Chapter 36SamanthaI have no idea how much time passes while we kiss, and I don’t care.If I had any doubts about Franco and me, they’re all gone.I’ve never been kissed like this before. It feels like he’s worshiping me. Just as the thought crosses my mind, he ends the kiss and lifts his head.When he looks at me as if I’m his entire world, it makes me feel emotional.My eyes start to shine with unshed tears, and my voice trembles as I say, “No one has ever looked at me the way you do.”Franco keeps his left forearm braced beside my head while his right hand brushes down my side.“That’s because no one has loved you as much as I do.”When he reaches my butt, he caresses my skin before moving down to my thigh and hiking my leg higher over his ass. I feel his cock rub over my clit, and it has heat spreading through me.“You ready, baby?”I nod, but when I see worry in his eyes, I say, “I’m ready for you.” I bring my hand to his jaw and whisper, “Only for you.”Instead of entering me,
Chapter 37FrancoTaking the stairs down to the foyer, I head into the living room, where I find Milo playing a game on his phone.“Samantha is in the main bedroom. No one but you can go up to the third floor,” I order.“Got it.”“If she needs something, she’ll message me, and I’ll let you know. Just leave it outside the bedroom door and knock so she knows it’s there.”Milo nods, then asks, “Are you going to deal with the doctor?” “Yes. Marcello will be with me.”He gets up and goes to sit on a different couch that gives him a view of the stairs.I leave the living room through the sliding doors, and finding Marcello sitting on a chair out on the veranda, I say, “Let’s go.”He darts up and falls in beside me as we head toward the guesthouse.As soon as I walk inside, my men straighten up.Taking the steps down to the bulletproof door, I place my hand over the biometric scanner. The heavy door unlocks, and Marcello pushes it open.Stepping into my armory, I stalk past the cabinets hold
Chapter 38SamanthaEven though I’m exhausted, I can’t fall asleep.Lying on Franco’s bed, I hug one of his pillows to my chest while I think about my life and everything that’s happened.What will the other employees at work think when they hear I’m dating the CEO?Probably that I slept my way to the top.Do I care?No. Not really.I have to call Mom and tell her about Franco. She’s going to be over the moon.Is Todd really gone?How do I feel about that?Pondering the question, I snuggle into the pillow and take a deep breath of Franco’s scent.I hate that things turned out the way they did. If only Todd had accepted our break up.Franco is right, though. Todd doesn’t deserve to live after everything he’s done to me. He’s a monster, and God only knows how many women he’s already hurt.Has Franco killed him already?I wait for the tsunami of emotions to hit, but there’s only relief at the thought that Todd won’t be able to hurt me again.I bring my hand to my neck and wrap my fingers
Chapter 39FrancoI might not have gotten much sleep, but I feel more rested than I have in a long time.Where there was a hollow emptiness in my chest, it’s now brimming with love and happiness.Samantha is imprinted in every fiber of my being.When I walk out of the closet, dressed in a suit, I find my woman sitting on the edge of the bed and staring at her bare legs.She glances up, and a smile tugs at her mouth as she takes in my suit. “You look handsome.”I grip her chin between my pointer finger and thumb, and nudging her face up, I press a kiss to her lips. “Thank you, baby.”When I pull away, she pouts at me. “Feed me. I’m hungry.”I glance at my dress shirt she’s wearing, and the thought of my men seeing her like this fills me with jealousy.But I can’t keep her locked in my room. We need to get some clothes from her apartment.I stalk back into my closet and finding a pair of sweatpants, I take them to her.“Stand up,” I order as I go down on one knee.She obeys and places h
