Owned by the mafia boss

MIA

I threw on a robe and stole into the kitchen for a snack. Noise from the television grumbled in the living room. My feet padded the dark floors, and cold stung my flesh when it switched to marble. I searched drawers, silverware rattling as I hunted for a knife. I found one and slapped it on a carving board. Then I opened the fridge-God, it was so bare-and seized a block of cheddar, an apple, and sausage. The refrigerator’s door smacked closed.

Behind it stood Alessio.

“Good morning. Or is it afternoon?”

The cheese tumbled from the top of the stack. He snatched it midair and placed it on the counter. I shoved everything into a pile and faced him.

Alessio wore a plain T-shirt over gray sweatpants that clung to his legs, and I imagined pulling the loosely tied white strings, grabbing that mouth-watering bulge. When he raked his hair, his pecs bunched under the fabric, and it was all I could do to keep from launching at him.

“Don’t do that.”

“Walk around in my house?” He disarmed me with a playful smile. “Check in on the fiancée?”

“Scare me.”

“You’re easily startled.”

“Maybe because you kidnapped me.”

“Is that all you see when you look at me? Your kidnapper?”

No.

He smiled as though my silence confirmed his suspicions, his powerful grip wrapping my waist. A swarm of buzzing warmth filled my body as he kissed my cheek. The ghost of his lips seemed to press into me. I replayed how we breathed into each other, his tongue making gentle swipes. I was dying to continue the kiss. I curled my toes, waiting for that delicate pressure to sear more of my skin, but he disappeared from my side.

Alessio grabbed a cutting board and lined up the food. His kitchen knife went up and down in a fluid motion as he prepared the charcuterie. He transferred the ham, cheese, and fruit to a plate and offered it to me.

“Come.” Alessio’s big hand swallowed mine. “Let’s talk.”

I tried to ignore how perfectly we fit and followed him into the wood-paneled library decorated in warm tones with cracking brown leather seats. I couldn’t get over the beauty of this place, and it was clear from the vast lawn, privacy hedges, the safe suburban neighborhood-that he’d chosen this home with children in mind.

I didn’t want Alessio to be anything more than a cardboard-cutout gangster. Easier to reject a violent criminal than the guy who cut apple slices and saved my goddamned life.

I joined him on the loveseat, my head pounding.

“I need you to call your dad. He can’t reach you and thinks I’m smashing your fingers. Do me a favor. Tell him I’m not torturing you.”

“Why?”

“It’s fucked up to let him worry. Your father isn’t young, and he’s not in the greatest shape. He might stroke out.”

“He can go to hell.”

“He’s your father.” The judgmental tone in Alessio’s voice was precious.

“He lost his parental rights when he treated me like chattel. I’ll contact him when I feel like it, not a minute before.”

A disappointed sound gusted from his mouth as his arm draped my shoulders. The weight of him felt like a security blanket.

“He loves you, Mia.”

Hearing that word from his lips was strange. “Why do you care?”

“Because it’s my fault you’re mad at him, and he’ll be my in-law soon. I want a relationship with him.”

That’s really sweet.

My response stuck to my throat. “Again, why?”

“He’s a good man. I want him in our children’s lives.”

“Stop bringing up kids. Please.”

“All right.” Alessio plucked a wedge of cheese from my fingers and ate it. “How about we go somewhere? You don’t need to spend every day inside.”

“I can’t, Alessio.”

“Why?”

Did he have to make me say it? “I’m too scared to leave. Happy?”

I expected him to laugh at the irony, but he held my chin and forced me to meet his sympathetic gaze.

“None of this makes me happy.”

I swallowed hard. “I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not. You’re crying in the shower, in your room, all over the place, and now you’re hiding from the world.”

I didn’t realize he’d heard me.

Alessio draped an arm around my shoulders, and I curled into his chest without hesitation. We hadn’t touched since the gathering at Nico’s when I lost my temper. Instead of fighting fire with fire, Alessio had kissed me. He was always there with a kind word, a hug, or an affectionate gesture that made everything better. It fucked with my head.

Why was he so supportive?

How long would my defenses last?

“You need to keep yourself busy, leave the house, and take your mind off what happened.”

Stop being so perfect.

My body clenched like a fist. “Maybe I’ll visit Michael’s. Help him with the kids. He probably needs it more than ever.”

“You want to go back there?”

“Serena’s in rehab, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, but-”

“Those children shouldn’t suffer because their mom is a piece of shit. It’d make me feel useful. I want to help. And Michael’s a good man.”

“I don’t know, Mia. I’m on the outs with Michael. He’s the reason you were almost killed.”

“Serena’s the one who put me in danger.”

