Page 3 of Odin

“Do we have anything on them? They were here tonight, and Don Petrakis was working the Yakuza pretty hard. He should have been mingling with the rest of the room, but it was like he had blinders on. He only spoke to ranking members of the Yakuza, and I wasn't the only one who noticed. No one said anything about what his endgame was. He still has two daughters to marry off.”

I had seen that as well. The don needed to be careful. The Yakuza wouldn’t think twice about double-crossing him, and they wouldn’t accept an arranged marriage to smooth it over.

“If we get something to take them down, then we will, but for now, I want the Lombardos.”

“What about the Deviants?” the cop asked.

“Leave the husband alone. We don’t want him to get suspicious. Serena won't say anything to him, since she's trying hard to hide your indiscretion." The chief threw his head back and laughed. "If it comes out that she's not a virgin, the Deviant will divorce her. Lorenzo will have to pay retribution, and it'll put whatever deal they made with De Angelis on very shaky ground. She's a mafia principessa. She knows what's at stake."

You fucked with the wrong husband.I linked my fingers together and popped my knuckles, preparing for the fight that would eventually come.

I watched as the chief of police walked back into the shadows from the same direction he had appeared. Carazzo stood therefor a while under the lamp, smoking a cigarette. When he left, I followed him to an apartment in a shitty part of the Lombardos' territory. He was in for the night.

I made my way back to the hotel and snuck in through the balcony.

I needed to think this through.

I took a quick look at Serena. She hadn’t moved from the spot I had left her, but she had a frown across her brow.

I didn’t want to climb into bed with the stench of the undercover cop on me, even if I hadn’t confronted him. Grabbing a quick shower, I hid my black clothes back in my suitcase and curled up next to Serena, letting her lure me to sleep.

Chapter 2

Odin

I had no clue what time it was, but I was slowly becoming conscious. Something didn't feel right. I was lying on my back, and my body was hard, yearning for release. In my dreamlike state, I heard a slurping noise, and I could feel wet heat surrounding me. I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn't get them to focus fast enough. Closing them, I tried to rub the sleep out before opening my eyes again. That's when I saw her. Serena was sucking my dick, and it was hot as fucking hell. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't let her go through with this.

“No, baby,” I rasped. She didn't hear me. “Baby, no,” I said a little louder. She popped off my dick and looked at me. It was the wrong thing to say, as the tears built in her eyes. Before she could run, I reached out and grabbed her. Hauling her up my body, I wrapped my arms around her, pinning her against me.

"Let me go." The tears were flowing down her cheeks. I wanted to wipe them away, but I was afraid that if I let her go, she’d take off. Doing the next best thing, I licked the tears from her face,savoring them on my tongue. It was a reminder to myself that I never wanted to see her cry over something stupid I’d done.

She didn’t shy away from me as I stared into her eyes. “You’re beautiful, baby,” I told her. “Now, let’s fix this.” She scoffed at my words. I could take anything she dished out at me. It was much easier to fight dirty when I knew what I was fighting against.

She took a deep breath, as if she was preparing for battle. “You tell me I am beautiful. I know exactly what I look like on the outside, and while it might not be that bad, it’s not beautiful. It’s big and bulky, with a pretty face if I lost fifty pounds. I am not you. There’s nothing chiseled on this body. Why you agreed to an arranged marriage with me, I have no clue unless you were looking to gain something from my family. News flash! You’re a Deviant. There’s nothing my family can provide for you that you can’t already get.

"Let’s say for argument's sake that you’re in this marriage for me. You have a funny way of showing it. You make me come, and when I am asleep, you leave in the middle of the night. I figured you had some side piece and went to her.” She'd lost a little steam and couldn't maintain eye contact anymore.

I'd fucked up, and I hadn’t even been married for eighteen hours.

I was going to have to tell her a little about last night, or she'd believe her own lies. I refrained from laughing at her. There would never be another woman for me.

Wrapping my arms around her, I pulled her further into my body. There wasn't any space between us, forcing her to look at me.

“I need to tell you something, but you can’t ask me how I know. It’s for your safety.”

I watched the fight drain from her eyes as she nodded her head in acceptance. The perfect mafia principessa, and I hated everyminute. I had been in this world long enough to know that they beat traditions into the women. It was all horseshit. She would no longer be submissive to anyone, including me. I wanted her intoxicating fire. Claiming her lips, I devoured her until we were both breathless.

I could no longer delay the inevitable. With a sigh, I decided it was time to share some of last night's activities. Watching for any sign of distress, I started telling her where I'd been.

“Baby, you're the only one I want. No other woman holds my attention like you do. I am only telling you this, so you'll put that thought out of your mind. I followed Carazzo last night to a meeting at the shipyards. He's the reason the cops raided several months ago.” Her emotions flickered behind her brown eyes. There was relief, but it had quickly turned into fear that she tried to bury.

"Hey." I lightly gripped her chin, so she maintained eye contact. Her face had lost all color.

"How do you know that?" She was ghostly white. Her breath coming in shallow pants.

"I overheard a conversation." She hadn't confided in me then, and I didn't want her to reveal her secrets now. I wasn't supposed to know, and the longer I could maintain the charade, the better. She wasn't confident about our marriage yet.

I kissed her again, thinking she'd melt for me and forget about that conversation. “I have never thought about the future. It’s not something you think about when you’re busy trying to survive. You turned towards me, baby, and it was like the future came rushing in. I didn’t know what was happening, but I instantly thought of you as mine.”

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