It was a pain I didn't want to go through again.
Aurora was asleep in minutes, leaving me alone in my thoughts. I tossed and turned, looking over at the clock to see it was a quarter to four. Aurora was curled up on the other side of the bed, determined not to be near me even while asleep. I got out of bed with a sigh, moving over to the window. The moon was full and bright, illuminating Stephanie’s grave. The water bubbling out of the fountain sparkled in the moonlight, the solar lights around her grave dimly lit. It'd been a while since I'd been to her grave alone. I actually hadn't been back to her grave at all before I found Aurora there. Maybe a visit was long overdue.
Pulling on a pair of pajama pants, I walked out of the bedroom, softly closing the door behind me. The house was quiet and dark aside from the security team pacing the lower level of the house. They all nodded to me as I passed them.
“Do you need security outside, boss?” Josh asked as I passed him.
I shook my head. “Nah. I need to be alone right now,” I said. He nodded and watched me as I walked out of the glass door and stepped into the backyard.
Everything was quiet aside from the occasional cricket in the night. The closer I moved to Stephanie’s grave, the louder the fountain became until I could see it. The smell of roses overwhelmed me as I came to a stop at the foot of her grave. The solar light at the foot of her grave illuminated her smiling picture, caving my fucking chest in.
“It's been a while hasn't it, babe?” I murmured out loud as I took a seat on the bench. I hadn't experienced love until I fell in love with Stephanie. It was a feeling I took for granted because I thought she'd always be here. I thought I could protect her from any harm that came her way. But I failed her. Now, the only way I could talk to her was sitting next to a grave, hoping she could hear me wherever she was.
I looked up at the bedroom window, a bit spooked to see someone standing in it. The longer I looked, I finally realized it was Aurora. She lifted her hand as if to wave and then disappeared. I sighed deeply.
“Did I fuck up by marrying her?” I asked out loud. “I know she isn't you, but it doesn't stop me from wishing she was.”
Stephanie's death should've been a sign that I wasn't worthy of love. My soul was too dark, bound to ruin anything and everyone it touched. But the selfish part of me still wanted Aurora to bring out what I felt I'd lost when Stephanie died. I wanted to feel how I used to feel but was fucking terrified to allow myself to be that vulnerable.
“You okay out here?” a deep voice asked. I looked up to see Saint approaching, his eyes on Stephanie’s grave.
I nodded. “Yeah. Just wanted to sit out here.”
He sat next to me on the bench. “Haven't seen you out here in a long while,” he said after we sat in a long bout of silence.
“Yeah…it's still hard being out here,” I murmured. “I feel like I'm making a mistake.”
Saint looked at me with a raised brow. “About starting a new family?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Marrying Aurora.”
He was quiet for a moment. “I think she just needs time, man. Once the shock of the news wears off, then maybe it can be something nice.”
“I don't know.” I let out a sigh and looked up to the sky. “When I first met her, there was something about her that drew me to her. It made me nervous. I thought if I hurt her, it would break whatever spell she had over me, but it only got worse as I learned who she was and how she was related to Stephanie.” I met his intense gaze and frowned. “When everything is over and done with, what if she doesn't choose me?”
“What's there to choose?” Saint asked with a shrug. “You guys are married and she's the queen of our family. What choice would she have?”
I shook my head. “My mother was trapped in an arranged marriage because she didn't have a choice. Aurora only agreed because of the conditions but being married doesn't automatically make someone develop feelings strong enough to forgive what I've done.”
“You know, Giselle’s mother hated my guts,” Saint said and chuckled. “We weren't in love when we had sex and shit just got worse when she got pregnant. I think I heard her tell me she hated me every day for nine months. But the more I spent time with her and our daughter, the more she saw that I wasn't just a killer or a mafia monster.” He was quiet for a moment. “You're going to have to let yourself be vulnerable, man. You've put that woman through hell; that's the only side of you she knows. If you want her to know there's more of you to love, you're gonna have to trust her and show her that. Otherwise, nothing will change.”
