Chapter 69 A WOMANIZER.
\~~~LUCIANO MORETTI.
“What did you just say?” I shouted into the phone, standing abruptly from my chair, the phone pressed tightly to my ear.
“I said your wife is drunk, and she is refusing to get up from the ground until you come get her,” the voice on the other end explained calmly.
I ran my fingers through my hair and rubbed the space between my brows, dumbfounded.
“Why was she drinking with you in the first place?” I asked, my voice low, controlled but sharp with disbelief.
“Will you come pick her first or not?”
“Text me the location,” I said, cutting the call before it could drag on.
I didn’t wait. I snatched my car keys from the table and stormed out of the office. Gabriel’s earlier report had told me that Alessia had taken Raina out, dismissing my protests, but I had never expected her to go to a bar, to drink… of all things.
“Where are we going?” Viktor called after me, but I ignored him and climbed into the car.
“I will drive,” I muttered, slamming the door.
The engine roared to life, and I tore out of the premises, my mind racing faster than the car. The streets blurred past. My chest burned with irritation, worry, and a growing sense of panic.
God, what had Alessia thought she was doing?
And with Raina… my wife, my wife, out there like this…
I didn’t even notice the honks from impatient drivers as my focus was solely on her.
\~~~
I skidded the car into the parking lot of the bar and jumped out, my gaze immediately finding her.
There she was. My wife, sitting on one of the high tables like it was her throne. Laughter bubbled from her lips, loud, unrestrained, and annoyingly free. My stomach twisted with a mix of exasperation, disbelief, and, God, a pang I hadn’t expected… Concern.
I swallowed hard and looked around. Thankfully, the place wasn’t crowded, and the few people there weren’t paying attention. If they were, I was sure they were thinking the same thing I was that this woman is out of control.
“Ah!” she gasped when her eyes landed on me.
“If it isn’t the cheating husband!” she shrieked, and the sound tore through my calm like a hot knife through butter.
Alessia stood beside her, trying to look composed, running her hand through her hair. “Before you say anything,” she said, exhaling loudly, “bringing her out here to drink was a mistake. I did not expect this attitude.”
I could see the faint red flush on her cheeks, and it was the only indication that she had gotten herself drink too.
Alessia had always been a pro at handling her alcohol, but Raina? Not so much.
I stepped closer to the table, lowering my voice. “Hey…”
She looked up at me, a grin plastered across her face and my chest tightened.
“How did she get up there?” I asked Alessia, nodding toward Raina on the high table.
“God, don’t even ask me,” Alessia muttered. “She climed the chair, of course. No one dared argue.”
I nodded slowly and turned my attention back to her.
“You are drunk, sunshine,” I said, trying to sound calm, though my gut was twisting.
“No, you are a cheat!” she snapped, pointing a trembling finger at me.
I turned sharply to Alessia. “You should have asked me before you brought her out for a drink!”
“You don’t get to say that when it is you who made her like this!” Alessia shot back, flinching slightly under my glare.
“What? Me?” I repeated, my brows furrowed.
“I heard Irina came to your house. God, how could you entertain such infidelity at your matrimonial home?!”
“Slow down,” I growled. “You, of all people, believed I could do that?!”
“Well, she caught you two kissing, didn’t she? Did she lie?”
I breathed out, running a hand through my hair. Alessia snorted. “Guess she didn’t.”
“You don’t even know the full story,” I said, my voice tightening. “And since when did you two become friends? You hated her!”
“And again…” Alessia trailed, but before she could finish, a loud, tipsy yell cut her off.
“Everybody!”
“Tonight, I’m gonna tell you all the story of a womanizer!”
I turned sharply and there was Raina struggling to steady herself on the table, her arms flailing slightly.
“Come on, let’s go home,” I tried, moving closer.
“Homeeeee?” she slurred, throwing her head back. “I don’t have a home, you lying piece of shit!”
I froze. People were starting to notice now and my chest burned with humiliation and frustration.
“We are going to talk about this when we get home,” I said through gritted teeth, closing the space between us.
She slapped my arm hard. “I will not go anywhere with you, a liar, a cheat, a scumbag, so…”
I cut her off, my patience snapping. “We are going home, solnishko!” I muttered under my breath as I grabbed her carefully but firmly.
Before she could scream again, I hoisted her over my shoulder and her legs flailed as she shouted, “Are you all going to watch while this man kidnaps me?!”
Heads turned in the bar. Some people stared, wide-eyed while others whispered. But none of it mattered.
“Hold still!” I barked, my heart hammering, and my chest tight.
Her arms circled my neck, gripping me like a lifeline, though the tipsy weight of her body made my muscles strain. She kicked once, then twice, thrashing wildly, but I held on.
“You are soooo insane!” she slurred, laughing and yelling all at once.
“And you are drunk!” I shot back, trying to keep my voice calm, though every fiber of me was on edge.
Alessia stepped aside, shaking her head, muttering under her breath. “God, I underestimated her,” she said softly, watching as I maneuvered through the tables, ignoring the curious stares.
I took a deep breath, focusing on getting us out of there safely. I ignored Raina’s protests, her yells, and the slippery curse words flying from her lips.
My only thought was to get her home, fix this shit and whatever the hell she thinks she saw.
Finally, out of the bar doors, I breathed in the cool night air. My arms burned from holding her, but I didn’t care. She was alive, she was safe, and she was my responsibility.
“Put me down!” she yelled suddenly, her voice cracking with laughter and anger.
“Not until you calm down,” I replied, my voice low, dangerously calm.
Her head lolled back against my shoulder, her breath smelling faintly of alcohol and something sweet. I swallowed hard, and I realized that no matter how tipsy, loud, or chaotic she was, she belonged nowhere else but here… with me.
“And we are going home,” I murmured. “And we are talking. About all of this.”
Her arms tightened around my neck, but this time, not just out of rebellion. I could feel the trembling of her body, the tension in her hands. And though she tried to scream and flail, her resistance was beginning to falter.
Oh, what a night!