Christian tried to free himself, but with Cassio’s weight on his chest and the knife against his carotid, he was trapped. He couldn’t speak either. His face was turning increasingly red and his eyes were frantic.
“Please, I beg you, let him go. Whatever you think is going on, it’s not!”
Cassio didn’t react.
Shuffling sounded in the corridor. I glanced toward the door but didn’t see anything. Cassio froze following my gaze. It had to be Daniele. Cassio released Christian abruptly and shot to his feet, hiding the knife behind his back a moment before Daniele appeared in the doorway. His hair was tousled and his face sleepy. He looked from Christian on the floor to me who knelt beside him up to Cassio. Christian was pressing his palm to his bleeding throat so Daniele couldn’t see anything.
Cassio kept the hand with his knife behind his back as he approached Daniele. The previous terrifying fury was hidden behind a pleasant mask. He crouched before his son. Daniele regarded me, obviously unsure what was going on. That made two of us. My heart raced in my chest and terror still clogged my throat, but I managed a smile.
“Why don’t you go to your room and play another game. I’ll take you to bed soon,” Cassio murmured in a forced calm voice. Daniele clutched his tablet then slowly trudged away. I heard the door of his room a few seconds later and Cassio turned back to us, closing the door. Christian stumbled to his feet, his body tense. I positioned myself between my brother and my husband, determined to stop Cassio from another attack.
Cassio’s eyes sent a stab of cold fear through me. He only looked at Christian. From the corner of my eye, I saw my brother pull his own knife.
“I’ll ask one last time. What. Are. You. Doing. Here?”
“Is that why Andrea disappeared?” Christian pressed out.
Cassio staggered forward. I tried to shove him away, but he was too strong. The men began grappling. “Cassio, please!”
A fierce pain burned my arm and I cried out. Cassio jerked back, his eyes wide as he peered down at me. Blood trickled from a long shallow cut in my forearm. “Did you—” he snarled at Christian.
“It was you, Cassio. You hurt me in your blind rage,” I lied. I wasn’t sure who had cut me, and it wasn’t that bad even if it burned fiercely. I clutched the wound with my palm, shaking.
Cassio took a step back. He looked at his blade, which was smeared with blood. It might as well have been Christian’s. My brother sheathed his knife but didn’t take his eyes off my husband when he asked me, “Should I take you to the doctor?”
Cassio’s jaw tensed.
“No,” I said firmly. “Leave now.”
“Giulia—”
“Leave!”
Cassio breathed harshly, his nostrils flaring as he watched the blood squeezing out between my fingers.
Christian slowly backed away, not turning his back to Cassio. “I’ll call you in thirty minutes.”
I gave a small nod, stunned by what had happened and completely at a loss why Cassio had reacted that way.
Before my brother could slip out, Cassio said in a low voice, “There’s nowhere you can hide if I find out you betrayed me, Christian. Even Baltimore won’t be your safe haven if I want you dead.”
“If you hurt Giulia, I’ll find and kill you, Cassio.”
Cassio slanted my brother a dark look. Christian disappeared.
Suddenly I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to send him away. Cassio had lost his mind minutes ago for no apparent reason. His wife had died… or been killed, and nobody knew anything about it.
Our eyes met and the terrifying fury lessened. What remained was blatant distrust and a hint of guilt. He sheathed his knife then moved closer. I tensed, unsure what to expect after what I’d witnessed.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he rumbled, voice laced with regret.
He gently pushed my hand away from my cut and inspected it. I winced when he prodded the sore area. His brows pulled tight with worry. “Did I do this?”
“Does it matter? You were the one who started the fight. You lost control. You told me I’d never have reason to flinch from you. Today you proved your own words wrong.”
“I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“Only Christian.”
Cassio gritted his teeth. “Come. I need to take care of the wound.”
I followed him into the bathroom. Cassio didn’t say anything as he lifted me on the vanity and began cleaning my wound.
“What happened in there?” I whispered.
Cassio put a bandage on my arm then pressed a kiss to my palm. When he straightened, he no longer looked the caring husband but the bad cop starting his interrogation. “What was Christian doing up here alone with you?”