“Yeah,” I murmured.
He stood up. “You know that I know the grief of losing the woman you love all too well. There's not a day that goes by where I don't think of Regina. I see her every time I look at my little girl.” He gave me a small smile. “Gina once told me that everyone deserves love, no matter how dark they are. She told me that was why she took a chance on me.”
“Thanks,” I said. He nodded and left me alone in my thoughts. I pondered over everything he said and sighed.
Even if I allowed myself to be vulnerable, I didn't know if it would be enough. All I could do was try and pray that it paid off.
I stood up from the bench and looked down at Stephanie’s picture. “Wish me luck, baby doll. Your sister’s a tough nut to crack,” I said, kissing my fingers and pressing it against the gravestone. “I love you.”
With a final look, I made my way back into the house. Vulnerable…I wasn't sure how to be vulnerable. To me, that was weakness. But Saint might've been on to something. Regina was the sweetest thing to ever walk this earth, but when she finally fell in love with Saint, she loved him to pieces. I witnessed how devastated he was when she passed away a year after Giselle was born from an allergic reaction. Saint was practically a different man around her; he was usually brutal and thirsty for blood. But he was gentle, kind, and patient with her and his daughter. He knew how to flip that switch to control the different parts of him; I hadn't quite mastered that yet.
As I walked across the grass and finally entered the house, I thought of ways I could woo my new wife. It wouldn't be easy, but I was always up for a challenge.
I’ll win you over, Mrs. Moreno, I thought to myself.
And I wouldn't stop until I had her heart.
AURORA
Bennett was gone by the time I woke the next morning. I rolled over onto my back, my head and elbow throbbing. I still couldn’t believe I was fucking married to that asshole. Our interaction last night was weird. I’d wanted to hurt him, giving him everything I had in me when I attacked him, but he barely touched me. I’d almost thought I’d snapped him out of whatever trance he was in when I slapped him, but the only thing he did was kiss me. Then he gave me the best orgasms of my life.
God, I was so fucked.
I pulled myself out of bed and took a shower. It was still hard to believe that I was now a member of the mafia. My whole life, my father painted them out to be the bad guys, but now I was one of them. It was still hard to believe that this was my new life. I didn’t know what would happen now, but I was sure Bennett had plenty of surprises up his sleeve to keep me busy.
The shower door opened and I gasped, relaxing when Bennett stood there. His eyes swept along my naked body before he finally met my gaze, his face blank of emotion.
“What?” I asked, wiping water from my face.
“I need you to hurry up and get dressed. We have somewhere to be,” he said before closing the shower door. I quickly finished my shower, but I couldn’t help the excitement coursing through me. I was going on my first business trip since accepting my new role. Since I’d been here, Bennett had kept me caged up in his mansion. It seemed as if it were yesterday when I literally had to sneak out of the window of the safe house just to feel the fresh air on my skin.
No sooner than the excitement came, it melted away. I’d have to play the role of a happy wife in order to save face. I wasn’t sure where we were going or if we were mee
ting anyone, but I knew I didn’t want to show that Bennett and I were divided. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that in-house feuding displayed weakness to others. No matter how much I hated Bennett, I wouldn’t let the whole family down.
A white pantsuit was laid on the bed, Bennett nowhere to be found. I slipped on the dress pants, black crop top, and suit jacket. When I looked at my reflection in the mirror, tears burned my eyes. I almost had to laugh at the irony; before Bennett came into my life, pantsuits were my favorite attire whenever I had business meetings with men. The woman who raised me had always told me if I dressed like them, they were more likely to hear what I had to say. Considering that Bennett dressed me in one instead of the revealing, sexy dresses he usually stuffed me in, there must’ve been some truth in that statement. Instead of going to my own business meeting, I was now going to my first mafia meeting.
My first mafia meeting now that I was queen of a new family.
