AryanaI wouldn’t say I liked thinking about my childhood. It wasn't particularly traumatizing, but it didn't fill me with good emotions, so I didn't see the point in reminiscing. When Alexander asked me about my childhood, I didn't hesitate because I could not talk about it, but because I didn't know where to start. So many years had passed since my mother decided she didn't want me anymore and dumped me at an orphanage. With so much time passed, I was no longer affected by the past and had moved on."My father left my mom and me when I was seven. I can't remember much, but I recall several shouting sessions between them. All I know is that one day, my father upped and left. He never came back."I gave Alexander a reassuring smile when I saw how disgruntled he looked at the small revelation."After he left, it was like there had been a switch, and my mum became very irritable. Back then, I was too young to understand the struggles and responsibilities of an adult, so I never understo
"The orphanage wasn't so bad. At least they showed me more care than my mother did in seven years. When I was twelve, my adoptive parents, Walter and Amy Dane, finally adopted me. They could not have children of their own, which prompted them to go to an orphanage. I was lucky they came to the one I was residing at. They cared for me and treated me well. It was as if I was their child. They lavished me with so much love and affection." As I recounted the past, I could feel my lips stretching into a wide, fond smile. Thinking about them always brought a smile to my face but sadly…"Unfortunately, my adoptive mother died shortly after I graduated from high school," I said, my smile turning sad."I'm so sorry." Alexander apologized. He tightened his grasp on my hand in a show of silent comfort.I shot him an entertained look. This was the second time he apologized for something he wasn't even aware of. What was this silly man apologizing for?"You need to stop apologizing for something y
AlexanderMy hand curled around Aryana's neck, and I dragged her down, taking her lips into a searing kiss. Our bodies were hot, and our breaths were coming out short. There were scathing emotions in the kiss, with a need so unquenchable we didn't even know what we were looking for. Still, there was no urge to reach any conclusion. The craving was aflame. Our teeth clattered, tongues were bitten, and lips were worshiped. It was a race, the pace of which kept fastening. Our upper halves rocked back and forth as we kissed on my bed.This was the first time that Aryana entered my room. I would have given her more time to look around on a normal day, but the lust clouding my mind marked it as abnormal.I nipped at Aryana's skin, and she moaned. My thrill intensified at summoning the moan out of her mouth. Aryana's knees hit the back of my bed, and her eyes found mine, which I was sure were rounded with lust, especially with how my locks were falling on my forehead. I ran my hand down her
I broke the kiss, and we stared at each other momentarily, breathless in anticipation. I dipped his head and nuzzled at her cleavage as I slid down the thin strap of her bra until it got caught in the crook of her elbow. I pulled down one cup of her bra, exposing her breast to the air-conditioned room.Licking my lips, I watched her nipple harden as she let out a high-pitched whimper."Fuck. Alexander." Aryana moaned.I shared the same sentiments as her. Though lingering touches and fleeting glances were a sign that we had moved forward in our relationship, it couldn't be compared to the actual deed. Unfortunately, neither of us had been ready to make the first move, not wanting to shatter the fragile string we kept in place.I settled between her legs, slotting a hand and eagerly pushing a thigh to the side. Their chests slap together. My clothed shaft came in contact with the copious juices leaking out of her, and I growled at the hotness of it.I then rolled my hips into Aryana's h
AryanaI could barely contain my excitement. Alexander watched me with an amused smile, but I could tell my happiness also made him happy. Alexander had spoken to his father, and his father had permitted my adoptive father to come and visit me! I was elated and, at the same time, so grateful to Alexander. Despite the risk involved, he still helped me. He even took it further by considering inviting my father over when I had only considered calling him instead.I couldn't remember the last time I saw my father. It had been quite a while. As excited as I was, I was also nervous and anxious. What was I going to tell him? How was I going to introduce him to Alexander? What was I going to say our relationship was? When he asked me why I had moved here, what was I to say?There was no way I could mention the whole mafia affair. That would make him determined to drag me away from here, and as much as I had loathed it at the beginning, I didn't want to leave Alexander.At first, I wasn't sure
Alexander kept quiet, and a look of contemplation crossed his face.“I’m a businessman.”“What?” I stared blankly at the ‘businessman.’“You and I met one day. We liked each other and started dating. Due to a moment of carelessness, you ended up pregnant, and we decided to keep the baby. If he asks about my profession, we’ll say I’m a businessman, and that’s why I can provide for you.”Not bad.“What if he asks why we’re here? He knows I stay and attends my university in Manhattan.” I questioned, interested in what else he could come up with.“You requested a year of leave, and I brought you here to eliminate all forms of stress. A mini holiday till when the child is born to ensure there are no complications.”I raised an eyebrow. “A mini holiday?” I repeated, slightly dumbfounded. “You call a year a mini holiday?”Alexander gave me a cheeky smirk in response.Sometimes, it amazed me how open Alexander could be when comfortable with someone. If I had been told in the past that Alexande
