But I’ve always known I’d end up with someone just like him. I told myself for a while I might escape the shackles of marriage, but I knew if I didn’t, it would definitely be to a man like Salvatore.
He won’t love me, I know that. We’ll be together in name only, like everyone else in his family and half the people in mine. Yes, some of my siblings have managed to marry happily, but in the grand scheme of mob life, that’s the exception to the rule. And if I let myself hope…
I remember what Romeo said. I remember his warning. Romeo said he went to jail for murdering his betrothed…
“Salvatore?”
“Yes?”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“You just did.”
He might be a man to be feared, but he’s honest, I’ll give him that. I know it likely has to do with the fact that he literally doesn’t fear anyone or the consequences, but it’s something I hold onto.
“Did you kill a woman you were betrothed to?”
I’m not prepared for the complete lack of reaction from him. No blinks, no flaring of the nostrils, not even so much as a twitch of his fingers. “I did. She attempted to poison me, and we’ve already established that’s a foolish thing to do.”
I’m not sure what to make of that. “She tried to poison you?”
He nods. “Her family tried to take advantage of mine. I didn’t allow it. When I caught her attempting to take my life, she left me no choice. Unfortunately for me, her family had a legal team that had a few connections.”
I don’t know what to think of his response. On the one hand, I’m grateful for his honesty. On the other…
How would Romeo handle it if someone he was engaged to attempted to take his life?
“We’re almost there,” he says, as if what we just discussed had no significance at all. If I were a normal person, I’d feel sickened by it all, but I’m not. I wonder if something inside me is broken.
The hotel on the island looks nothing like his home in Tampa. It towers high into the night, the lighting and landscaping like something out of a movie. I reach out and gently stroke the wide, violet blossoms of tall flowers that line the walkway leading to the hotel entrance. For some reason, Salvatore shakes his head, but he looks only bemused, not angry.
His men take our luggage, and uniformed guards flank our sides. If there are other people at this hotel, they’ve hidden themselves well.
“It’s quiet here,” I say. “Is anyone else here?”
“There’d better not be,” he says with a scowl.
I blink. “You rented a whole private island, then?”
“I did.”
“On short notice?”
“Yes.”
He paid them well, then. Not a shocker.
“So we’re alone.”
“Well, no. There’s staff.”
Ah, right.
As we approach the entrance, the gleaming glass doors glide open for us. I stifle a squeal of delight when I see a dolphin-shaped water fountain in the lobby, spouting water high into the air. It’s backlit with LED lights, making the whole display light up like constellations in a night sky.
My husband leads me in past the fountain.
Gah. Husband.I wonder how long it’ll take to get used to that.