“What if you have to show PDA with Bennett in public?” the small voice said. I cringed at the thought. I still hated his fucking guts, but I knew I’d do whatever I had to in order for everyone else to see that we were a united front.
“Then you may want to hide your disdain around the house, too. You never know who’s watching,” the voice added.
Shut up, I ground out. I couldn’t deny that they were right. Bennett had a snake right amongst his ranks; we couldn’t be too careful around here, especially since Bennett decided to sever ties with his father’s organization. For now, I’d play nice; when we got behind closed doors, I’d tell him every chance I got how much I hated him.
“If you pretend long enough, you just may fall for him,” the voice said and giggled. I rolled my eyes. As fucking if. The day I fell for a man like Bennett would be the day I willingly fuck a running chainsaw.
I put my hair in a messy fish braid and put on a little make-up. Bennett entered the bedroom just as I slipped on a pair of stilettos.
“Ready to go?” he asked. I nodded, securing the shoe strap around my ankle before standing to my feet. Bennett’s eyes traveled along my body before he gave me a soft smile. “You look gorgeous.”
There was something about the look in his eyes that gave me butterflies. His gaze warmed my skin the same way it did when we’d had sex last night. I cleared my throat and stood a little taller.
“Thanks,” I said. He gestured for me to exit the bedroom and I walked past him. “So where are we going?”
“We have brunch with the heads of a couple of families,” he said idly, his hand resting on the small of my back.
“Brunch?” I snorted. “I didn’t know mafia men had brunch.”
He smirked at me. “We like to eat over business as well,” he said. As we walked down the stairs, my nerves started to get the best of me. I didn’t know what to expect at a meeting like this. I knew nothing about the business or what I was even expected to say. What if Wilson showed up and tried to attack us? What if we were set up?
As if sensing my anxiety, Bennett wrapped his arm around my waist. “You’ll be fine,” he murmured as he led me through the house.
“How do you know Wilson won’t be there?” I asked.
“He’s probably too busy being pissed,” Bennett said with a frown.
I looked up at him. “Pissed? About what?”
“I announced that I was no longer associated with the Moreno Family and a lot of his connections have been dropping like flies. He’s probably too busy trying to salvage his relationships instead of worrying about what I’m doing right now,” he said.
I frowned. “I didn’t know I missed the announcement,” I said.
“I didn’t want to wake you,” he said with a shrug.
Bruce, Saint, and Nyxin all stood in the garage, looking to us when we entered. They all nodded in acknowledgement, Saint walking over to open my car door.
Nyxin stood behind the car, his eyes following my every move. I smiled sweetly at him as I approached and just when he gave me a small smile, I walked up to him and punched him in the stomach.
“What the fuck was that for?” he wheezed, bent over.
“For officiating my marriage,” I stated, smiling at him again before slipping into the backseat of the car. Saint snorted and Bruce disguised his laugh as a cough. Bennett only shook his head, taking a moment longer before entering the car, no doubt probably to apologize on my behalf. Doing something like that would’ve earned me a trip to the Retribution room, but all Bennett did was slide onto the backseat next to me and order the driver to go.
I smiled and settled into my seat. Maybe this queen thing had its perks.
The forty-five-minute drive felt like eternity. I watched the passing scenery outside the window, occasionally looking over to Bennett, whose eyes were practically glued to his phone the majority of the time.
I rolled my eyes. “We haven’t even been married twenty-four hours and you’re already being a terrible, inattentive husband,” I said.
He raised his hard gaze at me, lifting an eyebrow before his eyes softened and he grinned. “Terrible, inattentive what?” he asked, cupping his ear with his hand.
“You heard what I said,” I countered.
He chuckled and put his phone in his pocket, sliding over closer to me. I leaned away from him as he put his arm around me, but he only pulled me closer.
“Is this enough attention for my gorgeous wife?” he murmured.
