A Sinner’s Truth (De Bellis Crime Family Book 5)
A Sinner’s Truth: Chapter 15

I should have stayed out of this fucking room. Or at the very least, when I heard the shower running, I should have walked away. Instead, I sat here and listened to her talk to that friend of hers as she fucking washed herself.

It’s really not all that much to expect your wife to not talk to other men when she’s naked, is it? I don’t care if this relationship is fake. That marriage certificate with our names on it is real as fuck, which makes her my fucking wife.

“Aria, trust me when I say this: Every guy has pictured you naked in his head. Don’t talk to other men when you’re naked. I don’t care if it’s the Pope. If he’s got a dick, don’t talk to him when you’re naked. Got it?”

Aria screws up her face. “This is not happening. I’m not your child, Santo. You can’t order me around and expect me to do everything you say just because you say it.”

“No, you’re not my child. You’re my wife,” I correct her.

“Fake wife,” she counters.

“That marriage certificate is real, darling. That ink that’s dried on it is real. You are my wife, and I won’t have my wife talking to other men when she’s naked,” I tell her. “It’s not up for discussion.”

“Fine. If I can’t talk to other men when I’m naked, then you can’t talk to other women when you’re naked either,” Aria fires back.

“Easy. I don’t talk to other women in general. Unless you count my sisters-in-law, and I certainly don’t talk to them when I’m naked.” I shrug. It’s not a big deal for me. I’ve done everything I can to avoid the opposite sex since Shelli. Aria is the first. She’s also the first to get under my skin.

“You don’t talk to other women? Right, and I’m the Virgin Mary.” Aria laughs.

“You’re not a virgin.” I raise an eyebrow at her, my way of egging her on to tell me if I’m right or not.

“I could be.” She lifts one shoulder in reply.

“You told me you didn’t like sex, which means you’ve tried it at least once. Granted, it obviously wasn’t good sex, but you’re definitely not a virgin,” I remind her.

“Whatever.” Aria sits on the bed, digs through her handbag, and pulls out a brush. I shouldn’t let my eyes drift. But the way the shirt clings to her breasts, her nipples hard underneath the cotton… Her wet hair has dampened the fabric, making it stick to her body.

“I’m gonna have a shower,” I grunt, turning and practically running into the bathroom.

“Don’t talk to anyone while you’re in there,” Aria calls after me.

What the fuck have I gotten myself into?

I expected to find Aria in the same spot I left her after I finish in the bathroom. She’s not here, though, and the door is wide open. With nothing but a towel around my waist, I storm into the hallway and look for her. Surely she didn’t leave. I gave the guys at the gate strict instructions to call me if she even tried.

I’m not an asshole. I’m not going to hold her here against her will, but if she’s leaving the grounds, then I’m following her. News of her being my wife is out in the world. The streets are talking, and I’m not about to take any chances with her. There’s also the whole Densper deal that we just blew to pieces. I have no idea what all was involved, but her father seemed desperate. And desperate people do reckless shit.

My heart beats faster as I jog down the stairs. I pass Vin in the foyer. “She’s in the kitchen,” he says, walking straight past me.

My steps slow. She’s in the kitchen. She didn’t leave.

The moment I turn the corner, I find Aria talking to Eloise and Daisy at the benchtop. She’s still only wearing the shirt I gave her. My shirt. I really didn’t think about what seeing her in my clothes would do to me. I didn’t think about what any of this would do to me.

I can feel everyone’s eyes on me as I walk over to Aria. “Did you need something?” I ask her, wrapping my arms around her shoulders. I pull her into me. Right against my chest. She tenses up. I lower my mouth to her ear. “Go along with it. People are watching, remember?”

It’s not real. It’s fake. I keep repeating this in my head. It eases the overwhelming guilt I feel, especially when my lips press against Aria’s forehead and she melts into me a little more.

“I’m okay. I just wanted to bring my plate down,” she says. “Santo?”

“Mmm?”

“You don’t have any clothes on,” she whispers.

“I thought you’d left,” I tell her, keeping my voice quiet. When I finally pull away and turn around, I find both Eloise and Daisy still staring at me.

“I’m so happy for you. I’ve been waiting for this,” Eloise says.

“Me too. You deserve this happiness, Santo,” Daisy adds.

“Thanks,” I grunt. “El, I’m going to need a house. We’re going to need a house,” I quickly correct myself.

“Not you too. Seriously, this house is plenty big enough, Santo. You two do not need to move out.” El frowns at me like I just told her that her cat died.

“We need our own place.”

“Why? Give me one good reason why you can’t live here?” she says.

“Because right now I want to pick my wife up, spread her over that counter, and fuck her senseless. I can’t do that with the two of you standing here, now can I?”

