Possessed by the Killer (Dark Possessive Mafia)

“Don’t talk to the food, dear,” Bea said as she ushered me out. “It’s very weird.”

Uncle Roy sat in a large leather easy chair. I approached halfway across the room then looked back for some support from Bea, but she was already gone. Couldn’t blame her, being around my uncle wasn’t pleasant.

“How’s marriage, niece?” Uncle Roy asked me, frowning appraisingly.

“Fine,” I said. “What do you want?”

He laughed. “Look at you. Marry the Don and now you don’t think you have to be polite to your uncle anymore.”

“What do you want?” I asked, arms over my chest, glaring at him. “I’m very busy, you know.”

“I’m sure,” he said, and pushed himself to his feet. “I’m here to talk about babies.”

I coughed and blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“Babies,” he said. “Children. With Dean.” He tilted his head. “I assume you’ve been thinking about it.”

“Absolutely not,” I said, absolutely aghast. I recalled our conversation with his Capo Gian from that night at the club. It’d feel right when I found the right person.

Well, that hadn’t happened yet.

“I know it’s very soon and you’ve barely been married, but we need to make sure this alliance is real,” Uncle Roy said. “An heir to the family is what we need now. A Paganini heir.”

“Jesus,” I said. “I’m not talking about having Dean’s babies with you,” I said, disgusted.

“Don’t be like that, Mags,” he snapped. “You don’t have to be a prudish little child. Grow the fuck up. We need you to sleep with the Don and get pregnant, and the sooner you do it, the better. You have slept with a man before, haven’t you?”

“Oh my god,” I said, striding away. “I think I have to go blind myself now.”

“Get pregnant,” Uncle Roy said. “Do your duty.”

“I already did my duty when I married the asshole,” I said. “I never agreed to have his kids.”

“What the hell do you think marriage means?” Uncle Roy asked, walking toward me. “I need you to get pregnant. Do your damn duty.”

“Oh, go to hell,” I said, and stormed past him. He tried to grab me, but I was tired of the men in my life grabbing my arm whenever they wanted something from me, and wrenched myself free. He cursed as I shoved the living room door open and left him shouting behind me.

I was flushed and angry and embarrassed as I practically ran down the hall, and much too distracted to note when Dean’s office door opened. He stepped out just as I went past, and I smashed into his knee and went sprawling to the floor.

My shoulder bashed onto the tile floor and I groaned.

“Shit,” Dean said. “Mags, are you okay?” He helped me up to my feet and steered me into his office.

“I’m fine,” I said, though I was definitely not fine. My shoulder pulsed where I’d hit it, and I didn’t appreciate getting manhandled by both my uncle and my husband.

“Sit here,” he said, and gently pushed me down into a chair. He filled a glass with whiskey, because of course whiskey, why not, it cured everything. He shoved it into my hand.

“Yeah, okay,” I said, and drank half it down. The burn felt good in my throat.

“What the hell was that back there?” he asked, perching on the edge of his desk.

I sighed and met his eyes. I didn’t want to do this, not with him, but it was too late for that. He wore a tight button-down dress shirt, top button undone, tie loose and dark navy with small star patterns. The sleeves and the pants fit him like a dream, and I realized all over again that my husband was absolutely gorgeous, and a complete nightmare.

“My uncle visited,” I said.

“I heard him yelling. Should I get rid of him?” He tilted his head, and I knew he meant it.

“Don’t bother,” I said. “I’m sure he’ll let himself out.”

“What did he want?”

I sighed, closed my eyes, and drank the last of the whiskey. “He wants me to have your babies,” I said.

Dean laughed once but his smile slowly died as I stared up into his eyes.

“Seriously?” he asked.

“I think that’s his endgame,” I said. “He wants me to seduce you and start pumping out little heirs to your stupid mafia throne. Like I’m some horse out to stud or something.”

“The male horses go to stud,” he said softly. “But anyway, I understand your point.”

“Babies weren’t part of the bargain,” I said. “Marriage was all I signed up for.”

“True,” he said and ran a finger down his chin. I thought of that finger running down my skin, down between my legs—

Maybe the alcohol was a bad idea.

“It’s crazy,” I said. “He thinks it’s my wifely duty or something like that.”

“It wouldn’t be so bad though,” he said.

And I gaped at him like he just ripped off his own face and it turned out that he was actually a two-headed lizard.