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Chapter seventeen
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2024-12-26 20:05:24
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A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter eighteen
A LONG RIDE.~LAUREN’S POV~I stood in the resort lobby, gripping my luggage tightly. Finally, this nightmare of a vacation was over. I was going home. Home to my cozy bed and, most importantly, away from people. No offense, but this trip had been far from enjoyable. It wouldn’t have been so bad if I hadn’t been forced to watch my ex and his fiancée flaunting their so-called love every chance they got. And Alexandro... well, he almost had me fooled. For a second, I thought love might be possible again, but clearly, I was wrong. My heart had been broken too many times to believe in such things anymore. “Too bad we’re leaving,” Lilac sighed, her eyes lingering on one of the resort staff. The guy grinned sheepishly at her, clearly charmed. We all knew why he was smiling, and it wasn’t because he was just doing his job. “Christmas is coming,” one of my coworkers added. “Time to spend with friends and family.” Christmas. The holiday I was supposed to spend with someone specia
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-30A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Nineteen
CASTELLO LEGACY.~ALEXANDRO’S POV.~The ball I tossed across the room bounced back to me, and I caught it with ease. My mind, however, was far from whatever Mario was ranting about on the other end of the line. “Lex, are you even listening?” Mario asked, his tone laced with suspicion. “Yeah, yeah. Go on,” I replied distractedly, my attention still on the ball as I continued tossing it in rhythm. The merger had been a success. Despite the opposition, I, Alexandro "Lex" Castello, always got what I wanted. It wasn’t about negotiations; it was about leverage. They could either accept my offer or lose it all. No middle ground. “You’re ‘not’ listening,” Mario said, exhaling audibly into the phone. A grin tugged at the corners of my lips. Even without seeing him, I could picture the frustration etched on his face. Mario and I had been through everything together. He was my best friend, my brother in all but blood. Whenever I got too deep into something, he was always the one to pu
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-03A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter twenty
A CLEAN START. ~LAUREN’S POV~The cab pulled up in front of my apartment building. A genuine smile spread across my face as I stepped out, paid the fare and offloaded my luggage. “Home sweet home,” I whispered, a wave of relief washing over me. Dragging my suitcase behind me, I made my way toward the lobby. Isaac, the apartment’s friendly security guard, greeted me with his signature warm smile as I stepped inside. “I thought you’d be gone for a while,” Isaac said, holding a steaming cup of coffee. “Well, not with all this luggage, Isaac. Trust me, I missed my bed too much,” I replied with a grin. Isaac was easily my favorite person in the building—funny, kind, and always hardworking. Don’t get me wrong, the other tenants weren’t bad, but I didn’t socialize much with them. Some of them thought I was stuck-up, a sentiment Maddison from the third floor was only too happy to fuel during her little gatherings. “So, how was it?” Isaac asked, leaning casually on the counter.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-06A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter twenty one
THE UNINVITED GUEST.~LAUREN’S POV~Padding my way to the kitchen, I opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of wine. I poured a helpful glass took a long sip, and allowed the warmth to seep through me.Standing there in the dim light, I finally started to relax. But the peace didn't last.A sharp knock at the door made me freeze.I peek at the clock on the wall. It was well past ten. Who would be visiting me this late?Setting my glass down, I hesitated for a moment before heading towards the door. Peering through the peephole, my breath caught in my throat.Patrick.“What the hell?” I whispered to myself, my hand gripping the doorknob.For a moment, I considered not opening it. Pretending I wasn't home. Letting him stand out there until he got tired and left.But then he knocked again, louder this time, the sound echoing in the quiet hallway.“Lauren, I know you’re in there,” his voice called through the door, calm but insistent. “I'm not leaving until you let me in.” My pulse quick
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-10A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter twenty two
HE IS DANGEROUS.~LAUREN’S POV~The question hit me like a punch to the stomach. I flinched and looked down, unable to meet her gaze. “I don’t know,” I murmured. “Maybe. Or maybe I’m just stuck because I don’t know how to stop loving someone who doesn’t love me back.”Sophia moved to sit on the edge of her seat. “Lauren, that’s not something you should beat yourself up over. You don’t just wake up one day and stop caring about someone who was such a huge part of your life. That’s not how it works.”“I know that,” I snapped, frustration bubbling up. “But it’s been weeks, Sophia. How am I still here? Why can’t I just move on like he has?”She tilted her head, studying me for a moment before answering. “You think Patrick’s moved on just because he’s pretending to? Lauren, that’s not how it works for him either. People like him just hide it better, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t feel anything for you.”I let out a bitter laugh, wiping my eyes. “I don’t believe that for a second. If he
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-10A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Twenty three
