He’d get what he wanted.

The man wasn’t mafia, he wasn’t family, and in no way was he blood. There was no denying Leon had worked himself from the ground up, building a reputation for himself and becoming the feared crime boss that he was. His name rivaled the Augustus name for fear. Men were loyal to him, and they never, even under threat of torture or being tortured, turned on him.

Lucas Augustus, Johannes’s father, had been impressed and wanted to finally meet the man that no one would break from. Not even to save their own skin.

Who instilled that kind of loyalty?

The man in front of him was deadly. Johannes saw it in the man’s eyes. There was nothing living there, and he heard the rumors that the only person who was ever safe from this man was his daughter, Laura.

So much rumor and gossip followed this man. Johannes didn’t believe it all.

He sipped at his whiskey and stared at the man over the rim of the glass. He didn’t fear Leon.

Johannes was the only man in the history of the mafia to have killed a man at the ripe old age of ten. Serving his father and the Augustus name was in his blood, as was becoming the boss, when his father would hand the reins over to him. Until that time, he still had to do what his father instructed.

“How is married life treating you?” Leon asked.

“Fine.” He clenched his teeth, wanting to beat the crap out of the man in front of him. There wasn’t much difference between them in age, just twenty years. Leon was fifty-five years old while he was thirty-five years old.

Unlike the women in their world, he didn’t have to marry at a young age. Most of their daughters were often betrothed by the age of twelve and married at either eighteen or twenty-one.

Laura was twenty-one, and she was nothing like the women of his world. She didn’t bow her head or try to be hidden. She held herself tall and proud. There was also defiance within her gaze. His father had told him of her denial to take the virginity test and how Leon refused to enforce it.

Leon stated that his daughter was a virgin and he believed her.

Johannes didn’t. He also hadn’t fucked her either, hadn’t consummated their marriage. He expected Laura to tell her father they hadn’t had sex, but she still kept quiet.

He didn’t know what her game was, but he intended to find out.

No one took him for a fool. When it came to Laura, he already had people in place to find out her weaknesses. So far, she showed none. She had also not proven to be a liar either, which … baffled him.

Leon chuckled. “Just fine.”

“I think we should talk business,” Lucas said, interrupting. “I’ve gotten word—”

“Business is for the morning where booze hasn’t been so freely offered,” Leon said. “Do you think I got to where I am by taking the words of drunken men?” His gaze turned back to Johannes. “I have it on good authority that you’ve been with Borham.”

Johannes tensed up. He didn’t know how Leon knew of his exlover, or her name, and to be honest, he wasn’t happy with it either.

He kept his personal life very private, and his lovers were always protected.

Since his marriage, he hadn’t enjoyed another woman, not even his wife. He’d been so focused on dealing with the fallout from taking an outsider as a wife. Laura was … so different.

She didn’t know their customs and often just stood by herself, ignoring everyone, or being ignored, he wasn’t quite sure.

What was with her? He couldn’t read her.

Women like Borham, his ex-lover, were interested in power and money. They only wanted what was best for themselves. When it came to Laura, he wasn’t sure what it was. He also couldn’t find out the relevant information he needed to know more about her. Her father kept it all under wraps.

No one knew anything, and that pissed him off.

Whenever he had a computer guy onto something, there was always some glitch or problem that stopped him from finding out everything there was about his wife.

“My son wouldn’t ruin his marriage vows,” Lucas said.

That wasn’t entirely correct. His father had pulled him to one side and said that if he ever needed to, there were always mistresses who would help deal with his needs. Lucas, besides having a wife, had three mistresses.

Johannes hadn’t been interested in going to another woman. Being married wasn’t what he expected. First of all, he had to make sure Leon didn’t find out he hadn’t actually consummated the marriage.

The only piece of information he could truly get was that Leon Horowitz loved his daughter. Adored her. She was treasured by him, and that made her an interesting pawn in this game.

Leon Horowitz was an ally, and his father had told him to treat Laura with respect. He had no interest in hurting a woman.

“I had dinner with Borham at her request, two weeks ago. She had a problem and needed me to fix it.”

Her boss was getting handsy, and with his and Laura’s marriage announced in the press, people assumed the women in his life were now easy targets.

He hadn’t seen Borham for a long time, and they had ended things rather amicably.

Johannes finished off his whiskey as Leon glared at him. “My daughter has not returned. Go and find her.”

In his father’s home, he didn’t expect to take orders from anyone but Lucas. He had a quick glance at his father and saw the nod. It annoyed him to even be seen doing as that bastard asked.

Still, he turned on his heel and made his way out of the main party, going along the corridor and coming to a pause when he caught sight of Saya, one of his best friends, with his wife.

Saya attempted to put his arm around Laura, but she immediately stood up. She hadn’t seen Johannes yet. “You know what, I think it’s time I headed back to the party. It was nice meeting you, Saya.” She stepped away, and the moment she caught sight of him, she stopped. “Johannes.”

“Laura.”

He stared at her from the tip of her head. She had luscious brown hair. It was thick and fell around her in waves. From the short time he had spent with her, he knew she often wore it up, most of the time in a clip, rarely falling down around her shoulders.

Staring down the length of her body, he saw her black dress that was more fitting for a funeral than a party, and it wasn’t a flattering fit either. The dress fell to her tits and then seemed to hang off her body. None of her gorgeous curves were on display. He knew she hadn’t picked this outfit herself.

The maid who came to clean his home three times a week had picked it out for her. He made a note never to ask her to help his wife again. No wonder the women were making snarky comments behind their hands about her. She looked like … death.

Neither of them spoke, and Laura’s gaze moved from his, to the wall, and then to the floor before returning to his.

“I better go and join them,” she said.

“I’ll be there in a moment.”

She didn’t stop, just nodded as she kept on walking.

“I think you’re wrong about her,” Saya said, getting to his feet.

He stared at his friend and tilted his head to the side. “How?”

“She does not like me being anywhere near her. Did you see?” Saya asked.

“I saw her move the moment you put your hands around her.”

“Yeah, and she kindly removed my hand from her thigh as well,” Saya said.

“What?”

“You told me to get close, to push her. You said there were no limits, that if needed, to take it all the way. I merely put my hand on her knee.” Saya’s gaze swept over him. “But tell me, Johannes, if you don’t care about your wife, and you want everyone to know that she is a manipulative, cheating bitch, why are your hands clenched, and you look like you want to kill me?”

“I do not want to kill you. Good job.” Johannes didn’t like the fact that he felt this way. Laura meant nothing to him. She was a job. A woman who had been forced on him.

She played her part of innocent daughter well, but he knew the truth. She was a slut and Leon’s greatest weakness. He would find the truth one way or another.

It wasn’t lost on him that Leon had given them the key to making his life miserable. They could kill her and start a war. It would be so easy. His father had told him that he respected and valued Leon Horowitz. No war was ever going to wage with that man. Johannes felt that as soon as he discovered the truth about Laura, he’d get what he wanted.