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
ADRIAN “You’re mine. You are not allowed to break up with me,” Giovanni growled against my lips, kissing me viciously.Damn!He's still angry because of what I said.Giovanni grabbed my ass, lifting me up and threw me on the kitchen aisle. My legs voluntarily wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer to me.His erection pressing roughly against mine, making me groaned out into his mouth."Gin, can you please just... Mmph!" I cried out when he tugged on my lower lip and bit it really hard.I could almost feel his teeth melting together and warm liquid pricked down my jaw.Fuck!Is that blood?I grabbed Giovanni's broad shoulders and tried pushing him off me. "Gin, I think I'm bleeding..."I didn't get to finish my words before Giovanni bit hard on my lower lip again. On the same spot, groaning like a wounded animal."Shut up." He grunted, nibbling and sucking on my lips. I could taste blood in my mouth, and something told me it was my blood."Please... Please slow down." I pleaded
ADRIAN I wrapped my arms around Giovanni's neck as he carried me to our bedroom. Different thoughts were running through my mind as he walked inside and closed the door behind us.I still found it difficult to believe that Carlos had once had a thing with one of the Marino brothers –worse, Nikola Marino.I wanted to call Giovanni a liar because, not in a million years, would I have thought Carlos would have had a history with the family. But the state we found Nikola and Carlos in earlier was just too intimate to suggest that what Giovanni had said couldn't be true.I thought I knew everything about Carlos because he was my friend, and he told me everything going on with me. But why did he hid the fact that he had once dated Nikola Marino from me? Could it be that he thought it didn't matter? Or could there be a secret about the whole dating thing that he was trying to protect, something he wasn't comfortable enough to share with me?Seriously? Is Carlos in trouble? Do I need to be
GIOVANNI I stepped toward my brother, meeting his gaze head-on. Marcelo groaned and tossed his hands up, bowing out of our silent battle."Giovanni, let the kid be." Nikola hissed, standing up from the floor. "And you, Marcelo," he said, and then turned to look at our brother who had his lips pressed together. "The next time you point your gun at me, I'll kill you.""Whatever, I'm just trying to save your ass from being kicked, okay?" Marcelo grumbled, throwing his gun on the couch before disappearing into my bar.One of these days, I'll have that bastard stock my bar."Are you okay?" Adrian asked, rushing over to me. I had almost forgotten he had was here with us.His face hardened when he saw my bruised cheek.God.I fucking hate myself for letting him see me like this."I told you to stay upstairs but chose not to listen. You are a brat, aren't you?" I smirked, tugging at his cheek."Hey, I was worried your brother is going to kill you." He rolled his eyes, pressing his thumb agai
GIOVANNI "I'm out!" Nikola said, sounding exasperated.Marcelo fumed yanking Nikola up by his collar and looked around before tossing him a deadly glare."The fuck you mean?" He barked, I could see his hands trembling from where I sat. "You wanna spare that fucker after he fucked you over?"Nikola stared at me for a few seconds, giving me a confused glare before he yanked Marcelo's hands off his shirt and sighed. "You don't know shit, Marc. Killing Dad shouldn't even be on your list.""You think if I have a way I wouldn't have killed that bastard long ago?" Marcelo said as he took a seat. Fuming in his seat like a thick cloud."Seriously, Niko?" I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest.I thought we were all on the same page, I can't believe he would bail out on the mission even before we finalised it.“Is that necessary?” Nikola asked through gritted teeth.Is breathing necessary? I blinked slowly at him before clenching my fists against Adrian's hips."You both know Benedetto is t
ADRIAN I couldn't shake off the question that had been lingering in my head ever since the Marino brothers had that meeting earlier: what had driven their father's deep-seated hatred towards them? I couldn't understand it. I would be a bad liar if I say I have the best relationship with my father, but it wasn't so bad to the point I would be planning his death. This family was far messed up than I had thought. I wanted to know why it was like that. I couldn't get my mind off the three brothers conversation and it was messing with my mind. They even wanted to get my father involved. "This is stupid. My father hates them," I groaned out, staring at Giovanni's broad back as he did the dishes we had used for dinner. He was acting like nothing happened. As if planning to fuck their father over was a normal thing people do. "Baby," Giovanni suddenly called out to me, making me snapped out of my thought. I didn't know how long I'd zoned out for, but when I snapped back to reality,
