Mafia Monster's Forced Bride Read online

  Her towel gave way, and Alex didn’t grab it immediately. The protection she had fell to the floor, around her feet.

  She cried out and scrambled to get her towel, only to have Roman reach for it as well. Alex wasn’t entirely sure what happened, but they somehow managed to bump heads, and she ended up on the floor, not covered, and Roman stared at her.

  Panic filled her, and she scrambled for the towel and her diary. Roman seemed to still as she got both and pulled away from him.

  Within seconds, it became a tug of war as Roman grabbed the diary, and she had no choice but to turn her back and immediately wrap the towel around her.

  Roman had never seen her naked.

  No man had seen her naked.

  Her heart raced.

  “Please give me back my diary,” she said, keeping her back to him.

  Her face was so hot. She had never been so embarrassed in her life.

  “No.” He stepped past her. She tried to grab his shirt, but she had no choice but to keep one hand on her chest.

  “Please.”

  Roman turned at the door. “You’re my wife, and a Greco never begs. Don’t do it.”

  He slammed the bathroom door, and Alex gritted her teeth. She wanted to call her father, to ask him to demand that Roman give her diary back, but that would be involving her father in a pathetic spat.

  Roman was just being a pain in the ass. She got it, and kind of understood it, even if she didn’t completely agree with him and his asshole ways.

  After stepping into her closet, she opened the drawers and pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank. It was warm, and she wished she could have head-to-toe pajamas, but that would be way too uncomfortable.

  Her hair was nearly dry, and stepping out of her closet, she went to her dresser to run a brush through it. Her bed looked so inviting as she stared at it. Did she want to sink into the soft covers or fight with Roman again?

  She glanced at the bathroom door and decided he had already taken way too much of her attention. Sticking her tongue out, which was completely childish to do, she stepped over to her bed, pulled back the covers, and slid right inside.

  The moment she lay down and stared up at the ceiling, she closed her eyes and just basked in being back home, in her bed, away from Roman … ish. He was in her father’s home, and currently in her shower or reading her diary, but that didn’t change the fact she was finally home.

  Roman’s home and apartment were all his. His bachelor pad. His domain. Where another woman had decorated and made it the vision he wanted. She was a stranger in his home and in his world.

  She didn’t mind not being close to anyone all her life. Having Liam as a dad guaranteed that people weren’t her friend. She lived with it, dealt with it. It was probably the only part of her life that made it easier to deal with Roman’s world.

  The shower stopped, and Alex rolled over so she wasn’t facing him. She had no idea where he was going to sleep.

  Growling, she shoved her blankets off and then climbed out of bed. The man was an insufferable bastard, and he pissed her off all the damn time.

  She walked back into her closet and grabbed spare blankets and some pillows.

  With them in hand, she stepped back into her bedroom at the same time as Roman entered.

  “I’ll be sleeping in the bed,” Roman said.

  “No, you’re not. That is my bed, and you’re not sleeping in it.”

  He raised a brow. “Where you sleep, I sleep.”

  “We don’t sleep together at your place, and it’s not happening now.”

  Roman chuckled. “You’re a spoiled little princess used to getting your own way.”

  “And you’re a brute and a bully used to taking what he wants. You’re not sleeping in my bed. Simple as that.”

  In response, Roman eased the towel from around his waist, and Alex gasped, closing her eyes. She didn’t see anything, and staring at her husband’s naked body didn’t appeal to her, not in the slightest.

  She heard rustling, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Roman was beneath her blankets on her side of the bed, with her damn diary.

  Alex wanted to scream at him. “You’re naked in my bed? Your ass is, like, making an impression.”

  “My ass is nice and warm. There is enough room for both of us.”

  She glared at him and then moved toward the window where she had a few beanbags from her days of being a child and not wanting to use conventional chairs.

  Nudging them together, she made herself a little bed, much like she had when she was a child, and then, somehow found a way to build a bed for herself.

  It was so uncomfortable, not like before when she was so young. This wasn’t her bed. It wasn’t comfortable, but it would do.

  With the blanket thrown over her, she got comfortable, aware of the noise the bags were making, but eventually, she got comfortable.

  The light was still on, and the only sound she heard was the unmistakable sound of the pages turning.

  Bastard!

  ****

  The following morning, Roman opened his eyes to a strange room. The bed was so comfortable. He couldn’t remember ever sleeping so well before in his life.

  As he sat up in bed, the events of the night before came back at him. He glanced toward the ground nearby the window, and of course, Alex was nowhere to be seen. He gritted his teeth, threw off the blanket, and then checked to make sure she hadn’t stolen the diary from him.

  Alex’s writings were sweet, innocent, and interesting. She didn’t talk about every part of her life, and in the diary, it was always addressed to Mom. He’d started at the beginning, and by the time he was ready to fall asleep, he’d gotten to the part of her life when it had just been agreed for her to marry him.

  Much to his surprise, the passage had started with her saying she never wanted to get married.

  Roman closed the book, not wanting to read further, but the main thing was that he was tired.

