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Chapter Thirty-Seven

Author: Bee Diaz
last update Last Updated: 2023-01-04 04:35:27

Dinner with Gustavo was everything I expected it to be.

His witty character always entertains me, and Enzo’s scene is forgotten as the night progresses. He tells me stories about his past, how he grew up as a child. His mother was still alive, and Antonia wasn't such a brat, which makes me think that perhaps, she isn't as young as I presumed. If Gustavo is around thirty, then she must be twenty-five at least, which means she's older than me.

It's been a while since I've enjoyed a meal and I'm very grateful for his presence. Without him, I don't know what would become of me. He insisted that I have a starter, a main course, and then dessert. Everything was delicious, from the fried courgette salad to the tiramisu. I savored every bite. When it was time to leave, I felt sorry. Having to return to the Puglia home is the worst feeling ever. I wish this night would never end, but like all good things, it does.

I'm forced to think of everything Enzo has said and done tonight as we near t
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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Thirty-Eight

    "You look absolutely beautiful, by the way,” Gustavo says to me on our way down the stairs.I flash him a small smile. "Thank you for the compliment." Even though I accepted his invitation to be his company for the evening, I'm not pleased with this. How can I, when I'll have to be around Giotto? He's the bane of my existence. I was hoping that I wouldn’t have to see his ridiculous face tonight, but he made sure that I should. Perhaps he knew what we were both up to. The guests are laughing and in one large group when we finally get to the living area. Giotto is amongst them, and Natalia is by his side. Unabashedly. As we near the group, a man who notices us clears his throat suggestively, and everyone turns to stare at us. I pause, but Gustavo drags me along. We join the circle and I end up standing beside the man who cleared his throat. I can feel his eyes on me, but I don't acknowledge him. He says, "And who might this be?" "Is she your girlfriend, Gustavo?" A woman across us a

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Thirty-Nine

    I pace around my bedroom, fuming.I wish I could wrap my hands around that spoiled brat's neck. She really thinks the world revolves around her. I'm so angry that I could spontaneously combust. She deliberately made me look weak and clumsy. I'll get her back for this. One way or another. It’s not that I’m bothered that I fell in front of all those people, who know the worst about me. It’s that she thinks that she can get away with anything because she’s Giotto’s daughter. It’s disgusting to me how someone can be so immature, and senseless. Gustavo s watching me with his arms crossed. "You're going to wear a hole in the carpet. Just calm down.""Your sister is a bitch!""I know."I stop and run my hands through my hair. I want to say more, a lot more, but I bite my tongue. Despite everything, she's still his sister. Also, I should say all this to her face, not to him. He doesn't deserve my anger. Although I am upset that he didn't tell me about my grandfather's attacks. "I'm sorry,"

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty

    We get to a new place. I assumed we would be going back to his house, but I was wrong. Enzo parks the car in front of a small apartment building. He takes the suitcase out of the car and drags it inside. I walk a short distance behind him. He's in one of those dark moods again, I'm not 100% sure why. After he threw the present that Gustavo gave me out the window, we rode in absolute silence. I was seething—of course I was. He had no right to act so irrationally and throw away something that was mine. And him asking whether I was having sex with him was grotesquely out of line. I was there a week, what made him assume that I would do such a thing? He must have a very low opinion of me and that hurts, I won't lie to myself. It shouldn't, but it does. He’s disrespectful, and I’ve had enough of it. A few men at the reception greet him. They don't look like porters, they look like gangsters. They're wearing suits. He doesn't answer them, but they don't seem to mind either. They're on t

