99 Percent Mine: A Novel

I tighten my grip around Ginevra’s waist, holding her steady as she kicks and squirms. Her fists slam against my back, her outraged, indignant shrieks echoing through the corridor, but I don’t stop. I’ll endure every ounce of her fury if it means finally making this right.

“Put me down!” She twists. “Have you lost your fucking mind?”

Her anger only adds fuel to the fire already burning in my chest. I adjust her over my shoulder, ignoring her nails digging into my back through my jacket. She could claw me raw, and I’d still keep walking.

The elevator doors slide open, and I step inside to press the button. She shoves at my back with both hands, twisting with all the strength in her small, furious body.

“You’re insane,” she yells, her voice breaking.

I hold her tighter as the doors close, sealing us in. The desperation I’ve been holding in for months threatens to burst free but I clench my jaw.

“You asked for an apology,” I say, the words choked. “It’s not enough to tell you I’m sorry. Those are just words. The whole world needs to know I fucked up, and I’ll do everything to win you back.”

She freezes against my shoulder, her breaths coming fast and shallow. She probably thinks I’ve lost my mind, but working on myself behind the scenes isn’t enough. The elevator ascends, each second stretching the anticipation in the air until it thrums.

The doors open, letting in the cacophony of the casino. I step out, carrying her past green-felt tables filled with card shuffles, clinking chips, and chatter.

“Don’t make me part of some spectacle,” she snaps, her voice muffled against my shoulder.

“The only one getting embarrassed here is me.” I continue through the casino floor.

Staff and patrons pause from their games, stunned. Ignoring their stares, I stop in the center of the floor and set Ginevra on her feet.

Swaying, she splays out one arm and reaches for me with the other. A flush spreads across beautiful features that I want to see every day for the rest of my life. Even though her eyes blaze with fury, she doesn’t shrink or bolt. Instead, she gazes up at me, breathing hard.

“Attention, everyone,” I call out, still holding her gaze.

Silence sweeps across the casino like a held breath. Even the background music fades as all eyes shift to where we’re standing.

Ginevra doesn’t move, doesn’t flinch under the stares. She just fixes her tank top and straightens.

“This beautiful, breathtaking woman,” I say, letting my gaze sweep over every face in the room. “Is my wife.”

Murmurs spread through the crowd, making Ginevra’s breath quicken.

“I’ve been the worst kind of bastard,” I announce, my words raw. “Lied to you on the most fundamental of levels. Manipulated you at every turn, and broke your trust. I don’t deserve a second chance, but I don’t run from my mistakes.”

Her brows pinch, and I know she’s still wondering what the hell I’m doing.

I drop down to my knees on the marble floor, eliciting gasps from the stunned crowd, but the only one that matters is Ginevra’s.

“But I’m sorry, and not just because my actions drove you away. You’ve always been my equal, my partner, the better half of my soul. You deserved better, yet I treated you like a pawn.”

Her throat bobs, but she doesn’t speak.

“I want to make things right,” I continue. “And I’ll spend every day of the rest of my life treating you like the goddess you truly are,” I say. Emotions swell, threatening to choke off my words, but I force them down with a deep breath. “I’m also sorry for this spectacle, but the whole world needs to know how much I’ve wronged you, starting with this public apology and a declaration of my love.”

Eyes widening, she clutches her chest, then blinks, loosening tears. The silence in the casino is deafening, but we may as well be alone, since nobody matters except my Ginevra.

“I won’t ask for your forgiveness now,” I say, my ribs tightening around the ache. “That’s something I want the chance to earn.”

A sharp, unbearable pressure grips my chest as she continues staring down at me without uttering a word.

“But while you’re waiting for me to be a better man, I’ll give you anything—a ring, your own house, a real wedding,” I blurt. “All I ask for is the chance to be the husband you deserve.”

I cling to her hips, mirroring the way she begged the day I murdered Julian Riva and the morning after I made her believe she’d been unfaithful. Pressing my forehead to her thighs, I hold on as if she’s the only thing keeping me from drowning.

“I’m nothing without you, Ginevra. You were always my moral compass, and when you left, I was lost. I’m not worthy of a second chance, but I’ll do anything to earn it.”

An ache spreads across my chest at the admission, but I make myself continue. “I took everything good between us and destroyed it when I lied and didn’t trust you, and when I tried to control your life instead of letting you live it. I see it all now, and I hate the man I became.”

“Really?” she whispers.

