Don Vidal

11 - You'll be moving in

Draven

I walk Marnie inside my opulent five-bedroomed house. It’s nothing special, well, not in my opinion, but to most, my place is something. It’s fitted with all the mod cons, voice activation, and security systems that would rival the white house. Well, I am a Mafia Don; I need to make sure my house and everything surrounding me are impregnable. I can’t have people even so much as thinking they’ll get within a mile of me with ideas of killing me and living to tell the tale.

Now I have Marnie and the baby to think about, I need to double the efforts to keep them safe.

I disable the fingerprint recognition alarm, which I’ll add Marnie’s fingerprint to tomorrow so she can come and go easily. Well, she’ll be living here as of now, and I won’t take no for an answer. She’s mine, and I want her here where I can keep an eye on her.

Marnie is not my prisoner by any means, but she is the woman carrying my child, and I want her safe. I also want to be the one to take her to her appointments and be with her at the ultrasounds. I’ve already missed one, and that was my own doing. I won’t miss another.

I want to be with Marnie when the baby comes. I want to be – not the first because that will be Marnie – but the second person to hold my child, chest to chest. I want the whole bonding experience. My child will be my life.

I don’t know what will happen with Marnie and me. I don’t know if I can make her love me or even know if I’m capable of loving her in return, but I know that I’ll give her the world if she asks it of me.

“Nice place.” She tells me while walking into the living room, looking at the artwork on the walls, the modern furniture, and the Persian rug next to the fire. I smile to myself. This isn’t her thing; I can see it in the way she’s looking at everything.

“You can change it all if you want to. I’d rather you were comfortable here.”

“Why would I do that?” She’s confused; I can see it.

“You’ll be living here. I won’t have the mother of my child anywhere other than under my roof.”

“But, Draven,”

I press my fingertips against her lips. I won’t have Marnie protesting, and I won’t give her the chance to argue with me about this. You don’t argue with the Don. Period!

“I know you’re living with your sister and her husband. I know you’re working two jobs just to save enough money for a place of your own and to pay for our baby and everything it needs.”

I touch her stomach gently, and she smiles. God, she’s more beautiful than I ever imagined. I have seen her beauty more than once, but being pregnant is agreeing with her, she’s glowing.

“And how is it you just so happen to know these things?” I smirk, and Marnie rolls her eyes. “Of course. Mafia Don.” She mumbles.

“Exactly. But you don’t need to do that now, Marnie. I want to take care of you both. I want you to give up work.”

“Not happening.” She’s a stubborn little thing. I love that about her.

“I won’t have my woman working when she doesn’t have to.”

“And I won’t have you telling me what to do, and I won’t be a kept woman! I don’t care who you are!”

There’s such a fire in her eyes. The way she’s looking at me has my c**k at half-mast. Dammit.

“This is not up for discussion, Marnie.”

“I swear to God!” She snaps, hands on her hips, and my God, does that turn me on! “I will not have you dictate my life, Draven Vidal. I agree that living here with you will be best for our child,”

Exactly! I knew she’d see things my way.

“But I’m scared, Draven. I’m not scared of you, but I’m not as stupid as people think I am. I know what kind of man you are; I know the things you’ve done. That is what scares me, Draven. What if the things you do come back on the baby... and me?”

I cross my arms over my chest and breathe deeply through my nose. I’m not a good man in the conventional sense, but I’m not the monster I have people believe I am. I have no choice but to be hard, be strong, and make tough decisions. I’m the Boss; it’s my job to be the man Marnie sees before her, but there is so much more to me. So much more.

I gave up the cage fighting because I’m too old for it now. Yeah, I’m almost forty, still as strong as a man of twenty, but I'm not stupid; I went out on top. I live in a dangerous world as it is without cage fighting. My life is in danger every damn day I breathe air. If I can cut some of that danger out, I will.

I touch Marnie’s cheek gently. Her skin is so soft, so perfect. “Don’t judge a man on what he had to do; judge him only by what he wanted to do. I have done bad things, Marnie. Most of the time, I had no choice. I do what I have to do to protect my family. I will do what I have to do to protect you and this baby. There is nothing I won’t do. Trust me.” I take her face in my hands, moving closer to her. Not too close; I don’t want her to feel the damn erectio.n I’m now sporting.

