Remarried To My Dangerous Mafia Husband

Chapter 3

"You're awake," a deep, quiet voice said from the corner of the room.

Peggy, who had just opened her eyes to the blinding hospital light, flinched as she turned her head too quickly.

Sitting in a leather armchair near the window was a man. He looked like he was carved out of granite. He wore a perfectly tailored black suit with a dark gray tie, and his large hands were holding open a newspaper. He had sharp, disciplined features, a strong jawline, and eyes so dark they looked almost black. He wasn't smiling. In fact, he looked completely unfriendly, radiating an aura of absolute authority and danger.

Peggy instinctively pulled the hospital blanket higher up on her chest, her heart hammering against her ribs. The monitor beside her began to beep faster. "Who... who are you? Where am I?"

The man didn't answer right away. He calmly folded the newspaper, set it down on the bedside table, and checked his luxury watch.

"It is three o'clock in the afternoon," he said, his voice smooth but incredibly cold. "You have been asleep for nearly eighteen hours. This is St. Jude’s Hospital."

"The car..." Peggy whispered, her voice cracking. "I remember the headlights. Did you hit me?"

"My driver managed to brake before the bumper touched your skin," the man replied, leaning back in his chair and crossing one leg over the other. He watched her with a piercing stare. "You didn't get hit, Peggy.”

Peggy froze. Hearing her name leave his lips made her blood run cold. "How do you know my name?"

The man pointed a blunt finger toward the bedside table. Resting there was the tiny, crumpled five-dollar bill she had hidden, alongside a small, transparent plastic bag containing a damp piece of paper.

"My security team checked the single item you had tucked into your clothing," he said flatly. "A medical receipt from three months ago. It had your name on it. Peggy Hartwell. Or should I say, Mrs. Devereux?"

At the mention of that name, the memories of the previous night came rushing back like a tidal wave. The conservatory. Calista’s wicked smile. The slap from her mother-in-law. Lucien standing there in silence while she was forced to strip down to her underwear and walk out into the freezing rain.

A sharp sob caught in Peggy's throat, but she clamped her jaw shut, refusing to cry in front of this intimidating stranger. She looked away, staring at the white blanket. "It’s just Peggy Hartwell now. I am not a Devereux anymore."

The man watched the raw pain flicker across her face. His expression didn't soften, but his dark eyes narrowed slightly, processing her words.

"I know," the man said quietly as he threw the paper he was formally reading to her.

Right there on the front page of the city section was a headline: Devereux Empire Heir Announces Upcoming Wedding to Calista Laurent Following Sudden Divorce.

Peggy closed her eyes, a bitter, hollow laugh escaping her lips. They hadn't even waited twenty-four hours to announce it to the world.

"You are completely alone and useless," the man stated, his tone brutal and direct, completely devoid of pity.

Peggy looked back at him, her fear momentarily replaced by a spark of defensive anger. "Why are you still here? If your car didn't hit me, you don't owe me anything. Why didn't you just leave me on the road?"

The man stood up. He was incredibly tall, easily six feet two, and his presence completely dominated the small hospital room. He walked slowly to the edge of her bed, looking down at her with a calm, calculating expression.

"Because I don't believe in coincidences, Peggy," he said, his voice dropping to a low, commanding register.

"Who are you?" Peggy asked, her voice trembling as she shrank back into the pillows.

"Ramiro De la Vega," he said.

The name hung in the air like a heavy weight. Peggy’s breath hitched. Even as a housewife, she had heard that name whispered in fear. He was a ruthless billionaire, a man who owned massive corporate empires while secretly controlling the most feared criminal organization in Europe. He was a predator, a mafia, and she was currently trapped in a room with him.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Peggy whispered. "I don't have anything left for you to take."

"I know you don't," Ramiro said. "You are completely worthless to the world right now. You have no money, no family, nothing.”

Peggy looked away, the harsh truth cutting deep into her chest.

"But I have a proposition for you," Ramiro continued, stepping closer until his tall figure completely blocked the light from the window.

"Marry me."

Peggy blinked, stunned. She looked up at his harsh, unyielding face. "Marry you? Why? You don't even know me."

"That's for me to decide, not you," Ramiro said flatly.

"But as my wife, do not expect love from me. Do not expect affection, or romance, or a husband who holds your hand. You will marry me, move into my house, and be an obedient, good wife. You will bear my children when the time comes. In return, I will provide for you. You will have food, clothes, a roof over your head, and no one will ever dare to touch you again."

"And if I say no?" Peggy asked.

Ramiro reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, turning the screen toward her. It showed a police database file with her face on it.

"Calista Laurent didn't drop the charges, Peggy," Ramiro said, his tone brutal and direct.

"The moment Terry Moreau walked out of your living room with those signed divorce papers, they submitted the assault report anyway. The police are waiting downstairs for the doctors to clear you. If you walk out of this hospital, you will go straight to a prison cell. The Devereux family wants you locked away permanently."

Peggy felt the room spin. "No... no, they promised. Lucien said if I signed, it would go away! They lied to me!"

"Of course, they lied to you," Ramiro said, leaning down slightly, his powerful presence completely suffocating her.

"You have two choices right now. You can refuse me, go to prison for a crime you didn't commit, and let Calista and Lucien win completely. Or, you sign a marriage certificate with me right now. My lawyers will throw out the Devereux lawsuit before sunset, and you will be completely untouchable."

Peggy looked down at her hands, still scraped and raw from the gravel of the Devereux driveway. She felt entirely empty. Five years of her life had been thrown in the trash. She had no dreams left, no kids, and no future. She felt completely worthless.

If this dangerous man wanted to use her to bear his children and use her name to play the role of a quiet wife, she didn't care anymore.

She thought of Calista’s victorious smile.

If she went to prison, she would rot in obscurity while they lived in luxury. But if she married Ramiro De la Vega... she would be marrying a monster far more terrifying than the entire Devereux family combined.

He didn't promise her revenge, but his sheer power was a weapon. If she stayed by his side, she might just find a way to make them pay.

She swallowed the lump of fear in her throat and looked up into Ramiro's dark, terrifying eyes.

"Where are the papers?" Peggy said, her voice turning dead and steady. "I'll do it. I'll be your wife.”