“He should’ve warned us that his wife was a drug addict.”

“Even if he had, I still might’ve gone with her.”

Alessio sighed, looking torn by amusement and frustration. “Well, I wouldn’t have allowed you to, because I would’ve seen that coming a mile away.”

“Whatever. If I’m willing to forgive him, so should you.”

“I’m not known for my leniency.”

“You’ve been gentle with me. Plenty of times.”

“Because you’re my fiancée, and you make it easy for me.” He planted a kiss on my forehead. “And I like you. I’ve always liked you.”

My face went up in flames. “Always?”

“Don’t pretend you didn’t know.” He must’ve sensed my astonishment because he kept speaking. “You were my first pick, but your dad wouldn’t let me have you. Said you were too young.”

My lips moved, but I couldn’t form words into a coherent sentence. Dad never mentioned a damned thing, but that didn’t surprise me.

Alessio’s confession socked me in the gut.

“Bullshit.”

“I’m not lying. Right hand to God.”

I still couldn’t speak. Alessio took advantage of my silence, working his fingers deeper into the tension. I could feel myself softening around him, succumbing to his touch.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I was engaged to Carmela. Hitting on my fiancée’s sister is a bad look. I’m not Gandhi, but I’ve never cheated.”

“You ignored me at family events. Pretended I didn’t exist.”

“Self-preservation.” He pressed his lips into my forehead, the tender kiss relaxing the last of my clenched muscles. “If I wanted to survive a marriage with Carmela, I’d have to ignore you my whole life. So I stayed away.”

Every interaction with him replayed in my head as I searched for proof of hidden feelings in his sliding gaze and cursory nods, but I didn’t need to examine the past. The evidence was in his lingering stare and pounding heartbeat.

“This is very confusing.”

“I know.”

He didn’t, not really.

“I liked you. I had a crush on you.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I did. Ever since I glimpsed you at that al fresco party. You were so tall, and you wore a navy suit with a brown belt and shoes. You grabbed champagne from a passing waiter, and you were about to drink. Then you saw me. You gave me the biggest smile.” I could still feel my glowing admiration when he’d strolled over, giving me his untouched glass. “You looked at me like I wanted someone to look at me.”

“Then why did you say no? We could’ve dated before the gossip mill ruined your opinion of me.”

“My dad never mentioned you until Carmela’s engagement.”

“I asked your father about you right after meeting you. After Ignacio fed me that bullshit line about your age, I pressed him, and he claimed you weren’t interested.”

Holy shit.

Waves of shock obliterated every other feeling. Alessio seemed to guess the worst from my face, sinking into the cushions with a bitter laugh.

“Alessio, he was protecting me. I would’ve turned you down anyway.”

“No, Mia. You wouldn’t have. You’ve said yes with your eyes, your mouth, and soon-you’ll say yes with your body.”

He took my knee, the touch spreading warmth up my leg. I was almost nude under the robe, and the silk was a flimsy barrier. He grew bolder, sweeping up to explore my thigh. My heart shouted one thing-Give in.

Alessio’s kiss jolted my ear.

“Should I keep going?”

Yes.

Alessio’s lips smoldered the sensitive skin between my cheek and jaw. A current slammed into me, and I arched into his arms.

“Do you want me to stop?”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. My cheeks burned when his chuckles vibrated through me. He kissed me again, lower. This one seared. I squirmed with pleasure as his tongue flicked me. Arousal clenched my thighs as he nipped and sucked.

Hot.

“Answer. The. Question.” His voice darkened as he became much less tactful, undoing the knot at my waist, palming my stomach. “I’ll rip this off and fuck you if you don’t speak.”

I didn’t want to admit the desire consuming my body. It was easier to pretend I had no choice. His mouth trailed my collarbone. I moaned from the delicious sting of his teeth filling me with aching, wanting, need.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

God, I was fucked.

“The question, sweetheart.” He grabbed my legs and moved downward, his mouth marking my skin. “I can’t keep going if you’re not willing.”

My last thread of restraint snapped.

“Don’t stop.”

Alessio clicked a remote on the coffee table. The lights dimmed, bathing us in the darkness of lovers. He pulled me off the couch, onto the rug. My heart thundered as he caged me in his arms. The robe hadn’t opened all the way, but it was only a matter of time.

He hovered above me, slowly knotting his fingers in my hair. He lowered, my breath hitching as he pressed his mouth into mine. Lips softer than feathers consumed me with liquid fire. He tasted like apples, and he was so sensual. He made one kiss feel like five.

Broad shoulders glided under my palms as I arched into him, desperate for each intense stroke. Wetness slicked my panties, and all he did was kiss me.

