Chapter 9 #3
Dante sat in his office as he tried to clear things off his desk. He didn’t want to be focused on business or the progress he made toward turning his businesses clean. He wanted to be able to focus on Madison for the weekend.
He and his cousins were having a status report meeting. It would be his first-time seeing Enzo since the incident when he had slammed him against the wall. They had both kept their distance. Dante, more so, because he was spending time with Madison.
It hadn’t been long, only last night. But they were all close and spent a lot of time if not being in the same room together, then they exchanged texts or phone calls. Hell, even emails. But it had been radio silent.
He figured Enzo just needed time to cool down and realize that Madison was off limits. He hoped, this time had gotten that into his head. Lucca was the first to show up.
“Hey man. How’s it going? Have you talked to Enzo since last night?” Lucca sat down.
“Things are moving. I’ll give an update when everyone is here. I haven’t talked to Enzo since last night. What did he say?”
“I don’t know man. I tried to message him and he never responded. I could see that he read them, but no response.”
That concerned. Dante didn’t know why, but he had a bad feeling. He was going to text Madison when Gabe walked in.
“Gabe, have you talked to Enzo?”
“Nope, I haven’t seen him since he left last night. When I contacted him last night, he ignored my messages and sent my calls to voicemail.”
“Do you think he will show up today?”
“No idea.”
Dante reached for his phone to see if he had any messages from Madison or Enzo.
“I wanted to tell you guys that Dad is having an engagement party for Ainsley and me, so you guys can talk to her, since the last time you met her everything was kind of rushed.”
“That’s great I guess. Do we have to come?” Dante had nothing from either Madison or Enzo, and he shot off a quick text to Madison
—D: Wanted to make sure you’re ok. I was thinking about you. I’m looking forward to spending the weekend with you.”— He waited for a response.
“Mom is making it a big deal, so I think you will have to come.” Lucca shifted in the chair
“My mom already said to me there would be nice girls there to settle down with.” Gabe checked his watch.
Dante looked up from his phone. “This isn’t some type of matchmaker thing is it?”
“I’m not going to lie. I think so. Aunt Sharon and Linda are upset they aren’t any closer to planning a wedding and want to help things along.”
“Damn, so we have to show up? I might try to bring someone to keep mom off my back,” Gabe said.
“Is that an option? If it is, you can put me down for a plus one.” Dante knew who he wanted to bring.
If only she was willing to make what they had official in front of his family and friends.
But first he would have to tell her that he was part of a crime family.
He couldn’t bring her without telling her first.
“You have someone you want to bring?” Lucca looked at him.
—M: I’m ok and me too.—
Dante smiled. He had been worried Enzo might confront Madison again because he had gone off the radar, but she was fine. Dante also knew Madison would tell him if Enzo had come by or done anything so that was good.
“I guess let’s start since Enzo isn’t here. I can at least give the update.”
“Sounds good.”
“So things have moved according to plan. I’ve transferred some holdings over into different names in case we get caught so they can’t seize them.”
“Make sense.”
“Did you talk to the lawyer, Tony?”
“Yeah. I let him know what’s happening and he has the funds for bail if it’s necessary.”
The office door opened, and Enzo came in with a bag of ice held up to his face. He came in and slumped down in a chair.
“What happened to you?” Gabe asked.
“Bitch smacked me.” He stared at Dante and put the ice in his lap.
“Did she get your balls too, man?” Lucca leaned forward.
“Yeah.”
“What happened?” Dante was curious. None of them manhandled women as far as he knew. He sensed Enzo hinted it was Madison, but he had checked on her and she was fine and hadn’t said Enzo was there or had been by.
“I got my signals crossed. She acted like she was interested, but it turns out she was only a tease. I know better now.”
Dante looked down at his phone again, but there was no new message from Madison. He knew she was out with Sabrina and Zoe before work, so he would see her when she came in. She always came up to his office as part of their routine after she got in.
“I was just giving an update. Things are moving as planned and we should reach our target date, which is a week before the sting date. Tony has access to the funds to bail us out when they come to pick us up. I’m pretty confident that once they get their hands on documents, that they won’t find anything. ”
“That’s good.” Enzo moved the ice pack back to his face.
“Enzo, Dad is throwing a party for Ainsley and me to celebrate our engagement.”
“Yeah, I know. Mom told me when she asked why I hadn’t brought anyone home. She had expected me to bring someone that I had mentioned.”
Dante took the hint and ignored it. “Any word on the mole?”
Enzo had a shifty look cross his face, and it made Dante concerned.
“We’re just finding out who it is. No need to take care of him.”
“I won’t. Ok good. I think that’s it for now. I need to get down on the floor.” Dante stood up and everyone else followed. He wanted to talk to Enzo in private, but he didn’t think it was the right time. Maybe later tonight. He didn’t want Enzo in the office when Madison came up.
****
He sent a quick text to the guys he still had tailing Madison.
—D: Did Enzo show up at Madison’s?—
—A: Yeah, he wasn’t there long.—
—D: Ok, next time stop him and let me know.—
—A: Will do boss—
Dante looked up from his desk to see Madison come in the door. She held her dance duffel and another bag. She locked the door behind her. She came over and dropped her bags at his feet before she climbed into his lap and rested her head on his shoulder.
