Don Vidal

10 - You are mine!

Draven

Fuckin.g sonofabitch! I should’ve killed Paul Simpson then and there, and I fuckin.g would have if Marnie hadn’t grabbed my arm and begged me to stop.

What the fuc.k is it with this woman?

Never have I allowed any woman to speak to me the way she just did in front of my men. Yet when she yelled at me, it turned me on so fuckin.g bad that I pushed her against the wall. And yes, I would have fucke.d her stupid if we hadn’t been surrounded by people, including her half-dead ex-husband on the floor, whom I told my men to take to the warehouse. Cunt won’t give Marnie that divorce quick enough, and I won’t let him live knowing he has no damn boundaries where Marnie is concerned. I’ll wake up one day to find he’s killed her and the baby.

That is not going to happen. I’m going to end him, and I’m going to do it myself! I couldn’t finish him off in front of Marnie because I didn’t want to scare her. But I’ll show that motherfucke.r why nobody messes with the Boss and what’s his, and Marnie is mine, the mother of my child, my soon-to-be wife.

Oh, she’ll fight me on it. I have no doubt about that. But I’m not about to give her a choice. I am the boss of the Vidal Famiglia Crime Organization, and I have many enemies who would love nothing more than to take me out.

Oh, come on, who the hell wouldn’t?

I have to keep a close eye on my men in case they get a little too big for their boots and think they can overthrow me. There are people out there who would love nothing more than to take what’s mine, my girl, my child. It’s only a matter of time before it gets out there that I’m having a child with this woman, and the monsters will descend. The only way for me to protect Marnie is to keep her with me and make her my wife whether she likes it or not.

Talking of my men. Those two bastards I put in charge of watching Marnie didn’t do their jobs right. I told them to let me know the instant Paul Simpson got near Marnie. They didn’t do that, so they had to go! I will not stand for anyone fuckin.g up. This is my woman and child we’re talking about!

I took it upon myself to keep an eye on Marnie. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at first, even with Simpson watching her also. But today, that bastard went too far!

I shouldn’t have beaten that prick in front of her. I’ve scared her; I know I have. The last thing I want is for Marnie to fear me, but there’s this fire about her that tells me she’s not scared of me or anyone else. Not even that cunt of an ex-husband of hers.

It irks the hell out of me why she stayed with him so long. Okay, Brooke told me about how racist their father was. She told me how he would beat his daughters, both of them if they so much as looked at a man of color, which was fuckin.g ridiculous in this day and age.

Brooke also told me how Marnie was forced to marry Paul. He kept her away from her family for years, and Brooke said Marnie had no way out. Brooke managed to get away and be with Hawk, but no matter what she said, Marnie wouldn’t leave Paul.

I wonder if there’s something he has over her, something Marnie is scared will get out. I can’t think of any other reason why a woman as beautiful, smart, and strong as Marnie would stay with such an asshole.

Then again, why leave him now if that was the case?

“Was there any need for that?” Marnie asks without looking at me. She’s pissed off, I get it, but still, she’s sitting right beside me in the back of my Audi. Tony is driving as always.

Why the fuc.k should I drive when I don’t have to?

“Every need, Marnie. No one will ever touch you again, and that’s a promise.”

Those eyes. She turns them to me, and I see so much within them. A beautiful woman trapped behind the only thing she knows. Violence – and here I am, bringing her into a life filled with it.

Not that she will ever see violence if I have anything to do with it, but violence is part of this world, and I can’t shield her from it entirely. I can guarantee, however, that as long as I live, as long as she’s mine, then nothing and no one will ever hurt her again.

“Will they kill him?”

I sigh and shake my head. “Not unless I tell them to.”

She nods. “I’m sorry I’ve ignored you these past few days.”

That’s what she comes back with?

Okay, then.

“There’s no need for sorry, Marnie. I shouldn’t have attacked him in front of you, but I won’t have anyone touch you or my baby!”

She physically flinches.

Dammit!

I sigh before taking her hand in mine. She entwines her fingers with mine so effortlessly, and it feels so right. It shouldn’t feel this right. “I’m not trying to scare you.”

“I’m not scared of you, Draven. You might be the big tough Boss of the Vidal Crime Family, but I am not afraid of you.” She smirks at me, and damn…

Where the hell did this woman come from?

“What did you mean by what you said back there?”

“About you being mine?” She nods, shifting in her seat while adjusting her skirt before her eyes lock with mine again. “Exactly what I said. You are mine, Marnie.”

She shifts uncomfortably.

I won’t let her think about this.

Slowly, I slide my hand around the side of her neck. I can feel her pulse pumping through her veins against my fingertips.

“I can give you the world, Marnie. I don’t just mean money. This baby,” I place my hand on her tiny swollen stomach. God, I love feeling my baby inside of her. I can feel it, so small, so delicate. I should never have doubted her because I knew the moment Marnie said the baby was mine she was telling the truth. “I was not expecting this to happen in my lifetime.”

