Pearl

I knew Crow was pissed the second he walked in the door.

“He’s a fucking piece of shit, and I’m gonna put a bullet right between his goddamn eyes.” He threw his jacket on the back of the chair but missed by several feet, so it fell to the floor instead.

It didn’t matter how rich he was. Expensive suits like that didn’t belong on the floor. I set my journal down and picked the coat up. I shook out potential wrinkles and set it on the chair where Lars would retrieve it later.

Crow kicked off his shoes and yanked off his tie. His movements were harsh and jagged. “I’ve wanted to kill him many times in my life, and this is one of them. I want to break his neck and turn him into a rubber chicken.”

I picked up his other articles of clothing like the good wife that I was. “So, who are we talking about?”

“That piece of shit. You know exactly who.”

“Lars?” I teased.

Crow’s mood dampened only slightly. The corner of his mouth rose in a smile before it quickly disappeared again, his anger coming back like it never left. “The deal is done, but we’re missing the second half of the money. I asked Cane about it last night, and that shithead hung up on me. I called him again three times today, and he didn’t answer.”

“Hmm…that’s not like him.”

Crow walked to the balcony and unbuttoned his collared shirt.

This was my favorite part of the day. He usually stripped down to his boxers, revealing his beautifully chiseled physique, and one thing led to another before we ended up in bed together—and again in the shower.

He tossed the shirt onto a different chair then looked across the vineyards that reached the hillside. His hands moved into his pockets, and he stood tall as he gazed over everything he owned. “He’s usually on top of his game when it comes to work. That’s why I trust him. But now…I don’t have a clue what’s going on.”

“Want me to talk to him?” I stood at his shoulders and pressed kisses along the grooves of muscles. As much as I cared about my husband’s complaints, there was only one thing on my mind. In my defense, when I complained about something, he didn’t listen to me either. He was too busy getting my panties off.

“No. I’ll handle him.” He eyed his watch. “I’m gonna go by the facility and talk to him face-to-face. He’s hiding something from me. I know it.” He turned around and pulled a t-shirt out of his top drawer.

“Whoa, slow down.” I yanked the shirt out of his hand and pressed my body into his. “How about you spend some quality time with your wife before you storm off again?”

His eyes intensified as he considered the offer. “I’d love to, Button. But it’ll have to wait.”

“You’re turning me down?” I asked incredulously. He was usually the one who couldn’t get enough. I had to slap his hand away when he tried to grope me in front of Lars. “You’re gone at work all day and then leave again without satisfying your wife?” I knew that would get under his skin.

“Button, this is my business we’re talking about. I can make up for it when I get home later.”

It wasn’t just about the sex. I missed him all day, and now he was leaving again. Not having a job or a hobby was starting to get to me. “Can I come with you?”

“Absolutely not.” He turned hostile like I’d just asked for something ludicrous. “I’ll be gone for a few hours. You’ll manage.”

“I’ll manage?” I snapped.

He walked out and grabbed his brown leather jacket on the way. He turned into a dictator once his business was on the table, forgetting about everything else and letting it fade into the background.

“Crow, I’ve been there before.”

“On very different terms.” He took the stairs ahead of me, not slowing down to have this conversation. “You’ll be bored anyway.”

“If this is your business, it’s my business too. We’re married, remember?” I caught up to him when he reached the ground floor.

“Doesn’t matter. It’s not safe.”

“I pulled a knife out of my stitches and killed Bones—”

“Don’t fucking say his name in my house.” Crow turned on me and grabbed me by the elbow. His fingers dug into my skin aggressively, and he looked down into my face with malcontent. He looked more furious than I’d ever seen him. “I’ve asked multiple times, but you never listen to me. Listen to me now.”

I twisted out of his grasp. “Our house.”

“Just do as I say.” He turned away again.

“I can hold my own. These are your men we’re talking about. They aren’t going to do anything to me.”

“I don’t want other men looking at you. They all wanted to fuck you at one point.”

I’d never forget the first time I went to that base. Crow talked me into allowing him to give me a shot to put me to sleep so he could take me to his house. I accepted his offer because I preferred him over the others. If they’d had their chance, they would have done terrible things to me. “Give them a chance to look at me in a new way. And if they don’t, I’ll gladly kick them in the balls.”

Crow didn’t stop walking as he headed to the front door. “Button, stay.”

“I’m not a dog, asshole.”

Crow ground his teeth together as he turned around and looked at me. “I’m in a hurry, and you’re keeping me longer. I don’t want you to come, and that decision is final.”

“You don’t make the decisions in this house. We make them together.”

He dragged his hand down his face when he couldn’t hide his anger anymore. “Why do you want to come so badly?”

