T
he next two weeks were the most beautiful time in my life. The Caribbean was breathtaking. We swam with dolphins, ate delicious food, sailed a catamaran across the whole archipelago, and above all, we were inseparable. At first, I was a bit afraid of having to spend the entire time with Massimo. We had never spent so much time together before. Normally, I’d try to avoid that. Usually, I tended to grow impatient and irritated by my partner’s constant presence. It always felt like too much pressure. This time, I yearned for more. Each minute I spent with Massimo made me want to experience even more.When our honeymoon came to an end, I couldn’t help feeling sad, but the news that Olga was still on Sicily cheered me up a bit. Come to think about it, I must have felt surprised, too. What had she been doing there all that time? Paolo the security guard picked us up at the airport and drove us to the residence. On the driveway, I was surprised to discover just how much I missed this place. We stepped out of the car, and Massimo asked something of a security guard, before leading me to the garden. We passed
the threshold and froze. Sitting in one of the armchairs was Domenico, and on his knees was Olga. Kissing him passionately. They didn’t even register our arrival. He had his arms around her and stroked her back, touching his nose to hers, while Olga was making a cute and innocent expression. For a while, I couldn’t wrap my head around what I was seeing. I had to get their attention to sort this mess out. My hand squeezed Massimo’s, and we headed deeper into the garden. The patter of my heels brought the two lovebirds back to Earth. They finally noticed we were there.
“Laura!” Olga exclaimed, jumping to her feet. She took me in her arms and gave me a great hug. I pulled away and took her face in my hands, giving her a scrutinizing look.
“What’s this, Olga?” I asked in Polish in a conspiratorial whisper. “What are you doing?”
She shrugged, smiling awkwardly, but said nothing. Massimo walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek before continuing to walk toward his brother. I kept staring at my friend, searching for an answer.
“I’m totally in love, Laura,” Olga said, sitting in the grass. “I can’t help it. Domenico just turns me on so fucking much!”
I tossed my handbag to the grass and took a seat next to her. Summer had ended some time before, and though it was still warm, it definitely wasn’t hot anymore.
The grass was still damp and the earth still had some residual heat to it, but the truly scorching weather was a thing of the past. I moved my hand through the blades of green, wondering what to say, when Massimo’s shadow obstructed the sun.
“Don’t sit on the grass,” he said, pushing a pillow under my butt and throwing another to Olga.
“I need to work for a couple of hours. I’m taking Domenico with me.”
I sent him a look from behind smoky shades, still fascinated by the way he could change so much in such a short time. Now he was my brilliant, haughty husband. The mob boss—cold and lordly. But if we found some time only for the two of us, he would instantly transform into his gentle and loving true self. For a while longer, Massimo stood there, as if giving me a chance to burn his image in my mind, and then he kissed me on the brow and left, taking his younger brother with him. Domenico only waved at us briefly before vanishing behind the house.
“Why are we sitting on the grass anyway?”
I grimaced, puzzled.
“I’m not sure anymore. Let’s go to the table and I’ll tell you what happened. I swear you’re going to die!”
I was finishing my third croissant, and my friend was nodding approvingly.
“I can see your puking days are behind you,” she said.
“Yeah, yeah, quit fucking around and tell me the story.” My eyes didn’t leave her as I took a sip of hot milk from a cup.
Olga propped her head on her hands, hiding her face in her palms. She spread her fingers, sending me a strange look. It spelled nothing good.
“When we left your room back at the wedding, I ran into Massimo. He looked pretty fucked off when I told him I saw his clone on my way out. He probably realized it was his twin. So, anyway, he went red with fury and sprinted your way. I had enough of your weird shit, so I went in search of Domenico. Before I found him, though, I found another apartment filled with guys with the best coke I’ve ever had.”
She paused. Suddenly, her head smacked against the table. “I’m so sorry, Laura!” She raised her eyes again with a guilty expression, sending me a look so full of shame, I nearly shed a tear or two.
I waited for her to continue, but she only stared at me. I leaned back and took another sip of milk.
“There’s not much that can still surprise me when it comes to your adventures, so you can just spill the beans.”
My friend touched her forehead to the table again with a heavy sigh.
