✔️ ILLICIT DESIRES | 18 +

Chapter 44

Roman's pov

I was stuck — with the fucker next to me.

Still in the hospital, I couldn't sleep. She was all I could think about. Her betrayal robbed all my sleep and peace.

I saved her on her wedding night. I protected her. I lied to my capo for her. I helped her get a new life. I risked everything for her.

She showed me her gratitude by breaking her promise — running back to her daddy at the first opportunity. She reported me to the police, while I was fighting my brother to stop him from following her.

Now I was in police custody. And in less than a week, I'd be in jail. I huffed. I should just kill her that night, but goddam me I spared her.

I came back from my thoughts when the door opened and Donatello walked in. I smiled as I saw him wearing a doctor's uniform. "Dr. Alessi? Did you come to give us our nightly poison?" I asked, scowling at him.

"No wonder you're still awake," he muttered, looking at a snoring Valerio's before looking back at me. "I am not here because I want to kill you. I couldn't kill you even if I wanted to kill you."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I asked him with a frown. He sighed before pulling out a chair and sitting in front of me. "What kind of files did you have in your safe at home, Roman?" he asked me, looking at me seriously.

"Just a few files on some trade deals that were sealed and I had to take care for capo in two months, why?" I asked him curiously.

"Fuck!" he groaned, looking irritated. "How did she get the code to your safe?"

"I told her the code so that she could get some money and ran away as Valerio came to kill her," I mumbled with a shrug. "What the hell is the problem?"

"Well, Rita obviously found the files more interesting than the money. She took the files instead of the money. Now she threatens Antonio to hand over the files to the police," he told me frustrated.

"What does she want in return for the files?" I asked him with a frown and sat up straighter in bed.

"You and Valerio. She wants you both to be safe. She threatens us with handing the files to the police, if any harm happens to you or your brother. Therefore, we cannot kill you. We even have to protect you. Do you know how hard it is for my brother to protect the men who betrayed him?"

"I did not betray him, I killed his enemy, I killed Nicolai! But she was not his enemy! She meant no harm to him! She was just a victim in capo's and Miguel's power game! She only wanted to live a peaceful life. If he didn't send Valerio and let me take care of her, she'd be a ghost now!"

"Innocent?" he huffed. "This woman is dangerous, Roman! Don't you see it? She used you to get free!"

"Maybe that was her only option after your brother surrounded my apartment with his armed men." I still defended her. Part of me wanted not to believe that she was a greedy bitch — only caring for herself.

"She used her father to help her put Maria on trial to get her dead husband's shares. After her father helped her and she had no use for him, she killed him and she also got his company shares. Was that also her only option?"

"What?" This news were surprising and not sounding like the woman I got to know over the past weeks.

"This bitch inherited shares of multimillion-dollar companies in less than two weeks, making her a great opponent to us. Now she's threatening Antonio because of you two. She obviously isn't done with you yet."