Chapter 40FrancoAfter getting Samantha settled in my place, I head to the armory.It was a good idea to assign Via to her. I feel a hell of a lot better knowing Samantha has a guard with her when I have to take care of business.When I walk into the torture room, it’s to see Todd’s limp body hanging from the shackles.“Are you still alive?” I ask as I move closer.He pries his eyes open and lets out a garbled sound.I glance at Santo and order, “Bring it in.” Turning my eyes to Marcello, I say, “Let the doctor down.”While Marcello frees the man’s wrists from the shackles, Todd lets out a painful groan.Santo and Joey carry a wooden box into the room and place it on the floor.When Todd drops to the floor, he lets out a cry, which makes a smile form on my face.I gesture at the box and order, “Put him in it.”Santo and Joey gather Todd’s broken body off the floor, but when they lower him into the rectangular box, he regains some strength and grabs hold of the sides.“N-no…N-no,” he
Chapter 41FrancoWhen Renzo and the others follow me into the room, Miro’s eyes dart between us from where he’s tied to a chair.With Samantha back at the office, I had the guys come over so we could put our plan in motion.“I can see why he isn’t the head of the Slovak mafia,” Angelo mutters. “Why did he piss himself?”Miro might be older than Ivan, but he doesn’t have the balls to run a criminal organization.I let out a sigh. “Because he’s shit scared.”“We didn’t even slap him around,” Renzo mutters. “Let’s do this,” Damiano orders.I hold out my hand, and Marcello passes me Miro’s phone. When I move closer to Miro, he starts to breathe faster, his eyes growing wide with fear.“What’s the password for your phone?” I ask.“T-three, nine, f-five, five, t-t-two,” he stammers.I unlock the device, and checking the contacts, I find Ivan’s number and press dial.I put the call on speakerphone as I move to stand behind Miro. “Bál som sa!” Ivan snaps.“Your brother is a little preoccupie
Chapter 42SamanthaI place the tray with coffee and cookies on the corner of Franco’s desk, and leaving his office, I take a seat behind my computer.Where was I?I read the last couple of lines, then continue typing the letter I have to send to the bank before ten a.m.“Morning, Miss Blakely,” Franco suddenly mutters before heading into his office.What the hell?I get up from my chair, and following him into the chamber of wrath, I place my hands on my hips and scowl at him. “What was that?”“What?” he asks as he shrugs off his jacket and hangs it over the back of the chair.“Morning, Miss Blakely,” I do my best impersonation of him.He does something weird with his eyes and gives me a chin lift, which only makes me frown more.“You don’t get to be a grumpy asshole anymore,” I say as I walk closer to him, and jabbing my finger in his chest, I continue, “You don’t get to fuck m–”A smile spreads over his face as he interrupts me. “We have company.” “What?”He gestures to the door, a
Chapter 43FrancoWatching Samantha open box after box is a sight to behold.When the men offloaded the truck, she was so happy she actually clapped her hands.“Ohhhh, this is my grandmother’s hand mirror. She got it from her grandmother,” she says with nostalgia coating her words.We’re sitting in the middle of the foyer with her belongings scattered around us. From the looks of things, it will take us a couple of days to unpack and find a spot for everything.She pulls a framed photo from the box and hands it to me so I can see. “This was taken on my first day of school.”I look at the little girl, who’s the cutest child I’ve ever seen. “Why do you have three ponytails?”She shrugs. “Back then, I thought it looked pretty.”When she takes a shoebox out, she grins at me. “Oooh, all the love letters I received.”“Give that to me.” I grab it from her before she can hold it out of my reach, and taking the lid off, I open the first piece of paper. “Your hair looks like candyfloss?” I let
Chapter 30GabriellaWith the wedding date scheduled for next Saturday, we’ve been super busy.Mrs. Accardi’s been an enormous help. Honestly, she’s done most of the work.I got to spend some time with Damiano, but tonight, the other heads of the Cosa Nostra and their partners are coming over, and I’m nervous as hell. I’ve just put on the sheer body suit and high heels when Damiano comes into my walk-in closet. His eyes land on me, and he stops dead in his tracks. “No,” he growls as he slowly starts to shake his head, his expression darkening by the second. “There is no fucking way you’re wearing that infront of the other men.”“Hold on before you burst a vein,” I mutter.I grab the cream jacket out of my closet and put it on. When I fasten the belt, and the fabric spreads out like a short skirt, I say, “See. Everything’s covered.”He stares at me for a while before he says, “Fine. But the fucking jacket stays on at all times.”I walk closer to him, and wrapping my fingers behind his