Alexander“Whenishegoingto get here?” Aryana asked, fiddling her hands together. She was nervous and excited to see her father again.“Tony is already on his way to pick up your father,” I answered.I was in the process of making lasagna. I wanted to make a good impression on Walter Dane. I naturally wouldn’t care about anyone having a good image of me, but this was different. This was Aryana’s father, the man she loved the most. It wouldn’t be pleasant for Aryana if her father disliked me, and it wouldn’t be easy to get her to say no if Walter decided to take Aryana away from here.Aryana was dressed in a light, floral sundress. She kept walking around, making sure everything was perfect. I could understand how she was feeling. If I were in her position and had to tell my father that I was pregnant out of the blue, I would be just as nervous as she was. Regardless of the outcome, she had me, but it would be better to have her father’s support despite the sketchy circumstances.“Do yo
I stared at Aryana with a perplexed expression. The current Aryana was different from the Aryana I had been living with. The flustered, anxious Aryana was far from the bold spitfire I knew. Seeing her so worked up was a bit disorienting, yet it gladdened me to see another side of her.“Why did you ask that?” I gently asked her. Perhaps it was the pregnancy that was making her hormones run wild and made her so restless.“I look fatter, don’t I?” I stared at Aryana’s face, which was still slim, then glanced at her baby bump that was barely protruding and showing through her dress.I left where I was standing and walked over to her. I held her by her arms, stilling her fidgety hands.“Il mio tesoro,” I called out, capturing her attention. “You are not fat. You look absolutely beautiful.Meravigliosa.” I whispered the last word into her ears, followed by a quick nibble.She laughed at my antics and embraced me, resting her head on my chest.“Since I don’t know if the lasagna will be ready
AlexanderA year have passed since the end of the war between my family and the Saconne family. Everyone was at peace. The Romano family was prospering with the added territory of the Saconnes we had divided amongst the other three great families.We were in good times now. Aryana had given birth to our son and he was adorable. He had my gray eyes, which I had also gotten from my father and Aryana’s golden-brown hair. I can still remember the day she went into labor. I had been so afraid and uncertain of what to do. Give me a gun or a knife, and I could kill anyone you wanted to, but give me a pregnant Aryana who was in labor? I was lost.I could still remember the emotions that threatened to overflow when an exhausted but overjoyed Aryana placed our son in my arms for the first time. Despite how wrinkly skin, he was beautiful.After recuperating, Aryana completed her master’s degree in Psychology. It had been a little bit difficult to see her stress over completing projects before de
“I was unconscious for two weeks?” Alexander was astonished, but I ignored his question because I just needed to tell him about my feelings in case this was all temporary.“And seeing how you would never wake up, I was lonely and scared, and I thought about all the times we had spent together, and I realized that I had fallen in love with you, but I didn’t know why I couldn’t say it, and then I regretted it and-,”Dry lips blocked the rest of my words from coming out. I didn’t hesitate to kiss back. It was amazing! I didn’t care that his lips were parched or that he hadn’t brushed his teeth in two weeks. I only watched him kissing me back, something he could do because he was awake!We slowly drifted apart.“Hi,” I whispered, afraid I would start rambling again.“Hi.” He said back to me. We stared deeply at each other, cataloging our features as if afraid we would forget with time.“I missed you.”“I missed you too.”I smiled widely, the first smile I had given in two weeks, and leane
AryanaTwo weeks.Two weeks had passed since Tony and Marcelo returned with an unconscious Alexander, covered in his blood. It’s been two weeks since Alexander promised me everything would be all right, since he promised he would come back. Technically, he didn’t lie. He did come back. Just not the way I had expected. It’s been two weeks since I last heard his voice, Since Alexander was last conscious.I missed him. I missed his voice. I missed his smiles and his grins. I missed seeing his gray eyes. I forgot how warm his embrace was. I missed the feeling of his lips on my body. I missed everything.To think that his last words to me had been to reassure and comfort me, and I couldn’t even tell him that I loved him. That was right. In watching over his prone body for the past two weeks, I came to the realization that I did, in fact, love Alexander. I couldn’t believe it had taken him falling into a coma for me to realize my feelings.How had I been so blind? Why had I continued to dou
