22. Happy Wife, Happy Life
CHAPTER 22
HAPPY WIFE, HAPPY LIFE
M arco
Jia trudges around the studio, her typically light, ginger steps leaden today. Who would’ve thought moving into a luxury penthouse would be such a death sentence? Despite knowing the move-in day would come for over a week now, she has yet to pack a single box. It’s clear she intends to keep this crappy studio even after we’re married.
Which I should be happy about…
After years as a more-than-content bachelor, having some space to myself and away from my forced marriage should make me giddy with joy. Instead, the idea of being away from her has me pissed off as all hell. In what world would anyone choose this dump over a Park Avenue penthouse?
“The movers are going to be at the apartment any minute now, Jia. I have to meet them there.”
She pops her head around the brick wall and shoots me a glare. “So go without me. I already told you I can manage myself.”
Pushing off the sofa, I round the corner into her bedroom. “You’re seriously only going to bring one piece of luggage?” I eye the bright orange suitcase spread out on her bed.
“That’s all I’ll need for now.”
Yéye emerges from the bathroom and shuffles toward me. The old man has had his suitcase packed and by the door since yesterday. He’s clearly as tired of the tight accommodations as I am.
“I’ll still need to come to CityZen every day, so why move everything now?”
Her grandfather’s lips twist into a scowl. “You intend to keep the studio, bǎobèi?”
“Of course, I do. I’m getting a deal from the landlord for both spaces. And anyway, even if I did want to move, my lease isn’t up for another six months.”
“I’m sure I could get you out of that,” I interject. “I have plenty of money.”
“As do I, but I refuse to touch a single penny of my inheritance. It’s dirty money and I want no part of it. And besides, I don’t want out of my lease,” she counters. “If I have to work late, I can just stay here instead of having to travel all the way up to Midtown.”
“I have a driver!” I roar, my nerves getting the best of me. “I literally pay him to drive us around.”
“Not us —you.” Those midnight orbs lock on mine, filled with so much defiance, my stupid cock gets hard just thinking about wiping that disobedient smile off her face. Dio , not for the first time I find myself thinking of what I wouldn’t give to throw her across my lap and spank that perky ass raw.
I could if I just got rid of the old man…
Tossing the thought aside for now, I heave in a deep breath. “We are going to be married in less than a week whether you like it or not, Jia. What’s mine will be yours. ”
A devious smile reaches all the way up to those bottomless orbs. “Great, what about that black Amex?”
A smirk tugs at the corners of my lips. “We’ll talk about it once you become Mrs. Marco Rossi.”
She snorts on a laugh before fully giving into the amusement, hinging at the waist at the force of her wild cackles. When she finally straightens a long minute later, wiping tears from her eyes, she lifts to her tiptoes and jabs a finger into my chest. “I will never be Mrs. Marco Rossi. I’m keeping my maiden name for business purposes.”
My palm itches to plant one on that pert little ass so insistent on defying me.
Guo stares at me from across the room, waiting for my reaction. Does he want me to keep his granddaughter in line? Is this some sort of test?
“Whatever you want, spitfire,” I grind out. “But the Amex will be in my last name, so it’s your call.” Shrugging, I move to the door. If the moving van arrives to the penthouse before me, I’ll be S.O.L. I may not have much to add to the furnished apartment, but I’ve collected a few personal items Nico has been storing for the past few months.
“Come now, bǎobèi,” the elder Guo calls out.
With a huff of frustration, Jia stomps to her bedroom. The whine of the zipper closing around her luggage brings a victorious smile to my face.
A familiar blonde stands at the front door of my new apartment, and I let out a muttered curse as I step out of the elevator. Raquel, the realtor, swings the keys from her finger, taunting, and wears a please-fuck-me grin.
As appealing as a much-needed release sounds, I’m no cheater. I may be a lot of things, but disrespecting a woman like that isn’t in my nature. I may have slept around, but I was very clear with the women up front that I did not do relationships. And when I nearly allowed Raquel to suck me off, the arrangement with Jia had yet to be made.