A PAWN AND NOTHING.~ALEXANDRO’S POV~I stared at the text Lauren had sent me two nights ago, the words replaying in my head like an insult. She wanted out. She wanted to end things before they’d even truly begun. My jaw clenched as I tightened my grip on the phone. She thought she could walk away from me, just like that. How naive. This wasn’t over—not by a long shot. Lauren might have forgotten, but I hadn’t. She was mine. And my claim on her wasn’t something she could ignore or erase with a few words in a message. Nobody ends things with me. Nobody. I am Alexandro Lex Castello. I call the shots, not her. The audacity she had to think she could sever ties without my permission burned in my chest, igniting a slow, simmering rage. Did she think I’d let her go that easily? That she could step away from this arrangement without consequences? She was going to pay for this disrespect. And I’d make sure Lauren understood—no, remembered—exactly who owned her and why she could
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-11A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter twenty four
WORK DRAMA.~LAUREN’S POV~ I hated being late. Rosette was going to have my head for this. Just three days before the big break, I was already imagining the lecture waiting for me at work. I couldn’t wait to finish this project and head home for Christmas. Although I knew my family would be disappointed I’d be coming home alone, it was for the best. The sharp ding of the bell over the café counter pulled me out of my thoughts. “Miss, your cappuccino is ready,” the barista called with a bright smile. “Thank God,” I murmured under my breath, weaving through the small crowd to the counter. “One cream-filled cappuccino,” she said as she handed it over, her cheerful demeanor catching me off guard. I smiled back, pleasantly surprised. “Thank you.” This café had stepped up its game. Last time I was here, the staff couldn’t care less about customer service. It felt like I’d had to beg just to get a simple latte. But these new hires? They might make me a regular again. Balanc
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-13A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Twenty Five
THE IMPORTANT GUEST.~LAUREN'S POV~I tried to focus on my work, but Rosette's annoying words kept replaying in my mind.*"Remind me where I belong,"* I whispered to myself, my hands balling into fists. I shook my head, refusing to let her words bring me down. Today was supposed to be a good day for me. So much for that. I couldn't believe I'd run into two of the people I hated most. Not that I could complain—one of them was my boss, and the other just existed. I sighed. I had work to do. I opened my laptop and started typing my story. The deadline Rosette had given me was tomorrow, and she was doing everything she could to make my life miserable. And it was working. “He’s here already,” a voice said next to me, breaking my concentration. I looked up to see Vanessa, my deskmate, standing by my side. “What’s going on, Vanessa?” I asked. “The important guest Rosette mentioned is here,” she said, her voice tinged with nervousness. I glanced at my phone. The screen read
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-18
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A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty Seven
CRACKED. ~LAUREN’S POV~He was giving me a choice. Stay. Or walk out and pretend this never happened. I could do it. I could stand up, turn around, and leave this all behind—this world, this man, this moment.But my body betrays me. My legs refuse to move. My heart slams against my ribcage like it already knows what my mind won’t admit.Alexandro watches me, his green eyes steady, waiting.I reach for my glass, wrapping my fingers around the stem like it’s some kind of lifeline. I take a sip—too fast, too deep. The champagne bubbles burn my throat.Alexandro chuckles.And just like that, my annoyance flares.“What’s so funny?” I ask, narrowing my eyes.“You, Princessa.” His voice is smooth, teasing. He drags a thumb across his bottom lip, slow and deliberate, and my stomach tightens. “You’re overthinking again.”I shift in my seat, forcing my gaze away from him, trying to focus on anything else. The soft music is in the background. The suffocating silence between us.“Well,” I mutter
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty six
DINNER AT EIGHT~LAUREN’S POV~I stared at my reflection in the mirror like I was waiting to recognize myself again. Same girl. Same long, wavy black hair. Same hazel eyes that never quite gave away enough. Same cherry lips that trembled more than they smiled lately. I was still me. That’s what I kept telling myself. But no one tells you that sometimes you can look the same and still feel like a stranger inside your skin.I let out a shaky breath, grabbing the towel from the rack. I wrapped it tightly around myself as if the pressure could somehow hold me together.Dinner.I laughed under my breath. The kind of laugh that doesn’t mean anything at all. It wasn’t just dinner, and we both knew it.I unlocked the door and stepped out, stopping dead when I saw him. Leaning there, casually filling the doorway like he belonged in every space I entered. His arms crossed, ankles relaxed, but his eyes… His eyes were anything but casual. They were steady. Focused. On me.“I thought you
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty Five
POWER SPEAKS~ALEXANDRO POV~My fingers tapped against the oak table in a slow, planned rhythm. It was the only thing keeping me grounded as my gaze swept over the polished, greedy faces of the Castello partners. Wolves in tailored suits, each one waiting for an opportunity to tear into flesh that didn’t belong to them. They pretended to be civilized. Men of honor. Businessmen.But I knew better.I could smell their desperation, their hunger, the festering need to take more than what was offered. It bled from their pores, thick and cloying, and I welcomed it.Let them feed on scraps while I carved out my empire, piece by ruthless piece.Mario sat beside me, comfortably stretched out in his chair like he had no care in the world, watching them devour each other with amusement dancing in his eyes. His fingers toyed with the unlit cigar between them, his smile sharp and cutting. The bastard was enjoying this.“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I muttered, low enough that no one but hi
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty four
