Eight Luca Capaldi When I found Audrina at the fashion show after party, I had every intention of taking her to a dark alley and fucking her brains out. I was going to make her mine. No one else would ever have her. But there was a problem. The problem was a big, hulking member of the Russian Bratva named Andre Antonov. His father was the head of the Bratva making him a powerful player no one wanted to go against. Ever. At first, when I found her in the club, Audrina looked excited to see me. But then her face filled with fear. I felt someone breathing down my neck. “Are you looking at my woman?” a deep, male voice asked. If I were anyone else, I would have been scared off by someone who had such a domineering personality. But I wasn’t just anyone. I was Luca Capaldi. I had a gun in my pocket and men with more guns waiting around the area. I wasn’t going to be scared off. I looked behind me. Andre Antonov was tall, blond, and tattooed with blue eyes. “That depends. Which one is yo
NineAudrina Bianchi To be completely honest, I had never really planned on going to the same school as Luca. In fact, even the three hours I was required by law to do as someone in the entertainment business, I hated. My career showed no signs of stopping and people threw around names like Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, and Kate Moss when they compared me to other models. I was good enough I could make this a lifetime career if I really wanted. Or spin it off into something else if I tired of it. Then my bad girl phase happened, and it started with cocaine in my purse. When I didn’t even use the stuff. They found it when I was flying to Milan for a fashion show. I was arrested. I was put on trial. I had to plead guilty. Even though I told Marie and the cops it wasn’t mine, my PR team decided that was the best way to minimalize the damage the scandal had done. I also had to do community service for a year, which meant that I had to stay put. No fashion shows internationally. “Well
TenLuca Capaldi I forced Audrina to sleep in my bed with me. I knew the mansion had enough rooms that she could have had her own. Hell, Daniela hadn’t even lived there and we’d given her one when her mom had worked for us. But Audrina had spent enough time away from me. Now that she was back in my life, I wasn’t going to let her out of my sight even for a moment. When I woke up in the morning, I had my arms wrapped around her. She had slept fitfully during the night. That was understandable. I don’t think she planned on me forcing her to be my wife for real. Not when she had killed my father. The thing was, I couldn’t even bring myself to be sad about Pop. Giuseppe was a bastard who had used people for his own devices and didn’t care if they were family or not. Only about what they could give him. In a way, she had done me a favor. Now, I was the head of my father’s empire. I could make the changes I wanted to that he had never done. I would do everything with her by my side. I
ElevenAudrina Bianchi I had grown up with people looking at me. I was used to it. I was a super model, it was my job to be looked at. This morning though, it was different. This morning, people weren’t just looking at me, they were looking at my husband also. Even I had to admit, I didn’t blame them. Luca Capaldi’s body was finely sculpted from years of sports. Swimming. Judo. His blond hair aristocratic features made him look like a prince. Only I knew the truth. There was nothing Princely about him. Princes assain, maybe. “Aren’t you going to eat?” Luca asked as he took a bite of the waffles that he’d gotten. I frowned at him, then took a drink of my mimosa. “How can you be so casual about all of this?” “About all of what?” he said. “It’s brunch. I remember when we were teenagers, you told me that if you could spend eternity at brunch, you would. Because you could have dessert for breakfast and no one got upset if you got drunk early in the morning and it lasted until noon
Twelve Luca Capaldi Detective Wallace Wilkins had worked as my family’s private investigator for as far back as I could remember. Giuseppe had had him on retainer. I intended to keep him as such. He was good at finding out information that I needed. He was an older man, with a bald head, a round nose, and always wore a black suit with a black fedora. Even when he was inside a fancy restaurant, like we were now. “Luca,” he said. I stood up, and took his hand, patting him on the back. “Good to see you, Wilkins. You remember my wife?” I gestured to Audrina. Audrina stood up and shook his hand. “Hello, Detective. It’s nice to see you again.” Wilkins looked Audrina up and down. It was an appraising glance, the kind that he might give any new person that he had just met. But somehow, the idea of Wilkins looking at Audrina made my fists clench together. Audriana Bianchi was fucking mine. The three of us sat back down at the table. “So, surprised that the two of you finally took
Thirteen Audrina Bianchi It was surprisingly easy to become friends with Daniela. She was a loner, and since Niccolo had a stern grip on the school, no one dared to even try to be friends with her. They knew that doing that would go against him. And since he was one of the richest boys in school, no one wanted to do that. Daniela spent most of her time at school when she wasn’t in class hiding out in the library. The other girls hadn’t been welcoming when I’d showed up at the academy. They’d thought because I was a model that somehow meant that I was a threat to them and their boyfriends. After my first week of being there, I found my locker spray painted with the words COKE WHORE. I took that to mean I wasn’t going to be invited to any sleepovers anytime soon. So, one day when I found Daniela sitting in the library, I went to go hang out with her. “Hi.” She’d been midway through chewing her sandwich and looked up at me, stunned. Swallowing, she said, “Oh. Um. Hi. You’re Audr
