Delilah’s Guilty Pleasure

Shhh… JUST WATCH

Three days had passed since Emilia had her public meltdown and fled to mommy's house with her tail between her legs.

Three glorious days of silence from Mrs. High-and-Mighty Romano.

And here I was, in my new beautiful Parisian house. The apartment was covered in a stunning cream and gold, with French windows that opened onto a tiny balcony overlooking the street. It was a courtesy of Jax.

Istood watching the man himself sprawled across my velvet sofa like he owned the place.

Well, technically, he did own it. His name was on the lease. But right now, I possessed Jax Romano in ways his wife never had.

And while she was away at Gena’s house, I took charge of him.

Jax lounged on the plush cushion, unbothered by his wife’s absence, puffing on a joint as if it were just another Tuesday. The air was thick with the scent of weed and calm.

He was celebrating his wife's absence.

Everything was falling into place better than I'd even planned.

Oh, Jax. You beautiful, oblivious man.

"More wine?" I held up the bottle of Château Margaux, already knowing the answer.

Jax nodded, not taking his eyes off his phone. He'd been scrolling through social media for the past hour, watching the fallout from Emilia's spectacular breakdown.

The video had gone viral—his crazy wife attacking poor Brianna, screaming about infidelity, and waving that red thong around.

Myred thong. My masterpiece.

I poured the wine into his glass, letting my fingers brush against his as I handed it over. He barely noticed, too absorbed in reading the comments.

"Listen to this one," he said, his voice carrying a edge of dark amusement. "'Mrs. Romano needs serious help. That level of jealousy is psychotic.' And this one: 'Poor Jax. Imagine being publicly humiliated by your own wife when you've done nothing wrong.'"

"The public sympathy is definitely on your side," I said, settling into the armchair across from him."Everyone thinks she's unhinged."

"Because she is." He took a long drink of wine. "It’s been three days already, Delilah. Three days of peace. No accusations. No paranoia. No Gena poisoning her mind against me."

"You must miss her terribly," I said, my voice dripping with false sympathy. “I wish she’d come back to you.”

He looked at me then, really looked at me, and smiled. "You're a terrible liar."

"I'm an excellent liar, Mr Romano. I just choose not to waste my talent on you." I raised my own glass in a mock toast. "To freedom from crazy wives."

"I'll drink to that."

We were on our second bottle when my phone buzzed. It was a text from Silver: I’m coming over. Be there in 20.

I showed Jax the message. "Your brother's on his way."

"Of course he is." Jax laughed, leaning his head back against the sofa. "Silver can smell a party from across the Atlantic."

"Should I be worried?"

"Depends. How do you feel about… recreational substances?"

"I used to dance at La Eclair Noir, and recreational susbstance? " I grinned. "That’s my forte, darling."

******

Twenty minutes later, my doorbell rang and echoed through the space. I sauntered to the door in my tight black dress, swaying my hips like I owned the night.

Of course I did.

I opened it to reveal Silver, grinning ear to ear, carrying two bottles of something that looked expensive, and a leather bag that definitely didn't contain anything legal.

He silver hair was longer now, but messier, pulled back in a knot at his nape.

"Delilah f*****g Amour." He looked me up and down appreciatively. "What a pretty sight to behold.”

"Silver Romano." I matched his grin. "Your reputation precedes you."

"All bad things, I hope." His grin was sly and slow "I know you’ve been taking good care of my brother.”

"Someone has to. He’s falling apart without his wife." I stepped aside to let him in. “Come on in. Jax’s waiting.”

"Is he now?" Silver's laugh was dark as he walked into the living room.

“Look what the devil dragged in,” I purred, walking ahead of him and letting him close the door.

I could feel Silver’s eyes raking over my body before landing on Jax. “Brother! Finally got rid of the wife, huh? About time you lived a little.”

Jax laughed, a deep, rumbling sound as he waved off the smoke curling from his lips. “Nah, man. I know she’ll be back. She loves me too much to divorce my ass. That woman’s hooked.”

Silver chuckled, setting the wine down on the coffee table and tossing the baggie next to it. “Oh, she’s your lap dog, alright. Emilia’s been clinging to you like you’re her whole world. I’ve already found it irritating.”