Her eyes linger on my mouth, and I smile. She’s as affected by me as I am by her. “You promise you’ll do everything in your power to protect us?”

“I promise.”

“You promise you won’t try to change who I am?”

I smile. “I promise. I don’t want you to change, Marnie. You’re perfect the way you are.”

She smiles. “Fine, but I won’t be sharing a bedroom with you. I will not have se.x with you either.” She thinks.

I raise my eyebrow. “What? You think I’ll have you fuckin’ other men?”

Marnie rolls her eyes and folds her arms around herself. “I didn’t say that, but if I can’t, then nor can you. Sleep with others, I mean.”

I smirk and tip my head in agreement.

Marriage is a sacred thing. That’s how I was raised. If I do this thing with Marnie, there will be no other women. That’s how I know this thing between us will end in us falling into bed. I’m not a man who can go without se.x for long, and there’s no way I won’t be having se.x with my wife. Don’t get me wrong in thinking I will ever force Marnie to jump into bed with me. I would never force any woman, never mind my woman.

“You’re absolutely right, Marnie. From this day forward, there will be no other women but you.”

“Good.” She nods, and I see the relief in her eyes. Oh, she’ll be in my bed before the weeks out, all right. “But I will not be giving up work.”

“You will,” I tell her while adjusting my tie.

“No, I will not! I agree with giving up working at the restaurant, not the pet store. One: I like working there with the animals, and two: I want to earn my own money, Draven.”

“You’ll have your own money, Marnie. I’ll be giving you a credit card...” She’s shaking her head like crazy. “Marnie...”

“No. I just want a little freedom. I know my life is never going to be the same if we do this. Especially because of who you are, but I don’t want to be a prisoner. I don’t want to be suffocated by you and your organization to the point...” Her words trail off, and she breathes deeply while looking at the ceiling.

She was going to say; To the point, I want to die. It hits me in the gut hard because that’s exactly how my mother felt being married to my father. I won’t have Marnie turning into that woman – a woman beaten down and imprisoned by the husband she hates. Dammit! I’m doing this all wrong. Forcing her will only make her hate me in the end.

“Please, Draven? Please don’t treat me like a possession?”

Begging me.

That shi.t usually turns me on, but it’s turning my stomach right now. Marnie doesn’t deserve to be unhappy, and it’s not like she’s asking me for much. I can give her this one small thing. I can allow her to continue working at the pet store if that’s what she wants. I’ll make sure two of my men are watching her at all times. I’m not stupid enough to let Marnie go out without protection. That is something I will not back down on.

“Fine, but part-time. I won’t have you working 9-5; it's too stressful in your condition.”

I take her hip in one hand, her cheek in the other, pulling her closer. She looks at me with shining eyes.

How the hell am I meant to stop myself from falling for her when I can already feel the ice around my heart thawing?

“Marnie, I don’t want to take over your life nor tell you what you can and cannot do. I mean only to keep you safe, you and the baby. I want this pregnancy to go smoothly for you, and I will make sure you will want for nothing. Okay?”

“Okay,” She rolls her eyes with a smile on her face. “If it makes you happy, I’ll ask for shorter hours, and I’ll move in. However, I meant what I said about separate bedrooms. I’m not ready for anything more, Draven.”

“That’s fine.” For now. “I’ll show you to your room as soon as you’ve eaten.”

“I’d rather go back to Brooke’s. Just for tonight. She needs to know what’s going on, and Hawk will still be up wondering where I am.”

I pull her toward me and kiss her forehead. “Okay,”

I may have agreed to take her back to her sister’s tonight, but I told her I’ll be there at 11 AM to collect her. Marnie has the day off tomorrow, so she’ll have time to pack up her stuff and tell her sister what’s happening.

I drop her off outside Brooke’s place and watch as she walks inside, smiling and waving at me before closing the door. Yes, by the end of the week, she’ll be mine in every way. I just hope I can last that long.