ADRIAN When I asked Giovanni to tell me more about himself, I never really expected his story to be so heart-wrenching.I had always thought being a mobster was the life he chose, but I never really considered that he had no say in the person he wanted to become. His future had been decided from the day he was born into the family. He wasn't born for himself, but was born and raised for the organisation.All the bad things he said the organisation made him do at a young age were the most depressing. How could anyone starve and beat up a twelve-year-old boy just because he refused to torture an innocent person?Giovanni told me how he was forced to watch people die in the underground torture room where he was held for a year. In an attempt to break him and mold him into one of them, he was ordered to torture people, effectively stripping him of his innocence. Each time he refused, people were killed, and he was forced to witness their gruesome deaths.I knew he wasn't a good person; G
GIOVANNI I wasn't at all surprised when Adrian's demeanor turned cold immediately that night, upon mentioned of him returning to school.I had read his profile so many times that I knew he didn't have a college degree. I couldn't help but wonder why, especially since his brother was nearing graduation and seemed to be doing well.I knew Adrian wanted to say something to me, but he forced out a smile and said he'd think about it. I was tempted to press for an explanation about why he dropped out of college, especially since financial struggles seemed unlikely given his father's wealth. However, I decided to hold back. If he felt comfortable enough to share his struggles with his family regarding his sexuality, I trusted that he'd eventually open up about why he left college when he was ready.I wanted to be someone he could always turn to. Someone he could trust and rely on. I don't want to be like his family who made him think less of himself.It had been three days since we had tha
ADRIAN "What are you doing here?" I demanded, my mind reeling as I closed the distance between us. My breath hitched as I took in the toxic smoke from his cigarette, the acrid smell burning my lungs.Benedetto Marino casually shrugged one shoulder, his fingers scratching behind Peaches' ear. "To see you," he replied, his tone nonchalant."Let go of those cats, now!" I gritted out, my eyes narrowing as I watched him touch my pets. His hands seemed to be lingering on their fur, and I felt a surge of possessiveness.Benedetto raised an eyebrow, slowly releasing the cats. They darted away, seeking refuge in the kitchen. It was as if the cats could also sense the danger emanating from him, their instincts warning them to flee from his presence."What?" he scoffed. "I'm not going to hurt them.""I don't trust you," I hissed, my fingers pinching my nose shut to block out the foul smell of the cigarette smoke.Benedetto smirked, leaning backward as he planted his arms on the armrests of th
ADRIAN It had been over eight agonizing hours since I received that frantic call from my brother. The sound of his panicked voice still echoed in my mind, followed by the deafening silence that had left me shattered. I had been desperately trying to call him back, my fingers flying across the keypad as I dialed his number repeatedly, but my calls had been met with the impersonal automated voice of his voicemail. Each failed attempt had escalated my anxiety, my heart racing with every passing minute.I'm not insane. I'm not fucking insane. That was the mantra I'd been repeating since I left home, the words echoing in my mind like a desperate prayer. I'd chanted them to myself like a lifeline, clinging to sanity as the world around me spiraled out of control. But as the hours ticked by, the words began to lose their potency. The silence was suffocating, and the darkness closing in around me was starting to seep into my soul.For real, I think I'm losing my grip on reality now. Th
GIOVANNI Nikola's voice thundered through the empty hall, his phone pressed firmly against his ear. "Where the fuck are you?" He paced in circles, his heavy boots pounding against the concrete floor. His finger bit into his lip, a mixture of anxiety and frustration etched on his face. "These fucking calls keep going straight to voicemail. What the hell is going on with that stupid boy?" He barked, glaring at me. "Got anything yet?""No," I said, groaning. I pulled my phone away from my ear, and let out a frustrated sigh. "The boys can't get a lock on his location."Nikola's anger boiled over. "What about his phone? They should be able to track the damn thing!" He kicked a table, his foot stomping down on it as he unleashed his rage. I watched him, hesitant to intervene. If I stood up, I would be tempted to find something to punch too. But I knew I had to stay in control. Both Nikola and I couldn't afford to lose our cool at the same time."They can't track his phone," I grumbled,
ADRIAN It had been a week since my encounter with my father, and surprisingly, he hadn't done as much as sending me a message or calling my phone since then.I was partly happy, knowing I had finally put him in his place. But somehow, I couldn't shake off the uneasiness that was eating away at me deep inside. Something didn't feel right. My father wouldn't have given up on his threat that easily unless he was up to something. I wondered what he was planning.I should have informed Giovanni about how my father tracked me down to find me at Grace's apartment. I shouldn't have kept it a secret from him.I still had no idea how my father discovered my location that night, and it worried me. What if he had put a tail on me? What if... What if he had been watching me all along and I had been oblivious to my surroundings? What if, because of me, Giovanni ended up in danger?"I can't let that happen. I should call Giovanni." I breathed out and reached for my phone. My finger hovered over