Something was wrong. She was shaking and curled up in his lap and nuzzled his neck.
“What’s wrong?” He stroked her back.
“Nothing.”
He didn’t trust her. And it made his gut tighten. Was she going to lie to him? She wouldn’t look at him. He leaned back so he could see part of her face and lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes.
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Something had happened. And he suspected it had to do with Enzo. Thinking of Enzo touching Madison and her having to try to defend herself made his blood boil and he kicked himself for not being there.
Madison wasn’t violent, and the knowledge of what Enzo could have done to make her not only slap him in the face but to kick him in the balls. Dante had an idea and if Madison didn’t need him he would have gone after Enzo. Now he just needed Madison to tell him everything that happened.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Sabrina asked me if I slept with you to get the headliner position. She wanted it and rumor was that it was hers.” She turned to face him. “Did you give it to me because we slept together? I believed you were just going to put me on the schedule for the three months.”
This hadn’t been what he expected. “What? No. It had nothing to do with us sleeping together. That is separate and had no bearing on what happened at il Signore. What brought that on?”
“She asked me when she came to pick me up for dinner. She said a bunch of things that kind of hurt me and made me feel like a bad person.”
“Like what?” He rubbed her back.
“Just stuff like she feels like she is second best to me and that I think I’m perfect and too good. As if I think she is beneath me. Henry had told me she was jealous of me earlier, but I hadn’t believed him.” She leaned into his chest.
“When she confronted me, it let me know how much it was true. To me, we were good friends, but I feel like all this time she has been hating me in secret. She didn’t even say sorry for the rumors she spread.”
“How long have you been friends for? Sometimes work-friend relationships don’t last long.”
Madison sat up. “We’ve been friends since we were kids. At least I believed we were.”
“Aww, baby, it’s ok. She might be having a hard time right now and doesn’t mean it.” He gave her a hug.
“I think that might be true. I think she wants me to give up this headliner position for her, but I can’t. My mom went through my savings that I had built up for use during my unpaid internship, so I need the money. I can’t give it up.”
“I know and I don’t expect you to, and I don’t think she means or wants that from you. I think she is just hurt now.”
“Maybe, it’s just some things that upset her, I have no control over.” She snuggled closer.
“Like what?”
“The fact that there are special rules for me.”
“Yeah, how did those come to be?”
“It was part of the original deal I had with Enzo when he asked me to work here.”
“He knew you danced?”
Fear flickered across her face and then disappeared. Alarm bells rang in the back of his head. It confirmed for him that Enzo didn’t run into another woman, but that it was Madison who had hit Enzo.
“He came to some of the clubs I had been at and asked why I didn’t work at il Signore. I told him it was the rules, and he said he could make a no touch rule with me if I would come and work there.”
“And he did.”
“Yep, so I came to work here twice a month.”
“Did anything else happen?”
“No.” It came out quick, like a lie. But he didn’t press her. He wanted her to trust him enough to tell him. He also hadn’t told her he was having her followed so he couldn’t tell her how he knew for a fact Enzo had been there without giving everything away.
He didn’t know why he kept the tail in place. She wasn’t cheating on him and the only people she visited were her parents, her brother, and Zoe.
Dante cupped her face. She had still brought her overnight bag so that meant she would spend the weekend with him.
He still wanted to use the time they had together to convince her that they could be good together in permanent relationship. In five weeks’ time, he planned to take her to Lucca’s engagement party and let everyone know he had found the special someone.
This way they could date without having to sneak around. For as long as they would be together, he wanted to be out in the open. Deep down he wanted a forever life with Madison, but he doubted it was possible.
She didn’t seem like the type to be a mafia wife and even though he was cleaning his businesses up, and wanted to leave the family, that would still always be a part of him.
And there was the fact that he could go to jail.
He didn’t doubt that Tony would get him out.
But he didn’t know how long he would spend in.
Would Madison want to stay and wait for him to get out? Would she want to be with someone who had been to jail and had a possible prison sentence looming? No. He would need to wait until after everything was settled before he approached Madison for something more.
“I better go. I just came here first. Zoe will look for me.” She kissed him and then got up. “Can I leave my overnight bag here? I wasn’t sure if we were leaving from here or from my place.”
“Yeah, you can leave it with me. We’ll leave from here. You can come up after you’re done getting the bar ready for tomorrow. I’ll have a few things left to finish up, but it shouldn’t take too long and then we can leave.”
“Ok. I’ll see you downstairs.” She picked up her dance duffel and left. Leaving the door open behind her.
He listened to see if Enzo was waiting outside or if anyone else lurked around, but it seemed like the coast was clear. Madison was a good girl. Hell, it had been very recent that she had been a virgin. He didn’t want rumors to upset her or ruin her reputation.
Dante would choose to have people know they were dating and had kept it quiet, than that they were in a casual relationship and think that she had slept with him to get favors.
Then he could wait until he had cleaned up everything and didn’t have jail over his head, and then he would tell her how he had feelings for her.
Dante headed downstairs to be ready for Madison’s sets.