Chapter 29DamianoEven though I want to spend the entire day in bed with Gabriella, I don’t. The women have been cooped up in the mansion for over a month, and it would be selfish of me not to take them out.Especially now that Miguel’s been dealt with.When I walk into the dining room with Gabriella beside me, Aunt Greta grins at us.Carlo’s sitting where Gabriella used to sit, so she can take the chair to my left.I pull out the chair and wait for her to take a seat before I press a kiss to the top of her head. Walking around the table, I place my hand on Mamma’s shoulder then kiss the scar on her temple.“Morning, everyone,” I murmur as I take my seat.When we’re all done greeting each other, I announce, “We’re going out after breakfast.”Carlo lets out a groan. “Where?”“Wherever the women want to go,” I mutter.“Shopping?” Mamma asks, excitement in her tone. “Christmas is only two weeks away.”Fuck. I forgot about the festive season. “Shopping it is,” I agree.“Forget breakfast,
Chapter 29DamianoEven though I want to spend the entire day in bed with Gabriella, I don’t. The women have been cooped up in the mansion for over a month, and it would be selfish of me not to take them out.Especially now that Miguel’s been dealt with.When I walk into the dining room with Gabriella beside me, Aunt Greta grins at us.Carlo’s sitting where Gabriella used to sit, so she can take the chair to my left.I pull out the chair and wait for her to take a seat before I press a kiss to the top of her head. Walking around the table, I place my hand on Mamma’s shoulder then kiss the scar on her temple.“Morning, everyone,” I murmur as I take my seat.When we’re all done greeting each other, I announce, “We’re going out after breakfast.”Carlo lets out a groan. “Where?”“Wherever the women want to go,” I mutter.“Shopping?” Mamma asks, excitement in her tone. “Christmas is only two weeks away.”Fuck. I forgot about the festive season. “Shopping it is,” I agree.“Forget breakfast,
Chapter 28GabriellaWhen Damiano pulls out of me, I flinch, and it has his eyes snapping to mine.“You okay?”I nod quickly. “Yes. Just sensitive.”He lies down on his back, and when I climb off the bed, his gaze follows me to the bathroom.I quickly clean myself before wetting a washcloth. When I walk back into the room and crawl onto the bed, he takes the washcloth from my hand and throws it on the floor.My eyebrows draw together, then he says, “I don’t want to clean you off me yet.”His possessive tone makes my stomach flutter.Damiano pulls me closer, and when I lie down beside him, his arms wrap around me, and he buries his face in the crook of my neck.Just like earlier, I throw my leg over his and hold him tightly to my body.My fingers trail up and down his back, and I press a kiss to his temple. He lets out a heavy sigh and melts into me.I keep caressing his back, and not even minutes later, his breaths even out as he falls asleep.He smells like rough sex and danger, and
Chapter 27GabriellaI startle awake when I’m picked up off the bed.Grabbing hold of broad shoulders, it takes me a few seconds before I realize Damiano’s carrying me out of my room.“You’re home,” I say, my voice hoarse with sleep. “Hmm…” he grumbles.He stalks into his suite and places me on the bed before he goes to shut the door. The room is dark, but I can see as he comes back to bed.He lies down beside me, then orders, “Turn on your side. Back to me.”I do as I’m told, and when his arms wrap around me, and I feel his face press against the back of my neck, a wide smile spreads over my mouth.I hear him take a deep breath before he lets it out slowly, then his body shudders. An intense energy pours from him, filling the air with tension.“Are you okay?”Not saying anything, he only nods.Needing to hold him, I turn around, and wrapping my arms around his neck, I nudge him to tuck his face beneath my chin.Brushing my hand over his hair, I press a kiss to his temple. His arms ti