Jax took another drag, exhaling slowly. “What do you expect? She’s been obsessed with me since college, and we’ve been married five years without any marital issues.”

“She’s one crazy woman. Aren’t you just glad she’s gone?”

Jax huffed “We both know Emilia isn’t going nowhere. She will by any means necessary do everything to keep this marriage standing.”

Silver shook his head, laughing harder. “That’s… wow, brother. You’re playing her like a fiddle.”

Jax smirked, leaning back. “Damn right. And I’m more than happy to keep being married to her. She keeps my public image respectable, and raises my societal standards as a family man. For now, Emilia’s useful, even though the s*x is boring, I’ll just keep her for the time being, till I get tired.”

“About damn time you get rid of that extra baggage, brother.” Silver clapped him on the shoulder, giving him a playful shake. "I brought gifts." He set his bag on the coffee table, brandishing the bottles first. "Whiskey from Scotland. Tobacco, I got this when I visited Prague. And..." He produced a small wooden box. "Party favors from Amsterdam."

Jax's eyes lit up and he stood u. "You beautiful bastard."

"I know." Silver turned to me. "Delilah, darling, I hope you're gonna be a good host tonight.” He winked at me and turned back to Jax. “Brother, today you’ll stop being the uptight type. This is a judgment-free zone."

"I left judgment back in the trash with Mrs. Romano." Jax said and moved to the kitchen, grabbing glasses. "Let's celebrate properly."

Time passed by and hours later, we were properly f****d up.

The tobacco and weed had been a mistake—or maybe it was exactly what we needed. But the room had now taken on a dreamy, surreal quality, everything was soft around the edges. Silver had opened a small wooden box, revealing neat lines of white powder and pills in various colors, and soon we devoured them.

"To new beginnings!" Silver raised his glass, his voice already slurring slightly. "And to finally getting rid of the paranoid baggages!"

"f**k, I love life right now" Jax said. He was laughing, sprawled across the sofa with his shirt unbuttoned, his usual control completely dissolved. "I don’t even want her back anytime soon, but I know she’ll be back and I’m already frustrated thinking about it.”

"Of course she will." Silver dropped onto the sofa beside him. "She’s head over heels in love with you to actually leave. What is it they call it? Trauma bonding?"

"She's a loyal puppy, mine in fact," Jax agreed, reaching for the joint Silver had rolled. "She wants a baby with me, by all means, and I don’t give a f**k about that. I’m ready to give her as many babies as she want. Because no matter what I do, she’ll always take me back for their sake. After all, I’m Jax Romano.”

I watched them from my perch on the arm of the sofa, fascinated by this version of Jax. The real version, without the polish and performance.

"That's cold." Silver laughed, leaning against Jax's shoulder. "You’re finally growing some balls, Jax. I’m super proud of you.”

"I'm just being realistic." Jax took a long drag, exhaling smoke toward the ceiling. "She's here to stay. And when she comes crawling back—and I know she will come back—I'll be the ever-loving husband, arms wide open, waiting to take her back." His smile was sharp and cruel. "That's after she makes a press conference to clear my name from that stupid little tantrum she threw in my studio."

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Silver shook his shoulder roughly, so proudly. "Finally! This is the Jax I remember! Not this domesticated cunt she turned you into!" The men burst into boastful laughters.

I stood up then, moving to the center of my living room. Then snapped my fingers sharply, drawing their attention to the center of the room where a gleaming stripper pole rotated slowly under dim lights. “Over here boys”

When Jax had seen it earlier, he’d raised an eyebrow but hadn't questioned it.

Men never questioned things that benefited them.

Two pairs of dark eyes swiveled toward me.

I hit play on my vinyl recorder, then slow and sultry R&B filled the air "Enough chit-chat about the crazy wife."

With a flick of a switch, the lights shifted to a deep, pulsing red, casting everything in a sinful glow. “Time to party.”

Delilah…" Jax started, already transfixed, his voice was already hungry.

"Shh." I reached behind my neck, unzipping my dress slowly. "Just watch."