I nod. “I’ll do anything. Everything I can to improve. Not just for you, but for us.”

“How?”

“I’ll rebuild myself. Take more therapy. You can come with me. Establish boundaries, whatever it takes. But I’ll do it with or without you because you deserve to see me become the man I should have been.”

She breathes hard as though needing more convincing, her trembling fingers hovering just above my head. I wait, feeling every agonizing second of her indecision. She wanted me to fight for her, and here I am—on my fucking knees in front of staff, security, and spectators—but the fear of her rejection rakes at my heart like claws.

“You begged me, Ginevra. You begged for trust, for love, for respect—and I didn’t listen. I failed you over and over. I can never undo the damage I caused but I can devote every day of the rest of my life trying.”

Her features flicker with even more of that indecision. I wait, every second stretching into an eternity. My heart hammers so loudly it drowns out the chatter, and I wonder if I’ve already lost her. That thought cuts deeper than anything I’ve ever known.

“Tell me what you need, and I’ll give it to you. Tell me what I’m still doing wrong, and I’ll fix it. I’ll do anything, Ginevra. Just… don’t walk away.”

She licks her lips, finally parting them to say, “I can’t forgive you. And I can’t take you back.”

My heart crashes into my stomach, and desperation grips me by the throat.

“Not right away,” she adds.

The tension eases only a fraction. “I don’t expect it to be easy. It will take however long it takes.”

Her fingers finally brush my hair, a slight caress that hits like lightning. I almost break, ribs constricting, each inhale cutting like glass. I stay perfectly still, waiting for her to speak.

“Did you really make me a partner in my firm?” she murmurs.

I meet her gaze, unblinking, the answer flooding from my lips. “You earned it,” I rasp. “They wouldn’t have taken you on if you didn’t have the skills.”

“But why?” she whispers.

“I wanted to give you something that couldn’t be tainted by my need to control you. Something I couldn’t touch. An independent life where you could thrive away from me.”

Eyes softening, she trails her fingers down to my face, and that touch alone almost makes me crack. The distance between us disappears, her warmth anchoring me in a way I haven’t felt since before everything went to shit.

“You want forgiveness?”

I nod.

“Then earn it,” she says.

“How?”

The corner of her lips lift. “Get off your knees and kiss me.”

Heart skipping a beat, I rise, my hands sliding from her waist to the small of her back. Every wall between us crumbles as she wraps her fingers around the back of my neck, pulling me down to her mouth.

Applause breaks out across the casino floor, but I’m too cocooned in the warmth of her acceptance to care. I cup her face, my thumbs brushing over her cheeks as our lips meet in a kiss that feels like redemption.

Her arms tighten around my neck, pulling me closer until her heart thrums in sync with mine.

The world falls away, replaced by the softness of her lips and her honeysuckle scent. After all my machinations, the pain I’ve inflicted, the anger and regret, this moment feels like absolution.

I pour everything into that kiss. Every apology, every plea for forgiveness, every word left unsaid, it all flows in this one act of surrender. Her lips move against mine, anchoring me in the present, obliterating the darkness of our past.

A low, desperate sound catches in my aching chest. Helpless against months of pent-up need, I slide my hands down her back and pull her closer.

She breaks the kiss first, her eyes searching mine. I meet her gaze, wanting to convey the depth of my remorse, my overwhelming gratitude, my commitment to being the man she deserves.

“How was that?” I ask.

“It’s a start,” she murmurs.

My throat tightens, and my chest thrums with anticipation. “You’ll give me a chance to redeem myself?”

She nods.

Waves of relief and gratitude make me rock back on my feet. Heart racing, palms sweating, I struggle to catch my breath. Guilt still lingers in the pit of my stomach, reminding me why I don’t deserve a chance, but it’s overshadowed by a glimmer of hope.

She steps back, breaking our connection. Her fingers trail down my chest, over my abs, and settle on my belt buckle.

Sensation rushes south, leaving me light headed. “Ginevra?”

“You’re not forgiven yet,” she says.

My jaw drops. “What do you want me to do?”

Gray eyes dilating, she leans closer and murmurs, “Work for it, Benito.”

Anticipation crackles in the air like static as her fingers tighten on my belt. A shiver runs down my spine and settles in my cock. I should carry her back to my office and take her over the desk, but I’m past locking my Ginevra away.

Instead, I turn to where my security people mingle in the crowd and bellow, “Everybody out!”