Page 34 of The Agreement

“Giovanni, what are you doing here? Is Valentina alright?” Vinny ignored her questions, not in the mood to make small talk with her. In fact, he hadn’t wanted anything to do with the De Luca’s at the moment but Rafael said he was free and Vinny wasn’t going to let the chance pass him by.

“Is your husband in his office?”

“Yes, did you need to see him? Or does he know you were coming?”

“He knew Mrs. De Luca,” he said as he walked past her and to the office, where he knocked before opening the door after hearing the acknowledgment to enter.

“Giovanni,” Rafael said as he leaned back in his chair, “what brings you by?” Without a word, Vinny tossed the bullet from Celeste’s gun and the casing from Val’s car on the desk before Rafael. He glanced at them and then back at Vinny, a brow arched. “Is this a threat of some sort?”

“No, that shell casing was what was found in your daughter’s car after her back window was shot at.” Vinny watched with some satisfaction as the old man paled.

~ Chapter 27 ~

Rafael picked up the casing and fiddled with it before looking up at Vinny and waved for him to sit down, which he did. The older man finally cleared his throat and left the casing alone.

“You said my daughter was shot at?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know by whom?”

“No, but I have a thought as to who,” Vinny answered.

“So, why are you coming to me? You have taken on the role of watching out for her, although I’m questioning if you are doing it well or not here.” Vinny ignored the taunt from the older man. He knew Rafael was worried, this was his only daughter and he could play it off however he wanted but Vinny knew.

“Actually, that’s the rather funny part. See, Valentina was coming home with Luciana after lunch.”

“Yes, I know where she was,” Rafael snapped and Vinny fought to be the respectful man his dad taught him to be.

“Which it seems her guards were told to come back here because you needed them,” he continued as if Rafael hadn’t interrupted him.

“Yes, because Val texted from a burner phone that she was done with lunch and was already at your house. I saw no point in the men staying there when I needed them back here.”

“Expect that they weren’t done with lunch.” Rafael just stared at Vinny, his face showing him trying to process everything. “And trust me De Luca, Val does not have a burner phone and wouldn’t call or text you from one unless she was in trouble.”

“Are you saying that this was a setup so that my daughter could be alone?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Thankfully no harm came to her; however, I don’t think that was the mission, more like a means to scare her. And everything worked perfectly towards that.”

“Figlio di puttana(son of a bitch),” the older man roared.

“I understand the men who watch her now are family but you can keep them, I’m appointing my own man to watch over her now since I can’t seem to trust you.” Rafael shot Giovanni a glare but he just waved it off. Sometimes the truth hurt and he wasn’t going to stop now. He wasn’t sure when it changed but it seemed the moment Val started playing a more rebellious role, she fell out of favor with her dad and Vinny refused to leave what was his in anyone’s care anymore.

“I can’t say that I blame you. I just hope you have better luck curbing that streak than I have.”

“Yes, about that actually….,” Vinny said, giving the man a look but trailed off.

“Are you going to tell me how to treat and raise my daughter now?”

“If I thought it would do any good, I would. But, I know it won’t so I won’t waste my time.” Vinny watched the redness of anger creep on the older man’s face and he tried not to smile. “Valentina is my fiancé, as you have made it perfectly known; she falls under my care and well-being. And I have no problem with that at all; I actually like having her there.

“But, De Luca, since she is mine here, that means you have lost the right to raise your hand to her ever again.”

“As long as she still represents a De Luca, Giovanni, I will gladly put her in her place if she cannot or does not line up to my image. Valentina is a bright, proud, and beautiful woman who was raised right. She knows what being thatprincipessa(princess) means.”

“Yes, you have groomed her well, but do remember she’s your sacrificial lamb here to me and my father. And I do not like being looked upon as a man who beats his wife before the title is even mine.” Rafael leaned back in his seat, his fingers steepled before his face as he regarded the young man. Vinny was trying to be as nice and tactful as he was raised to be, but he was slowly losing that cool with the man.

Vinny would never be the type to tell Val that she couldn’t see her family; he wasn’t that kind of man. Honestly, he respected her far too much to put those types of limitations on her. But he was also smart enough, and cruel enough, to tell her that she wasn’t allowed to come back and work under her dad. Vinny had a job for her if that was the problem. But he knew that if she stayed under her dad’s thumb, things like this, like the slap, would happen again.

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