Chapter 32
Camillo Vicari
Castello dell’Fiero, Calabria, Italy
Kissing Daisy Parker was a catastrophic mistake.
I took the American woman to Italy with the specific purpose of getting rid of her once Senator Jones' death began to fade from people's memories.
According to the news and Alessandro Lombardi, my plan was unfolding as expected.
The American police had already closed the case and confirmed it was suicide.
Now, the ideal thing would be to wait a few months and then execute Daisy so as not to leave any witnesses or raise any suspicions.
Or that had been the plan, before I kissed her.
I let my body speak louder than reason and laid my hands on the woman I had to get rid of.
And that was exactly why I was avoiding her ever since.
Daisy slowly got under my skin, becoming an addiction as dangerous as any drug.
So much so that before I realized it, I was waking up earlier than usual and going out onto the bedroom balcony, just to watch the morning sun glistening on her blonde hair.
And at night, I would stay late at the office, staring at the CCTV cameras to make sure she returned safely from her late-night runs.
I was born into a famiglia that commercialized cocaine, yet I was never susceptible to the temptation of drugs.
But there I was now, succumbing to the southern accent of an American woman, thriving on every time she called me ‘sugar’ in that honeyed voice of hers and wanting to spend time with her as much as possible.
In just a few days, Daisy Parker became my addiction. A drug more dangerous than any kind of cocaine.
I was forty years old. At my age and after what the past had taught me, mistakes were not repeated.
Valentina was a one-time mistake. One miserable time that made me lose what I cherished the most. I would not allow history to repeat itself, even though the situation with Daisy was totally different.
What I felt was purely physical, yet the American woman was still a ticking time bomb.
She was the only witness to Senator Jones' murder, and then there was that friend of hers, District Attorney Olivia Goodwin.
I had to be careful. Use my brain. Ignore the urge to take her to my bed.
However, there I was at that moment. Blood pulsing through my veins and a tingling sensation tempting me to reach for my gun and blow Fabiano Mancuso's brains out for daring to open the door for Daisy right in front of me.
“Where the hell have you been?!” My voice came out louder and angrier than I had intended.
Fabiano stopped halfway, looking at me and then at his uncle, his face furrowed with confusion.
Daisy, on the other hand, kept walking, arms crossed over her chest and chin lifted defiantly.
“I asked where you’ve been, Daisy.” I growled, lingering on her name.
She laughed sarcastically. “Excuse you?” I clenched my fists tightly, controlling the anger that sent electric shocks through my body as I imagined the most sordid scenarios starring her and Fabiano.
Luca and Gennaro told me that they had been walking around the property, that Fabiano took her to see the wine presses, and that they then went on to Reggio Calabria, where they had dinner at Gennaro's son's restaurant.
And I could only imagine the two of them, all over each other and strolling along Via Marina, or exchanging caresses in the restaurant, or.
.. “As far as I know, Mr. Vicari, I'm free to go wherever I want, aren't I?”
With fury consuming me more and more, I ignored her and looked up at Fabiano. He had been brave enough to turn his charm on Daisy, but now was standing there, pale as a sheet, terrified in my presence.
He'd better be.
“Who gave you permission to take her?” I fired in Italian, not wanting Daisy to get involved.
“I was just showing her around the estate, Don Vicari,” he explained in a drawling tone.
If it weren't for Gennaro, I would have put a bullet between his eyes.
I should have been the one to take Daisy to Reggio Calabria. I should have been the one to walk with her by the sea. Not him.
Not anyone else.
“The estate doesn't extend to Reggio Calabria, nor to your cousin's restaurant.”
“No, Don Vicari. But I thought—”
“You thought...?”
“I thought Daisy was just the new housekeeper at the villa. No one told me there were… restrictions. I thought I could take her for a walk.”
My chest filled with a gulp of air. I took a step back and set my hands on my hips, gritting my teeth to suppress the hatred I felt when I heard him say her name. Only I could call her Daisy.
Me. No one else.
"Don't think, don't assume, don't make decisions without consulting me first. And you can thank your uncle Gennaro, because you've never been closer to the grave than you are today, Fabiano.