Fourteen Luca Capaldi Swim team wasn’t exactly known for it’s glory. Most of the time, girls preferred watching football players practice instead of us. The main reason I was allowed to be on it was that Giuseppe saw swimming as a skill. He saw football as a game. It was also one of the few reasons he would allow me to skip going with him to any “meetings” he had. In the water, I wasn’t the heir to a dynasty built on bullets and bloodshed. In the water, I could forget about all of the responsibilities and strings that came with this privileged life. Practice for swim team was Wednesdays and Thursdays, and then the rest of the week the pool stayed open after hours for any students that wanted to use it to train harder. The pool was my safeplace. I could ignore my future there. Ignore the way my brother was an asshole to the girl who was probably the closest thing I had to a best friend. Ignore the way that Daniela looked like she was breaking on the inside most of the time because
FifteenAudrina Bianchi “Where are you going?” Marie Bianchi asked. It was Friday, and I had managed to arrange a club outing for Daniela. Luca and Niccolo would be there, and so would Louis. I was wearing a silver, Valentino dress, with a matching pair of strappy, silver high heels. “I’m going out.” Marie Bianchi was a tall, dark haired woman woman in her forties whose plastic surgery had been paid for by the work I did as a model. “Do you actually care?” I asked. If she were the kind of parent that gave a crap, she would have. Especially since I had been arrested for having drugs in my purse and that was the whole reason we were in Boston in the first place. She was sitting on the couch in the living room of our loft, flipping through a magazine, not even looking up from it to talk to me. “No. But I received a call from Andre this afternoon. He’s very upset that he hasn’t seen you recently. And you know, he is footing the bill for this place.” At this, she looked up from
Nine Lauren Gallo Present I was able to stay. I anticipated him firing me. I anticipated him following me. I did not anticipate wanting him again. How could anyone go through what I went through with him and still want him? I couldn’t explain it. When I arrive at work the next day, I am humming. I also have his coffee ready for him that I pick up at our old favorite spot. I am there before him. I sit on his desk, and I place the coffee cup on it while I sip mine and smile. After a few minutes, the door opens, revealing him. “Coffee, boss?” He looks from the cup on the desk to me. I can feel his eyes travel up and down my body. I flush. I know I’m flushed. I can feel it from head to toe and I absolutely hate it and love it at the same time. I feel like a teenage girl all over again. His eyes settle on mine. “You greet all of your bosses like that?” I shrug. “Only the ones I like.” He raises an eyebrow. “Did you like my cousin?” I snort, and take a sip of my coffee before I get
EIGHT Domitus Capaldi PresentWhen I had Lauren, I felt like I had the answer to all of my problems. A sweet, little, submissive that did everything I wanted without question. After the accident when she left, at first, I didn’t want anyone. Then, I could no longer deny my urges. So, to keep them in check, I opened Labyrinth. My sex club. Patrons pay for rooms and inside them they can do whatever they want. Each one is paid to each of their specific tastes. And soundproof. All membership costs is a secret. And the absorbent yearly fee, of course. Manhattan real estate doesn’t come cheap, after all, and I have to keep the lights on somehow. I employ both men and women at the club. All kinds. You never know what someone might be into. And, of course, patrons are able to bring their own guests if they want to. What I should really do is throw Lauren over my shoulder, take her here, and have my way with her. But I can’t do that. I’m her boss and, in her mind, she barely knows me. Not
SEVEN Lauren Gallo Past I try not to think too hard about it when I find out from a text from my coach that Mitch was killed in a robbery. I have other things to worry about. Monday morning, my mom and I move my stuff into my dorm at the fancy private school that she’ll be working at and I’ll be going to. “Wow!” she says. “This place is huge.” I nod in agreement. Cagney Academy is on the Upper East Side. By being a student here, I’ll have access to their private ice rink, and Stephanie will be able to devote her time to training just me. Meaning I will have a better shot at the Olympics. As an added bonus, Ellie goes here too, and I’ll have Carla, Domitus’s cousin. The real problem is that I’ll have to deal with Domitus. And the rest of the Capaldi brothers. From stalking Domitus on social, I’ve learned that there are three other Capaldi brothers. Felix, Anthony, and Benedict. Benedict is a short, wirey, brunette kid that’s obsessed with the hockey team that plays at the stadiu
