became various shades of crimson, blood, and wine-reds.
The lamp illuminated her skin in a soft golden hue that made her look ethereal. Harlow was my favorite view.
“You’re staring,” Harlow quipped, her fingers running through her dark strands.
“We’ve had this discussion before, bellissima,” I teased, stepping into the room. “I am simply admiring the goddess that decided to make me the happiest woman in the world.”
She smirked, turning to face me. “If I remember correctly, you told me I had to marry you.”
“Hey, being my wife isn’t that horrible.” I crossed the room in swiftness, waiting to make sure she was okay with me wrapping my arms around her. Instead, she turned to face me and pulled me by my shirt.
“You snore,” she laughed, leaning into me, “but being your wife is the greatest thing this world has given me.” And then she kisses me.
Slow at first, teasing me with the delicate softness of her lips on me.
I let her take the pace, taking what she needed from me.
Her fingers curled into the front of my shirt, pulling me deeper into her.
My hands moved down the silk, dipping closer to the swell of her ass.
She moaned her approval as I grabbed her and pulled her into me.
The kiss started off hesitant but morphed into desperation and hunger.
When she pulled away, she rested her forehead on mine, our breaths mingling together in a harmonic symphony.
“Yeah,” she breathed. “I like being your wife.”
“If you’re trying to get me naked, just ask.” She rolled her eyes. “How are you feeling? How was therapy?”
She sighed, stepping back from me and sitting on the bed. “I cried. A lot. I’m still scared that this life, the happiness, you, that everything will be taken away from me in an instant and I’ll be back in Vincenzo’s arms.”
Fear was something we had to live with, but I would make it my mission to keep her safe and kill Vincenzo.
I was scared, too. Fear was an odd feeling to have, but with Harlow and the love I had for her, I was mortified that someone would take her away from me.
If Vincenzo or someone else took her again, I would burn the world to get her back.
Vincenzo better have learned his lesson with Xavier.
Harlow was mine, and no one would take her again.
Raul was awake, but he decided not to call me.
The nurse at the hospital called me because I was listed as his emergency contact.
All of my men had me as a contact in case anything happened to them.
I wanted to be the first one to know so I could plan accordingly and make sure they were taken care of.
The rhythmic beeping of machines filled the room as I walked in, and there he was, sitting up in bed, spooning red Jell-O into his mouth.
A smirk played on my lips, knowing he wouldn’t want the other men to know he liked the hospital food.
“I didn’t think you were coming to see me,” he said, surprised by my unexpected visit.
“Why wouldn’t I see the man who risked his life to save my wife?”
“Because I failed, and she was taken.”
“No, you risked your life to protect my wife. That is what I pay you for. You tried. You were on the brink of death. Xavier missed. You both fought, but he had a mission. You were out for three weeks.”
“Vito?”
“He’s gone. Headshot.” Raul made a cross over his heart.
“I will continue to protect your wife once I am healed. It is an honor to serve you and your family.”
I grasped his forearm. “Focus on healing first. Me and Harlow will still be here when you are healed.”
The antiseptic smell of the hospital filled the air as I spent an hour with Raul, making sure he was comfortable and that his nurses were providing excellent care.
I could feel the weight of his worries. Raul and Vito were young men when they started working for my father, and they were there through every battle.
Some leaders would kill them for what happened, but I knew they both tried.
I wasn’t cruel like some families to my employees.
Most of them were like family to me, and when one was killed, they would be avenged.
He finally told me to leave when Harlow messaged me, saying she missed me.
I had one more thing to do before going home to her.
When I stepped out of the elevator and headed to my car, I got a call from Roman. It would be about time for a response from Maxim. “Cat,” I answered.
“Maxim said to do as his brother wished. Continue with the cremation and we can have a small ceremony when you come to visit.”
“I will gather Vito’s belongings and bring them to him as well. Maxim will know that his brother’s sacrifice will not be in vain.”
I had too many things to plan and take care of before our trip to New York.
Harlow’s leg was almost up to par for our trip.
She had one more doctor’s appointment to make sure everything was healed properly before we took off to New York.
Harlow still wore her sling, but Lena said she should be okay without it when we left, but to bring it just in case.
I needed to make sure my men would be safe if I left them alone.
Xavier’s body was still in the basement.
I think he was still grasping on to life because of Spencer, but I wasn’t sure.
I did my piece and got my vengeance for Harlow, but after that I left him for the others to deal with.
Spencer played with the bodies for as long as she could before she got bored, but she would let my men know when they were able to dispose of his body.
When he was delivered to Vincenzo, I knew there would be hell to pay, or maybe he would accept his fate and leave us alone.
That would be a cold day in hell, but one could dream of a future where my wife was safe and we could plan our life together without the inconvenience that was Vincenzo Mancini.
I walked into my casino and met with Gianna and Tommaso.
We needed to work something out because while the hotel portion of the casino was closed, we kept the other parts open.
But with everything that was bound to happen, I needed to make sure they were okay with me gone.
I needed to focus on my wife as well as my livelihood without letting everything drown together.
A love like this was never something I expected, and now that I had it, I never wanted to let this life take it away.
I saw what death did to my father and the grief he experienced after my mother died, and as much as I loved him, I never wanted to turn into him or cope the way he did.
Love was beautiful, but grief was a cruel consequence. I prayed I would go first.
Gianna was yelling at Tommaso in Italian when I walked up to them. She was a feisty woman when she was provoked. “What did he do?” I asked.
“Why is it always something that I did?” Tommaso groaned.
“Because men are always the problem,” I teased. I knew that wasn’t always the case, but I would go to bat for my women. And if that meant pulling them to the side and correcting them, so be it. “Now what’s wrong?”
“It’s not work related, so he gets a pass,” Gianna grumbled. “I fucked up a reservation and they won’t fix it. He just gets the butt end of my anger because he’s a saint who loves me.”
I looked at Tommaso who smirked at me with a shit-eating grin. “Give me the name and I’ll get it fixed. Do either of you think we should close the casino?”
Gianna arched her brow. “Why? Everything is running smoothly.”
“I killed Vincenzo’s capo, Xavier Caruso, for kidnapping and raping my wife and Lizzy before.
Thankfully nothing detrimental happened while they were taken this time, but it doesn’t excuse the past.” Tommaso’s back straightened, which made Gianna look at him.
Gianna didn’t keep up with every little detail in our world, just what she needed to.
“His body will be delivered when Spencer is done, but I know Vincenzo will retaliate. I am taking Harlow to New York to get away, and Luca is going to Tennessee.”
“The hotel portion is still closed, and the girls we had are gone and safe. Unless you plan on rescuing a shipment of trafficked women, we are okay to keep the casino running,” Gianna informed me. “For the love of God, don’t make me stay at home alone with him.”
Tommaso looked insulted. “Babe, what the fuck?”
“You try living with yourself for a week straight. I might love you and your dick is heaven sent, but goddamn you drive me insane.”
“G, I don’t need to be your marriage therapist. Do you want to keep the casino open? Yes or no?”
“Yes. We can have added security here and have normal-clothed men who aren’t suspicious check out the scene. I could probably use one of the girls. You know they’ll be focused on tits and ass and not her brain.”
“If you think you’ll be okay. Malachi and Alexi are yours to use. If anything happens, let me know.”