Trapped in his End Game (Series)

I imagine myself stuffed into those clothes with all that jewelry and a swift wave of revulsion rises in my throat. I’m only wearing one diamond-encrusted bracelet, the only thing I allowed Vince to buy me.

She kisses me on both cheeks and the smell of her hair products billow around me. She bumps her bony cheek against mine, kissing the air. “Nice to meet you, Adriana.”

“Great to meet you too, Mrs. Vittorio.”

“Please, call me Carmela.” She revolves on the spot and greets Mrs. Cesare with even more warmth and my gaze wanders around the house.

I get a strong vibe of the 80’s; a stark contrast from Vince’s home, but it reminds me vividly of my nonna’s home when she was still alive. My heart jumps when Jack Vittorio laughs at something the two other men said. He notices us finally.

“Vinny!” His eyes suddenly flash towards me and his smile twitches. “You kids are still together, eh?”

Vince laughs, greeting his boss as he nods his head towards Nicky and another man I don’t recognize. “Yeah.”

“She must be something special.”

My face gets hot as Vittorio gives me a slight smile.

“Yes, she is.” His arm slides around my waist and I feel Nicky’s greedy gaze on me. Vince’s lips press against my neck in a quick kiss. It’s like he is communicating to the others: She’s mine.

The smell of Thanksgiving cooking wafts into the kitchen as Jack pours us glasses of wine, gesturing towards the table laden with appetizers. Feeling weak in his embrace, I take the glass of wine offered to me and we make a toast.

“Salute.”

I take a sip of the dry wine, and Vince turns his head. “Go hang out with the other women.”

It’s a clear dismissal for me to leave him alone with his friends, but I don’t want to leave his side, not when his hands make me flush. His fingertips slowly massage me. I feel them right through the fabric as if he’s touching my skin, and I suppress a shudder of desire.

Knowing how much I hate public affection, he pulls me closer and his lips, slightly wet with wine, kiss mine. He pulls away, his eyes laughing as he slaps my side.

“Go.”

My face is a public display of shame and I walk away from him. The two other wives sit in the living room with their drinks and I hang out in the doorway shyly until they wave me inside. Vince’s mother is helping Mrs. Vittorio in the kitchen, so it’s just me, Nicky’s wife, and someone else I don’t know. They’re all at least twenty years older than me and I feel out of place in my simple blue dress.

“Adriana, hi! I’m Nicky’s wife, Marisa.”

“I’m Stefani.”

I shake their hands, both of their false nails digging into my skin.

“So, Adriana I’ve heard you and Vince have been together for a while?”

Both of them look at me with wide eyes and smiles as if I’m a rare specimen.

“Yeah, about five months.”

Marisa gasps out loud and shares an excited look with Stefani. “We’ve never seen him be with the same girl for so long.”

My chest shakes with a hollow laugh. Are they counting the days until Vince dumps me? Either way, I feel uncomfortable with so much attention. “He’s very sweet.”

They beam at me. “I heard you work with the boys at their card games,” she says in a low voice. “What’s that like?”

I squirm on the couch under their eager looks. “I’m not sure if I’m supposed to talk about it.”

Thankfully, both women drop the subject and move on to something else. I try to pay attention to what they’re talking about, but I’m very quickly bored. They’re discussing which contractor they should use to redo their kitchens, and my mind zones out. I wish Vince would call me back into the room. Instead, I get up and decide to check on Mrs. Vittorio in the kitchen.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

A huge, golden turkey sits on the counter, steam rising from the huge pan. Mrs. Cesare is busy cooking the gravy using the drippings from the pan, and I see tureens of cranberry sauce, bowls of mashed potatoes, a dish of baked yams. It all looks delicious.

“Adriana, could you tell the boys the food’s ready? They’re in the basement.”

“Sure.”

She points it out to me and I open the door, noticing how quiet the house is. I descend the wooden staircase to the partially unfinished basement, which holds exercise equipment, a refrigerator, and a washer and dryer.

Several low, male voices make me pause on the staircase.

“-thought you didn’t like to talk business in the house?” Vince’s voice makes the hair rise on my neck. I know I’m not supposed to listen, but I can’t help it.

“I sweep for bugs every week,” Jack Vittorio says in a shrugging tone. “You know, Richie still has a real hard-on for you. You’ve caused me a lot of problems, Vinny-boy.” Jack’s voice is even lower, deadlier.

“Fucking guy,” Vince spits. “I paid for his brother’s fucking physical therapy and I’m giving him ten percent of my action.”

“He might not walk again, Vince.”

I can almost hear his unconcerned shrug. My hands clench the railings so tightly that my knuckles turn white.

“That prick deserved it.” Another voice, Nicky’s, rises to Vince’s defense.

“They went after Adriana. I’m not doing anything more for them. You know how many weeks it took to convince her she could go back to school?”

I was wondering when my name would crop up.

There’s a scuffing sound and I tense on the staircase.

“I’m not blaming you for what you did, but I need you to cool your jets and do as you’re told.” His voice is completely devoid of warmth, and even I shudder from the force leaving his throat. “And keep that girl under your goddamn thumb. The last thing I need is a made guy’s girlfriend who knows too much becoming a fucking FBI-”

“Jesus. Relax, Jack. It won’t come to that. She does what I tell her.”

My hand slips on the rail and my heel slams down hard on the concrete step, echoing through the basement.

“Food’s ready!” I bellow in a strange, overly cheerful voice. I turn around and run upstairs before I hear them acknowledge me, slamming the door behind me.

What the fuck did I just overhear?