Fabric dragged across my chest, and suddenly his shirt touched my bare breasts. He broke from our kiss, glancing down.

“Beautiful. I’ve avoided you for too long. I’m done fighting it.”

His hushed tones filled me with toe-curling ecstasy. Every part of me burned, from my tits to my toes. It was as though he chanted a spell that lowered my defenses. Brick by brick, my walls crumbled. Alessio’s rock-hard features softened into a punch-drunk smile as he looked at me. His hand took my knee, and then he sailed up.

He wrapped his arms around my thighs, positioning himself between my legs. His mouth pressed into the triangle of cotton, sending lightning bolts of utter shock followed by jolts of pleasure. I dug into his locks. Fistfuls of black. It was so thick and dark. I’d dreamed about weaving my fingers through it.

Alessio explored me with far less tact than David, checking out my curves but avoiding where I ached for him most. He kissed the swell of my hip. Wet heat stroked me, dragging a sigh from me before he sucked in and bit.

I gasped.

“That okay?”

“I-I’ve never-” I was out of my depth. “Everyone’s always treated me like glass.”

“I can be gentle, but I don’t think you want me to.”

He wasn’t mistaken, but admitting that felt like signing on the dotted line. It’d mean I’d given up.

Why did he feel so good?

Alessio immobilized me with his hands, mouth, lips. The little of him I could touch-the softness of his hair, his rugged cheek-glided against me. He soothed the ache from his bite as he blew a stream of cool air, and then he turned to my thigh.

He was close. So damned close.

My heart thundered as his stubble grazed my leg. He paused, holding my knees. Then he nipped, sinking pain and pleasure into me with so much force I moaned. Dazed from the sting, I allowed him to climb over me. My almost-naked body was bared to a man with zero conscience. Alessio caressed me, grinning like I were a blank canvas, and he didn’t know where to start. He kissed beside my belly button.

He was different.

Everything was more primal. His breath washed over me like a beast. He sucked me in and left a wicked weal. I dragged my nails on the carpet. His attention pulled upward, but not once did his kisses soften.

I stopped breathing as his palm spread buttery warmth across my skin. Alessio’s weight pinned me. He knew exactly what to do-where to kiss me. He alternated between light, barely there touching, and all-out groping. Alessio pressed his lips to my side, stamping a seal of white-hot ecstasy until he reached my breasts and licked between them.

No man had ever made me feel as though I plunged in a free-fall. It was pure adrenaline. A desperate sound tore from me when he seized my nipple and pinched. He played with me, and then he dipped for the kiss I’d been both dreading and anticipating. The one that’d force me to rip off his shirt and drag him close until we sealed our fate as husband and wife.

No.

I can’t do this.

My heart screamed for me to bite my tongue, but I slammed on the brakes.

“Stop.”

A deep growl reverberated from Alessio’s throat, but he obeyed. He lifted away and sat on the coffee table. I shot upright, a sharp frustration nagging where my thighs clenched. My fingers brushed the spots where his mouth left blemishes.

He stared at me, cheek in his hand. He’d never looked so much like a predator, his neck flushed, and his gaze slanted.

I covered my body and willed my pulse to slow.

“There is nothing wrong with wanting me.” He pushed a wayward strand behind my ear, his touch fanning the flames. “You’ll be my wife.”

There were thousands of reasons it was wrong. Starting with, he’d belonged to Carmela. “We’re so different.”

“That doesn’t scare me.”

“What if we’re not compatible?”

“Why don’t we pick up where we left off? I’ll show you how well we fit together. You barely let me kiss you.”

He leaned in, and I stood.

What the hell had I started?

Alessio followed me, his sweatpants tenting around a thick bulge. He watched me with ravenous hunger as he approached, once again closing the distance. “I think you’ve been waiting for me your whole life.”

Laughter burst from my chest. “Excuse me?”

“You’re Ignacio’s daughter. He might’ve promised you otherwise, but he would’ve married you to a guy like me. Eventually.” He cocked his head, his smile broadening. “You thought you’d loathe me.”

“I do hate you.”

“You don’t hate anybody. You’re scared. Scared of me, the wedding, whatever, but most of all, you’re afraid because you want me.”

I wanted to throw something at him, but he was right. When he kissed me, all I did was hold tighter.

“I wish we had time for you to make these leaps on your own, but we don’t. So I’ll break it down for you. You’re terrified we might be good together.”

That’s insane.

My initial reaction was to blow him off, but I couldn’t deny the burgeoning attraction and the horrible fear when I let myself enjoy him. Alessio spoke as though he read my thoughts.

“I get it…falling for a devil means there’s darkness inside you, too.”