ADRIAN "No." Carlos yelled, banging his fists on the table. Shaking his head. "I don't need his help.""What?" I gasped, frowning my face. "Why?"Confused. I was very confused as to why Carlos would declined my offer of asking Giovanni to help us, when he was clearly the only one who could help us."That bastard wanted me gone. If it wasn't because of you, he would have killed me right fucking there." He snapped, jabbing his fingertips against the furniture.Right. Carlos was fucking right. But Giovanni wouldn't have threatened to kill him if his father hadn't injected him in the first place. It was because of his father that we were in that position Giovanni caught us in.Sighing, I grabbed my hair and gave it a light pull. "Trust me on this, Carlos. He was only pissed for seeing that, he didn't mean to pull out his gun on you.""Still. He wouldn't want to help someone like me after what he witnessed. I'm sure of it." Carlos insisted, wrapping his arms over his chest."Giovanni love
ADRIAN As I paced back and forth, I found myself mindlessly nibbling on my thumbnail. Different thoughts running through my head at a time.Carlos was sitting quietly on one of the tables, his head bowed down, and his hands pressed gently together on top of the table.Both Tobi and Grace were behind the counter, staring at us with so much intensity, neither of them saying anything.I had my eyes fixated on the entrance door, my legs trembled as I kept pacing back and forth, waiting for Nikola Marino to get here.I am stupid!I am so fucking stupid!"Shit! I should have just ended the call when I heard his voice. I should have just told him it was a wrong call, why did I even asked him for help?" I grumbled, mentally cursing at myself as I wondered what I was going to say to Nikola when he gets here.I can barely stay in the same room as him; I can barely breathe the same air as him. So how am I possibly going to sit across from Nikola, look him straight in the eyes, and tell him I ne
ADRIAN I didn’t give a shit about what I was doing anymore. All my mind had been on Carlos and I didn't care if I was messing up with work and that Noah had gotten me out of trouble, twice, tonight."The fuck! Keep your eyes open, you idiot! Don't spill that cheap drink on me!" Someone barked at me, and I felt a strong hand yanking me backward with my shirt.I didn't know who the person was, but I didn't really seem to care enough to make me turn around to check. I was far up in my head that nothing else seemed to interest me at the moment but to know where Carlos was and how he was doing."I'm so sorry, sir, my friend is not feeling too well. I'm sorry for the mess." I heard Noah rambled behind me, and when I snapped out of my head and turned to face him, he was already on his knees cleaning up after my mess.Shit!I have just made another mess and Noah had yet again saved my ass for the third time, tonight."I... I'm so sorry," I gulped, my legs quivered beneath me when the man loo
GIOVANNI I had been sitting here for two solid hours, waiting for that damned fed to take the bait. Honestly, I had started to doubt he would show up. But I had made sure Dominic sent him a cryptic message, anonymous but intriguing enough to pique his interest. I knew he wouldn't be able to resist.My lips curved into a tight smirk when I saw Price Russell walking through the door and the hotel manager closed the door behind him.I remained seated, my gaze fixed intently on him. I couldn't help but notice the uncanny resemblance to my boyfriend. The same brown hair, big brown eyes, and defined cheekbones. The only distinction lay in the texture of their hair. Price Russell's was straight and styled back, while Adrian's was curly and often fell across his forehead.“You won’t mind being searched, would you?” Price said, walking towards me with so much authority.Fucking show off!“Thought you weren’t worried about me killing you.” I grinned, crossing my arms over my chest.Price Rus
NIKOLA I stared at the computer screen. The text cursor blinked back at me, but I had no idea what I was doing. My head was too fucked up to focus. Today is the worst day of my life. Not when my supposed boyfriend landed my ass in prison, not even when my father asked them to keep me locked up for however long he wants, until they could set me free. Not even when father forced me to watch as his men took mother's life and made me lie to my brothers that it was an accident. Not when the damn monster I called father taught my brothers and I how to dissect human bodies for the first time. No, it had to be today. Today had to be the worst day of my life. I never really expected to run into my ex boyfriend today. No, I never really wanted to see him ever again. I had no one else to blame for my actions but myself. I never should have gone there because of Adrian Price. I hated that bastard too. Him and his damned father, so why did I have to go, thinking he was in danger?