" I spat out all the contempt I felt, watching Gennaro grimace in pain and Luca run a hand over his bald head, which hadn't stopped sweating since he revealed to me that Daisy had spent the afternoon with Fabiano.
The bastard stared at me for a long moment, too serious for the opportunity that luck was giving him, but then he lost his nerve and nodded. “Certo, Don Vicari. It won't happen again.”
“It better not. Now, get out of here.” I growled, turning to Gennaro. “If I didn't have so much respect for you, Gennaro, he'd be a dead man.”
“Sì, Don Camillo... Buonanotte.” Gennaro whispered, his head bowed and his voice pained, walking toward his nephew, his hat clutched in nervous hands.
Gennaro also said a polite goodbye to Daisy and got into the pickup truck. Fabiano, however, still dared to look at her.
“Goodnight, Cupcake. And I'm sorry... I didn't know it would cause you trouble.”
My blood ran cold and my eyes widened in Daisy's direction.
‘CUPCAKE’?!
“It's okay. Buonanotte, Margherita.”
‘MARGHERITA’?!
I was ready to reach for my gun holster, but Luca patted me on the back, dissuading me.
“Don Camillo, per favore... Let's go inside, shall we?”
I gritted my teeth. Oh, no. Fabiano could get away, but Daisy was a different story.
I stared at her once more and, before I could think straight, I hoisted her over my shoulder and dragged her into the villa like a sack of onions.
She snarled, punching me in the back, but I ignored her.
Luca followed close behind, though he dared say nothing.
When Daisy decided it was a good idea to bite me on the back, my open hand landed on her ass, eliciting a horrified squeal from her and a ‘Dio mio!’ from Luca.
I took her to my office and threw her to the floor, watching her fall on her backside.
“YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!” she exploded, and I stared at her angry face and her disheveled hair without any remorse. “IDIOT! FUCKER!”
“What happened in Reggio Calabria?” I uttered those words in a voice barely above a growl.
She stared at me with her small eyes wide open. “What...?” Her breathing was heavy. “What do you mean by...?”
“I asked what happened between you and Fabiano Mancuso in Reggio Calabria.” I couldn't shake the images of the two of them, clinging to each other in the worst situations. The mere possibility was consuming me. “Did you fuck him? Was that it?”
Luca exclaimed ‘Madonna mia!’ behind me, and Daisy stared at me, her face turning pale and her mouth agape.
But that didn't stop me. Oh, no. I wanted to know exactly what those two had been doing.
No, I wanted her to admit it, because I didn't believe that a woman like her could spend an afternoon and half the night on an innocent outing with a man. Especially Fabiano, who’d already slept his way through half the women in Castello dell'Fiero.
“Answer me, Daisy!”
“YOU'RE SICK!” she squealed, jumping up. “Fabiano showed me Castello dell'Fiero and took me for a walk in Reggio Calabria, that's all!”
“And what happened on that walk?”
“What do you mean?! I met him today! He was just trying to be nice! Unlike you, who avoids me some days and disappears without a trace on others!” She raged, waving her arms, but there were tears in her eyes. Perhaps, tears of guilt. “Besides, you said I was free to wander around the region!”
“But I also told you that you weren't here to make friends, just as I warned you that the only man who could call you Daisy was me.” I growled, stepping toward her.
“Don Camillo, per favore... They spent most of the afternoon in the company of other people. Besides, it's my fault, I shouldn't have let the Signorina—”
“Leave us alone, Luca.” I demanded. The last thing Daisy needed was a defense attorney. And the last thing I wanted was for my head of security to take up our guest’s cause.
“Sì, Don Camillo. Permesso."
As soon as the door closed behind me, I raised my index finger right in front of Daisy's nose, who was trembling and struggling to stand firm. Her peridot-colored eyes were teary, and the skin on her face, illuminated by the pale light from the ceiling chandelier, was now turning red.
“I warned you, Daisy.” I growled, waving my index finger. “I warned you not to get close to men.”
“I didn't do anything wrong.” She murmured, and a tear ran down her cheek, making something tighten inside me. I lowered my hand, swallowing hard. “It was just a walk.”
