Chapter 11
Adriano
By the time I have the contract and marriage license, I have zero fucking patience left.
It feels as if hellhounds are nipping at my heels, threatening to rip Laurie away from me.
I’ve made peace with the fact that I’ve lost my mind where she’s concerned.
The clerk’s office would’ve required Laurie to appear in person, but there was no way I was risking that. With a single phone call and a thick envelope of cash, a judge on the Cosa Nostra’s payroll took care of the problem.
On the way to the hotel to pick her up, I had Little Ricky stop at a bridal boutique where I bought a dress off the rack. It’s simple, elegant, and perfect for Laurie.
I want to see her dressed in white when she stands beside me, saying ‘I do.’
By this afternoon, Laurie Barnes will legally belong to me.
I’m bracing for one hell of a fight, though.
When the elevator doors open, there’s no sign of my butterfly. I walk to the bedroom and slowly nudge the door open.
She’s sitting on the foot of the bed, concentrating on whatever she’s doing on her phone.
“Hi,” I say to make her aware of my presence.
Laurie’s head snaps up. “Oh, hey.” Her eyes drift over the black tuxedo I’m wearing. “Ah, you look… good.”
I step closer to her. “What are you busy with?”
She scrunches her nose in the cutest fucking way that digs into my heart. “I’m trying to decide which investment would be best.”
Sitting down beside her, I look at her bank balance. Seeing she only had three dollars in it before I paid her makes anger stir in my chest.
I’ll deal with the fuckers who made Laurie’s life hell once I have her settled in her new role as my wife.
“Put four million into fixed-term accounts and the other million in a high-yield savings account. You’ll still earn interest, but you can access it whenever you want.”
She seems relieved that I’ve solved her problem, and it creates a new monster inside me, one that wants to take care of everything for her.
While she makes the transfers and double-checks everything, my eyes devour every inch of her. She’s dried her hair, which now hangs smoothly past her shoulders.
She looks better after eating and sleeping. Not so tired, and her color seems healthy.
Once she’s done, she exhales a deep breath. “Oh my God, that was nerve-racking. I did it right, right?”
I look at her bank balances and nod. “Your money is safe.”
“Good.” Suddenly her chin quivers, and she sucks in a shaky breath as she looks at me. “I have no idea what this is going to cost me, but thank you, Adriano. You have no idea what this means to me.”
I do. That’s why I did it, but I doubt she’ll feel so thankful when we’re at the church and she has no choice but to say her vows.
Her gaze lowers to the envelope in my hand. “Is that the contract?”
“Yes.” I hand it to her. “Read it so we can sign and make things official.”
When she opens the envelope and pulls out the thick stack of papers, her eyes widen. “Jesus. This is a lot.”
“Take your time.” I get up and head to the living room where Little Ricky, Marco, and Paulie are sitting.
“The manager said to just call when we need her to come sign as a witness.”
I nod and stop in front of the windows, not really taking in the view.
Most people don’t read contracts properly, and I’m banking everything on that. Salvatore hid the marriage clause deep in the middle of legal jargon. Penalties. Breach of agreement. Financial liability. Repayment stipulations.
All things that will scare Laurie.
I don’t care that it’s manipulative.
Everything is quiet for several minutes, then I hear footsteps. Turning around, I see Laurie reading with a frown on her forehead.
When she looks up and sees the other men, she stops dead in her tracks. Her lips part, and caution creeps into her eyes.
Interesting. Laurie was relaxed when she thought it was just me.
“Do you have questions?” I ask as I move closer to her.
Her attention snaps to me, and she nods. “Can you explain this to me?”
She points at a clause, and I read it before meeting her worried gaze.
“It means if you break the agreement, damage my reputation, or try to walk away before the contract ends, you lose whatever money I’ve paid you.” I keep my tone calm, almost bored, to set her at ease. “It’s to protect my assets and make sure no one can come after my wealth in the future.”
“Oh. That makes sense.”
She shoots my men another glance, then walks to the counter by the kitchen and sits down on one of the stools to continue reading.
I join Laurie, in case she has more questions, and enjoy watching her.
Minutes fall away, and while I’m lost in every inch of her beautiful face, the world could go to hell, and I wouldn’t notice.
Laurie flips the pages faster and faster, a clear indication that she’s struggling to focus on all the legal jargon. Suddenly she stops and leans closer to whisper, “I don’t see anything about sex and preferences about what happens in the bedroom.”
“That’s because it isn’t in the contract.”
