Sinful Kisses by Emily Bowie
CHAPTER 32
My chest burns at the feeling of her trying to pull away. She didn’t deny our futures. She’ll have the one she was brought up to believe she would have. Where I will have to fight my way to the top. Just as my future would have predicted.
She’s scared. I just need to prove to her there’s nothing to be afraid of. I can understand that. I never take anyone’s word at face value. Actions speak louder than words. When I do what’s right for the both of us, she’ll stop fighting this magnetic push/pull we have on one another. I can accept that. It’s how the mafia works.
My dog lifts his head, and I point to the door of the house. He lazily gets up and wonders over to where he’s been ordered. With a huff, he plops down in front of the doorway. I’m not guarding to keep her in but to have eyes on her to ensure her safety.
My phone rings, and I pick it up. “Nicoli. I would have thought I’d receive your call sooner,” I purr darkly.
“Listen, you little shit,” he hisses, each word punctuated, dripping with hatred.
“Well now, I don’t think you’re showing the proper respect to a man who has full control of your daughter.”
I expect to hear him growl or lose his temper, but he turns calm with an edge to his sharp voice.
“My only regret is allowing your bloodline to continue,” he seethes.
I roll my eyes at his dramatics. “That is neither here nor there. Let’s talk about Gia. I’m assuming she’s the reason for your call.”
“Like I told your father, I will never allow one of my daughters to be touched by a Mancini’s hand.”
His statement brings a smile to my face. Flashes of all the things we have done together run rampant in my mind. “She hasn’t complained yet.”
His audible growl scratches through the line.
I continue as if I can’t hear it. “We won’t be doing the drop as you want. If you want her back, you need to agree to my demands.” I will never willingly allow Gia back into another man’s arms. She is mine. My brother may call this a suicide mission. I call it the most honorable thing I have done in my life.
By the end of this war, Nicoli Rossi will learn I will do anything to keep her. He will learn to respect that she’s safer in my hands than his.
“I won’t negotiate with a Mancini,” he states before hanging up on me.