The Emperor (The Tarot Club 2)

Chapter Ten : The Interrogation

Dimitri

By the time I walked back into the house, it was late - later than it should have been. Ravi had informed me that there were strange markings found around one of our warehouses - and not just any warehouse, the one that took my grandfather from me. I had gone over there and crouched down in the dirt to examine the chalk sketchings. I didn’t have a fucking clue what it meant, but I took photos to show Corinne - this was her area of expertise afterall, and yet something about those markings made me want to keep her as far away from the building as possible.

My men were talking - or more specifically, Sven was talking. The gossip did not escape me and I heard them talk about how goddamn wonderful Corinne was. Apparently she’d made the kid some tea. And of course the fucker was going on about it - because their Empress had made him tea.

It was unheard of. It wasn’t done. She was above this - above them, and she certainly shouldn’t be making him tea.

But I didn’t know what to do with her - because I couldn't just keep her in the house and expect her to cook us family dinners. I knew that - rationally, I knew that, but I didn’t know what anything else would look like.

And she fucking did her Magick on the arms we sold. I couldn’t pinpoint where she stood in this dance we were doing. When I stepped forward, expecting her to take a step back in unison, she would dart sideways instead, and when I stepped back, giving up the chase, she would bolster forward, crushing me with her proximity. It was maddeningly infuriating. Was this what it was to fall for a Witch? Was it a curse? A blessing? I didn’t fucking know.

I just knew that now I was late. I had made a reservation with a private location called The Gardens. It was a rooftop terrace that overlooked the French Quarter, and I imagined Emily Rand would be pleased that it was a private location, but once seated she would squirm, and the thought of her discomfort brought me joy.

I found Corinne dressed in a black dress that clung to her calves, a slit ran up the back, halting just below her ass. She looked delicious, but not in a way that was obvious. It was understated, classy, even - everything I knew that the Bratva stood for, and everything I had told myself I didn’t want. But not wanting Corinne was an impossible feat.

I had claimed her - she was mine, and yet as she turned her head to take in my appearance, I felt like a fucking school boy as I watched a smile ghost her lips. My hands stayed deep within my pockets as I rocked on my heels. If we weren’t about to have dinner with her parents - and if I wasn’t about to tie her father to me, I would bend her over right here. Her hair cascaded down her shoulders - a rarity for her, she almost always had her hair pinned back, and I wanted nothing more than to wrap those locks around my knuckles as I fucked her.

“You’re home.”

Her words loosened something inside of me and I stiffened on instinct. Home. This was as much her home as it was mine - did she know that? Want it? It didn’t matter, not really, because it didn’t change anything.

“I need five minutes and then we can head out.” I nodded once in her direction before I stepped into the bathroom. Shucking off my suit easily, before the warmth of the shower hit my back.

More and more people were reaching out, making contact with us in an attempt to set up relations to do business. If it all panned out, it would make us even more lucrative than what we were, and I knew that it was no coincidence that these deals were suddenly materialising now that Corinne was beside me. She may not like the notion, but her very presence had blessed us.

I scrubbed away the grime of the day, my fingers wrapping around the bar of salt that Corinne had put in our shower. There were pieces of her everywhere. Her shampoo bottles stared back at me, her bath salts sat next to the tub, her body cream on the double sinked vanity. I struggled to remember a time when these items weren’t here - did the place look emptier then? Did it feel less somehow? It was as if she had always been here - had always belonged.

I dressed swiftly, and by the time I made it downstairs, I found Corinne standing in the kitchen with her parents. Judging by the pleasantries, they hadn’t been there long.

I pressed my lips against her hair, breathing in her scent. The action was as natural to me as drawing my gun was. She swayed on her feet, her body leaning into mine, and I knew that no matter what bullshit she was feeding herself these days, she understood that her place was here - next to me.

Of course, Emily Rand chose that moment to coo at us, clucking in delight at this newfound pairing. I wanted to gut the woman.

I pulled away, my hand at Corinne’s back, and ushered us all out the door. It was going to be a long fucking evening. Nights in bed were starting to become my favourite kind.

The drive there was filled with Emily Rand’s incessant chatter. I had no idea how Alan tolerated her, never mind married the woman, and I found that the only redeeming quality she had was that she had somehow produced the magnificent creature that was Corinne.

She filled every possible silence, peppering us with information of why she loved New Orleans so much.

Corinne and I both knew it was bullshit, but apparently my wealth was enough to make her spew the lies she thought I needed to hear. I just needed this dinner to be done with so I could take Corinne back home.

The car rolled to a quiet stop right outside the old building that held an oasis inside. I stepped out of the vehicle first, discreetly nodding to one of my men across the street, before my hands were on Corinne as I helped her out of the car. I couldn't help myself - I needed to have some kind of constant connection with her. I wasn’t about to examine why - wasn’t even going to question it, instead, I slid my hand onto the small of her back once more as the four of us made our way into the faded red building.

NOLA was filled with all sorts of hidden gems - you just had to be willing to look.

Corinne’s gasp was a picture of joy and wonder, and I knew that I’d made the right call in bringing her here. This place was private, and she and I were sometimes on uneven footing - I didn’t need eyes on us, not when her parents were two elements that I couldn’t control - at least not yet.

Every manner of plants, trees, and bush hung from the ceilings and sprouted from the floor and walls, leaving only a small pathway carved out between the greenery for us to walk through. Unbridled joy lit up her face and my chest ached at the vision.

“I have to bring Zoey here.” She turned towards me and gushed, and for once I didn’t feel quite so much the bastard that I normally revelled in being.

Corinne’s mother tsked behind her at the mention of her fellow Witch and I watched Corinne stiffen visibly, tucking away her personality as she replaced it with the veneer she always wore. It was goddamn infuriating.

As we walked upstairs towards the rooftop floor, I shot her mother a disapproving glare. She would not disrespect Corinne in my presence, and certainly not on my dime when I was about to pay for their fucking dinner. Her steps faltered and she paled under my gaze, and I wondered if she understood what a bastard I truly was.

As we stepped out onto the roof, despite the starlit sky, the New Orleans heat pulsed against my skin. A waiter pushed himself out of the shadows, seating us at the sole table on the rooftop. The sounds of street corner jazz drifted towards us on the breeze, and I had to shake myself to halt my wandering thoughts - halt my appreciation for the vision that was Corinne before me.