“Why did you call him ‘cupcake’?”
“For the same reason I called you sugar.” The word sent a tingle down my spine. That damn southern accent. “It’s just a way of speaking. An affectionate term.” She continued to answer me in a whisper, struggling not to shed another tear. Piccola Furetta. “I didn’t do anything.”
“He called you ‘Margherita.’” I pointed out, again, a sharp anger stabbing me in the gut. “We don't have your habit of giving affectionate names so easily. Not without a reason.”
Something changed in Daisy's face. The tears seemed to evaporate from her eyes and her face lost all expression. Suddenly, her hands spread across my chest and she stood on tiptoe, bringing her lips close to mine.
I swallowed hard, unable to take my eyes off her mouth.
“He bent me over the hood of the pickup truck...” My stomach churned. “...and fucked me until I couldn't feel my legs anymore.” I couldn't react, couldn't even think. “Is this what you wanted to hear?”
“So, it's true...” My voice came out weak. I was frozen.
Daisy moved away a little, and suddenly her hand collided directly with my face. The sound of the slap reverberated throughout the room.
“You have no right to treat me like this.” The tearful voice made me look immediately in her direction.
She had backed away to my desk. Her body shook with heartfelt sobs, her lips twisted into a pout laden with pain, and her arms wrapped around her body.
Dio, what was I doing? "If you want to kill me, you better do it once and for all, because if you think you're going to control the rest of my life, Mr. Vicari, you're very much mistaken.
You don't own me. You're nothing to me.“, she choked out, her voice little more than a broken whisper.
“Fabiano was kind. He made me forget for a few hours the real reason I was brought here.
He made me feel less alone. He was my friend, that's all! “
I couldn't stand it. Something twisted inside me when I saw her in that state, when I heard the sadness in her always so sweet voice, but it was even more unbearable to hear her say those things about Fabiano.
“You are forbidden to speak to him again.”
“You have no right.”
“I do, Daisy.” I was harsher than I would have liked.
“Here, you are my employee. For the rest of your life, you work for me.” She cringed at each of my words, as if I had slapped her.
“If you don’t obey my orders, other people will pay.
Your friend, your pathetic former boss, your aunt who, from what I heard, is pregnant.
.. You don't want that, do you, Daisy?" I continued, letting my anger speak louder, realizing with frustration that it was something else.
Jealousy. What was eating away at me was jealousy, and I was letting it control me.
“If you talk to Fabiano again, I swear I'll kill him in front of you. So be a good girl and behave like what you are: a worthless maid.”
She didn't answer me. All her haughtiness, all her insolence, vanished and gave way to a horrified look followed by copious tears. She covered her face with the backs of her hands and sobbed like a terrified little girl, and I felt like the biggest piece of shit on earth.
I still raised an arm, still tried to touch her, but I bit my tongue in time. I was the Capobastone of that famiglia, I had to behave as such and remain true to my words and decisions. I straightened up and walked to the door, finding a regretful-looking Luca on the other side of it.
“Ask the men to bring Signorina Parker's things to the room next to mine and instruct them that she is forbidden to leave the villa without my permission. Capisci?”
“Sì, Don Camillo.” Luca nodded, disappearing as if fleeing from a ghost.
I turned back for a moment, seeing Daisy still standing in front of my desk, sobbing copiously.
I said nothing to her. I went back to her and gently grabbed her arm, causing her to groan immediately as if I had hit her, and dragged her trembling body out of there and down the hallway.
The paintings and pictures of hundreds of generations seemed to judge me, but I ignored them.
I reached the end of the hall and opened the last door on the right, beside my bedroom.
“From now on, this is where you'll sleep. Come in,” I ordered, and watched her obey with difficulty.
In the middle of the huge, old suite, decorated to the taste of my Nonna Renata, with pink floral wallpaper covering the walls and reddish mahogany furniture, Daisy lived up to her name and looked like a fragile little flower.
“Luca will bring your things in a moment. Use the night to decide how you intend to behave from now on.”
The door was about to close when her tearful voice stopped me.
“Yes, Mr. Vicari.”
I slammed the door and felt my own face crumple. At that moment, I hated myself.