THE POINT OF NO RETURN ~LAUREN’S POV~I sat there, completely still, my legs curled underneath me as if they might give out if I tried to stand. The TV in front of me kept playing, but I wasn’t watching it anymore. I was watching him. Alexandro. His voice echoed in my head. Not the deep, smooth one he uses when he whispers things that make my cheeks flush, but the one he used on that stage. Calm. Commanding. Ruthless. “She is my future. And she’s off-limits.” My heart stuttered against my ribcage like it was fighting for space. Off-limits. Future. Me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to laugh, cry, or crawl inside myself and hide. Because it’s a nice thing to say, isn’t it? It’s every girl’s dream to have a man like him claim her in front of the world like that. But when did we go from pretending to…whatever this was? When did I become his future? I don’t remember signing up for that part. My hand covered my mouth before I could make any more embarrassing sounds. “God,”
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty three
BURN WITH HER ~ALEXANDRO’S POV~Mario’s pacing was a steady rhythm against the ticking clock mounted on the wall. It grated on my already-thin patience, but I didn’t look up from the documents spread out in front of me. The ledgers were clean now—on paper, at least. The cargo had been accounted for. The Russians thought they were clever. Thought they could steal from me and walk away unscathed.Idiots.I had already made an example of the ones stupid enough to stay behind. Their blood was still fresh on my knuckles this morning. I’d washed it off, but I could still feel it. Still smell it.They keep trying to paint me as the devil.Maybe I am. But the devil doesn’t touch what’s his without consequence. And Lauren? She’s mine. Even if she doesn’t know what that means yet.I loosened the tie at my throat, my jaw clenching as my thoughts drifted back to last night. Her lips parted under mine. Her body was soft, and pliant, offering everything and asking for nothing in return. I should
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty Two
SCARED OF LOVE ~LAUREN’S POV~I was drowning in his kiss. The way his tongue claimed mine, slow at first, then deeper—demanding, consuming—like he had all the time in the world to ruin me. And God, I was letting him.My hands fisted his shirt, clutching the soft material like it was the only thing tethering me to this moment. To him. But I wasn’t tethered. I was free-falling.His mouth moved with a kind of hunger that made my knees weak, and when I swayed into him, he caught me without breaking the kiss. Strong hands slid down my sides, curving around my hips like he already knew every inch of me. Maybe he did. Maybe I was always meant for him to hold this way.I gasped into his mouth when his hands gripped my thighs and lifted me—effortlessly like I weighed nothing. It wasn’t even a question that I’d wrap my legs around him. But it wasn’t a question. I did. Without thinking. Without breathing. I felt his low groan vibrate through me as he turned, carrying me across the roo
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty One
RUINING LAUREN~ALEXANDRO’S POV~She’s quiet. Too quiet.Lauren sits beside me like she’s a stranger in my car, her body angled away, her gaze glued to the window as if the glass can shield her from the truth. From me. As if distance, even imagined, could protect her.It won’t.I grip the steering wheel tighter, the leather biting into my palm. The need to reach over, to pull her back into my space, is a sickness I’m fighting with every breath. But if I touch her now, I won’t stop. And if I don’t stop, I’ll ruin her in ways she’ll never come back from.My jaw ticks. I’m already ruining her.The silence between us is a battlefield. A war neither of us is willing to start because we both know it’ll end in blood. Maybe hers. Mine.I exhale through my nose. Controlled. Restrained. I’ve made an art out of restraint. But not with her.Never with her.She’s taking apart me in ways I never wanted. And now I’m sitting here in the wreckage, wondering when I stopped being the one in contro
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Fifty
Unanswered Questions~LAUREN~He exhaled. A sharp, heavy breath that somehow felt like it sucked the air out of the entire room. His eyes locked with mine, but I wasn’t sure what I saw in them. Anger? Regret? Maybe both. Maybe neither. Maybe something I couldn’t even name.“Get ready,” he said. Just that. Two little words, like they weren’t going to tear me apart.And then he was gone.His door shut behind him with a dull thud, and the sound lingered in my chest. I stood there, still, staring at nothing. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to move or breathe or scream, so I did none of those things. I just stood there, letting the silence crawl over me.What just happened?My hand found its way to my chest, pressing against my heartbeat. It was frantic. Messy. A sharp contrast to the man who had just walked away as none of it mattered.But it did. It mattered. I knew it. I felt it in the way his lips had moved against mine. I saw it in the way his hands had trembled when he touched me
A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas Chapter Forty Nine
TOO LATE FOR WHAT?~LAUREN'S POV~Sleep wasn't an option. It hadn't been for hours. I lay there in the dark, still as a corpse, staring at the ceiling with my heart beating out a frantic rhythm in my chest. The photographs were burned behind my eyelids. Every time I blinked, they were there. Patrick's hands on me. His face was too close. The twisted narrative of it all. The lies threaded so neatly between each image, so carefully crafted it made me sick. Someone was watching. Someone who wanted me afraid. And I was. But not frozen. Not helpless. I was angry. Anger was something I understood how to use. I pushed back the covers and swung my legs over the edge of the bed, grabbing the robe I'd tossed over the chair hours ago. My skin prickled with a mix of adrenaline and exhaustion. I was brittle, too sharp, and stretched thin. No matter how many explanations I tried to piece together, everything led to the same dead end. Alexandro. It was always him. Maybe thi