I frowned. “He came to visit. I haven’t seen him in weeks. I sent Elia home because Christian is capable of protecting me.”
Cassio cupped my neck. “Why did you shower before I came home?”
Was he serious? “I wasn’t aware that I had to ask you for permission to shower.”
He looked furious. “Why did you shower? Answer me.”
“No. This is ridiculous.”
“If you don’t tell me why, I’ll have to assume you had to wash away proof of what you did before.”
I flinched, then grimaced when I realized what he was insinuating. I shoved against his chest. He didn’t budge.
“Are you really saying what I think you’re saying?” I was so horrified by the mere idea, I wasn’t sure how to handle the situation.
Cassio grasped my thighs. “Then answer my question.”
I stared at him. He was really serious. “Simona puked all over me, that’s why I showered. If you don’t believe me, check the washing machine. I didn’t have time to turn it on yet.” He released me and actually disappeared from view. I couldn’t believe him. I hopped off the counter, and my legs almost gave out. The shock rested heavily on me. Seeing Cassio lose control like that, over something this ridiculous, it had shaken me completely. I walked into the bedroom, not sure if I wanted to spend the night here. When Cassio returned, he’d calmed visibly.
I shook my head slowly. “I can’t believe you thought I cheated on you with my brother. That’s what you thought, right?”
His expression was hard. He uncuffed his shirt, something he did often to avoid an answer.
“You should trust me, Cassio, but instead of doing that, you’re so blinded by jealousy that you even suspect my brother to have an affair with me. How sick is that? You are surrounded by beautiful willing women in your clubs all the time, and I never accuse you of sleeping with them, much less of sleeping with your sisters for God’s sake!”
“Why would I cheat with any of those women? All I can think about is you.”
I froze. “You think of me?” I’d never considered the possibility that he’d waste a single thought on me once he was at work.
Cassio watched me, a battle raging in his eyes.
“Why do you keep pushing me away, then? Why do you hurt me by not trusting me?”
Cassio reached for his tie, loosening it with a hard tug. Tension lingered in his body, and if Christian had still been here, he probably would have attacked him again. Cassio had seemed in control, so it came as a shock that he harbored so much unrestrained aggression. Of course, it only solidified that I’d been trying to ignore that side of him. His reputation was there for a reason.
“I don’t push you away. We share a bed and spend time together.”
“We have sex together, talk about what the kids did, but whenever I try to glimpse behind your mask, you block me, and now you almost kill my brother in a jealous rage. Tell me what happened.”
His jaw locked into place. I turned my back on him, needing a moment without his intense gaze. Dropping the towel, I grabbed a nightgown from a drawer. Cassio’s steps echoed behind me. “No. Don’t touch me. Not now. I need answers. If you refuse to tell me the truth, then I can’t have sex with you.” I slanted him a look over my shoulder.
Cassio began to unbutton his shirt—so calmly and precisely that for a moment I, too, wanted to roar and rage. I was glad when he moved to the door.
“I’ll take Daniele to bed.”
I sank down on the bed. I’d promised Cassio I wouldn’t move into another room, but right now I wasn’t sure if I wanted to keep that promise. I wasn’t sure if I could stay, not as long as he left me in the dark over what happened. I didn’t want to be scared of my husband, but right now I was.
Daniele’s cries rang out, and I stood then hurried into his room. Cassio tried to change him into his pajama bottoms, but Daniele fought him. Eventually, Cassio released him, and Daniele hurried toward me, hugging my legs.
Cassio appeared like a wounded animal as he straightened. “Can you—?” His voice was rough, his jaw tight.
I nodded and lifted Daniele into my arms. Cassio watched with sorrowful eyes as I dressed Daniele in his PJs then put him in bed. Cassio pressed a brief kiss on Daniele’s forehead before he and I headed out and turned off the lights.
Silence tightened around Cassio and me as we stood in the hallway.
“Tell me the truth. If you want this marriage to work, if I mean anything at all to you, tell me what happened,” I begged.
Cassio looked at my bandaged arm. His shirt was half unbuttoned, and he looked exhausted. “I need a drink. Will you join me?” He held out his hand.