CARLOS I braced myself for the inevitable. The moment I opened the door to the secret I had been holding back for months, I was prepared for what Nikola would do to me. The onslaught of music from the clubhouse downstairs wasn't supposed to be this audible, but my senses were heightened by fear, making me acutely aware of every sound, no matter how faint; the thumping bass, the muffled voices, the creaking of the old wooden floorboards. "It was your father I always snuck out to meet." The words left my parted lips and I wished I could take them back but it was already too late. "What the fuck did you just say?" Nikola growled, making me jump back in fright. He was already out of his seat before I could even blink my eyes and he had me pressed against the wall. His large hands wrapping around my neck, his thumbs pressing against my throat, cutting through my airway. I couldn't breathe properly and I could see my life flashing before my eyes in a slow motion. It hurt so muc
NIKOLA "What was it that you saw?" The words tumbled out of my mouth. Every muscle in my body tensed as I braced myself for the answer, my mind recoiling at the prospect of hearing something I would rather not know.I had a multitude of dirty secrets about me stacked up in my secret files. Some were so incriminating that I wondered which ones Michael had stumbled upon. I had never hidden who I truly was from him, but the thought of him seeing those videos made my stomach churn.I shouldn't have taken those videos in the first place, I thought I could use them against father. I was stupid, I would never be a match for him.I blinked as I turned to stare at Michael. He looked at me, his nervous eyes darting back and forth before he slowly dragged his mouth open. The tension in the air was thick."You... You were brutally killing a man, a cop. I... I wanted to hate you after what I saw. I wished I could hand over the USB drive to Qiang, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. You saved me
ADRIAN I stood frozen, as if the air had been knocked out of me, my eyes fixed on the unbelievable sight before me.I was so scared before coming here, thinking something bad must have happened to Carlos. I had to forced Giovanni to bring me here, threatening to break up with him if he didn't provide his brother, telling him Nikola had kidnapped my best friend.But the sight before me proved me wrong. It didn't seem like Carlos' life was being threatened by any chance.Carlos hiding behind Nikola wasn't exactly what I had expected to walk into. It seemed they were much closer than I thought. This newfound discovery made me wonder: did Carlos have a connection with the Marino brothers that he had kept hidden from me?"Is that him?" Giovanni asked, he genuinely seemed confused just like I was.Nikola didn't say anything, all he did was tightened his grip on Carlos, it was as if he was protecting him from his brother.But why?Why would he have to protect Carlos from us when we were her
Before starting this book, I had my doubts. Writing in the Mafia genre and MM romance was new to me, and I worried I'd fuck it up. But to my surprise, you all showed up and supported me.Thank you to everyone who took the time to read, comment, vote, and gift this book. With only thirty chapters left, I'm feeling a pang of sadness knowing we're nearing the end.Although this isn't my first book, you all have made it an incredibly enjoyable experience. I'm proud to say this is my favorite book so far.I hope y'all will stay with me until the end and see this story through to its conclusion. Thank you again for your love and support. I love you all so very much! ❤️🫶
GIOVANNI "They've got the file, boss," Dominic said, approaching me cautiously and positioning himself beside me, while maintaining a respectful distance.I nodded, turning to face Nikola, whose expression revealed an unsettling inner struggle, as if he was fighting with his own demons."The boys got the file, now what?" I asked, eyeing him."I told you," Antonio coughed, spitting out blood as he struggled to speak. He looked almost lifeless, his chest battered and bruised. "I... I wasn't lying about the file," he gasped, his voice barely above a whisper.I waited for over thirty seconds, expecting Nikola to say something, anything. But when he remained silent, showing no signs of reaction or issuing orders to dig Antonio out of the ground, I slowly exhaled a deep breath.Maybe he didn't want to be the one who make the order?"Dominic," I called, my eyes never leaving my brother."Yes, boss!""Get the shovel," I ordered, but before Dominic could even flinch, Nikola sprang to his feet
GIOVANNI "I've dropped the guys off," Marcelo's voice rumbled through the phone. "They're all fine, except for Carlos. He wouldn't stop crying." "Okay, good job." I let out a deep grunt before ending the call.I pocketed my phone, pulled out a pack of my favorite cigarettes, and extracted one. I placed the stick between my lips, brought out a lighter, and lit the cigarette."Should I tell you what?" I said, craning my neck to stare at my brother, who was busy playing with the tip of his knife; his head was hung low, and his shoulders were tensed in rage.Nikola moved his head up, glaring at me. "Not now, Giovanni. I'm not ready for your shit.""Oh, I bet you do." I argued, removing the cigarette from my mouth. I inhaled the toxic smoke into my lungs, tipped my head back, and puffed out smoke.I shut my eyes, letting the incident from the restaurant replay in my head. The look on Adrian's face as he knelt down beside Xiong's body scared the hell out of me. It almost felt like he was
