Lina
I wake up on the bed, hurting in a lot of places.
Turns out that Bruno's couch is not as comfy I might have led Bruno to believe.
But on the bright side,I had survived the night unscathed,a true miracle considering what sort of a person Bruno is.
Speaking of,I look to the bed to find him gone.
Wondering where he was,I get up to go and find him.
But before that,I pause and admire the view of the room again.
I could get used to this.
Wait,what am I saying? I think while shaking my head.
I have to go find Bruno.
After all,I have to make sure that he isn't doing something to make me suffer more than I already have.Having spent two days with the man,I know that it is never too early or too late for him to be up to no good.
I wouldn't be surprised if he schemes in his sleep,I think as I enter the living room
I find him standing inside while on his phone,with his back to me.
Oh great,he hadn't been abducted by aliens or anything as lucky.
Bruno is already fully dressed for the day,wearing a green tailored suit,looking pretty handsome,might I add.
I find myself hoping that he is going somewhere because then I can go see my parents all by myself.But that hope gets crushed when he says,"No,I'm working from home today and for the next few days.Yes."
Then he says,"I don't care how hard it is.If you don't give me De Luca's location by the end of the day,you're fired,do you understand me?"he says into the phone.
I hesitate a little as I approach,intimidated by the how hard his voice is and, honestly, not feeling great about eavesdropping on his conversation.
But it's not eavesdropping when you're doing it to your enemy,right?They call it gathering enemy Intel,totally allowed.
After all all is fair in love and war.
If Bruno is prepared to hurt my family and friends to get what he wants then I should get my hands dirty too,right?
I don't think that I will win this by following the moral code.
I move closer to to hear what is being said.But,I think that the sound of my slippers must have alerted Bruno because he suddenly turns to me with the scariest expression.
I pause,swallowing hard.
Luckily,Bruno's face softens immediately as he looks at me.
"Good," he says into the phone before hanging up abruptly.
"Who were you talking with?"I am quick to ask,putting my plan to know more about Bruno into action.
"Good morning to you too,Lina,"he says pecking my cheek before I can do a damn thing about it.
I give him my best fuck you look.
"I behaved all night,Lina.Can't I give you a little kiss on the cheek as a reward?" he asks with a playful smile.
Unlike me,someone is in a good mood.
"No you can't . Don't do it again,"I tell him.
"Alright,,"he says,not looking a little bit serious.
This one learns the hard way,I think,narrowing my eyes at him.
"Anyway,I asked you who were talking to,"I remind him,trying to sound casual.
But I am wondering if I am coming on a bit strong.
"No one. It's just work.Why do you ask?"
I can't help but notice how quick he is to shift the focus on me.
"It just sounded like you were looking for someone,"I reply smoothly.
"I am.I have a job for someone and I am looking for him,"he explains but this time his eyes shift when he says it.
What's with that?
"And what would this job be?"I ask him.
"Waht with the twenty questions ,Lina?"Bruno asks me,looking a little annoyed by my questioning.
"Nothing.I'm just curious.I mean seeing as I am currently staying with you,I think that I should know more about you.For exanple,how did you hurt your hand"I ask,taking his left hand and bringing it closer to my face.
It's a mystery that had been on my mind for a while but I couldn't get around to solving it as I had more serious things to worry about.
"Work?"I ask,looking at his face.
He looks at me with an unreadable expression before speaking.
"No,why would you think that?" He asks with a quizzical look.
"It's just that yesterday,you basically admitted to being a criminal so I figured..."I let my voice fade away before,chancing a glance at his face,interested in seeing how he would react.
I needed to see if what he told me yesterday was true or if it wasn't an attempt to scare me into doing what he wanted.
But I wouldn't be surprised if it was true.I wish I could say it was because of Bruno's actions but it wasn't.The Rossinis already had quite the reputation in this city and everyone, including me, was aware of it.
They had been accused of several crimes like arms dealing,drug dealing,kidnapping,extortion and even murder but none of it had ever been proved.
