Filed to story: Falling for My Ex's Mafia Dad Novel Free PDF (Fay Alden & Kent Lippert)
He hesitates, squeezing her hand. “I kind of did pick you, Fay. And you picked me. Even before I knew we were ‘assigned.'”
She sighs, taking her hand gently from his. “Yeah, but that was before I had all the information,” she murmurs. Back when she thought he was Prince Charming, not the heir to a mafia cartel.
“I’m going to be a good husband to you,” Daniel murmurs, really meaning it. He always knew he’d get married to a woman, and even if he knew it wouldn’t be a sexual relationship or even one in which he was faithful he had always hoped it would be to someone like Fay. His best friend.
Fay flicks her eyes to him, full of doubt. “But what kind of wife would you want me to be?” she asks softly. “Would I even be able to pursue my career, which means so much to me?”
Daniel hesitates. He knows, frankly, that the answer is no his wife would be expected to stay home, manage his social affairs, raise their kids. But he also knows that saying that aloud right now isn’t going to make this any easier.
Intuiting his response, Fay sighs again. “This isn’t what either of us really want, Daniel,” she says, speaking the truth for both of them. “But somehow, you’ve just…given in to it. I feel sorry for you.”
Her words are like a knife to his heart. Fay Thompson, this poor, delicate, timid girl, feels sorry for him?
God he must be so pathetic. He hangs his head.
“I’m sorry, Fay,” he says softly. “I’ll do my best to make you happy.”
Fay moves until she’s sitting next to him, putting her head on his shoulder. “And so will I. When I go, Daniel, I’m not going to leave you behind.”
He looks at her, then, realizing that she still plans to escape. He doesn’t burst her bubble.
But deep down, he knows it’s impossible.
Fiona pants, her mouth open and her eyes closed, as she and Kent finish in his office.
She’s straddling him in his chair, her black silk panties discarded on the floor.
Kent breathes hard too, on hand wrapped in her hair, the other pressed against her lower back. Slowly, she raises herself off of him, lowering her feet to the ground. She leans forward, her hands on the arms of the chair, pressing a kiss to his mouth.
“Thanks, baby,” she murmurs. “I always like a little afternoon treat.”
Kent doesn’t say anything, just pulls up his pants and buckles them as she stands and leans back against the desk.
“Oh,” Fiona says, looking casually at the security monitors still on his screen. “Lookie here,” she points a finger at the little rectangle that shows the door to Daniel’s room. “Looks like the love birds were having a little tryst.”
She laughs but Kent can’t help himself from clamping his teeth together, watching closely.
Fiona notices Kent’s tension and tilts her head with curiosity, looking between Kent and the screen. Kent ignores her.
Kent is not used to having to control himself around the women that he wants. Usually, it’s not very hard to seduce them, and he can pick and choose who he wants and when he wants them. Women like him, he knows. They come willingly to his bed, or wherever else he takes them.
But as he stares at Fay on the screen, walking back down the hall to her room, he fights to control himself. He knows that he wants her can’t deny it any more in a rough, primal sort of way. Different than the way he wants Fiona, who slakes his thirst.
But Fay? She leaves him parched.
Fiona smirks, watching her lover stare at the girl on the screen. “You know,” she says, folding her arms and keeping her voice light. “I don’t think anything funny even went on in that room.”
Kent’s eyes flash to her. “What?”
“Just look,” Fiona says, gesturing to the screen, where Fay has reached her door. The camera shows Fay’s face as she twists the knob and walks in. “Can’t you see? Her hair isn’t mussed, and neither is her makeup. Her lips aren’t even swollen.”
Kent, unable to help himself, turns to study the image, nothing that Fiona is correct.
“She’s not even walking funny,” Fiona says, smirking and watching Kent’s face. “If Daniel had really given it to her ”
“That’s enough,” Kent says, his voice harsh. Fiona’s secret smile only deepens.
Kent stands up, ready to move on with his day. “Of course nothing happened in there,” he says. “She’s his fiancé, he respects her. Daniel knows it’s impious to have sex before the wedding.”
Fiona laughs and stands up as well, crossing herself casually as she does so. “Oh, I didn’t know we were suddenly so pious in this house,” she says, heading for the door. “I’ll have to say a couple of Hail Mary’s to wash away my sins from this afternoon,” she says, winking at him and heading out.
Kent grunts a goodbye in her direction and returns his attention to some paperwork on his desk.
Still, unable to concentrate, his mind turns again to the innocent, untouched young woman upstairs.
That afternoon, Fiona opens Fay’s door and gives her a big smile. “I have a surprise for you, baby,” she says.
Putting down her book, I look at her with curiosity. “What is it?”
“Come and find out.” Fiona holds the door open and I hop out of bed to follow her.
Fay leads me downstairs towards the front of the house, where she throws open the doors to the parlor. My eyebrows shoot up and I cover my mouth with both hands when I look inside.
Everything is covered in white white tulle, white lace, white silk, white satin hanging from racks, draped over chairs, stacked on the sofa. The only dark spot in the room is Kent, before the fireplace, directing the workers who carry piles of garment bags.
“What’s going on?” Daniel says, peering into the room behind me, a sandwich in his hand.
“Don’t bring that in here,” Fiona scolds, swatting at him. Daniel laughs and finishes the sandwich in two big bites, brushing his hands on his pants to get free of crumbs. Fiona glares at him a little but then nods, deeming him clean enough to enter.
“Is this…” I say, looking around in awe, a little anxiety roiling in my stomach as I realize what all of these white things are.
“Wedding dresses!” Fiona says, clapping her hands. “Aren’t they gorgeous? They’re all brought in from Kleinfeld.”
“Now, you come stand here,” Fiona says, pulling me and Daniel further into the room to stand by Kent, “out of the way, while I get everything set up.”
With that, she bustles away to shoo everyone unessential out of the room. As she works, I look up at Kent.
“Was it like this?” I ask. “For your own wedding?”
He glances down at me but looks back at the room as he answers. “No. We had a small wedding, in Sicily. That’s where she was from.”
I raise my eyebrows, surprised. “Oh,” I say. “Is she…still there?”
I scream at myself, inwardly, for such an awkward question. But come on I can’t just blurt out is she dead? How did she die? Which is what I really want to know.
Kent looks down at me with a withering look. I work hard to keep my face straight, but I feel so terribly awkward that I open my mouth to say something else anything else
Daniel saves me. He links elbows with me and pulls me closer. “My mom died when I was young,” he says casually. “Her marriage to my dad was actually arranged,” he notes cheerfully. “Like ours.”
“Oh!” I say, looking between Kent and Daniel, genuinely surprised. “Um, was her death…an accident? An illness?”