Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 101247 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 506(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101247 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 506(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
When are you coming home? My cock misses you.
Butterflies erupt in my belly. Keeping my excitement from showing on my face I send him a text back.
Tell your cock I miss him too. Will you come fetch me?
I'm no longer paying any attention to the conversation around me. All I want is to see Valentino. The scary marriage stories of these women have given me a fresh appreciation for the man I’m married to.
Another text from Valentino comes in.
I’ll be right there.
I take a deep breath and relax against my seat.
“I can’t believe we spent the whole afternoon talking about our husbands,” Maria says with a bitter laugh. “These men have a way of ruining everything.”
“And it’s unfair to those of us who don’t have one,” Louisa says. “Tina, Bianca, and I, should have our own special hangout.”
“We should invite Francesca,” Tina says. “Seems she’s the only one in a happy marriage.”
“You know, I don’t appreciate your jabs, Tina,” Maria says, glaring at her friend. “If you have something on your chest, why not come out and say it?”
Tina frowns. “I haven’t said anything you didn’t confess to yourself. You’re married to a sixty-year-old man who doesn’t satisfy you. There’s nothing happy about that.”
Maria slams her wine glass on the table and to my shock, jumps up to her feet and walks away. I glance at Louisa with alarm. It’s my first time hanging out with her friends, so I’m a little wary of this outburst. Louisa smiles reassuringly at me before glancing at Tina, who continues to sip her wine like nothing out of the ordinary has happened. Bella does the same.
Louisa eyes them both before settling on Tina. “Is there something I should know?”
Tina chuckles. “She’ll come around. I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“You rubbed it in her face,” Louisa scolds. “Come on.”
Tina rolls her eyes. “Fine. I'll apologize.” She stands and walks away.
Bella waits until she’s out of earshot before patting my hand. “They’re always like that. Don’t worry about it.”
Before I can respond, I get a much-appreciated text message from Valentino.
I’m outside.
Chapter Thirty
FRANCESCA
“Louisa, I have to go.” I lean in to kiss her cheek.
She frowns. “What? We arrived together.”
“It’s okay. Stay with your friends. Valentino is outside. Let’s do this some other time.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Louisa says, taking my hand. I wave goodbye to the girls.
There’s a very expensive-looking sleek matt-black sports car I’ve never seen before parked right at the entrance and Valentino is leaning against it. He is in his signature all-black look. From head to toe, he is dressed in black.
“Damn,” Louisa whispers. “You’re eating good, Francesca.”
“Behave,” I mutter.
Valentino holds out his arm when I reach him, and I step into his embrace. “Valentino, this is Louisa, my cousin and best friend. She was at the wedding, but I don’t think you have officially met her.”
Louisa holds out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you officially.”
Valentino shakes her hand briefly. “Thanks for taking care of my wife.”
“You don’t have to thank me. It was my pleasure.”
Valentino leads me to the passenger seat of the car and holds the door open. I wave at Louisa before slipping inside. As we drive off, I continue to wave at her until she’s out of eyeshot.
“Why are you in a bar, piccola mia?”
I turn to him with a smile. “You don’t like it?”
“I’m not sure,” he says mildly. “I’m not going to dictate what you do, but bars are filled with drunken men. I will have to commit murder if someone touches you inappropriately.”
I laugh. “It didn’t come to that. No one touched me inappropriately. And if one had I’m sure one of those men trying very hard to blend in and not quite succeeding would have stepped in.”
He smiles. “Yes, they would have. How was your day?”
“It was okay until the girls found the alcohol.”
“Tell me about it,” he says conversationally as he navigates through traffic.
I arch my brows, surprised he is interested in my day out. “It was mostly just women’s gossip. Are you sure you want to know?”
“I wouldn’t have asked otherwise.”
“Okay.” I stare at his profile. “Maria is married to a sixty-something-year-old prick who apparently doesn’t satisfy her in any area of her life, especially sexually.”
He glances at me. “Hmm.”
“Unlike Maria, Bella’s husband is in his forties, but in my estimation, he is worse. He beats her regularly, and she’s had two miscarriages because of this.”
“That’s because he has another family,” Valentino states quietly.
My mouth parts in a gasp, and I blink at his handsome face. “What?”
“He has another family,” he repeats. “A wife and four kids. Three boys and a girl. Bella is wasting her time.”
“How do you know this?”
“The background check. Remember?”
“You said it would be a simple thing.”
“This is the simple version for Vance,” he says. “If he wants to be thorough, he will even find out what Maria’s dead grandmother had for breakfast before she died.”