Chapter 65
Chapter sixty-five
Truth Bomb
Sophia
“Sophia!” Stella rushes me when I finally spot my group in the VIP parking lot.
I return her hug and survey the scene before me.
Luca and Arabella are locked in a discussion off to one side.
Evie is already seated in Avery’s front seat, scrolling her phone.
I go to call out to her, but I’m distracted by a thunderous-looking Raf walking towards me to the other town car parked next to Avery.
It’s not so much his expression that shocks me as the fact that he has a very passed-out Chiara cradled in his arms. His driver jumps out to open the back door, and Raf slides in the backseat, taking Chiara with him.
I walk towards them, bending down to speak with my brother holding his precious cargo.
“Those shots clearly caught up to her. I can take her back to our place,” I tell him.
“I already spoke with Marco. She’s coming with me.”
“Are you sure?” I say, hesitating, buying time to figure out how to say what I need to say next. “Ummm…she doesn’t look like she’s in much of a state to get herself to bed.”
Raf raises his eyebrow and pins me with a glare that says, what’s your fucking point.
At my voice, Chiara stirs, nuzzling further into Raf’s chest. She babbles a string of words on a low murmur, mostly incoherent except for the few I make out including, “Grumpy. So hot. Raf. Ruin everything.”
“I’ve handled my fair share of drunk girls.
” His unimpressed glare unwavering. “In fact, I might have half a chance of getting her to listen if she’s too drunk to sass me back.
If she’d fucking slowed down when I told her to, I wouldn’t have had to break down the door to haul her passed-out ass out of the bathrooms, while her Romeo was sucking face with someone else. Fucking tool.”
“I’m going to leave you to it. Let me know how she is once you give her some water and Tylenol. You’re going to need to dress her in something more comfortable and put her to bed.” I linger on the last part, and he doesn’t miss the inflection in my voice.
There’s no question he’ll be a perfect gentleman; it’s just that caretaking doesn’t come naturally to my grumpy older brother.
“My t-shirt will be down to her ankles, and she’ll take the guest room.”
Kissing his cheek, I just settle on “Thank you” in response. Even with all his hard edges and gruff exterior, he has a heart of gold. He protects it fiercely, but hopefully one day he finds that special someone he trusts enough to share it with.
“Sophia! Sophia!” I turn to find Trix running to towards me, panic written all over her face. “Come quick! It’s Marco.”
I rip the heels off my feet and drop them to the ground beside Raf’s car so I can follow Trix as quickly as possible.
Raf calls to Stella to watch Chiara and follows me.
We take the emergency exit out of the basement and run around to the street-front entrance of Bella Donna, where crowds of people are still gathered after being evacuated.
Seb’s shouts fill the night air. “Marco! Calm the fuck down. He’s not worth it.”
I push my way through people to get to him. As I get closer, I watch as Seb and security staff are blocking his path, preventing him from getting to whoever is on the other side of the wall they’ve made with their bodies.
“Marco! Marco!” I yell, trying to break him from his frenzied anger.
Loud clapping like applause stops me in my tracks. “Ahhhhhh, there she is!” I snap my head in the direction of the voice laced with contempt and loathing.
“Arty? What the hell are you doing here?”
“I heard there was a little incident here, and I thought I might be able to offer my help. I’ve got some experience with building compliance.”
“You fucking bastard—you did this,” seethes Marco, trying to break through the human barrier to get to Arty.
“Marco! Please, baby. Just calm down,” I plead, hoping I can reason with him.
“Awww, baby, how cute,” taunts Arty. “Tell me baby, does she know the truth about Bella Donna? Or about your wheeling and dealing with mobsters to make a bit more cash on the side?”
My legs start to feel shaky, and my hands start to tremble. What is he talking about?
“Arty, that’s enough. Just go home and sober up,” cuts in Raf, who’s by my side now.
“Ah, Raf. I always liked you. Such a shame you didn’t have the decency to loop your brother and sister in on Marco’s little secrets.” He taps his lip and furrows his brow like he’s thinking. “You know, the one where he struck a deal with daddy Princi to get the cash for Bella Donna.”
“Can someone please tell me what the fuck he’s talking about?” demands Seb.
Security approaches Arty to try to lead him away. He deliberately thrashes around like he’s being roughly manhandled. Mostly for the sake of the camera phones trained on this entire fucking nightmare playing out in the middle of the street I'm sure.
“Take your hands off me or I will file a lawsuit for assault,” he yells.
“Guys, step away,” advises Raf. They do as they’re instructed, and Arty flips a switch again. He must be on something, the way he keeps switching gears.
“You’re a smart man, Raf. Shame about your friends. Anyway, where was I? Oh yes. I’m a bit fuzzy on the details, but I’m sure the conditions of Patrick’s deal were something along the lines of, if Marco convinced Sophia to go to Harvard, he would give Marco and Seb backing for their club.”
“Shut the fuck up!” Marco roars, his body visibly vibrating with rage. “You have no fucking clue what you’re saying.”
“Agreed, my recall is a bit rusty. Luckily, I have a copy of the contract Patrick made you sign. Right here.”
Arty flashes his phone screen towards me, zooming in on a signature that looks distinctly like Marco’s, but I don’t care to see more of it.
“That’s confidential documentation from official Princi & Associate files, Arty. You’re violating several law codes right now,” Raf states.
“Your dad was more than happy to share the details of the deal with me, so I don’t think he’s too concerned about keeping this under wraps,” sneers Arty. “Besides, I’m doing my due diligence on behalf of my client to close the La Rosa deal. So technically, a background check is not a violation.”
“You knew about this, Raf?” I murmur shakily, meeting his eye. The remorseful look he gives me tells me everything I need to know.
“Marco. Please explain to me what he means. What deal with my dad?” I need the truth behind these accusations from the man I’ve fallen madly, deeply, and completely in love with.
My heart is galloping, and my sixth sense screaming that everything I believed we had and could be is about to be eviscerated.
Finally tearing his gaze from Arty to look at me, Marco's anguished expression cements my worst fear. As unhinged as Arty is, there is some element of truth to what he is saying.
Ripping his arms free from Seb’s grasp, he closes the distance between us and goes to cup my face. I put a hand against his chest to keep him at arm’s length. Tears have begun to fill my eyes unbidden.
“Marco Marrone, I’m only going to ask this question one more time. What deal did you make with my dad?”