Chapter 89 - Jealous Vanessa

Dimitri.

“I was able to get a name. Morris Bernardi. He is part American and his father is Italian. He is the connection between them. Bernardo introduced Wesley to that third person. If we want to catch this third person, we will need to get to Bernardi." Hayden says over the phone. He left five days ago and this is the first real result he has given me.

“And have you not gotten to Bernardi?"

“That is exactly what I needed to speak to you about. Morris is in prison. Back in America."

“Okay then, get back here, and let's go get him."

“Yeah. We are gonna need the help of someone you might not want to have around."

“And who is that?"

“Noah. Noah Matthews. Your..."

I cut him off before he can continue “No. Don't you dare complete that sentence. I don't want him anywhere near my business."

“Dimitri, do you want to wrap this whole thing on time and move on to your happily ever after or do you want to drag this out for the longest time? He has all the connections we need to get this man."

“And what about Benson?"

He huffs out a breath “He was caught doing some shady shit and was forced into retirement. He's useless."

“Find another way."

“But this would..."

“When I give you an order, you follow it. I don't pay you to give suggestions. Find another way to get to him or find another link to Wesley."

“Yes, sir?" I hang up right after.

Time flies by and before I know it, it's time to leave. Not that I have ever cared to separate working from normal hours but now, it would be better to balance it for her sake and mine. Why had I never seen how time-consuming and boring this was? Spending the whole day, data after day, working? I grab my things and make my way out of the office.

“Sir, it's just six. You still have that dinner with Marc Steele in one hour." My new assistant, Cheryl or Dana or something, tells me. Should she not be happy that I am leaving and giving her some extra time?

“Reschedule it for lunch tomorrow. I have important things to do."

“More important than the governor?" We both stop in front of the elevator.

“More important than the goddamn president! Have yourself a good night." She gapes at me with her mouth wide open making her look like a fish. It's like I've grown two horns on my head and if I wasn't sure about how I look, I would have checked.

The ride home is pleasant. She is the only thing I have had on my mind all day. The stress of knowing that my attacker is still out there and is probably watching our every move makes me stressed and angry but this is not my first show. No matter how smart this person is, I have confidence that he will be caught.

The feel of my shirt against my skin itches me which is more reason why I have to get out of these clothes soon. It's too bad that we are having guests over tonight. I would give anything to have just a quiet, peaceful night with my wife and no one else but my godfather is in town and I have to entertain him and his daughter. This makes me feel worse than a circus monkey.

The thought of both of them in my house brings a sour feeling in the pit of my stomach. I remember the last time we were around them. When Francesca could not stop throwing insults at her and my wife finally gave her a taste of her own medicine. I have respected the man for most of my life. He had been a father to me when mine could hardly stand the thought of me but for some reason, when his name comes up in a conversation, it does not arouse that same feeling. At least, not on that level like it used to be.

The workers greet me one after the other as I ascend the steps to the front door of the house. The house smells like flowers, like life and that is enough to tell me that she is still in the house. It is the only real way I can tell. The last time she left, the house was cold and lifeless. The only thing that lingered around was the stench of blood and the shouts and cries of torture.

“Where is she?" I ask the housekeeper.

“She is in the kitchen. There is a guest in the house and she wanted to personally cook for her."

Her? I check my watch again to be sure that it is not time for dinner yet. My godfather is not supposed to be here for another hour and there is no way that Vanessa would personally make anything for Francesca. Unless maybe it's poison.

As I get closer to the kitchen, the smell of garlic and other herbs fills the air. My stomach growls in response reminding me that I haven't eaten the whole day. It has been decades since there was anything like this and it was only my mother who could make it. The smell reminds me of a few happy moments. That is if they can be called that because now, they seem more pretentious.

I finally get to the kitchen and just like I suspected, she is there, standing in front of the pot, next to my wife. And it has my blood boiling. She walks to the other side to carry a tray. It makes a loud noise when her eyes come in contact with mine.

“What is going on here?"

She immediately bends to the floor to pick up whatever she dropped. “I...I'm sorry. You just looked so much like your father, I was startled for a moment." She says in a breath. One would think there is a timer for her speech.

“You were startled because you thought I was a ghost? Now you know how I feel. I'm not gonna ask again. What is going on?!" It comes out as angry as I want the question to sound.

“Dimitri, welcome home. We were just making dinner." She has the biggest smile on her face as she comes to me, closing the space between us.

“I saw that clearly. What is she doing here?"

“She? She is your mother and she wants to see you. To meet you. She has been trying to but you did not care to give her a chance. Please talk to her."

“Dimitr..." The ghost starts and I stop her.

“I have nothing to say to you. Leave." I see a flicker of emotions in her eyes before it's gone.

“You should not speak to her in that manner. She came all the way here to..."

“My godfather will be here in thirty minutes and I expect her to be gone in two." I leave no room for argument as I turn my back to leave the kitchen. I take a glass and pour some Brandy into it when I get into my study. I can hardly keep my emotions under control when it comes to her.

My mother. What a joke! She thinks she can waltz in here after being dead for most years and expect to be welcomed with arms wide open. The sound of light feet hitting the floor comes closer and I know who is coming and with the furious melody of her feet tapping the floor and making its way closer to me, I can tell that she is angry. She hits the door so hard that it flies to the wall. For someone with a fragile heart, she has a lot of anger and strength to make it seem otherwise.