Aria gasps, and when I look at her, her entire face is flamed red.

“That’s disgusting. People eat off this counter.” Daisy scrunches up her nose.

“They do. I remember a time when your husband was eating his favourite meal off this very counter. You remember that, Daisy?” I didn’t see it personally, but Vin made sure we all knew that he did.

“Shut up,” Daisy hisses at me before turning to Aria with a pleasant smile on her face. “I have to get home. I’ll see you tomorrow. Welcome to the nuthouse. I’m really glad you’re here.”

“Thank you,” Aria says, her voice quiet. I stare at her. Her face is still flushed, her pulse has quickened, and her nipples are hard under her shirt. She’s turned on.

Little Miss I-Don’t-Like-Sex is turned on. Interesting.

“You need anything else, sweetheart?” I ask her with a raised brow.

“No, I’m good,” she says.

“Let’s go then.” I take hold of her hand.

“Give me some warning before you tell Gio you’re moving out, Santo,” Eloise yells after us.

“Will do,” I tell her.

“Is he really going to be that upset if you move out?” Aria asks once we’re out of earshot.

“Yes. He’s irrational and wants to keep us all together,” I reply.

“That’s kind of nice. I always envied people who had siblings,” she says.

“Well, now you have so many of them it’ll be hard for you to find a moment of peace.” I couldn’t imagine growing up alone, without my brothers. They’re my best mates. The year Gabe was locked up was fucking agony for all of us. We’ve always been there for each other. Through the good and the bad times, my brothers are the one constant I can count on in life.

“For one year,” Aria says. “They’re going to hate me after that.”

“They won’t hate you.” They’ll hate me for lying to them, but they won’t hate Aria.

I don’t let go of her hand, not when we’re walking up the stairs, not even when I lead her down the hall. There’s no one watching. I don’t need to hold her hand. But, fuck, do I want to. I open the door to my room and loosen my grip as we walk in.

“How exactly are we doing this?” Aria asks.

“Doing what?” I reply as I slam the door shut.

“Sleeping. There’s only one bed in here.” Aria gestures towards the middle of the room for emphasis.

“It’s a super king-size bed. There’s plenty of room to share it.” I don’t know why I want her here. I get we have to play the part to make this marriage believable, but I actually want her next to me. I turn around, and I’m hit with guilt when Shelli stares back at me through her pictures. “I’m sorry,” I mouth to her, and I really fucking am.

I’ve never pretended to be a good guy. I just didn’t think I’d ever betray the one person I was supposed to love until the day I died. I do love her. I’m just not sure what else I’m feeling right now.

“We can’t share a bed,” Aria stammers out, drawing my attention back to her.

“Why not?” I walk over to the bed, pull the covers aside, and sit down, resting my back against the headboard.

“Because this isn’t real. That is why you said no sex.” She looks panicked, and I fucking hate it.

“I’m not going to do anything, Aria. We’re just sleeping. That’s it,” I tell her.

“Right. I didn’t mean to suggest that you would. I mean, why would you even want to? …I get it… I just… I don’t know. This is all so new to me.”

“It’s new to me too,” I remind her. “But we’re friends. Think of it as a sleepover.”

“A sleepover. Okay, I can do that,” Aria says as she climbs onto the bed. She then positions herself as far on the opposite side as she can get before rolling over to face me.

I switch off the light on the nightstand and slide down. Not that I can see shit. We’re now covered in darkness.

“Santo?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you. I really appreciate what you’re doing for me. I don’t know what I would have done if I didn’t meet you,” Aria says.

“I’m glad I can help. What your father was doing was fucked up,” I tell her.

“I know. But he’s the only parent I have,” she whispers.

“I know a thing or two about fucked-up fathers, Aria. They don’t change. He will always choose himself over you. I’m sorry, and I fucking hate that for you. But you can’t trust him,” I tell her.

“I don’t trust him. I never really have,” she says, then asks, “What happened to your parents?”

“My father killed my mother when we were young. And then he died a year and a half ago.”

“How?”

“His forehead ran into a bullet after he killed my fiancée.” My words are so low I’m not sure if Aria hears them. I’ve never spoken about this to anyone but my brothers. It’s hard to do it now.

“That’s… I don’t know what to say. I mean, I’m sorry you went through that. I’m sorry that you’re still going through it,” Aria tells me.

“Thank you.” I don’t know what to say either.

“You know, if you ever want to talk, I’m a great listener. I won’t judge you or anything. I’ll just listen.”

“Goodnight, Aria.” I roll over and face the other way.

I know I’m not likely to get much sleep tonight. I’m way too fucking sober, for one. Then there’s the fact there’s a woman in my bed. I haven’t had a woman in my bed for a long-ass fucking time. And right now, my dick likes Aria way too fucking much.