Monster A Dark Arranged Marriage Romance - Vanessa Waltz Page 0,42
a sudden, arresting smile.
“Sweetheart, you missed a few buttons.”
His teasing burned my cheeks before I noticed the breeze tickling my skin. I fastened the missing holes in a hurry, my fingers slipping.
“Shoot. Sorry.”
“No apology necessary.” Tony rubbed my hip, my insides jangling. “You wear the shit out of my shirts.”
Really, Tony? In front of my dad?
I clenched my mouth tighter.
“Costa.”
Tony blinked, as though he’d forgotten about my dad’s presence. “Evie, give us some privacy.”
When I didn’t move, Tony raised his voice.
“Back to bed, Evie. I’ll be there in a minute.”
Tony kissed my head. Once in the bedroom, I closed the door, but turned the handle and peeked through the crack.
“What do you want, Jett?” Tony pushed himself on the oak desk, the robe spilling across his bare chest. “Can’t you see I have my hands full with your daughter?”
My stomach churned.
Tony better be careful. My dad made it his life’s mission to scare off any man who batted eyes in my direction, including Crash.
“You fucked up big time,” Dad hissed, squaring off against him. “You put Ghost in the hospital.”
“He’s lucky that’s all I did to him.”
“That kid is connected the Mongols! Now I have to explain to his father why his son is in the ICU with a broken trachea.”
“Poor baby. Say your piece and get the fuck out.”
“What’s wrong with you? He’s a member of my club!”
I’d never seen Dad lose control over his voice. He sounded hoarse. Tony was the opposite, his rich tones filling the office.
“Well, maybe you should keep a tighter leash on him. Seems to me like you should be more upset about him smacking around your girl, but you people don’t give a shit about your own flesh and blood.”
“Where I’m from, deals are honored. Not spat on at the first opportunity!” Flecks of spit flew through the air from his shouting. “Your cousin wants peace, but you want to mess up what’s mine!”
“I guess we’re in the same position. I’ve been through Evie’s tax records, and boy. Even my grandma can hide assets. Are you stupid or just bad at being a criminal?”
“What does that have to do with you?”
“Everything,” he snarled. “Don’t come into my house, uninvited, and lie to my face. You’re laundering diamonds through my wife’s business. I’m on the board of five different charities. I’m fucked if the IRS decided to take a closer look.”
“No idea what you mean. Evie’s taxes are her problem.”
“Don’t play dumb. I want nothing to do with your business. Neither does Evie.”
What were they talking about?
“And I know about the jewelry you stole from her.” Tony’s voice dipped into a quiet, trembling snarl. “You will give them back. Every last ring. Or I’ll put more bikers in the hospital. Lord knows, there’s enough in this city to keep me busy for a while.”
I gasped.
He’s crazy.
“Are you threatening this alliance over my daughter and a few pieces of gold?”
“Evie is my wife.”
“She started this mess with Ghost. She admitted it!”
“I don’t care if she tap-danced on his mother’s grave. Nobody touches my wife. I have the right to kill anyone who does. In fact, every time one of you upsets her, I’ll go after you, your businesses, your members. She’s mine. Get that through your fucking head. I decide what to do with her, where she sleeps, what she eats, and how I will fuck her.”
I ground my teeth together.
I appreciated him backing me up, but he didn’t have to throw our sex life in my dad’s face.
“Vinn will kill you!” Dad stepped toward an unflinching Tony. “I’ll take Evie away!”
I swallowed an outburst.
How dare they treat me like an object? I had thoughts. Feelings. Dreams. None of which Dad seemed to acknowledge, considering he’d sold me to Tony.
“She does not belong to you anymore.”
“If I ask, she’ll come back to me!”
Tony chuckled nastily. “Even if she misses your cage in Chelsea, I am never letting her go.”
The door burst open.
Dad flew from the office. His angry footsteps stomped to the front door, chased by Tony’s condescending “bye.” I huddled on the bed as Tony reentered the room. His feet strolled into my vision until he stopped, the robe hanging inches from me. He faced me with a somber expression.
“How much of that did you hear?”
“All of it.”
He threaded fingers through my hair. “Don’t worry about it.”
I pushed his hand aside. I was more than a little pissed with him, but that was nothing new. “You can’t talk about me like I’m a piece