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty-One

    Enzo leaves in the morning, but he leaves me a message. I can take one of his capos—strange, because he's a capo himself—to take me out. He's even left a card for me to use. Now, I don't intend on using it, but it will be great to go out into the world and see people. I've been trapped, caged, for too long.I get ready, and I make an effort. I dress into something comfortable, but presentable. When I walk out of the room, there's a man in the living room. He's one of the men I saw yesterday in the reception. He introduces himself, "Good morning, miss. I'm Vito. Enzo has asked me to accompany you to the city. When do we leave?"I get in the backseat of his car. I take in all the sights around me, not only because they are remarkable, but because I'm trying to find out where the hell I am. Maybe there'll be a name somewhere, but I don't recognize any of the neighborhoods. Or street names. This mall is different from the one I was at with Enzo, so is this another city? Another part of t

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty-Two

    I can't sleep. I can't eat. I can't think.Some days, I'm convinced that I truly saw my sister, that the whole encounter wasn't just a figment of my desperate imagination. Other days, I think I'm going crazy. There's no way my sister—my Lia—would've looked at me so coldly. Is she mad at me, wherever she is? That I, who never cared about the beauty of life, got to survive and she didn't? She had so many aspirations, a desperate will to live. And Giotto crushed it beneath his expensive designer shoe. It’s unfair, and I’ll never stop thinking this way. The pain will never go away. I might lock it away some days, but it will always come back to haunt me. Enzo leans against the doorframe and watches me. I pull the covers up to my face. If he's looking for something to fight about, I'm not up for it today. He clears his throat and says, "There's dinner in the kitchen.""I'm not hungry."After a few seconds, he rips the duvet from the bed. I sit up and sigh in frustration. "What's the mat

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty-Three

    I can't fall asleep. I glance at the clock and it's only half past ten. Enzo said that if he isn't back by midnight, Aurelio is supposed to take my someplace else. I don't know if that's good or bad. Surely he doesn't mean Giotto’s home again, but I'm paranoid. I'm almost certain that he'll take me back there. What choice will he have? If he dies, Giotto’s plan won't die along with him. Does that mean I'll have to get engaged to someone else? Another one of his capos? Just thinking about it is giving me the chills. I catch myself praying to God for Enzo’s safety, then I stop. Then, I continue. Right now, he needs to be safe. At least until he kills Giotto. I need to be free of Luigi, and that won't happen if Enzo dies. I glance at the clock. Thirty minutes practically flew by. I'm afraid. He needs to get here before midnight. The bedroom door swings open. I sit up hurriedly and see Enzo enter the room. He looks fine, but I immediately see the blood on the side of his head. Otherwi

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty-Four

    Last night.I'm deeply ashamed. That kiss should never have happened. Never. The kiss at the motel was different. It was brief and I was genuinely disgusted by it. The thought of kissing him was absurd, like something out of a nightmare. Last night was different. I felt the opposite of what I felt in that stupid motel room.I wanted it. I kissed him back with a passion that makes me want to dig a hole deep enough for me to climb in and disappear from the face of the earth. I held him like a lover. The memory of his tongue in my mouth causes a shiver to run down my spine and settle there. I'm so ashamed that I'm afraid of turning around. I'm afraid of turning around and finding him watching me with that knowing smirk of his. And that bulge. Oh my God, the bulge.I sit up, without facing the other side of the bed, and rush to the bathroom. I close the door and stare at my reflection in the mirror. I look like hell. My hair is all over the place and my lips look bruised. How hard did he

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Forty-Five

    "What are you doing here?" I ask.He leans towards me and placing a kiss on my cheek in greeting. His eyes scan my face. "Have you been crying?"I wipe my face again, even though it's already dry. "It's nothing. Come inside."He makes his way into the living room and looks around once. "Wasn't Aurelio supposed to be here?"I'm still shocked that he's here. I didn't think I'd see him anytime soon. He's wearing a brown trench coat and his hair isn't slicked back like it usually is. "How'd you know he was supposed to be here?"He shrugs. "I know Enzo. If he's out on business, he would never leave you alone. Aurelio is the one person he trusts above anyone. It makes sense that he would be here.""He left, but he'll be back shortly." I stand awkwardly, unsure of what to do. "Would you like something to drink, or eat? There's lasagne, fresh out of the oven.""I already had lunch," he says apologetically. "I came here to see you. I was worried about you."I blush. "You shouldn't have. I'm fi

