Chocolate and Italian Wine (Music and Mayhem Book 1) (26 page)

Their eyes locked and for Karisma, she felt that nervous flutter in her stomach that he’d always given her.
Damn, he is beautiful
, she thought. “Whatever,” she said in a low voice.

He kissed her forehead, chuckling. “You’re a feisty little thing, Karisma Montgomery. I like it.” He leaned in and whispered, “Makes my dick hard.”

She felt it too, that stirring between her legs. “Close the door,” she said with sass as she turned from him. He stood up laughing and shut the door, but not before stealing a kiss that he knew would leave her breathless and running a hand up her thigh.

Looking at Wolfe, Paolo said. “They’re going with you.” He indicated two of his men who were sitting in a black SUV.

Wolfe glanced at the two suit clad enforcers. “What for?” Wolfe asked. 

“She’ll need my protection from here on out. They know to stay in the background, but they have to travel with you.”

“Does she know? She okay with this?” he asked.

“She’s too upset to talk to about security. I’ll let her know before you get to the airstrip. She’ll be fine.”

Wolfe moved out of his lean on the car and began to walk to the passenger’s door. “Oh, and Wolfe,” he said facing the brawny bodyguard. “In the future, I’ll need a heads up on things that might affect my relationship with Karisma, capische?” Paolo said this with an ice-cold sincerity that Wolfe was doubtful to question. The two men stared hard at the other, wearing the same determined expression.

“I hear what you’re saying, man, but I work for Kari,” Wolfe said, pointing to the tinted windows of the back seat.

“Duly noted. But I don’t like surprises,” was Paolo’s cautionary reply.

Wolfe angled a brow, giving Paolo the peace sign and got into the car. Watching the cars leave the estate, Paolo wondered why he had gotten out of bed that day. Aside from making love to Karisma, the rest of it had really sucked.

                                                   ***

After arriving at the Boscolo Exedra Hotel in Rome, Maria Elena, her mother, and their bodyguards settled in. It was such a lovely Saturday, and she wanted to spend it with the one she loved, not holed up like some criminal on the run. Her phone rang and she immediately recognized the number as Paolo’s. “Ciao, Paolo,” she answered in a simpering voice that irritated him to no end.

“Ciao, Maria Elena. Aren’t you the instant celebrity? I saw your interview on the news,” he said in his sexy baritone.

“Really? How did I look?” she asked, smiling slyly.

“It is true what they say. The camera really does add ten pounds to you.”

He may as well have punched her, but she fought back. “Ah, my love, what you saw is our son growing strong in my belly.”

“You truly looked like the poster child for a psych ward,” he said smoothly.

“Oh? I was hoping I looked like the jilted bride.”

“The Bride of Frankenstein,” he assured her.

“Then that makes you Frankenstein, handsome.”

“Oh I can be a monster, all right. But you’ll see that soon enough.”

“Then I guess you’re calling for the due date of our first child,” she answered.

“Now, now. You know you’re not pregnant by
me
.”

“Denying it? Really, I expected better of you, Paolo.”

Paolo paused. Was she really sold on this pregnancy thing and it being his child? She was further gone than he thought.

“Have you been sleeping with other men, darling? That’s the only way you could have gotten pregnant.”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” she said seductively.

Paolo wanted to lose his temper and let her have it, but he breathed in, keeping his composure. “I really don’t give a fuck. Sleep with whoever the fuck you want. I want you to. Then maybe you’ll stop obsessing on me and my woman.”

“Do you know how stupid you sound? Your woman? That black bitch will never be your woman! A man like you; a future Don, a king! She’s a puttana! She opens her legs for many, not just you. She’s probably off screwing a basketball team or something—”

Paolo cut her off. He wasn’t going to take anymore of her nonsense. “Listen to your filthy mouth. You are so jealous of her that it’s eating you alive. I would never marry a puttana. That’s why I wouldn’t marry you. But you’ve given me food for thought. If you are pregnant, you’ll probably never be able to pin down who the father is.”

“I don’t sleep around, Paolo! You know that. You are my first and only.”

“No, I get the feeling you’ve been untrue, my love. But it’s fine, I forgive you. Because I was 
never
 true to 
you.
”

He heard her loud exhale and continued to torment her. “I never loved you, Maria Elena. Never. And you’re right, a man like me needs a queen by his side, and you could never fit that bill. Karisma, on the other hand, is truly a goddess.”