SIX Domitus Capaldi Past The next time I see Lauren Gallo, it’s a week after our little date. The family business and school keeps me away from the rink. But my father is meeting with the stadium manager to talk about getting new sponsors for our sports equipment. He’s also supposed to meet with Mrs. Gallo, Lauren’s Mom, and talk with her about securing her a teaching position at the school that I go to. Cagney Academy, a private school on the Upper East Side. As a teacher, Mrs. Gallo would get free admission for her family and since Lauren is her family, she would be able to go. Meaning I could see her all of the time whenever I want. At the moment, my father is talking with Laurens mom. She has sandy blonde hair, and brown eyes, and seems warry of my father. Smart woman. Most people are charmed by his wealth and good looks. I wonder if she’s dealt with his type before. Lauren says she doesn’t know who her father is, so maybe Mrs. Gallo’s husband was a made man. Or maybe she ju
FIVE Lauren Gallo Present My first thought when I see my ex-boyfriend is that he got taller. And hotter. And I’m fucked. I won’t be able to handle this. I managed to escape Domitus Capaldi once, by faking amnesia and moving half way across the country. But then my high school stalker came back and I was back home, in the city, working for the first man I had run away from. The second one, Michael Russo, had popped up in Los Angeles a few months ago. And I had no idea where he was. But I knew it would only be a matter of time before he popped back up again. He always found me. At least if I was in Domitus’s grasp, I had one monster to scare off another. I thought my cover was blown when Felix saw me. Felix had been my sounding board when I dated Domitus. In fact, I had had a little crush on him for a while but Felix and me had never done anything because we knew that Domitus would kill him if we did. Carla, to her credit, had done her research and knew about my ‘memory lo
FOUR Domitus Capaldi Present “Hey, you’re late.” This comes from my younger brother Felix, which is a surprise to me. Felix normally doesn’t care about anything. He’s twenty-three, a year younger than me, and barely shows up to work half of the time. The title he has is mostly for looks anyway. Felix is almost as tall as me, with black hair that’s slicked back with too much gel, and as many tattoos as I have. In reality, Felix runs most of the family clubs. And by run, I mean, frequents them on a regular basis and pretends to be doing work. “Why do you care?” I ask. “I’m never late. The only reason I was late this morning was because of the traffic.” “Um, well…” “Well, what?” “Well, your new secretary has been hired.” “Good. Shelia’s on bed rest now and it’s been hell using temps. Who did HR hire?” Felix made a face. I sigh. “Just tell me, Felix. I don’t want to play games. If it’s someone I hate, I can just fire them. Remember, I am the head of the New York branch o
THREE Lauren Gallo Past His hand was in between my legs. He touched my pussy. I hadn’t even been kissed yet, but Domitus Capaldi had touched my pussy. I was wearing tights, but I could still feel it, and the wetness in between my legs that came when he touched me there. I had no idea why he had become fixated on me but I didn’t think that he was going to give up on this anytime soon, judging from the hungry look on his face as he watched me while we ate. He has already talked about fucking me. He says that he wants to do it on the table of the restaurant, but that he’ll take me on a bed instead. He is a rich kid who has probably never heard the word no in his life. Meaning he won’t take no from me. Worse, his father owns the place where I practice my skating. The rink that has been the one constant in my life. And the Capaldi family is known for, along with owning half of New York City, shady business deals that involve clubs, drugs, and gambling amongst other things. I’ve neve
TWO Domitus Capaldi Past The first time I saw Lauren Gallo, she was wearing a blue velvet skating outfit, trimmed with fur. With each spin and jump, her little skirt went up, revealing her perfect, pale legs. I imagined my head in between those thighs, devouring her pussy, and making her scream my name and my cock goes hard at the thought. Dad had invested in the old ice-skating rink since my brother’s loved hockey, and he thought he could turn a profit from it. Me, I had never really been interested in sports. I worked out in the gym, and boxed for self-defense, but that was it. I was the heir to the New York branch of Capaldi Industries. My father wanted me to take over for him when he died. I didn’t have time to do anything outside of work for my father. I did everything my father asked of me. Never asking anything for myself. But when I saw Lauren Gallo, I wanted her. She had brown hair, and brown eyes, and a round face with full lips. She was tiny, and her breasts were
ONE Lauren Gallo Past There is someone watching me as I practice. The ice rink is my safe space. As I practice my routine for the millionth time, I can’t focus on anything but the eyes on me. The hair on the back of my neck stands on end. As my routine comes to an end, I straighten up and look for the person watching me. There’s a teenage boy leaning up against the wall of the skating rink. He’s tall, with broad shoulders, jet black hair, and reminds me of a dark prince out of a fantasy novel with high cheek bones and full lips. His hands are tattooed and the long, black, jacket that he wears I imagine hides full sleeves on either arm. An older man comes and talks to him. He looks like him, but with slightly grey hair, in his mid-forties. The older man’s gaze goes from me to the boy and he smirks. The boy rolls his eyes but the dark, heated gaze that he has remains on me. It makes heat go through my legs in a way that I have never felt before. Competitive skating doesn’t leave