  He grabbed the small diary and held it as he moved into the bathroom.

  Alex was nowhere to be found. He used the toilet, washed his hands, and brushed his teeth with a spare toothbrush that was still sealed in its packet. Alex must have left for him.

  Her politeness was … strange.

  Once he was fully dressed, he made his way downstairs. A quick check on the time, and he saw it was a little after eight.

  He never slept this late. Never.

  Entering the kitchen, he found Millie beating something in a bowl. Did Liam ever consider using his cook to torture people? The swing on her arm was so impressive.

  “Hello, Mr. Greco,” Millie said. “Mr. Smith has already been down for breakfast. He wanted me to remind you that you’ve got to keep an eye on Alex today. He had some business to attend to. Also, your father will be coming for dinner here tonight, to discuss some important matters. Alex doesn’t need to leave, as she is going to be attending the orphanage today.”

  “No. Alex cannot go anywhere for her own safety.”

  “I have never seen any harm come to that girl during my watch, and I never will. Do not think to insult me again.”

  His grip tightened on the diary. “I am not accusing you or trying to insinuate that you’re not capable of looking after Alex. I know you are. You’ve been doing it for twenty-one years, but these are not your regular enemies. They have a job to do, and Alex is not just a Smith anymore.”

  “I’m aware of the dangers she faces, but you must also know that I am trained to take care of anyone who threatens my boss’s daughter. She is one of my own, and trust me, no one would want to take me on.” She did look threatening.

  “Where is Alex?” he asked, gripping the back of his neck.

  Millie chuckled. “Lost her already?”

  “It wasn’t … she was gone when I woke up this morning.”

  “Alex always was an early riser. She hates lying in bed. Drives her dad crazy. She’s already had breakfast and yours is keeping warm in the oven.” Mill
ie looked past his shoulder. “She’s probably in the sewing room. That’s where she told me she’d be.”

  “Sewing room?”

  “Yes.”

  He frowned.

  “You do know what a sewing room is right? For making clothes, toys, creating things with fabrics and stuff?” Millie asked. The woman’s voice was filled with sarcasm.

  “Where would I find the sewing room?” he asked.

  Millie didn’t answer him. “I’ll tell you after you eat breakfast.” She tutted. “No wonder you needed to ask Mr. Smith for help. Even your friends haven’t come down for breakfast.”

  “Antonio, Marlo, and Cash are still here?”

  She nodded. “I saw them to their private quarters last night. They are … polite, which is more than I could hope for.”

  Roman stared at the woman in front of him, and he just knew she was going to be difficult. Liam’s house was huge, and it would take him all day to find his wife. The same wife who should have slept right next to him, but her stubborn ass had kept this distance between them, which did piss him off.

  He sat down at the counter, but Millie didn’t move away.

  “We have never had the chance to get to chat, you and I, with the wedding and everything. Alex means the world to me. She is like a daughter I never could have. I’ve watched her grow up. I’ve been there when she has tripped and fallen. Bruised her knees, cut them, sprained them. I’ve held her when she cried for the mommy that wasn’t coming home. I was there helping her after she got shot by a stray bullet, and I was there the night before she was supposed to marry you. The panic she had. I calmed her down, told her she was a fierce woman, and I am here for her now. If you hurt her, or in any way treat her like crap, then you won’t have to worry about Mr. Smith finding you. I’ll hunt you down and gut you like the piece of shit you are, do you understand?” she asked.

  “You do know no one threatens me.”

  “And no one threatens Alex. I know what you’re up to, with your friends. It ends today.”

  Roman glared at her.

  “Alex is a good girl. If you were half a man, you’d see that.” Millie stepped back and smiled at him. “Just a friendly reminder.”

  He’d never been threatened, not by a woman, and certainly never warned. Something in his gut told him that he had to tread carefully with Millie, and, he had a feeling, with everyone associated with or in Liam’s employ.

  Nodding at the woman, he picked up a scoopful of scrambled eggs and shoved them in his mouth. The breakfast was nice, but from keeping warm, it was a little overcooked.

  After seeing Alex, he would hunt for his friends and deal with them. His plans for them to try to lure Alex into bed hadn’t been discussed in this house with him. But they must have said something for Millie to know.

  He finished off his breakfast, and of course, Millie still held all the power as she presented him with coffee.

  Roman held the cup and had no choice but to blow across the rim as the coffee was steaming hot. Was Millie stalling him on purpose?

  Was Stuart all a ruse?

  Did Alex have a secret lover, and was that why she wanted nothing to do with him? According to the diary, Stuart was a sweet little boy who’d been abandoned. Alex had found him. There were several entries referring to the moment she did, which had to be in another book.

  The moment he could drink the coffee without scolding his throat, he swallowed it down.

  “Great, Alex is next door,” Millie said.

  “What?”

  “Her sewing room is literally the door just after this one, opposite the dining room, and right near her father’s study. Before she passed, it was her mother’s, and it was only fitting that Alex got it for herself.”

  With that, Millie turned her back on him, and he couldn’t believe Alex was so close by.

