Page 4 of Ruthless God

Around us, the men nodded in full agreement.

“Then find a wife for Marco,” Romeo threw out.

“Marco is not the head of the De Luca Famiglia, now is he?” Enzo asked, unable to disguise the bitterness in his tone.

“And I assume you already have someone in mind?” I asked.

He smiled. “The daughter of the Lombardi family in Chicago. The girl is of marrying age. And from the pictures I’ve seen, a total beauty. She would suit you well.”

Lombardi.

I’d heard of them.

Emilio Lombardi had two daughters and three young sons. None of his children were at marrying age.

But his cousin, Andre Lombardi, was his consigliere and happened to have two daughters over the age of eighteen. One biological and one stepdaughter—his dead brother’s daughter.

If we wanted to keep it technical, the girl was his niece. Talk about keeping it in the family. Which daughter did Enzo have in mind? The biological daughter or the niece?

Romeo looked like he wanted to say something, but surprisingly, it was Matteo who stopped him.

I waited for everyone to settle down before I spoke, looking around and taking in the men present.

Enzo was planning something. And if I had to guess, it was with the Lombardi clan in Chicago, but what?

I smiled. “Well, if Uncle Enzo has gone through all this trouble to set up an arranged marriage for me, then who am I to say no?”

My brothers turned to me, surprise evident on their faces as Enzo threw his head back and laughed, exposing his neck. My hand twitched with the need to take my dagger out and throw it at him.

“I knew you would see reason, my boy. I’ll set up the meeting right away.”

Enzo stood up and walked out of the room without waiting for me to dismiss him. A slight on his part, which I was sure he’d done on purpose.

I let him have his fun.

For now.

Because while he was busy playing matchmaker, I was already planning his demise.

2

LUNA

“I don’t wantto marry the fucking Beast of Las Vegas!” Lina screeched, making me wince.

I looked down at the table in front of me, trying hard to blend in with the wall. If I could just make it through this dinner, I would be free to hide away in my room for the rest of the night.

“Lina, be reasonable. The De Luca family is one of the most powerful families in the world. And they ruled over the West Coast for decades. You would be one of the most powerful women as the wife of Massimo De Luca,” Mom said, trying to appease her.

“Don’t talk to me like I’m stupid. I’ve heard the rumors. The man is deformed and mean and ugly! And you expect me to be married tothat?”

I winced at the venom in her voice. And though I didn’t usually agree with Lina, I thought it was cruel of Andre to push this marriage on her. Not because of his physical appearance. I didn’t know what he looked like. I was sure there were pictures of him on the internet, but I rarely took an interest in other organizations around the US.

But evenIhad heard of Massimo De Luca. Now thecapo dei capito the De Luca Famiglia. A monster of a man everyone dubbedLo Spietato.

Ruthless. Pitiless. A man who had no feelings and no qualms about what orwhohe sacrificed in order to get what he wanted. Rumor had it that he killed his father for the throne. I didn’t know whether to believe that or not, but he got what he wanted in the end. He was now considered the King of Las Vegas.

A ruthless god who merely lived among us mortals.