“Why would you treat her that way? She came to talk to you."

“I already made it clear that I did not want her around. Whoever was in charge of today's security is going to bear the consequences."

“Can you listen to yourself for once? She is your mother and..."

I want to fling the glass to the wall but I do not want to agitate her so I grab onto it tightly than I should. “And she is dead! For fuck's sake Vanessa. I saw them bury her. She is dead!"

“You just saw her downstairs. You heard her voice. Did she sound dead to you?"

“I already mourned her. She is supposed to be dead and she will stay that way. Or I will make sure of it."

“You will kill your mother? Dimitri, you never gave her a chance to talk about anything to you. You are so stubborn to realize that you are not the only one who lost her. She had to stay far away and pretend to be someone else."

“And who forced her to? She chose to leave. She left on her own accord."

“There are circumstances that led to her departure."

“Why do you keep defending her? I am your husband but I am the only one who seems to do everything wrong?"

“I am not defending her. I love you and I want you to get clarity on everything that has happened in your life. You should not fault me for that."

I take a large swing of the drink and try to relax as it burns its way down my throat. “It is already late for that. She chose to be dead to me so let it be. She can crawl back to hell for all I care."

“I cannot let things be." She walks close to me as I sit on the couch. If it was someone else. I would sit in my chair, the gesture to exert authority without doing more. But with her, I don't just want authority. I want her next to me. To be my equal at all times.

“Why do you care so much?"

I lean into her touch and she runs her fingers through my hair making me melt against her. I'm not supposed to behave like a lovestruck schoolgirl but this is what she reduces me to. I can feel all the anger evaporate.

“Because I love you so much. And because I am about to become a mother. I haven't met this little one here but I know I will die if anything happens to endanger him. I cannot imagine having a second one and being forced to choose between them twice. She already lost a lot. She's not asking for you to throw her a feast like the prodigal son, all she wants is for you to listen to her."

The fact that life keeps throwing new challenges every day even after you think you have conquered all will never cease to anger me. But she might be right. Not that I want to see her because I still insist that I have nothing to do with her but if she wants me to then maybe I might have to. Or maybe I could push it until she forgets.

“You will see her."

“You cannot throw orders at me. You are not my boss."

“Maybe not. But I am your wife and I learned from the best." She smiles and closes the distance between us, giving me a kiss that I very much appreciate and return. I feel her smile into the kiss and I do the same.

.

“Well, I still think there is a lot you need to work on before you can sound like the best." She keeps pushing forward until I am lying on the couch and she is on top of me “Seduction doesn't work either."

“It doesn't huh?" She moves both arms to either side of my head and every part of my body jolts awake. I love how she looks above me. This is one of the many things that we need to do in our free time. She moves higher a bit, the movement causing friction between my hard cock and her full ass. I have to bite my tongue to stop myself from moaning like a goddamn virgin in high school. “You know what I think? I think I can get you to do anything right now." Which is not a lie. “But if you think so, then maybe I have to pay more attention to you to learn better."

“Maybe you should. I think I love a woman in charge." The words come out like a heavy breath.

She moves again and my breath hitches “You think?" I tuck her hair to the back of her ear so that the lights can keep her face illuminated and I gently pull her head down so that her face can meet mine.

“Now, what do we have here?" We are both startled but make no haste to change our position. The witch is standing rooted at the doorpost. I forgot that Vanessa did not close it. It's not like we had to do anything because this is our house and we won't compromise anything so that unwelcome strangers will feel comfortable. Her voice sounds like the shrilling cry of a dying bird. It's annoying and I do not have to bear this.

“You know it is rude to walk around people's homes without invitation especially when you are clearly unwelcome." The surprise in her eyes turns into a full-blown glare directed at Vanessa. I thought we were past this.

“You didn't seem to think it was a problem when I used to walk naked around your home." I feel Vanessa stiffen at the mention of the only thing in my past that I regret. “You never thought it was a problem as long as I sprawled myself bare and naked for you." There is a glint of mischief in her eyes.

“No one needs the sordid details of your whoring past. Honestly, I used to think highly of you but to hear now that you constantly had to keep yourself bare and naked just so that he kept you around makes you look more pathetic than I thought you were. Even dogs don't do that much." I want to resist the urge to laugh but I don't when I see the look on Francesca's face. I only stop and look away when Vanessa turns to me. “Now I understand why it feels so cold whenever you are around. It must have gotten to your heart due to those many bare and naked moments."

She moves to get up and I don't stop her. I get up to follow her. Francesca moves to the side when she gets to the door. Her eyes drift from me to Vanessa's pregnant belly and there is a look of disappointment. I did not tell her father about the pregnancy.

Vanessa pauses when she is a few feet away from the study “I am gonna go change my clothes and I'll be down in a few minutes. Please, resist the urge to sprawl yourself bare and naked in my hallways."

I can't say I don't like this side of Vanessa. She becomes a new person when she gets jealous and I love her even more. Before I can say a word, Francesca stomps her foot and walks away. Downstairs to go join her father, I presume. She provoked her and I am more than content with the outcome.