I had hoped that it wasn't true though.Hoped that my father had been wrong about Bruno going to turn into a criminal like his father.
He keeps quiet for a moment,giving me an expressionless look.
"My business had nothing to do with this,"he tells me confirming my worst fears.
I drop his hand.
My father had been right.I had dodged a bullet by not marrying him.
I almost wish that I hadn't asked.
"Really?"I ask in a neutral voice,processing.
"Yes,"he nods,his pony tail,swaying with the motion.
"Then what happened?"I ask, finding it hard to believe him now.Now that I knew that he was mafia or something.
Still processing.
"Just a little car accident,"he says,bringing back to reality.
"Come again,"I say.
"An car accident, Lina,"he says like it's no big deal.
"Oh my god!"I say,stepping back to look him from head to toe."Are you alright?"I ask,still checking if he had suffered more than an injured hand.
"I'm fine,Lina.I survived another accident.He and didn't even lose my memorythis time.How lucky is that?"he asks with a playful smile.
But I fail to see what is funny.
This was his second accident.He could have died.
I once again taken back to the day when I heard about Bruno's accident,a day before our wedding day.
Worst say of my life.
I could puke just thinking about it.
Suddenly,I start to feel dizzy and am about to fall but catches me.
"Shit,Lina.Are you alright?"He says,leading my weak body to a chair.
He sits with me for about a full minute before talking.
"Should I get water?"he asks.
"No.I'm fine.Are you okay?"I ask,feeling better now.
"My hand will heal after a few days.You don't have to worry about me,"he says with a playful smile.
That smile should be illegal,I think as my body slowly regains its strength.
I pull back from him quickly,determined not to succumb to his good looks again.
"I hate you and everything about you.Especially your business.I am not worried about you,"I say,denying what was so clearly evident to the both of us.
"Are you trying to convince me or yourself?"he asks me,looking at me pitifully.
I grit my teeth.I had been trying to get information out of him but he had gotten some out of me.
That some part of me still gave a damn about him.
"You know what,I am not even going to have this conversation,"I say trying to get up but he pulls me back down.
"Are you running away?"he asks with a raised eyebrow.
"No,you brute.I am going to get ready.
I am going to see my parents today remember?"I say,lying through my teeth.
I am totally running.
"But there is still a few hours to go until we have leave.Luch time, remember?"he says,his voice mocking.
I don't say anything but bite the inside of my cheek.Of course,I remembered.How could I forget,really?
But it was an excuse to justify leaving albeit a bad one.
"Oh,right.But I should still get ready for..for breakfast ,right?"I say,getting up again.Thankfully,he let's me go this time.
Ignoring his triumphant look,I walk towards the direction of the bedroom.But when I come back, I have every intention of showing him how little I care about him.
*****
I get dressed quickly, my eyes on the door.
I'm worried that Bruno might burst in anytime.
I hadn't been able to lock the door this time because some genius had kicked it open by force.Now it was broken.
I was going to remind him to get it fixed immediately.
As I put on my casual off-the shoulder dress that stops just above my knees ,I decide that I should pair it with sandals.
I also decide to put some rules in place to make sharing a bedroom with Bruno easier.
There is just no way this is going work without some boundaries,I think.
After putting on my sandals,I walk outside the room,wanting to discuss this with Bruno quickly before it slips my mind.
But I hear multiple voices as I walk towards the living room,Bruno and Anna's included.
When I get there I freeze at what I see.
There are a several people coming into the room,boxes in their hands.
I look at the scene curiously,wondering who these people were and what they were doing here.
As if sensing my presence,Bruno looks towards me and my curious eyes meet his.
I see him excuse himself from one of the men to come to me.
"What's going on?"I ask him in a curious manner when he is infront of me.
"I'm glad that you're finally here,even if I do think that your outfit is showing too much leg,"he says for me to widen my eyes.
However before I can reply to the ridiculous comment, he continues by saying."Your stuff just arrived.The movers need your help unpacking it,"he tells me,pacing an unwelcome hand on my shoulder.