Page 38 of Bought By the Mafia

“So we share a favorite dish. Interesting. That’s one area we’re compatible.”

“We’re compatible in other areas as well.”

She blushed and took a sip of wine. “You never told me about your mother.”

As much as I aspired to be on good terms with Simona. Trading stories about our parents was one area I didn’t want to go to. Especially when it came to my mother. “She was an exceptional woman.”

“And an artist,” she said. Simona must have noticed my discomfort and my unwillingness to go there. My mother was a topic I rarely broached with friends, let alone the women I slept with. But she was different, wasn’t she? She was my wife, and I had just agreed to be cordial with her.

“She loved to paint. My mother would spend hours on end in her studio painting all day. The tips of her fingers were practically black with paint.”

Simona smiled. It looked genuine. “She sounds very passionate.”

“She was. And it’s not like she wasn’t attentive to her children or anything. I spent more days with her when she was alive than I did with my father.”

“You were her favorite?”

“That’s what my brothers would say, but I don’t agree. I just came whenever she called.”

She bellowed again. Her laughter was so infectious, I chuckled. Our talk moved on to other topics, which I was glad of. We had more in common than I thought. It was odd that I found her talk of fashion interesting, but I did. I could listen to her all day. Hell, maybe I could listen to her read the phone book all day. I wasn’t sure if it was her topics I found interesting, or her. This moment brought back memories. Back to a time when I thought our relationship could be different. Maybe…

My phone rang, breaking into the cocoon we had created.

“Pick it up. It’s okay,” Simona said. I would rather let it go to voicemail. Our time together was enjoyable for the first time in our marriage, and I didn’t want to ruin it by taking a business call. I checked to see who it was. It was Allison. I answered the phone.

17

Iwas going to leave him. I had a plan before I entered the apartment. Before he could do or say anything, I was going to tell him I decided to move out and find a place of my own. It made sense in my mind. I was tired of constantly fighting. And I was sure we had convinced anyone important that our marriage was real, so there was no longer any need for us to keep up the ruse. But what really pushed me was Allison. It was clear Giovanni harbored some feelings for her, try as he might to deny it. After my initial wave of jealousy had dissipated, I could tell that he and Allison had a connection. He seemed happy to see her. He even smiled. I don’t think Gio has ever smiled at anything I’ve ever said or done and that made me realize how unhappy our marriage was. Even my assistant had noticed the tiredness behind my eyes wasn’t just from the store opening, but something else. He was too kind to mention anything more than, ‘how’s your day’ though. He was smart enough to recognize that I didn’t want to talk about it.

So when Gio asked me to join him for dinner, I was surprised. When he suggested we stop fighting, I was suspicious. He had shown no inclination towards a truce before and I was sure it was some sort of ruse whose purpose I hadn’t worked out yet. But as the dinner went on, I felt like he was genuine. We spoke cordially for the first time in probably years. There was even a point when he was talking about his mother that made me think he was opening up. Then the call happened.

Apparently, Allison was downstairs and was distressed. When she came up, she looked even more disheveled than she did earlier in the day. Her clothes, which I had given her earlier, had torn in places. Her shoes did not match what she had on, something that stuck out to me. As if she had grabbed the first pair in her closet and got out. The mascara on her face was runny from crying and her eye was purple and puffy. Something had gone horribly wrong. An awful pun came to mind; she had a knack for dramatic entrances.

“What happened?” Giovanni asked, rushing over to her.

“I left him,” she said. “I left Carter.” Her voice was shaky. She sounded like she was going to break into sobs any minute, but she didn’t. “I couldn’t take it anymore. I just ran out.”

Gio embraced her into a tight hug, and she wailed into his chest. “Okay. It’s okay.” He held her for a while and when she calmed down, he led her slowly to the living room. I followed behind, feeling a little out of sorts. “Sit down and tell us everything,” Gio said as he pressed her gently down on the couch. He sat next to her while I sat opposite them. Allison took a deep breath and went into her tale. According to her, she had a boyfriend she was living with. Carter, who, from the sounds of it, was an abusive drunk. They had an argument after he saw her wearing different clothes than the one she went out wearing. Carter tore at them during the fight, then he punched her. She then decided it was too much and left. My jaw was open as I listened to her story. I felt guilty for ever thinking negatively about her. Clearly, she was going through a lot.

“I didn’t think, I just ran. I grabbed a few things and got out with no clear thought. Your apartment was the first place that came to mind and that’s how I ended up here. I’m so sorry if…” A gust of wind blew through the open French doors and Allison looked outside. “Oh, did I ruin your romantic dinner? I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine,” I said to her. “We were already done, anyway.”

“I’m so afraid to go back to that place,” she said, and I completely understood her. Who knew what else her boyfriend would do if she went back? “You can stay here for the night,” I said.

She smiled. “I won’t be intruding? I just thought I would get here and then maybe book a hotel and stay—”

“There’s absolutely no need for you to stay at a hotel. Right Gio.”

Gio nodded. “We have more than enough room,” he said.

“I don’t want to intrude,” Allison said.

“You wouldn’t be,” I cut in. “You said you took some things with you. Are they in the lobby?”

“Yes. My suitcase. Honestly, I just threw stuff in there. I wasn’t even thinking straight.”

“I’ll tell Bill to bring it up,” Gio said.

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