Having found out the truth, there was no point in delaying matters. The only reason why Tom had been so successful in beating us down was because of Alfonso. Without Alfonso, what power did Tom have? Tom was already in a tight corner, and seeing how desperate he was to have sent Alfonso to kidnap Aryana, I could sense the end of this pointless war coming to a head.“I should kill you for your betrayal and send you on your way to meet my father, where you will spend your afterlife begging him for forgiveness, but I won’t. Not yet. What you’re going to do now is, you are going to tell Tom that you have Aryana, and he should meet you where we tell you to say. Do you understand?”The resignation was written all over Alfonso’s face. He knew he was done for. He had sealed his fate the day he decided to betray my family.“Are you sure it’ll be fine?” Aryana pulled me aside and asked. “What if he-”“Nothing will happen, I promise you.” I comforted her. “This will be the end, and we’ll finally
AlexanderWhy? I couldn’t believe it. I almost hadn’t wanted to believe it when Felice had taunted the knowledge in my face while kneeling on my feet moments before his death. Seeing my enemy at my feet greatly irritated me, laughing like a mad person instead of cowering and begging like I had wanted him to.Nonetheless, the information struck me like a bolt of lightning. A traitor in our midst had supplied the Saconnes with information about our trade routes so they would know where to hit. The traitor was also responsible for reporting my father’s location. Because of him, my father died. I was filled with rage. We had welcomed that traitor into our midst and had treated him like our family, and he repaid us like this?What pained me the most was who the most likely suspect could be. Marcelo and Tony had discussed this when I told them. We went over different possibilities and clues we could have missed.For the traitor to be reporting my father’s whereabouts meant he was high up in
My eyes widened in surprise.Elio Saconne was one of the brothers of Tom Saconne, the Don of the Saconne family. Marcelo had explained a little about the dynamics of the mafia families. Tom Saconne was the oldest of three brothers. After him were his two younger brothers, Elio and Felice Saconne. Despite how impulsive Tom appeared, it was a known fact that he doted on his brothers though I had doubts on whether he actually doted on them or if it was simply that he let them do whatever they wanted, precisely because he didn’t care about them.Alexander killing Elio meant a ray of sunshine for the Romano family as the war finally turned in their favor. It also told that Alexander was proving himself to his family members. Killing Elio was equivalent to cutting off a limb of the Saconnes. It was good news. I allowed myself to drag my eyes over Alexander and observe his features, spotting no happiness or pride in his feat. It had been quite a long time since I last saw him.I barely see A
AryanaWatching how the men under the Romano family cheered for Alexander settled the unease that had appeared ever since Marcelo told me what was happening. I was aware that this didn’t mean that they had forgiven Alexander. It meant that they would give him a chance to prove himself. I wondered if we hadn’t slept together or if I had allowed him to go back to grab a condom from his car back then, would this have happened? There would have been no need for Alexander to go into hiding. He would have stayed here with his family. His father probably wouldn’t have died, and these men wouldn’t have doubted Alexander’s loyalty to his family.I wished they wouldn’t be harsh on Alexander as it hadn’t been his fault. It wasn’t as if he had wanted to leave. He had argued with his father, but in the end, he’d had no choice but to obey his father’s orders. But I knew that wasn’t how the mafia operated.I watched in curiosity as they went on to perform the ceremony that would mark Alexander as th
“How are your injuries? I heard they’re better.” I changed the topic. I didn’t want to immerse myself in my longing for my father.“It’s getting better. You need not worry.” He patted my shoulder.“I know you need time to think about handling what will happen in a few minutes. I’m sure Tony told you about the displeasure of our men.”My eyebrows slightly furrowed at the words ‘our men,’ but he continued speaking before I could contemplate it. I decided that it must have been a blunder. After all, he was an old family member who served on my father’s side. It must have been a blunder.“I only came to tell you that I am here. I watched you grow from a baby to the man you are. You have my support.”I smiled, thankful for his support. He again gripped my shoulder, momentarily tightening his hold on me before letting go with another smile, exiting the study, and leaving me back to my thoughts.I let my mind wander as the time the men under the Romano banner would arrive slowly grew closer.
AlexanderReturning to Manhattan filled me with so many emotions. Memories of my father slammed strain me with so much force that I stopped in my tracks, earning glances from Tony, Marcello, and Aryana. I waved their concern away and stepped into the building that once housed my father, and meters in arms had arrived this morning to drive Aryana and me back to Manhattan. The ride back had been tense and quiet. The atmosphere between Aryana and me was strained. Since I told her I loved her last night and she didn’t reply, we didn’t know how to act in each other's presence. Even though I said she didn’t need to say it back, it didn’t mean I hadn’t been hurt. I couldn’t understand why she couldn’t say it back.Didn’t she love me? Had I read her emotions wrong? It was clear that she had feelings for me. Was it that her feelings for me were not as deep as mine, or was it too early for her? I scoffed bitterly to myself. It didn’t matter what. I couldn’t force her to return her feelings for