She was outraged. “Well, goddesses are immortal. Is the little brown goddess immortal, Paolo? Or can she die like everyone else?”

Without missing a beat Paolo said, “If she did, I’d blame you, Maria Elena and I’d have to kill you. I’d take my time. It would be slow and painful. Don’t be foolish. Even
you
have to know how awful that would end. Your whole family would pay,” he threatened.

“Evil is what you are. How could I have ever wanted you? The world will want to know exactly what kind of man you are, Paolo. They’ll find out in my next interview,” she hissed.

“Do you still insist that you’re pregnant?”

“I am.”

“Then, you have me at your mercy. We need to meet with your parents. Talk about what we do next.”

“What do you mean, what we do next?” she asked suspiciously. 

“The nature of our relationship is in question. You and I both know that we haven’t been together in that way since last summer. We all need to talk.”

“You know, you’re right. We all need to talk,” she agreed.

“Good. Your father’s already agreed to the meeting. It’s tomorrow evening at that little restaurant you like so much in San Roberto.”

“Ah, Pesci Mart.”

“Si, that’s the one. You’ve always liked the food there.”

“Yes, I have. Well then, since my father has agreed to this, I will see you tomorrow evening.”

“Tomorrow then,” Paolo said, and hung up.

She looked at the phone angrily. She hurried to her mother’s room. “Mama, did you know about a meeting Paolo wants to have with us tomorrow?”

“Your father just informed me,” Carlotta said. “You’ve shamed him. His little plaything has arrived at the hotel without him.”

Maria Elena smiled at her mother and did a twirl. “I’d best go shopping for the right outfit to wear tomorrow, yes?”

Her mother nodded and Maria Elena left, thoughts of success and a wedding dancing around in her mind. So he didn’t love her now. She believed what her mama told her: love would come later.

23

Kari stepped out of the elevator and onto the marble tile of the plush hotel where Goldust and their respective entourages occupied an entire floor. Security was tight, insuring that groupies and uninvited guests stayed away. This had to be the case almost since day one because the way the fans responded to the group created instant frenzies wherever they went. Therefore,

security had quickly become a well-oiled machine that kept everyone safe and protected their sanity, too.

Karisma walked into the hotel suite and right to the bar, still shaking her head from the bombardment she’d received from the paparazzi in the lobby of the hotel. They’d been ruthless, shouting questions, trying to tug at her for attention, and worst of all—trying to get her to say something juicy for their next headline.

She opened the small plastic container and took two of the white pills, swallowing them down with a big swig of water. Then she set the bottle down, followed by her head on the countertop. How had her life become such a mess so quickly?

                   The images of Wolfe’s and Jamil’s concerned faces flashed through her mind. They had their hands full with this latest scandal and she could see in them a different type of apprehension. She sensed that they worried about her wellbeing, as this was new and uncharted territory for them as well as for her. Maybe they didn’t approve of her relationship. Would they ever say so? No, but she valued and respected them. If they’d only suspected who Paolo was before, they damn sure knew who he was now. The fact that they seemed to have concerns caused her more anguish. And then there were Paolo’s two impeccably dressed bodyguards, Adalberto and Damiano. While the “suits” remained in the background, they seemed out of place amongst her usual security, adding to her ever-growing angst. They were huge, massive, and at first their presence was subtle. But when the press was discovered lying in wait for her, subtle was the last thing they had been, going into overdrive, threatening the large group with bulging biceps. She’d also seen Damiano open his suit jacket just enough to show a gun holster. That wasn’t the way her security would handle such a matter, making the two’s presence a pretty obvious indicator that she was under some damn Mafia protection. This shit was crazy.

             
I must be out of my mind to still want to be with a man like Paolo,
she thought.

              Karisma walked back into the other room and reached for her purse that she’d flung on the couch when she’d entered her suite. Two more messages from Paolo, as well as one from Karla. Her sister would be here later. Kari was happy about that. She’d missed her. They weren’t as close as she would have liked, but she hoped that one day that would change. Reluctantly, she listened to Paolo’s message. That deep, sexy timbre of his almost made her lose her resolve and call him. Especially at hearing his expressions of love. But she didn’t call him, ignoring the incredibly strong urge to do so. She felt that he had to suffer a bit more, so she was in “game on” mode.