Her eyebrows lift in surprise. “Really?” She flips through the rest of the pages, then gives me a questioning look. “So this contract is basically saying I have to be in an exclusive relationship with you, accompanying you to events and on trips, and to be available whenever you want me?”
“Yes. That and the NDA. I’m a very private man and don’t want you discussing anything about me with other people.”
“No kinky stuff like in Fifty Shades of Grey?” she asks.
Little Ricky lets out a snort, which he masks under a fake cough.
I shake my head. “No. Nothing like that.”
Laurie flips through some of the pages again, then bites her bottom lip as she stares at the dotted line where she has to sign.
She takes a deep breath, then looks at me. “Do you have a pen?”
I glance at Little Ricky, who gets on the phone to call the manager.
“We just have to wait for two witnesses to arrive before we sign,” I tell Laurie while I take the fountain pen from my inner pocket.
I set it down by the page, then lock eyes with her.
She seems nervous and struggles to meet my gaze. Eventually, she pretends to look over the first few pages again.
When the elevator doors open, Mrs. Langford, the manager, and Sabrina, who usually works in guest relations, step out.
I stand up and adjust my jacket. “Thank you for coming.”
“Of course, Mr. Rizzo.” Mrs. Langford offers me a professional smile before her eyes shift to Laurie. “Good morning, Miss Barnes.”
“Morning,” my butterfly murmurs, giving me the impression she feels intimidated by the other women’s presence.
Wanting to get this over with, I pick up the pen and sign my name before holding it out to Laurie.
After a brief hesitation, she takes the pen and signs beside me, sealing her fate.
Mrs. Langford and Sabrina add their signatures as witnesses before stepping away from us.
“Have a good day, Mr. Rizzo,” Mrs. Langford says before nodding at Laurie. “Miss Barnes.”
“Thank you.” I watch as the two women leave, then gather all the papers, taking a moment to look at the final page. Lifting my gaze to Laurie, I say, “Put on shoes. We’re going out.”
“Oh.” She looks at my tuxedo, then down at the plain jeans and blouse. “Should I change?”
“No.”
I hand the contact to Little Ricky and say, “Once we’re done, take it to Remo and tell him to place it in the vault.”
He nods, then grins at me. “Just so you know, I’m not stopping her when she bitch-slaps you.”
“Shut up,” I mutter, turning back when I hear Laurie approaching.
“Here’s the envelope.” She holds it out to me, and I pass it to Little Ricky.
Without another word, I take Laurie’s hand, and walking to the elevator, I link our fingers together.
Mine.
All. Fucking. Mine.
As we step inside, the corner of my mouth lifts because there is nothing she can do now.
She legally belongs to me, and in an hour or so, the Church will recognize her as my wife.
Father Gallo is expecting us.
Just like my father did with the previous priest, Father Parisi, I told Father Gallo he will either marry us or say his final prayer and join the rotting corpses at the back of the cathedral.
Laurie
Little Ricky seems to be driving us back to Long Island.
I glance at Adriano, who hasn’t said a word since we left the hotel.
I’d love to know where we’re going, but things feel a little tense, so I keep quiet.
I feel better about driving around with them now that people at the hotel have seen us together and Elise has Adriano’s details, but it’s super unnerving sitting beside the man.
I keep replaying yesterday, trying to convince myself it’s not a dream that I somehow managed to catch the attention of a hot filthy rich club owner who can make me forget my name with a single kiss.
I can’t stop thinking about my bank balance. It was nice of Adriano to help me decide which investments to go with.
Later today I’ll deep dive into investments so I can make the right decisions for myself in the future.
Oh wait.
My head snaps to Adriano. “We signed the contract.”
He turns his face to me. “We did.”
I feel very awkward reminding him, but it’s a lot of money. “When will you transfer the rest?”
He pulls his phone out, and without thinking, I watch as he opens it with his thumbprint before doing the same to get into his banking app.
Rows of accounts slide onto the screen, and my jaw drops while my heart all but stops.
Good Morning, Adriano
ACCOUNTS OVERVIEW
Private Banking Checking
Account Balance > $148,945,982.68
Black Card Account
Current Balance > $2,312,440.18
Investment Portfolio
Total Value > $2,789,766,403.10
Offshore Holdings
Available Balance > $1,382,454,009.78
Commercial Real Estate Fund
Total Value > $4,653,021,774.04
Liquidity Reserve Account
Available Balance > $244,009,223.46
I look away so fast I almost give myself whiplash, then mouth the words, ‘OH. MY. GOD.’
At first, I struggle to process what I just saw, then the numbers and commas start registering.
Hundreds of millions.
Shit, no. I think it’s billions.