The little dark-haired spitfire might not wear my ring yet, but she is already mine in all the ways that matter.
“Well, hello there, Mr. Rossi,” she purrs as I approach.
Thank Dio Jia and her grandfather were still downstairs waiting with the movers. The last thing I needed was my fiancée crossing paths with this woman.
“Hello, Miss Raquel. You certainly didn’t have to come all this way to bring me the keys. You could have left them with the doorman.”
She closes the space between us and drags her finger down my shirt. “I was hoping we could both come…” Her tongue darts out and slides across her bottom lip.
Clearing my throat, I take a big step back and her finger falls from the button she’s toying with. “I’m sorry if you misunderstood, but what almost occurred between us last time, will never happen.”
“Oh…” Her full lips pucker, and images of my cock in her mouth leap to the forefront of my mind. Nope, definitely not the lips I want. If anything she would be nothing more than a warm hole to distract me from the frustrating Jia who’d already gotten under my skin. And now, damn, am I strung tight. “Are you sure?” She inches closer and her hand snakes out, cupping me through my slacks, and my cock doesn’t even stir at the possibility.
“Raquel…” I rasp out before jerking her hand away. “This won’t happen. Ever.”
“But why?” she whines.
The elevator dings, drawing our attention and forcing Raquel to take a step away. Jia and her grandfather emerge from the elevator with my driver, toting their luggage.
“Oh,” the realtor blurts. She spins toward me and mouths, “ You really do have a girlfriend?” I guess she didn’t believe me when I’d told her I was getting married.
But at least she’s somewhat discreet. I nod slowly, and her smile only broadens. “Well, here you go, Mr. Rossi.” She hands me the keys and whirls toward the approaching pair.
Jia’s already scowling, and Guo doesn’t look any happier. They bickered the whole ride over here.
“I hope you enjoy the penthouse,” she calls out.
My fiancée rewards her friendly comment with a sneer, and the old man simply dips his head, the picture of resignation. As soon as the elevator doors glide closed behind Raquel, I release a breath and spear the shiny new key into the keyhole.
It’s been a while since I’ve had my own place and despite my initial reluctance, I’m actually quite eager now. I hold the door open for Jia and Guo, and Rick hangs back with the luggage. “Go check it out,” I call out as Jia moves through the grand foyer. With high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass that highlights a bird’s eye view of Midtown, both my fiancée and her grandfather appear mesmerized. “Then I’ll show you the master.”
Jia whirls around and snaps her jaw shut. “I’m not sleeping in the same room as you.”
Guo’s eyes meet mine as he blanches, then looks between his granddaughter and me. Without uttering another word, he shuffles off toward the hallway that leads to the guest bedrooms.
Traitor …
“Jia, we are going to be married, and I expect?—”
“You expect what ?” she growls, marching toward me and digging her heel into my shoe.
“Son of a bitch!” I howl and leap back.
She glares up at me, arms knotted across her chest. “You expect me to part my legs for you at your beck and call? No wait, let me guess, you think my pussy now belongs to you because of this antiquated arrangement? ”
“You will be my wife,” I snarl, “in every extent of the word.”
“I’ve heard of many sexless marriages.”
An uncontrollable, wild laugh titters out. “Yeah, after years of marriage, not in the beginning.” That’s exactly why I’d always refused to tie myself to one woman. “That’s why men cheat and?—”
“Oh, so you’re blaming the wife for a husband not being able to keep his dick in his pants?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying—” I release a frustrated growl. “Damn it, Jia. This doesn’t have to be so fucking hard.”
“You’re right, it didn’t have to be, but you and my grandfather made it this way when you took away my choice. I should have been consulted about this wedding. Even my brother told me about his intentions before he tried to sell me off to your twin.”
“Did he give you a choice in the matter?”
