Chasing Stars - A Midnight Mafia Novel

Chapter Seventeen

Oscar had a beautiful home. He had a lovely condo with heated hardwood floors running throughout the entire house, comfortable yet attractive furniture, a beautiful wife a son of almost eight and two daughters, one age two and the other maybe six months old and a shitzu. The yappy little shitzu had followed me around the house any time I moved barking and snapping at my ankle.

Annoying little shit.

To say I was surprised would be an understatement. I didn't envision Oscar or any of the guys to have such normal lives and who the hell would want to marry him anyway?

Granted when Oscar had run the casino and took to teaching me how to mix drinks I had thoroughly enjoyed his company. Now he was just some mafia man who encouraged Alessio to have some other woman grinding up on him.

Truth be told, I wouldn't care if Alessio had just gotten a lap dance. Honestly, I wouldn't unless it was something he did all the time. I know in some relationships it is a big deal, just like watching porn can be a deal breaker for some couples. It wouldn't bother me. If that was all that happened I would have been fine. The problem first off being that I didn't even know if that was all that happened. And the even bigger problem? The way he rubbed it in my face. The way he said he had her all night. If he had gotten a lap dance fine, cool, whatever, but to get a lap dance and tell me how amazingly gorgeous this girl was? With long dark hair and a body to die for? Me with my short blonde hair and the fact that I was a speed walker at best? Basically, I was comparing myself to this woman who I had no idea what she really looked like, what she did, or what had happened between her and Alessio.

Was she involved in the mafia? Was she Italian? A better shooter than I was? Did they have more in common? If he told her to do something would she roll over and do it? Was she everything I was not?

I would be lying, lying through my teeth if I said I thought Alessio and I were a good fit. Honestly, I loved him, and I wanted him to love me. But if anyone were to pick Alessio's perfect match I'm sure she wouldn't be some blonde journalist. She'd be Italian, she'd be involved, she'd be sexy as all hell. How was I to know that this woman who muttered Mister Genovese into his ear all night wasn't that exact woman? I had never been more jealous or felt more insecure than I did just now.

Even worse than that? He wanted to hurt me. That was the worst part. He, someone who was supposed to love me, went out with the sole intention of hurting me. You shouldn't ever want to hurt the person you love. I certainly did want to hurt him when Nash was scouting for my help. I was torn up, heartbroken over the idea and in the end I couldn't even do it because I loved him too much. Because I couldn't hurt him like that.

But Alessio was different. He wanted to hurt me. He came home and he rubbed my nose in it, and he enjoyed it. I knew he did. The way he brushed his thumb across my lip when talking about her speaking, the way he touched my short blonde hair when describing her long dark hair. Alessio came home specifically to tell me what he had done just to hurt me, to watch me squirm. That in itself was worse.

Don't even get me started on what went down once he was actually home. The whole night. Don't get me started, not unless you wanted even more tears. If I had any left that is.

It was nearing dinnertime and I was starting to get concerned. On one part Pietro had promised he would get me in the morning, if no one came for me did that mean he was dead? On the other hand what if Alessio woke up, remembered Nash and I in the bathroom and was so furious he decided he didn't want me to come back at all?

Oscar had been pretty frantic most of the day. Ushering his wife and kids out, calling in arrangements for a dog kennel "just in case" kissing up to me in every way he possibly could. He was pretty well convinced Alessio was going to shoot him, or that I was going to tell Alessio to shoot him in which case Alessio would shoot him. I had to hand it to him, at least he got his family out of here so they wouldn't have to see it if he did.