“Because I’m stuck in this house all day long with nothing to do. I want to do something.”

“Then go for a jog. Start gardening. I don’t give a shit.”

“I want to be productive. I want to work.”

“My wife doesn’t work.”

This conversation was going nowhere. Now I wanted to drag my hands down my face. “I’m serious, Crow.”

“I’m sure you are. But now isn’t the time for this conversation.”

“We can have it on the drive.”

Crow had finally given up. “Fine. Just stick to my side at all times. Don’t go wandering off. I mean it.”

“I know.”

We got into the car and drove away from the Tuscan fields and into the city. Crow drove fast and passed cars that were taking a leisurely stroll down the country road. The radio wasn’t on, and he gripped the steering wheel tightly, clearly angry. “I’ve got an extra pistol you can have. You remember how to use one?”

I wasn’t stupid. “Yes.”

“Good.”

“You go to the base all the time. It’s not dangerous.”

“Always be prepared.” He usually rested one hand on my thigh, but now he rested it on the gear shifter.

“So, I was thinking of getting a job in Florence. I looked online, and they have a few engineering positions open.” I knew exactly what Crow’s reaction was going to be, but this was a conversation we needed to have. By staying home all day, I was just getting fat and bored.

Crow turned to me and took his eyes off the road. His reaction was the same, but his eyes were dark with irritation. He didn’t even need to say anything to communicate his anger. “Button, we just talked about this. I don’t feel comfortable with you driving to Florence every day for work.”

“Well, I need to do something. Lars is even annoyed with me.”

“Well, you’re pretty annoying.”

I knew he didn’t mean that, so I ignored it. “I clean around the house, jog through the vineyards, swim in the pool, and read every single day. I’m running out of things to do. I need something, Crow.”

“You’re never going to do anything at the base, so that’s out of the question.”

“What about the winery?”

He turned his eyes back to the road. “You know nothing of wine.”

Even though it was true, my eyes still widened. “Too bad I don’t know anyone who could teach me…”

His frustration continued to become more visible. “I want you to stay home. That’s our culture here. Men work, and women stay home.”

“Bullshit. That was the culture fifty years ago.”

“It doesn’t change the way I feel. I want my wife to be taken care of. I want you to sit around and get fat all day.”

I laughed. “Trust me, you don’t want that.”

“Button, I understand where you’re coming from, but it’s just not going to work.”

“There has to be something at the winery.”

“You’ll only distract me all day.”

“Will not,” I argued. “What about the wine tours? Let me handle those.”

“Again, you know nothing of wine.”

“Then teach me,” I argued. “Have one of your employees teach me. I think it’ll be fun.”

“You don’t speak Italian,” he reminded me.

“But most Italians speak English. And most tourists speak English.”

Crow passed another car as he sped to the base. “If I let you do this, will you stop bugging me?”

I smiled. “Yes.”

“Then you’re hired.”

I threw my fist into the air. “I’m so excited. You wanna carpool?”

The corner of his mouth rose in a smile. “Sure. You better pay your portion of the gas.”

“With my job, I can make that work.”

“We both know you won’t be paying in cash.”

* * *

Once Crow arrived at the base, he turned into a soldier. When he rescued me from Bones’s men, he slit the throats of all the survivors in the middle of a street in Rome. He adopted that same calloused presence now. “Where the fuck is Cane?” He barged inside and moved past the men as they spoke in the entryway.

I followed behind him, feeling the men stare at me just the way Crow said they would. “You got a problem?” I asked the one who wasn’t bothering to hide his stare. He looked me up and down like a woman that was for sale.

He quickly turned away the second I called him out.

Crow was too absorbed in his conversation to notice. “Bran, where is he?”

“He didn’t come in today,” Bran said in poor English. His Italian accent was heavy. “He’s moving in to his new place.”

“What?” Crow asked in surprise. “Have you spoken to him today?”

“This morning,” Bran answered.

“Fucking asshole. What’s going on with the shipment? Cane released the weapons, but there hasn’t been a money drop.”

Bran shrugged. “Cane told me to release the shipment. That’s all I know.”

“Jesus Christ.” Crow walked to a table that had a landline. He dialed Cane’s number and pressed the phone to his ear. He must have reached Cane’s voice mail because he slammed the phone back on the base. “Where’s his new place, Bran?”

Bran shrugged again. “Sorry, I have no idea.”

Crow stood with his hands on his hips, looking calm despite the rage inside his eyes. That was the easiest way to read him, by looking at the doors that led to his soul. When he made love to me, I could see the depth of his feelings just by looking at him. Right now, he wanted to burn the whole place down. “I’ll hunt him down, then.”