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  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Epilogue

    I put my favorite pearl earrings on. What I love most about them? They go well with everything. I bought them when I visited Paris. I fell in love with the pair as soon as I set my eyes on them. They reminded me of a pair my mother had but never wore. They sat at the bottom of her jewellery box, but sometimes I'd catch her staring at them. I never gave it a second thought; I never thought that they were valuable. Where would she even get the money to buy a real pair of pearl and diamond earrings? Now, I figured that they were probably gifted to her by my father. So much has happened since I left Italy. I settled down in Lisbon, until I decided I could no longer stay. It was a beautiful city, and I loved the food more than anything. But there was something missing, and that was something Lisbon had in common with every city I traveled to. They were marvelous in all aspects, but they just didn't feel like home. That all changed when I met Eric.He was an American living in Vienna. We

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty-Five

    I glance at the time on my phone. It's almost time for me to embark. I'm nervous and excited at the same time. I can't believe I'm finally doing this. The last couple of weeks have been absolutely horrible for me, with everything that happened the night Enzo died.He was dead before the paramedics arrived. If they'd been even a minute later, he wouldn't have been able to make it. They reanimated him with a defibrillator. I watched in shock as his body lurched. It was the worst ten seconds of my entire life. I couldn't go with him to the hospital. I had to explain to the authorities why there were three dead bodies in my front yard. I went with the obvious explanation; I didn't know who they were. I said Enzo was my boyfriend, and we were going to spend a few days here, but when they showed up, he had no choice but to shoot them. I never fired my gun, only he did. I remember these officers. They'd stop by sometimes for coffee and cake whenever they were in the neighborhood. I went to

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty-Four

    She fires the first shot. I realize that this is the second time in a matter of hours that someone has tried to kill me. Only, something isn't right. She isn't looking at me, in fact it's almost as if I'm not even here. She's staring at the person behind me, Enzo, and I realize that her gun is pointed at him.She's trying to kill Enzo. But why? No, that's a stupid question. It isn't hard to imagine why. The way I feel about him is the same way she must be feeling, only ten times worse because she knew about what he did all along, and I didn't. I fell in love with him before that, and my love for him cushioned the blow of his betrayal. "No, stop!" I exclaim. She isn't listening to me. She fires another shot, and he falls to the ground. For a breathless second, I thing that maybe she hit him, that he's going to bleed to death on this patio. But he wasn't shot, he's fumbling with his own weapon. Her gun is poised, she's ready to fire another shot. Each step she takes brings her close

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty-Three

    I can't bring myself to walk inside just yet. The last time I was here, I was dragged out by Enzo himself. He's standing by the entrance and is watching me as if he knows what I'm thinking. I'm too deflated to be angry, all I can do is look around. My mother's garden is destroyed. Weeds and birds got to it. There are still some flowers I recognize here and there. My hands are itching to fix them, to restore this garden, but I know that that won't ever happen. It won't be the same without her. She spent years and so much effort on this small piece of land, but that has all gone to waste. I settle my eyes on the front door again. Enzo has the keys with him. I don't ask him how he has them. It doesn't matter at this point. He probably got them from one of his men, after they finished the job. "Aren't you going to come in?" he asks me. I shake my head. "Why did you bring me here?" "This is your home," he says. "I thought you'd want to spend the night here instead of some motel."He

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty-Two

    I look at Enzo.He's breathing heavily. His eyes search my face and body to make sure I'm safe, that no bullet hit me. We both look at Gustavo, who's lying on the ground. Dead. I place my hand over my mouth. I can't believe that has happened. I can't believe that he was going to kill me, after everything we've been through. This night has turned out to be a nightmare. An absolute nightmare."We need to go," he says to me, as if he didn't just kill his own brother. I'm being unfair, I know that. He was going to kill one of us, and all Enzo did was try to keep us both safe.But he's dead.Enzo lifts me off the ground when I refuse to move. He shoves me inside the vehicle and slams the door in my face. I stare at Gustavo’s body through the window, at the pool of blood around his torso. I'm seeing it, but I can't quite believe my eyes. He gets inside the driver's seat and starts the car.We speed away from the bloody scene. I wonder briefly if anyone will ever find these people. This cab

