Page 88 of Empire of Seduction

My cell buzzed. It was Carlo, texting me to meet him at seven by the merlot vines. That left me ten minutes to change at home. I sent him a thumbs up. Then I noticed I had a text from BELLO waiting.

Six o’clock, diavoletta.

A tiny burst of giddiness warmed my chest, but I pushed it aside.Stop being silly,I told myself. Instead of agreeing, I sent Vito a devil face emoji.

The house was quiet, so I figured Massimo was asleep upstairs. I needed to check in with my brother and Celeste, see how everything was going. We had a team meeting at noon,when we usually ate lunch together. As I changed clothes, I pulled up our group thread to confirm if the meeting was happening or not. Mikey said that it was and Massimo would make us pizzas. I nearly rubbed my hands together. Authentic Italian pizza? Halle-fucking-lujah.

Carlo was waiting for me when I arrived. There were two shovels and a stack of white buckets that looked brand new. He was holding two pairs of gloves and a pack of sample bags. “Buongiorno,” he said, kissing my cheeks when I walked up. “I hope I didn’t get you out of bed, but I assume you rise early, like me.”

“You assume correctly. I’m usually outside by six. Six-thirty at the latest.”

“Va bene. I’ve arranged for a lab at Cornell to analyze the soil samples quickly. Then we will know what we are working with and how we might fertilize and improve, okay?”

“Sounds good.” I grabbed a shovel off the ground and accepted the gloves from him. “Where do you want to start?”

“I have a bucket for each grape variety. We will start in the merlot and move southward. I will get the subsoil, you get the topsoil.”

We began working together, shoveling dirt into buckets, then mixing with our hands to create one sample mixture. Then we filled the sample bag and moved on. Carlo was funny and personable, and he kept me entertained with stories of famous wineries and the people he’d met.

“How did Vito convince you to come here?” I asked as we worked in the Cabernet Franc section.

Carlo looked at me curiously. “You know his last name, no?”

“Of course, but . . . ”

“There is nobut, signorina.” He dumped dirt in our bucket. “These men, they are rich, but they are also dangerous. Youshould remember that.” He strode away to another section and began digging.

“We’re not together,” I called after him.

When he returned and emptied his shovel, he leaned against it and stared down at me. “In my country, a father prays that his daughter doesn’t end up with a man like this. And I sense that he is . . . interested in you.”

I didn’t want Carlo to think I was pinning my hopes and dreams on marrying Vito. “We aren’t in Italy, and there isn’t any future for the two of us. We’re just having fun—temporary fun.”

“Va bene. A relief, because these men have a very narrow view of women and their role. And there is no way out, no matter how bad the situation might be, capisce?”

“Are you saying that I wouldn’t be allowed to dress like a farmer and run a winery as a mob wife?”

Carlo shook his head. “This would reflect badly on him. He needs a trophy, a model. Someone to make all the other men jealous.” Grimacing, he seemingly realized what he’d said. “Not that you aren’t beautiful. You would be a prize for any man.”

I held up my hand. “I get it. I’m not offended. My friend Valentina runs a restaurant, though. And she’s married to Luca Benetti. Maybe you’ve?—”

“I’ve heard of him. And is she running this restaurant now?”

“Well, no.” I brushed dirt off my gloves. “They’re honeymooning in Catanzaro.”

Carlo held out his hand as if to say,there you go.

“She’s coming back,” I said, though it sounded weak. “They’re splitting the year between there and here.”

“If you say so,” he said, then walked away to get more samples.

Minutes later, I couldn’t get this conversation out of my head. Another reason to remember this was just sex with Vito.I wasn’t giving up my independence to become a mob wife. No, thank you.

But this made me think about Val. Was she coming back? I didn’t have many friends and it would sting to lose one, especially mybestfriend. Whipping off one glove, I used my thumb to unlock my phone and pull up my text thread with Val.

Hey! How’s it going? You still alive over there?

Almost instantly, a photo of her well-manicured toes filled my screen, a pool in the background. The sun was shining as if to sayfuck youto the gray sky looming over my head. I felt a little sick. Who in their right mind would leave that paradise to come back here?

---