She grits her teeth, flashing me a feral smile. “Of course he didn’t, but at least I wasn’t blindsided. Not like this.”
“Are you ever going to get past this?”
“Ever? It’s been just over a week, Marco!” She stomps around the foyer, throwing her hands up. “Excuse me if I can’t bottle up all my feelings in a nice neat little corner in the far recesses of my soul like some people.”
Her astute observation catches me off-guard. Only a week with me and she already knows me better than any of the women I fucked for months, even Mel who I’d lived with. “Fine, take your own damned room,” I growl, “until we’re married. Then all bets are off.” I pause for dramatic effect then jerk my thumb over my shoulder in the direction her grandfather disappeared. “There are three bedrooms down that hallway.”
“And what’s that way?” She points across the great room to a small glass spiral staircase.
“That’s the loft. The master loft,” I amend .
Jia’s heels click-clack across the white marble of the sprawling living room, then she disappears around the open-concept kitchen.
“Jia?” I bark. “That’s my room…” I race behind her, but she’s taking the steps two at a time. If I wasn’t so annoyed, I would’ve been impressed by the ease in which she darts up the narrow steps with those heels.
When I reach the loft, she’s splayed across the plush comforter of the king-sized bed. Her hand glides across the Egyptian cotton, and a smile parts her ruby lips. “Oh, yes, this will do just fine.”
I’m so damned hard-up, I consider pinning her to the mattress and fucking her until she’s begging to come. She must notice the dark gleam in my eye because she scrambles to the edge of the bed and sears me with a murderous gaze of her own. “Get out of my room.”
“You’re out of your fucking mind, spitfire.”
“You just said I’m to be your wife in every sense of the word, right?”
I nod warily.
“Happy wife, happy life… you’ve heard that one, haven’t you, coglione ?”
I’m impressed with not only how quickly she’s picked up the Italian word for asshole, but also with her pronunciation. “No, I’m afraid I’m not familiar with that saying,” I grit out.
“Well, you’re about it to learn it.”
I stalk toward her, unable to keep my feet still or my twitchy hands off her for a second longer. My fingers wrap around her throat, and she releases a satisfying gasp. “Must we have this discussion again? No one says no to me… And it will certainly not begin with my wife.”
“I’m not your wife yet,” she bites back and tries to stand.
I shove her back onto the end of the bed and rub my thumb across the soft indentation in her throat, exerting a bit more pressure. She draws in a sharp breath. “I can make our marriage a tolerable one—hell, even an incredible one—or I can make it misery for us both. But I need you to understand that I always get what I want.” I inch closer, placing a palm on either side of her thighs and run my nose across the shell of her ear. “And what I want, my lovely fiancée, is you, on your back, with your legs spread wide for me and only me.”
Her breath hitches, and I know her well enough now to realize it’s not from fear. This woman isn’t the slightest bit scared of me. Which is something that should frustrate me, but instead, I’m only intrigued. What has she survived to inherit those balls of steel?
My hand drifts from the satin comforter to her thigh. Her silk dress has ridden up her hips, well past her knee. I brush the inner side of her leg with my thumb, just below her hem, and goosebumps ripple across her milky white flesh.
“Never,” she whispers.
I’m so enthralled by the feel of her, I forget the course of our discussion. “You’re a liar,” I murmur against her ear before I nibble at her lobe and earn another breathy sigh. “I’ll let you have the master bedroom, for now, but only because it will make things easier once we are married.”
I straighten, and I swear her body crumples forward as I release her. Those rebellious eyes remain fixed to mine, mouth screwed into a pout. I drop my gaze to her thighs and get a flash of silk panties. Better yet, a faint wet spot on the pale, pink fabric.
A wicked smile hitches up the corners of my lips, and an unexpected flutter kicks at my ribs. Just a few more days and that woman will be mine, body and soul. And for the first time in my life, I cannot wait to commit to something.