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty-One

    Gustavo is furious.I don't think I've ever seen him like this. I barely recognize him. Why is he holding that gun? And why does it seem like Enzo expected this? I feel like an outsider once again. I have no idea of what's happening right now.He says, "Come with me, Chiara. You," he points at Enzo with the gun. "You stay the hell away from her."Enzo stands up. "You don't tell her what to do. And who do you think you're talking to?" Gustavo ignores him. He turns to me. His brow is furrowed and his lips are in a snarl. For the first time since I met him, I'm afraid of him. I've never seen him like this. He says, "Come, Chiara. You have no business being here with him. I'm going to take you back home, someplace safe." I don't like his tone at all. He's been using it on me for some time now. I'm not a child, yet he keeps treating me like one. "You didn't keep her safe to begin with," Enzo interjects. "You can't keep her safe. She would've been killed tonight, if it weren't for me."En

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Eighty

    Flavia finally stands and faces him. "What are you—" He pulls out his gun and shoots her right there. I gasp and watch as her body falls with a thud. I look at him, he's looking at me. I can't believe that this has happened. Flavia de Luca is dead? He just shot her. Right in front of me. A few more men enter the room. I only recognize Vito amongst them. Enzo tucks his gun back in his coat and says, "Untie her. Make sure you don't hurt her. One yelp and you'll meet your maker." He doesn't look at me as he gives those orders which I'm partly thankful for. I'm shocked that he's here, but I push that to the back of my mind. For now. They cut at the ropes and tape, a little too carefully, and I'm freed. Finally. I sit up and my head spins. When I open my eyes, Enzo is no longer in the room. Vito is helping me to my feet. Someone shoves a bottle of water at me. I fumble with the lid, but I manage to open it. "Easy, miss," one of them says. "Take slow sips."I do as I'm told, because my

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Seventy-Nine

    They tied me down with ropes, like an animal awaiting slaughter.I knew that this would happen, yet I don't regret my decision. I wasn't going to give up without trying, even if that attempt got me here. I'm so thirsty it's like I swallowed a mouthful of sand. With all the dust here, maybe I have. I just need a sip of water, but I guess there isn't any point in wasting water on a dead person. How long will I have to wait? Not being able to move is torturous. I don't know at this point if I should hope for the best or just give up. I've been here for a long time, if anyone had to find me, they would've already. I'm at the mercy of Flora and her brother, and once again this is all Enzo’s fault. It's getting darker because the room is pitch black at this point. Maybe one of them will light this kerosene lamp. My head is starting to hurt, either from dehydration or this stressful situation. I need to sleep, but at the same time, I can't close my eyes while I'm surrounded by people who m

  • The Mafioso’s Forced Bride   Chapter Seventy-Eight

    I'm filled to the brim with a feeling of utter despair. I try to move my hands and feet, but they've been bound with rope and duct tape. I'm in a dark, cramped space. Moving car? Again?I’m overwhelmed with the strong sense of deja vu. This cannot be happening to me. I thought I was finally free. I wasn’t expecting something this absurd to happen to me. What am I going to do? How will I escape? Is this punishment for not caring about Russo’s death as I should or the price I'm paying for getting involved with Enzo? Caio is going to use me to get to him, to hurt him. He doesn't know how he's wasting his time. Enzo won't care about that. All he wanted was revenge, and now that he has it, he doesn't need anything else. He won’t care about me. He won’t sacrifices his new wins and achievements because of me. Let them have me. He disposed of me along ago. He won’t care now, that I know. How long have I been here? What I can't believe is that after everything I've been through, I'm back to

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