Though exhausted, she didn’t want to sleep. She went to the piano and slowly caressed the ivory keys in front of her with her long fingers and then began to play, losing herself in Bach’s Minuet in D Minor, a piece she’d learned as a child. She loved to play it, as it had always brought her an inner type of tranquility that she needed whenever things got overwhelming. The moment was beautiful and then it was lost. There was a loud, booming knock on her door. Startled, her head turned abruptly and she quickly walked over to open the door. It was one of the men who guarded the floor.

“A messenger gave me this for you, Miss Montgomery,” he said, handing over a white note. She looked at the folded piece of paper and opened it, reading the short message.

“You have a pen?” she asked him. He pulled one from his jacket pocket and handed it to her.

She scrawled something on it and quickly folded it, giving it back to him. He accepted it, nodding at her.

She closed the door, and grabbed her phone, tapping out a message to Sierra. Within a few short minutes, Sierra, who had been in bed asleep, was in Karisma’s suite, looking bright eyed and ready for action.

“Kari, I’m not sure this is a good idea, she’s crazy,” Sierra said, scratching her shoulder.

“It’s a good idea because I brought you in. It would have been a bad idea not to,” she said.

There was a soft rapping on the door and they stared in the direction of the sound. Kari, still in the dress she’d worn earlier to the church with Paolo, padded over barefoot. “How do I look?” she asked.

“Perfectly gorgeous, as usual, which is ridiculous for nearly one in the morning. You should be ashamed of yourself,” Sierra said with a supportive smile.

“Thanks, Fluffy,” she said, winking at her. Clearing her throat, she opened the door to glare into the unsmiling cognac brown eyes of Maria Elena Bianchi.

                                          ***

Paolo looked at his watch. It was 11:30 PM. He stared out the window into the black night and thought about Karisma. He wouldn’t get to her hotel for another two hours, and she’d probably be asleep, but he meant it when he’d told her earlier that he’d follow her anywhere. He was completely and absolutely in love with Karisma Montgomery and would prefer it if he could spend every waking hour with her. Of course, he knew that was unrealistic. He remembered the anger she’d expressed, the pain on her face. It had torn him up, but made him more determined than ever to show her that she meant the world to him.

                   Longing to hear her voice and wanting to talk, he’d left message after message. None were returned. He knew she’d arrived because the guards he’d sent told him so. She was punishing him and it was working. There he was on his way to see the woman he loved, even though she was furious with him. She wasn’t going to make it easy for him. That damned Maria Elena! She would be very sorry that she’d made the mistake of going after his woman.

                                         ***

“I’m Maria Elena Bianchi, Paolo’s fidanzata,” Maria Elena hummed, giving Karisma a hard look of resentment. Karisma gazed beyond Maria Elena to the floor guard standing in the background. She nodded at him and he relaxed his stance.

“Oh, I didn’t recognize you without the dress and veil. Come in. Leave the purse,” Karisma ordered, pointing to her small handbag.

“Pardon me?” Maria Elena asked in a thick accent.

“You can come in, but without your purse,” Karisma said.

“Why can’t my purse come in? Where would I leave it?”

“Leave it by the door. It’ll be okay. There
are
guards everywhere,” Karisma said, cocking her pretty head to the side.

“This is very rude!”

“Leave it, or don’t, but if you don’t,
you
 leave,” Karisma said. There was no misconstruing her demand. “I don’t know you. I don’t know what’s in that bag. Weapon, recording device. A cellphone in the wrong hands can be a dangerous thing,” Kari said to her.     

Karisma saw Maria Elena smirk at her, but she was unfazed by it. She dropped the purse and walked into the room and Karisma followed, closing the door behind her.

The two women assessed each other once again. “Have a seat,” Kari told her, gesturing toward the tan leather sectional sofa. Sierra was seated on the opposite end, eyeing the Bianchi woman with strange interest. 

Maria Elena spotted her and asked Kari, “Is this your sister?”

Kari stared at her as she sat down as well, and said simply, “No.”

Sierra continued to watch her.

Getting on with it, Karisma asked, “Why did you want to see me?”

Maria Elena looked at her and removed the black scarf, which was covering her waist length brown hair and said, “I came to speak to you in private.”

“Sierra knows everything there is to know about me. You can speak freely in her presence.”

Maria Elena sat up straight and flung her long hair behind her back, smoothing it. “I’m here about Paolo,” she said.

“I gathered as much,” Kari replied, crossing her shapely legs and placing her arm around the back of the sofa.

“Even though you broke up our marriage plans, Paolo and I are going to be parents soon,” she said, waiting for a reaction from Karisma.