“You’re going to kill me, but someone’s going to tell you sooner or later, so it might as well be me. I sat there and snorted lines with two Mafia guys who picked me off the corridor. They were Dutch, I think. That’s when Adriano arrived.
“I knew it was him. He and Massimo wore different suits, so I could tell them apart. He said something to the two men, and they left and shut the door. So he got closer and lifted me up and set me on the table. He was so fucking strong!”
Olga cried, hitting her head on the table again. “So he set me on that table, and I was getting pretty nervous. If he wanted something from me, I wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
“Stop right there,” I cut in. “You’re sure you want to tell me the rest?”
She froze in utter stillness, taking a moment to think, before her forehead resumed slamming the table.
“He fucked me, Laura. But I was drunk and doped. Don’t look at me like that,” she groaned, seeing my disapproving look. “You married his clone within three months of first meeting him. And you did it sober!”
I shook my head and put the cup down.
“What has this got to do with your sudden adoration for Domenico?”
“The next day, when you left, I came to and sobered up. I wanted to run from that room but couldn’t. The doors were locked. That motherfucker Adriano doped me with some shit and fucked me like a whore. The guys I’d partied with were his men, it turned out.
“The drugs were his, too. And me being there was no coincidence, either.
So anyway, as I sat there, Adriano came back and wanted some more. I was so completely furious, I fucking punched him in his stupid face. I think I might have loosened up some of his teeth. And that was a mistake. He’s just like your Massimo, and took a shot at me, too.”
I launched myself up, eyes bulging with outrage.
“What the fuck are you saying?” I snapped, grabbing Olga by the shoulders and shaking her violently.
She pulled down her sweater from one shoulder, revealing the bruises. I lifted the hem of the fabric and started looking for other signs on her skin.
“What the fuck is all this?”
“Stop,” she said quietly, pulling the sweater back on. “It doesn’t hurt anymore. I wouldn’t have told you, but I figured someone else would eventually do that. No use lying. He roughed me up, the piece of shit, but I gave as good as I got. I smacked him on the head with a lamp and a bottle.
Anyway, here’s the answer to your question: Domenico was trying to find me the whole night. It was him who finally ended that nightmare when he barged into the apartment. The two started fighting, and the fucking clone lost. Pretty surprising, eh?” She smiled with satisfaction. “Turns out Domenico knows martial arts. Adriano should be happy he’s alive. When he finished beating the shit out of the mutt, Domenico took me in his arms and got me to a doctor. He cared for me. That’s when I stopped seeing him as a talking prick.” Olga shrugged and dropped her eyes.
I couldn’t believe it. How could my husband’s brother do that? A disconcerting thought occurred to me then: Had Massimo known what was happening back on Sicily? And if yes, why didn’t he tell me? I rose and
headed toward the mansion, fuming with hatred for Adriano. I wanted to kill the bastard and wondered if the Man in Black would allow me to do it. I felt my heart racing and knew I had to rein in my emotions for the sake of my child, but I just couldn’t.
“Wait here,” I said, passing Olga on my way.
I crossed the main hall and took the corridor opposite, knowing Massimo would be in his study. He always worked from there. It was the best- protected room in the whole villa. I opened the door and stormed inside. I was about to inhale to start screaming, when my brain finally processed what I was seeing. By the massive fireplace in the opposite end of the room, there was Massimo. Standing next to Adriano. Blinded by hate and fury and unable to discern which man was my enemy, I shot toward them. I passed heavy, book-laden shelves with murder in my eyes.
“Massimo!” I cried, my eyes tracking the reactions of both men.
“Yes, baby girl?” replied the man standing closer to the wall.
That was enough for me. I knew my target. Without another thought, I launched myself at Adriano and cannoned a fist into his face before preparing another attack.
“Punch away. I deserve it,” he said quietly, wiping blood from his lip.
His words took me aback. My arms dropped to my sides. What the hell was happening?
“You’re fucking trash!” I yelled.
Massimo’s arms wrapped around me, and I hugged him back. I felt the need to keep shouting, but he turned me to him and stifled my scream with a kiss. He was so warm. I submitted to him fully. The calming rhythm of his tongue on mine calmed me down. I shrugged him off only when I heard the sound of the door closing.