  Getting out of the chair, he stepped out into the hall, and sure enough, there was a sewing room. It even had Sewing Space written on a black plaque right near the door.

  This house was making him feel so fucking stupid. So were all the people inside it, and so far, he’d only encountered two women. What was the matter with him? He was the boss in his world. The person with all the control.

  He didn’t bother to knock and stepped inside. He was, in fact, surprised to see Alex there, sitting behind a sewing machine.

  The room was a complete sewing room. Not a large space, but he saw a couple of different machines set up, and the walls had different sewing stuff. He wasn’t sure what it was called, but there was a single word across one wall that said notions. Was that what it was?

  Again, he wasn’t sure.

  Alex looked up from her sewing machine, and she stopped her actions. There was some fabric beneath the machine, and she quickly stood. “Millie has breakfast waiting for you.”

  “I’ve already eaten.”

  “Ah, that’s Millie for you.”

  “What is all this?” he asked, nodding around the room.

  “It’s my mom’s. It was my mom’s space. She loved to make things. My dad told me it started out with a few toys, and then some clothes, and then, she was making clothes, badly, he said. She didn’t have a whole lot of time to get good, before she … passed.”

  “And you sew?”

  “Most of my life. Since I was a kid. Dad always thought he would have to turn this room into something else, but he could never bring himself to get rid of another memory of his … of my mom.”

  “So, you use it?” he asked.

  “I like it here. It has some of her old notions. Her sewing machine.” Alex smiled, touching the white machine in front of her. “And it has something she was working on as well.” She pointed toward the dress form. “I think it was a dress, or possibly a skirt. She had these big ideas, and she sketched a lot of them down.”

  Alex moved from her position at the table to the small bookshelf that only had a handful of books, but was empty.

  She grabbed a sketchbook and opened it up at a random page. “See.”

  Roman looked at the sketchbook, not really sure why he was entertaining this idea for Alex. This was boring, woman’s stuff to him, but he also couldn’t help but enjoy the light he saw shining in her eyes. She looked so happy. He couldn’t remember her ever seeming so happy with him, or at their wedding. She’d been cold, but so had the service.

  “You hate this. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to bore you.” She snapped the book closed.

  “How did I not know about this?” he asked, pointing at the room.

  “What was there to know?”

  “You have never asked for one of these.”

  She shrugged. “It’s your home and your apartment. You never wanted to know, and you told me to leave your place as it was. That it was perfectly functional.”

  “What have you been doing the past couple of months?” he asked.

  “Reading.” She moved back behind her machine. “A lot of reading. Watching some television.”

  “But do you want one of these at our place?”

  “Our place?”

  “Alex, we are married.”

  “We don’t have to be,” Alex said. “All you have to do is say the words, and we can get our marriage annulled. I even looked into it. If neither of us contests it, we can have it done so fast. You can go back to your old life, and I can go back to mine.”

  “Is being married to me really so bad?”

  “You don’t want to be married to me, and besides, didn’t you once tell me I wasn’t good enough for you? That women in your world were far better and didn’t allow other men to touch them?” she asked.

  He’d said those things to her. Roman hadn’t been the best role model when it came to being a good husband. He sucked at it.

  “We’re not getting this marriage annulled, Alex.”

  She pressed her lips together. “Okay.”

  “Do you want a sewing room?” he asked.

  “No, it’s fine.”

  What game was she pla
ying with him?

  Chapter Five

  Alex knew there would come a time when Roman wouldn’t want her anymore, at least not her name. He’d never wanted her body, so she didn’t have to worry in that regard. Giving him the option of an annulment was what she intended to do, weekly, if not daily. Neither of them wanted to be married to the other.

  They were only doing this for their parents.

  There was no point in him building a sewing room when she knew he was going to get rid of her. They would part ways soon. She hoped they did. Last night was a clear indicator that they were not suited.

  After sewing together the three panels of the skirt, she searched for her concealed zip and lined it up on the edge of the skirt. She loved making clothes. The challenges of them. After finishing up the sweater she’d made for Stuart, she had gotten to work finishing the ankle-length skirt she had started months ago. It had been cut up, ready and waiting for her. Being back behind her mother’s machine was a welcome relief.

  Roman stood and watched her for a good thirty minutes before tutting to himself and mentioning lazy-ass friends, then leaving her alone.

  “I’m heading out,” Millie said, coming to the door.

  She looked up and saw a smile on the older woman’s face. “What’s the matter?”

  “It’s good to see you here, working on that machine.”

  Alex lifted the skirt. She still had the waistband to sew down, but it was now time for it to drop on the bias. “What do you think?”

  “You’re going to look stunning in it,” Millie said.

  She loved sewing for other people, and getting to her feet, she rushed to the small wardrobe to open the doors and grab the sweater she had also finished. Millie had been complaining about the cold just before Alex’s wedding.

  Alex had hoped to present her with the sweater, but she hadn’t been home and hadn’t been able to finish it until that morning.

  “This is for you,” Alex said. “I know it’s super warm now, but when it’s cold, it’s for you.”