Karisma only looked at her, but she was seething inside. “So you say. He says differently. About both the wedding and the baby.” Then she asked, “Oh, by the way, Ooh-day ooh-yay eak-spay ig-pay atin-lay?” Do you speak pig Latin?

Sierra began to laugh softly.

Maria Elena frowned at her. “What did you say?” she asked in her thick Italian accent.

“I asked if you spoke pig Latin?”

“Pig what?” Maria Elena said.

“Oh-yay is-thay ought-tay ooh-tay e-bay un-fay!” Oh, this ought to be fun, Sierra cackled.

  “I don’t speak that language. What are you saying?” Maria Elena asked through gritted teeth.

Karisma caught Maria Elena’s eyes darting to Sierra, who was watching her intensely. She was aware of the thin woman’s discomfort, but didn’t care. She needed someone there.

“Paolo says you’re lying.”

              “You think that Paolo would tell you the truth? He’s been lying to you, Karisma Montgomery, and you’re interfering in my relationship with him. We
will
be married soon,” she said with more animation.

“How soon?” Karisma asked.

“Are you asking how soon will we marry?”

“Yes. How soon are you hoping to marry Paolo? Because he proposed marriage to me earlier today. Is this a race to the altar? ‘Cause I gotta tell you, you might wanna slow your roll. He doesn’t seem to be interested in a life with you.”

“He what? He would never do something like that! He wants to give his child a name. You are a liar!”

“You’re the liar. Trying to trap a man with a baby. It’s pathetic and weak.” 

“I’m pathetic and weak? How pathetic is it to sleep with another woman’s husband to be?” Maria Elena screeched, jumping up and shaking wildly. The girl had lost control quickly.

Karisma smirked at the other woman. “You’re pissed that Paolo wants me, I get it.”

“You threw yourself at him!”

“Is that how you’ve convinced yourself you lost him? Paolo chased me, not the other way around.”

“You think you’re something. You’re rich and famous and you think you can have any man you want, don’t you?” Maria Elena exclaimed. Excitement and anger resonated in her words.

“Of course I do. But it’s not any man I want. Just Paolo,” she said pointedly, holding Maria Elena’s stare. She continued, “I understand why you’re so pissed though. After eighteen years of trying to drag him down the aisle, you lose him…not that he was ever
really
yours, of course.”

“What he sees in you I don’t know.”

“Yes you do. Hot, sexy, Karisma,” she said, pointing to herself, “Cold, bland, Maria Elena,” she pointed to Maria Elena.

“What’s sexy about a whore?” Maria Elena spat.

“Upid-stay itch-bay,” Stupid bitch. Sierra mumbled.

Kari chuckled. “I’m not a whore. I just portrayed one in that movie you obviously saw. This is real life, Maria Elena. I’m not sure if you know the difference, though. Especially after seeing you in that dress, girl! That was scary as hell. I almost thought you’d pull a knife out of your garter and start hacking at the cameramen.”

“That
was
frightening. I thought they might cart her off to a padded room,” Sierra said in the language that only she and Kari understood. It was pure joy keeping Maria Elena off balance.

Maria Elena glared at her and then at Kari. “Are you enjoying yourself, Karisma Montgomery? You really are a bitch. You used sex to bewitch Paolo! You think he loves you? Think again! All a man like him really loves is money.”

“Ah, now, don’t underestimate sex, girl. It’s extremely powerful. When done right, it can bring down empires.”

“So you admit you only have sex in common.”

“I never said that. But when my big beautiful Paolo comes to me he is welcomed with open arms, as well as other things,” she smiled and winked with evil glee. She slowly and quietly began tapping the sofa with a long manicured nail, never taking her eyes off Maria Elena.

“Karisma Montgomery, when all is said and done, you. Are. Not. One. Of. Us.”

“Maria Elena, when all is said and done, who gives a fuck?”

Maria Elena stood up. Her fists were clenched together and her brown eyes had sparks of anger shooting out of them. She was about to become unwound. “You’ll never have him!”

“I have him now.”

“Go to hell, Karisma Montgomery!”

“What is all this Karisma Montgomery crap? It’s
Miss
Montgomery to you,” she hissed.

“I’m leaving. I thought I could reason with you, woman to bitch, but I was wrong,”

“Oh!  Good one, Mary!”

“My name is Maria Elena!”

“No, it’s Mary, ‘cause you’re claiming the immaculate conception, bitch!”