Mafia Lord's Mute Sweetheart

Chapter 41: Chapter 41 Shock

Cedric regretted bringing Jessica inside with him. Most of the business owners had brought their wives, elegant women in expensive gowns who laughed at their husbands jokes, touched their arms, and stood close. His wife was nowhere to be found.

He had left her outside on the sidewalk like a forgotten package, and now he stood near the bar surrounded by men in suits talking about contracts and quarterly reports, feeling like an idiot.

Jessica had noticed his wandering eyes. She had noticed him glancing at the entrance every few seconds.

"What is wrong with you?" Jessica asked, her red lips pressed into a thin line.

"Nothing."

"You keep looking at the door."

"I’m expecting someone."

"Who?"

He did not answer. Jessica’s eyes narrowed before she downed her drink in one gulp and walked away without another word, disappearing into the crowd toward the bar with her red hair bouncing with each step, angry and sharp.

Cedric ran his hand through his hair and sighed. He looked down at his empty glass, then signaled to a passing waiter for another. The waiter nodded and disappeared into the crowd.

Then he heard a commotion.

The low murmur of conversation shifted. Heads turned toward the entrance. People stepped aside, creating a path that had not been there a moment before.

"He is here."

Cedric turned his head toward the voice. A businessman beside him was speaking in a low voice to his colleague, both of them craning their necks to see who had just walked in.

"Alessio Ricci. The Ricci family. You know, the one from the underworld."

"I thought he stayed in the shadows."

"Not anymore. He’s expanding into real estate, shipping, legitimate businesses. But make no mistake, the man is dangerous. He always has been."

"What does he look like?"

"Like death in a tailored suit."

The other man laughed nervously, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "You’re exaggerating. He’s just a businessman like the rest of us."

"I am not exaggerating. I saw him once at a private auction, one of those exclusive events where you need three references just to get past the front door. He walked in, and the whole room went silent. No one breathed until he sat down. Even the auctioneer stuttered when he raised his paddle."

Cedric listened, the name sounding familiar. Alessio Ricci. Where had he heard it before?

Then the crowd parted, and Alessio Ricci walked in.

Cedric’s blood went cold.

He recognized him immediately. The same man from the hospital. The one who had been sitting in his grandfather’s room. But that was not what shocked him. What shocked him was Daisy.

She was walking beside him with her hand resting on his arm, her dark eyes wide and nervous, and she looked stunning.

Cedric’s jaw tightened. His hands gripped his empty glass so hard his knuckles turned white.

He watched as every man in the room turned to look at her. Conversations stopped mid-sentence, words dying on lips. Drinks hovered halfway to mouths, forgotten. Eyes followed her as she walked past, some curious, some hungry, some simply unable to look away.

"Who is she?" someone whispered from somewhere to his left.

"I don’t know, but she’s beautiful."

"Look at that dress. Look at her face. Who is she with?"

"That’s Alessio Ricci. That woman is with Alessio Ricci."

"I’ve never seen her before. Is she his wife? His girlfriend?"

"No, I heard he doesn’t have anyone. He always comes alone to these events. Always. I’ve seen him at least six times and never once with a woman."

"Then who is she?"

Cedric stood frozen, his heart pounding in his chest. His wife. That was his wife, the woman everyone was staring at, the woman whose beauty was stealing the breath from every man in the room, and she was walking beside another man. A man who was not him.

Daisy felt the stares like arrows pointing at her, hundreds of eyes on her watching, judging, and admiring all at once. The attention made her want to shrink, want to disappear, want to run back to her small room and hide under her blanket where no one could see her.

But Alessio’s arm was steady under her hand, and his pace did not change. He did not look at the staring faces or acknowledge the whispers. He simply walked forward like the crowd did not exist, like they were just furniture in a room he was passing through.

Daisy kept her eyes straight ahead, focusing on the interior. She did not want to see anyone she knew. She did not want to see Cedric.

And then she saw him.

He was standing near the bar with his blue eyes wide and his jaw hanging open, looking shocked, angry, and confused all at once. His handsome face was pale, and his grip on his empty glass was so tight she could see the veins standing out on the back of his hand.

A wave of fear washed over her, cold and sudden, and she looked away quickly. She did not dare to look at him again. She kept her eyes fixed on the path ahead.

Cedric’s hands curled into fists at his sides as Jessica appeared beside him with a fresh drink in her hand. She had reappeared from somewhere in the crowd, her red dress catching the light, her red hair perfectly curled, her lips curved in a smile that did not reach her eyes. She followed his gaze and saw Daisy’s dress disappearing into the crowd, saw the way Cedric was staring after her, saw the tension in his jaw and the whiteness of his knuckles.

"Is that your wife?" Jessica asked, her voice dripping with something between amusement and jealousy. She took a sip of her drink, watching him over the rim of the glass.

Cedric did not answer. He could not answer. His throat felt tight, his mouth dry.

"With another man?" Jessica laughed, sharp and ugly, the sound cutting through the murmur of conversation around them. "Looks like you’re not the only one who knows how to have fun."

"Shut up."

Jessica raised her eyebrows, unbothered by his tone. She took a long sip of her drink, let her eyes drift across the room to where Daisy was now standing with Alessio near a tall column, and then she turned and walked away with her hips swaying and her red hair bouncing, disappearing into the crowd.

Cedric stood alone at the bar, his hands shaking slightly. He grabbed a glass of whiskey from a passing waiter and drank it in one long swallow, the burn spreading through his chest but it did nothing to warm the cold feeling inside him. He set the empty glass on the bar and signaled for another.