“Totally serious,” I tell her, taking her hand. “And don’t smack me again.”
She nods eagerly. I wonder if she even heard me.
“Can I, like… swim with them?”
“I wouldn’t. Humans have used dolphins as their playthings, but they’re not. Dolphins don’t naturally swim with people. It’s unnatural, really. Don’t touch or pet them either, but you can enjoy them from a distance just fine.”
Her eyes widen as she stares at me. “Will they be afraid of me?”
It’s hard to imagine anyone or anything being afraid of Marialena.
I shake my head. “Maybe. It’s not worth risking it. Better to just watch them from a distance.”
“Oh my God,” she whispers again. “Noway.”
“What?”
“Is my hard-ass husband sympathetic to dolphins?”
Am I? I shrug.
“Maybe.”
“Maybe? Oh I love that! Ha!”
I didn’t expect someone who grew up so wealthy and privileged to be so easily amused or excited, but everything seems to delight her.Everything.
I’ve hardly gotten to know the woman, but I’m starting to see why the staff fell for her so quickly. It’s hard not to.
Remember your purpose.
I married her for a reason.
I can’t forget who I am.
I can’t forget why I married her.
I can’t forget how much I hate the Rossis and how perfectly this worked out in my favor.
And I definitely can’t let myself become enchanted with her.
I wonder if I can have a night, though. Just one night where I let her bewitch me and revel in her charms.
Just one night.
* * *
CHAPTERTWELVE
Marialena
I wish I could call my sister. I wish I could call my friend Sassy, or my brothers’ wives. It seems selfish to keep the awesomeness of this place to myself, but something tells me if I start going on and on to anyone on the phone about this, Salvatore might not like it.
So far, I’ve seen the swell of smoke from the dragon’s lair, I’ve heard the jangle of the treasure he hoards, and I’ve even been burnt by his fiery breath. But I know I haven’t seen the full force of the fire-breathing dragon he most certainly is.
Mama always told me I was too impetuous, too “pie in the sky” for my own good, that my optimism would bite me in the ass. But I never understood why.
I won’t lie and say the weight of what happened today doesn’t bring me down. When I glance down at my hand and see the golden ring on my finger, I almost wince. This isn’t a joyride or a date. I’ve taken vows offoreverto a man I hardly know. A man who isn’t afraid of violence, who craves dominating me, who has hard and fast expectations of my behavior.