ADRIAN Was I pathetically lonely? Or did I seriously have a death wish?I wondered which was the correct answer as I stared at Nikola from where I sat. Running away from them all was the only intelligent decision, and yet my feet were planted on the floor. And my butt stayed glued to my seat. Too scared to even blink my eyes.I watched, my gaze flicking towards the commotion, as the man stumbled backward, desperately trying to escape Nikola's wrath. But Nikola was relentless, grabbing a fistful of the man's hair and yanking him back with a strong jerk. The man's body arced through the air, his limbs flailing wildly, before he crashed to the floor, landing with a sickening thud next to my seat."Shit," the man cursed, groaning in agony as he propped his palms on the floor, attempting to drag himself away. But his bleeding leg, the one Nikola had shot, throbbed with excruciating pain, making every inch of movement a difficult one for him.The wounded leg was bleeding profusely, and if
ADRIAN "Please, just go away." A whimper came again from the next stall, and this time I was sure the voice I was hearing belonged to Carlos.Panic settled in the pit of my stomach as I slammed the faucet shut and frantically scanned the bathroom, searching for something - anything - I could use to defend Carlos against his attacker.My insides twisted into a knot as my eyes landed on a fire extinguisher resting beside the door. I rushed for it, grabbed it, and burst out of the bathroom. My heart pounded heavily in my chest as I kicked the next bathroom stall open and tightened my grip on the fire extinguisher."What the...?" Carlos screamed, his eyes widening in terror as he gripped the sink. His expression transformed from fear to relief when he saw me standing there, fire extinguisher in hand. "Oh, God, you scared me," he exclaimed, his voice shaking slightly.I ignored him for the moment, rushing into the bathroom to check for any intruders. But to my surprise, Carlos was alone,
ADRIAN I hated to admit it, but the thought of Giovanni killing the hostess for flirting with him - something that made me intensely uncomfortable - filled me with a disturbing sense of justification. I found myself thinking she deserved it if Giovanni ended up killing her. Even though it wasn't right to wish death upon anyone just because of a stupid reason like that, I still can't help the thought.Hadn't she heard of the word "gay"? And did she really think Giovanni was too good for me and that she could replace me?Unluckily for her, he doesn't like pussy. Giovanni loved my flat chest and my sweet ass hole.What a fucking joke!"Over there." The hostess said, breaking through my thought. She was pointing to a large table against a wall where the guys were sitting.Nikola whispered something into Carlos' ear, and Carlos giggled at whatever his boyfriend was telling him. Across from them, Marcelo sat stealing glances at T-Jay, whose face was buried in his phone as he typed away on
ADRIAN "No more," I breathed out, my chest heaving heavily. I grabbed Giovanni's shoulders, pushing him back a little, and shook my head. "I can't go again.""Why not?" He frowned, grabbing my thighs and repositioned me for easy access. Giovanni tried slipping his monster cock into my pulsing ass but I kicked his gut, clenching my ass."I really can't." I groaned, wrapping my hands on my stomach. It hurt so much."Okay," Giovanni sighed, relaxing his face. "If you're tired, just lay here and relax for me. I'll take care of everything by myself.""No! Wait!" I gasped, feeling his erection poking my ass, seeking entrance into my throbbing hole.I'm really not going to live long at this rate. I'm going to die from sex, and my father will make sure to write 'death by sex' on my tombstone.Only if my father doesn't assume it's Giovanni who killed me. I mean, if he fucks me to death, then he literally killed me."You're starving me, baby." Giovanni grunted, dropping his weight on me, maki
ADRIAN My eyes remained fixed on Giovanni's hands gripping the steering wheel as he drove. I wasn't intentionally ogling the thick veins on his long, hairy hands, or the way his long fingers flexed around the posh wheel, but I needed to focus my gaze somewhere to avoid staring at his face.Me staring directly into his eyes meant I was horny and I want to have his dick shove far up in my ass. I swear, that was his words, not mine.If I didn't love my life, I might actually consider letting him fuck me senseless again after what we did just a few hours ago. Only that I love my life and I didn't want to see just the mere sight of his cock coming close to me.Only if it were up to me, I would keep Giovanni at arm's length for the next two months. Telling him to fuck himself if he even try to talk sex language to me because I don't wanna hear it.I could still feel his cock ramming into me, taking me like he hated me. Only that he didn't actually fucked me like that because he hated me, b
GIOVANNI Adrian stubbornly refused to reveal the man's identity, but it seemed he had underestimated me. Locating individuals was second nature to me, a fundamental aspect of our line of work. I had an extensive network of resources and contacts at my disposal, and I knew it wouldn't take me long to uncover who the bastard was.Just a few hours and my boys already found out the name of the man he was desperately trying to protect.I should be pissed that Adrian was trying to protect another man who wasn't me, but I decided to let it go.Once I am done with the fucker, he will learn never to mess with me again.I wasn't the least bit surprised when Dominic revealed that the man in question was that damn firefighter from before.Suddenly, it all came flooding back - how he had persistently pursued Adrian, despite my explicit warnings to keep his distance. His audacity was staggering, and I couldn't help but wonder what drove him to continue pursuing someone who was clearly off-limits.