“Don’t worry, baby girl. I have this under control,” he said. That stoked my rage all over again.
“Were you in control when this fucker was beating the shit out of my friend?” I cried. “What the hell is he even doing here after that?” I was beyond calming down now. “She’s still here and I am here! Your child is here! Inside me! Where did that bastard go?”
“Listen to me, Laura! My brother has anger management problems,”
Massimo said matter-of-factly, taking a seat on the couch. “When he’s on coke, he can be a bit unpredictable. I had him under surveillance during the party. My people can’t be there all the time, though. What happens in the
bedroom is off-limits, so they waited outside. Nobody could have known what was happening.”
“Domenico could and did,” I retorted, crossing my arms.
“Adriano is harmless as long as he’s sober. I talked to Olga directly after it happened. I asked for her forgiveness. I know it won’t count for much, but I’ll keep asking. I know that she sees him in me.” He paused. “Adriano isn’t staying in the mansion. I moved him to an apartment in Palermo. I don’t want you to feel in danger, honey. He’ll leave the island later today.
I’ve booked him a plane already.”
Massimo stood up and wrapped his arms around me again, planting a kiss on my forehead. I lifted my eyes and sent him a sad and pained look.
“How could you keep this from me? My friend was in danger.”
The Man in Black sighed deeply and pressed my head to his chest.
“It would have changed nothing, and our vacation would have been ruined,” he said simply. “I knew you’d worry, and I was afraid you’d panic.
I decided this was the best way to deal with this. And Olga agreed.”
He was right. The feeling of helplessness would have overcome me. It would have been too much of a burden.
I went back to Olga.
“Hey,” I said gently, sitting next to her on a white sunbed. “How are you feeling?”
She turned her head my way and sent me a quizzical look.
“Good. Why would I feel bad?”
“Goddamn it, I don’t know! How does someone who’s been raped feel?”
Olga burst out in laughter and rolled to her tummy.
“Been what? Raped? He didn’t rape me! He only… how to phrase it…
made me more susceptible to his charms with some drugs. And it wasn’t a roofie, only some MDMA, so I can remember everything. And besides, I didn’t exactly try to resist. I wanted it a bit more than I would have if I was sober, but I wouldn’t call a good fuck rape!”
Now I was completely dumbfounded. Apparently, I wasn’t keeping track of the whole situation, and it must have showed on my face.
“Think of it this way. Massimo looks identical. Would you have thrown him out of bed? We’re talking about the strictly physical thing, right? He’s hot stuff.
“He has a great body and a godly cock. His brother is the same. If he wasn’t such a fucking bastard, and you weren’t with his twin, I would have
taken him for myself. Get it now?” I just sat there, staring at the trees. They were neatly trimmed. Perfect. Everything around me seemed perfect and harmonious. The house, the cars, the garden… my life at the side of an incredible man. And still, I found problems. Was something wrong with me?
“What about Domenico?”
Olga groaned and turned to her back, kicking out with her feet like a little girl.
“Oh, well, he’s my Prince Charming. And each time he gets off his white stallion, he fucks me like an animal,” she paused. “Just kidding. I’m in love with him.”
She shrugged. “I didn’t think I’d say that about anyone, but the way he cared about me, and how gallant he was… and he knows so much! Did you know he studied art history? Did you see his paintings? He can paint so well, I couldn’t believe he hadn’t just printed those things out! They’re beautiful. So imagine this. For the last two weeks I have been going to sleep and waking up next to this man. In the evenings, we took the boat, walked along the beach, and then we went back and I watched him paint. Laura!”
She knelt before me and put her head on my knees. “You got the adventure of your lifetime and I accidentally got mine, too. I know that what I’m saying may sound irrational and, you know, chaotic, but I think I really do love him!”
I stared at her, mouth agape, unable to wrap my head around her words.
Olga and I, we’ve known each other for years. She had a propensity for the irrational. But her words sounded so unlike her, I had difficulty believing her.
“I’m happy for you, darling,” I said hesitantly. “But please, please don’t get so excited about all this. You’ve never loved anyone, and trust me, there’s nothing worse than disappointment. Better to keep a healthy perspective and be positively surprised in the end than to get your heart broken.”
She pulled away with a grimace.
