Page 5 of Dante

He’ll need watching. So will she. She has no instinct yet for who in this room wants her dead and who wants her useful.

She’s going to have to learn fast. I’ll teach her some of it.

The rest she’ll have to bleed for.

My youngest brother Luca comes up beside Silvio. He nods at something Gina says and smiles at her with real warmth.

When Silvio and Luca finally drift off, two men slide in to take their places.

I don’t know them. They’re younger. Mid-twenties. Probably capos’ sons. One of them leans in too close to be congratulating her. He says something near her ear. She smiles up at him.

I’m across the room before I’ve decided to move.

“Gina.”

She turns. Startled. Her eyes go wide and her mouth opens slightly, and there’s something in the way she looks up at me.

Like she’s been waiting all night for me to come for her.

The two boys melt back into the crowd without being told.

“Dance with me.”

She accepts my hand without a word.

The floor clears as we step onto it.

Every man in this room knows she’s my wife.

I take her into the standard ballroom hold. My right hand at her waist. My left holding hers. Proper distance between us.

My mother would approve.

The capos and their wives lining the walls nod along.

Satisfied to see that the new Mrs. Ricci is being properly handled. The don is showing his bride to the room.

All is in order.

But under my right hand, through the bodice of the ridiculous dress, I feel the heat of her skin.

And see the rise and fall of her breasts as she breathes.

“You did well tonight,” I say.

She looks up but says nothing. As if waiting for me to continue.

“You smiled at the right people. You let my uncle hold your hand a little too long, but you’ll learn.”

A small line forms between her brows. She tucks her chin slightly, and I feel her shoulders go a fraction lower.

Good. She’s trying to please me.

When the music ends, I guide her off the floor and toward the exit. She doesn’t ask where we’re going.

Her hand stays in mine. Small. Warm. Trusting.

She has no idea what kind of night she’s about to experience.