I smirked and put my hand on his chest, pushing him back a little. “Attention doesn’t require you to invade my personal space.”
“You weren’t thinking about personal space when I was balls deep inside of you last night,” he teased, kissing my neck.
God, I fucking hated him. I hated how he could make something so vulgar sound so sexy. The partition was still down, and Bennett still planted kisses on the heated skin of my neck, my heart racing in my chest. Not wanting to show that I was slowly becoming unraveled, I scoffed.
“Don’t flatter yourself,” I mumbled, which only made him chuckle.
“Say what you want, but I know how your body reacted,” he said, the tip of his nose nuzzling my neck. “How you begged me for your orgasm…how your sweet pussy squeezed my cock…”
I bit my lip when his hand squeezed my thigh. This man was the fucking devil in more ways than one. I didn’t want to be hot and bothered at my first meeting with other important people, but Bennett didn’t seem to care. His hand traveled up my leg, his hand cupping my pussy through my pants.
“Don’t,” I whispered.
“What’s wrong, baby doll?” he teased. “Don’t want the driver to see you come undone for me?”
I shivered under his touch, his lips leaving a trail of hot kisses along my skin. He unbuttoned my suit jacket and continued placing kisses along my collar bone. My mind wanted to fight him off, but I couldn’t deny the pleasure that skated up my skin as he lowered my crop top and strapless bra and stroked my nipple.
“Does it turn you on to know that my panties are going to be soaked for this meeting?” I murmured when he bowed his head and took my nipple into his mouth.
He looked up at me and grinned. “Maybe,” he said and latched on. I ran my hands through his soft hair, grinding against his hand that was still in between my legs. I knew I probably needed to stop him; I was wearing white and I didn’t want to ruin my clothes. I was so lost in his actions that I hadn’t even realized the car stopped.
“We’re here, sir,” the driver said.
“Fuck,” I breathed. My pussy tingled with need, wanting to feel him deep inside me. Bennett slowly unlatched his mouth from my nipple and smiled.
“Was that enough attention, beautiful?” he asked.
I pushed him off of me and fixed my clothes. “You’re an asshole, you know that?” I mumbled, which only made him chuckle.
“I give you the attention you said I wasn’t giving you and now I’m an asshole.” He shook his head. “You women are confusing.”
“You k
now what I’m talking about,” I said. “You got me all horny and now I have to sit through a brunch and try to ignore the tingling happening between my legs.”
He leaned over and kissed me. “Don’t worry; I plan to fuck you on the way home,” he said and winked. “Let’s go ahead and get this meeting over with. I’d hate to leave my wife horny for too long.”
I fought the urge to cringe. Just like that, the mood was gone. His wife. I now had to play nice with him in public, and a part of that pissed me off. He seemed to call me his wife every chance he got. I wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to fuck with my head and taunt me about how stupid I was to sign papers without reading or if he just wanted me to grow comfortable with the title.
I looked down at the ring on my finger. Once upon a time, I used to think I’d be the wife of a successful head chef. I thought my life would’ve been simple and filled with love and children. As I got out of the car and looped my arm through Bennett’s, I knew my life was anything but simple. The fairytale I thought I’d have for my life would always remain a fairytale. I was now a wife to a dangerous mafia boss, ruling alongside him as his queen. This meant that I now had a permanent target on my back, collateral damage and the perfect weapon to use against him.
“You okay?” he asked, breaking into my thoughts.
I nodded, unable to formulate words as I suddenly become nauseous with nerves. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about what my new position would put me at risk of. Wilson already killed my sister and she wasn’t even married to Bennett before her death. It was only a matter of time before he came after me, too.
Wanting to take my attention off of the negative, I looked to Bennett. “What am I supposed to do when I get in here?” I asked. “This is all new to me.”
“Wives don’t usually say much. The other wives will probably want you to chat with them while the men talk business.” He looked at me and frowned. “But you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
You Will Obey (Rules of Bennett Book 4) Page 4