“Okay, fuck it.” I gave up. “Let’s just go with the flow. Now come on.
It’s getting cold.”
Retreating into the house, I noticed Domenico passing through a door.
He stopped, seeing me, and took a step back into the corridor. Olga kissed
him on the cheek and continued walking, but I took a while to look him straight in his chestnut eyes.
“Thank you, Domenico,” I whispered, pressing myself against his chest.
He hugged me and patted my back.
“It was nothing, Laura,” he said. “Now, Massimo wants to see you.
Come with me.”
Before Domenico pulled me inside, I called out to Olga, assuring her I’d join her shortly.
The Man in Black was sitting behind a massive wooden desk, working on his laptop. When the door closed behind me, he raised his cold eyes and leaned back in his chair.
“We got a problem, babe,” he said coolly. “We’ve been away for too long, and things have gotten a bit out of hand. There’s going to be a meeting. It’s going to be difficult. And I don’t want you to be there. I know you missed Olga, so I thought you two should get away for a day or two.
There’s this hotel a couple dozen miles from here. I’m the co-owner of it. I booked you an apartment there. They have a spa, a beauty salon, great cuisine, and—most important—peace and quiet. You’ll be going today. I’ll join you as soon as possible. Then we’re going to Paris. See you in three days.”
I stood still, stupefied. Where was my loving husband? Where was the man I had been with for the last two weeks?
“Do I have anything to say about it?” I asked, propping my hands on the desktop.
Massimo observed me impassively, playing with a pen.
“Of course. You can choose your security detail.”
“That’s no choice at all,” I grumbled, turning and heading back to the door.
Before I reached it, I felt hot breath on the back of my neck and strong hands on my hips. The Man in Black spun me around and pushed me against the wooden door, slamming my back into the handle painfully. His palm hovered inches above my skin. For an instant, it touched my most sensitive spot. His lips closed with mine.
“Before you go, Laura,” he breathed, pulling away for a second, “I’ll take you right there on that desk. Quick and hard, just as you like.” He took me in his arms and carried me back to the desk. “You know, I’ve been strangely attracted to wood since our wedding night.”
He did as he said. It was hard and violent, but wasn’t quick and didn’t end with the first orgasm.
Massimo adored sex. His body was made for it. He was unsatiable—the perfect lover. But what I loved most about him was that he didn’t only take.
He gave back just as much. With every iota of his being, he gave me the confidence that I was the best in bed. That I made him lose his mind with lust. That each of my movements was perfect. That I was perfect. I couldn’t be sure if that was entirely true, of course, but with him that was what I felt.
With Massimo, I was a porn superstar. I lost all my inhibitions, allowing him to do with me whatever he pleased. And I only wanted more. It’s strange how different men can be, and how differently they affect women. I had never been especially easy to get. My mom had raised me to make sure I didn’t always fit in with the current trends and customs. I might have done a lot with my men, but I had never been as open with anyone before.
Massimo’s nonchalance, as well as the fact that he was always able to keep me at a distance, made me feel crazy about him. And that imperious tone he adopted at times made me do his bidding without question. Even when his bidding was weirder than I could have anticipated. I loved him, but I also adored the kind of man he was.
“Pack up, Olga,” I called, entering my friend’s room. I didn’t knock first.
My bad.
What I saw made me stop in my tracks. It wasn’t anything I hadn’t seen before, though. Olga was naked and leaning against a wall, while Domenico
—with his pants down—was fucking her from behind. As soon as he noticed I’d opened the door, he hid his face in Olga’s hair and waited for me to leave. My friend slowly turned her head to me and laughed.
“I’ll do that as soon as Domenico is finished here,” she said. “Now stop gaping and fuck off.”
I waved at her awkwardly and turned around to leave, calling out to the young Italian before I left, “Nice ass, Domenico!”
I sat in the armchair back in my dressing room and shot a glance at the still-packed suitcases that had flown in from the Carribbean with us. I sighed. We hadn’t even managed to settle in yet, and Massimo was already making me leave again. I went to my bedroom and sprawled across the fluffy white carpet, crossing my arms behind my head. I realized how much I missed all the little things I had lost. Staying in bed late on the weekends, watching the morning shows on TV. Lazing around in my sweatpants,