Chapter 26DamianoMy phone starts to ring, and seeing Dario’s name on the screen, I answer, “You better have good news for me. My men killed the fucking uncle.”“Miguel’s in Miami.” I can hear the relief in his voice, and it finds an echo in my chest.“Wheels up in thirty minutes,” I order. “Let the others know we’re meeting at the airfield.”“On it.”Ending the call, I lock eyes with Carlo. “Dario found Miguel. The fucker’s in Miami.”Climbing to his feet, he says, “Let’s go.”As I walk out of the lounge, I signal for Vito and Emilio to join us.When they catch up to us, I mutter, “Get a group of men to meet us at the airfield. I want them heavily armed. We’re attacking Miguel.”“Got it, boss,” Emilio says, immediately pulling out his phone to make the call.We hurry out of the club, and once we’re all in the SUV, Carlo starts the engine. “Fucking finally.”“You can say that again,” I mutter, more than ready to put an end to Miguel.I haven’t been home in two weeks, and I’m exhauste
Chapter 25GabriellaWith my lips parted, I watch as bag after bag of clothes is carried into the foyer.Holy crap.“Did we really order so much?” I ask.“I added a couple of items I thought you might like,” Mrs. Accardi says.Caro Dio.“Should I take the clothes to your suite, Miss di Bella?” Martha asks. “Or do you want me to wash them first?”“They’ve already been dry cleaned,” Savannah, Mrs. Accardi’s personal shopper, informs us. “My team can pack the clothes in your closet. Just show them the way.”Martha leads the team up the stairs, and all I can do is shake my head.“Damiano is going to lose his shit when he sees how many clothes I got,” I whisper under my breath.“No, he won’t,” Aunt Aida says. “As his fiancée, you always have to look your best.”Still.My thoughts turn to Damiano, who hasn’t been home in over a week. “I’ll be right back,” I say before I head up the stairs.Walking into my bedroom, I hear the staff work in the closet. I grab my phone and quickly leave so I d
Chapter 24DamianoDressed in black cargo pants, a long-sleeved shirt, a coat, and boots, I tuck my Glock behind my back as I leave my suite.As I take the stairs down to the first floor, my phone starts to buzz like crazy.I dig the device out of my pocket, and a dark frown forms on my forehead as I answer, “What?”“The hotel is on fire!” Emilio shouts, sirens blaring in the background. Anger explodes in my chest, my fingers tightening around the phone. “Fuck,” I mutter. “I’m on my way.”“Carlo!” My voice thunders through the foyer.He comes running out of my mother’s sitting room. “What?”“The hotel is on fucking fire,” I relay the message to him as I stalk toward the French doors. When I step out onto the veranda, I mutter, “You’ll have to fly.”“On it.” He runs ahead of me to start the helicopter.When I climb inside, I glance at the house and see Gabriella standing on her balcony. She’s only wearing a bathrobe, and it’s freezing outside.I yank my phone out, but not remembering t
Chapter 23GabriellaWhen I wake up, it takes a moment to make sense of my surroundings.I become aware of Damiano’s arms wrapped tightly around me, my back pressed to his chest. He’s holding me the same way I hold my pillow when I sleep.With his face pressed to the back of my neck, his breaths warm my skin. One of his legs is thrown over mine, and his manhood is hard and big against my butt.I had sex with Damiano.After the first memory hits, they all pour into my mind. The shooting lessons.Damiano hugging me.The nightmare, and him comforting me. Experiencing my first orgasm.My thoughts stop on the memory, and my lips curve up.When Damiano kept rubbing his cock against me, it made me feel so much pleasure it was overwhelming.I remember everything when he took my virginity. The look on his face. The way his body moved. The pain as he kept thrusting until he found his own pleasure in my body.Even though it hurt a lot, I’d do it a million times to see that hot look on his face a