Hi! I'm excited to share my new M/M romance novel with you. Please take a look! ❤️Title: Steaming the RoseGenre: MM Mafia romance Forced Proximity Childhood sweetheart BLURB "I can't do this anymore!" Easton cried, trying to break free from the man who had him pinned to the bed by his throat. ''It's been six years, Ilya! Six fucking years of abuse. When am I going to be free from you?""Does it look like you have any choice?" Ilay smirked coldly. He produced his knife, wanting to carve his name into Easton's heart, so that every time Easton looked in the mirror, he'd know who he belonged to."You either obey my every command, or watch as I ruin every last bit of the reputation you've toiled tirelessly to build. Don't push me too hard, East, or I'll unleash a storm that will render you breathless and begging for mercy and it won't be cute."As a pop star, Easton Reese had everything he had always hoped for: money, luxurious lifestyle, fame, and fans all across the globe wh
ADRIAN It had been over three weeks since my mother was laid to rest, and I was surprised to find that life was slowly healing. The ache in my heart still lingered, but glimpses of happiness began to peek through the cracks. It wouldn't have been possible to get through it all alone without Giovanni in my life.Giovanni had taken it upon himself to be my happiness guardian, and he excelled at it. He went out of his way to do the most thoughtful, random things that would catch me off guard and leave me beaming. Like surprising me with my favorite smoothie in the morning, or leaving sweet notes around the penthouse for me to find. It was as if he had a sixth sense for knowing exactly what I needed to brighten my day.As I thought about all the little things he did for me, my heart swelled with gratitude. I wished I knew how to repay him for everything he'd done, for being my rock, my safe haven. But Giovanni never asked for anything in return; he just smiled and told me that seeing m
GIOVANNI Adrian was awfully quiet as I drove off the property. Although it was already getting dark and the moon was rising, Adrian gazed out the window, his eyes fixed on the passing trees and bushes. He didn't pay me any attention, his silence a heavy presence in the car.Although he had just lost his mother and was likely preoccupied with grief, I was selfishly consumed by thoughts of our relationship. I couldn't help but wonder if I had damaged our relationship by giving in to his request earlier.Should I have refused? Should I have simply said no and taken him home instead? My head was reeling with conflicting thoughts and doubts running through my mind. I was unaware that Adrian had been staring at me, his gaze fixed on my clenched fist gripping the steering wheel, until he spoke up. "Relax your grip on that thing, or you're going to break it.""Oh," I let out a nervous laugh as I relaxed my grip on the steering wheel, stealing a quick glance at him. When our eyes met, I has
ADRIAN I felt an unrelenting emptiness inside, a hollowness that echoed through every fiber of my being. I was shattered, broken into a million pieces, and I had lost all sense of what it meant to be happy. The memory of joy felt like a distant, fading whisper, a fleeting glimpse of a feeling I would never know again.In that moment, I was consumed by the crushing weight of my own fragility. I was a puzzle with missing pieces, a canvas torn apart, a soul fragmented beyond recognition. It felt as if nothing in this world had the power to heal me, to mend the fractures that ran so deep. Every glimmer of hope seemed extinguished, leaving only an endless, desolate landscape of agony.The pain of being in my mother's presence yet unable to feel her was like a dagger piercing deep into my heart. My eyes burned with unshed tears, and warm droplets continued to stream down my face like a dam burst. I gripped my mother's gravestone so tightly that a sharp pain shot through both my palms. B
ADRIAN "Boyfriend?" The word dripped from my father's lips, his disgust rolling off him in waves as he stared at Giovanni in utter disbelief. The punch seemed to be the last thing on his mind; he was incensed by Giovanni's revelation. "Are you dating him?"Giovanni remained silent, his expression stunned as he met my father's hard gaze. Clearly, he had been expecting a different reaction from my father, but the question had caught him off guard.What was he expecting?For my father to pull out his gun from his coat inner pocket and shoot him? "Is it true?" my father asked no one in particular, his voice trembling slightly. For the first time in twenty-three years, I saw a flicker of fear in his eyes as he wrestled himself free from Giovanni's grasp and stepped in front of me.Giovanni made to step closer, but I shook my head, stopping him. I could handle this. "Son?" my father barked, his anger evident as he startled me. He seized my shoulders, his grip like a vice, and shoved me b