Again anyway.

Not that my ex-wife allowed my child to grow this big inside of her. She ended my baby’s life right before she asked me for a divorce. I didn’t know then what she’d done, so I gave her the damn divorce, against the council’s advice, against my family’s damn rule because I just wanted shot of her. Marrying her was the worst moment of my life.

I let the council get inside my head, let them tell me to marry she-who-shall-not-be-named, and it was what was best in the end. It wasn’t until the divorce came through that she told me what she’d done, how she found out she was pregnant, and kept it from me because she hated me and just wanted out. Ten minutes after she told me, she died.

Yeah, I killed the bitc.h! And I would kill her all over afuckingain if she was still here.

Like I said before, I would never lay a hand on a woman. I saw too much of that shi.t with my mother and father. But most women are evil fuckin.g creatures, and taking them out is all you can do to save your sanity. No woman will ever murder a child of mine and live to tell the tale.

If I’m honest with myself, I was afraid to believe Marnie’s words because of what my ex-wife did to me. I was a fool, and I pray she can forgive me. But now I’m worried Marnie may have changed her mind about having the baby, and the thought makes me sick to my stomach!

“You would never do anything...”

Marnie’s hand on my face cuts off my words. “I don’t know what happened in the past, but I see in your eyes that something did, someone hurt you. But I want you to know that I love this baby more than anything in this world. You have no idea how long I have wanted this, Draven. I would never do anything to harm them.” Her eyes haven’t left mine. Marnie is not the kind of woman to hide. I like that about her.

“And it doesn’t...”

“No!”

Damn, is she ever going to let me finish a sentence?

“You think I care that you’re Italian?” She can read minds, too. Mine, at least. That could turn out to be a dangerous thing. “You think I care that my baby is of your blood? I don’t. You may not be the most conventional of men, but I know you’ll be a good father to this child. Don’t ask me how I know that, but I have a good feeling about you, Draven Vidal.

“I know who my father was, what he was. He was a vile, racist piece of crap, and he only ever cared about himself. However, Brooke and I have never been racist. It didn’t matter what Hank told us; we saw everyone as equal. I taught my sister to see every person the same and that she was no better than anyone else in this world. I guess I was born wired differently to my family.”

She shrugs.

“I may not know you well, Draven. Hell, I might even be crazy because I’ve heard the stories of the things you’ve done. Am I crazy for thinking I’m safe with you?”

I don’t know if she’s asking me the question, but she doesn’t give me the chance to respond in any case.

“However strange it may sound to others when I’m near you, I feel safe. I know that nobody can hurt me, and I know you’ll make sure no one can hurt our child, either. I also know in my heart that this baby will be so lucky to have you as its father.”

Damn.

Marnie just floored me with her words. I am many things, but I know I’m going to be the best father any man can be. Knowing the mother of my child believes in me the way she does when she hardly knows anything about me means something to me.

Marnie leans into my touch as I stroke her cheek with my thumb. There is something about this woman’s soul that calls to me. I don’t understand it yet, but I want to explore it. I swore I would never let another woman into my heart, but I don’t think I can fight what I’m already feeling for Marnie.

The Elders won’t like this; they will insist that Marnie be tested for loyalty, meaning they’ll torture her, but I won’t let it happen. I’ll kill anyone who so much as thinks about touching her, Elders included! I’ve never wanted to protect a woman outside of my family as much as I want to protect Marnie.

Looking at her now, I know that whatever power she has over me will both weaken me and make me stronger. However fucke.d being around her will make me, I have to keep her with me.

“I want to take care of you, Marnie. I know you’ve been hurt, but...”

“What is it you’re expecting of me, Draven?”

For you not to keep cutting me off at every sentence.

I wouldn’t tolerate that shi.t from anyone else, and to be honest, she’s pissing me off with it!

“I’m married, Draven. Married to a man who did nothing but cheat on me, beat me, and I...” She does that deep, nervous swallow thing.

“Your marriage will come to an end soon enough. I’m not a cheat, and I will not beat you; I do not hit women. I won’t let you walk away from me. I’m not asking you to love me. I’m not promising I’ll love you either, but you will be my wife.”

Her eyes widen.

I might as well tell her as it is right now. “This baby will have parents who are married. A man in my situation, a good Italian man, marries the mother of his children.”

“But what if I meet someone and fall in love?”

“Won’t happen.” I hold my fingers against her lips, silencing her protests. I won’t hear them. Ever. This isn’t up for discussion. “You will be my wife, Marnie. Very soon.”

“So, I’m just going to be forced into another marriage against my will?”

“By the time the day arrives, you’ll want it, believe me,”

Marnie mutters something under her breath along the lines of Cock.y bastard. I try not to chuckle as she flops back in her seat. It’s all good; she can have her little tantrum; it won’t change a damn thing. She’s mine, and she’ll stay mine, and God help any man who tries to come between us!