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I was honored to be his protégé. Even more honored when I discovered I would be his avatar in his failing health.

But make no mistake, if I can’t cut it like Vincenzo couldn’t cut it, then I’ll be eliminated in the blink of an eye. Loyalty only goes one way in Vito’s eyes.

Regardless if you are his nephew or his pseudo son.

“Non abbastanza buono. Vieni dal nulla. Ho rischiato tirandoti fuori dalla polvere e ricreandoti a mia immagine. È così che mi ripaghi?”

My jaw aches from how hard I’m gritting my teeth. “So da dove vengo. Non c’è bisogno che tu me lo ricordi. Sono l'unica opzione che hai.”

“Dimostrarlo. Fallo accadere. Se non ci riesci tu, lo farà qualcun altro,” he says, and then the line goes dead.

The impulse to rage wells up inside me. Every muscle in my body contracts. I crush the phone in my hand and breathe through the heat that’s taking over.

It would be so easy to flip the fuck out. Lose my temper and destroy the room. Rant, rave, scream at the top of my lungs at my men. Make them cower like frightened little animals.

But that would be too predictable. Too shortsighted and emotional.

All things I’m not.

Vito is running out of patience for our operation. He wants the new psychedelic drug on the street immediately despite the supply chain issues and the competition with Tuco. It’s true that there have been numerous fuck ups, like the shooting at the meat plant and then Sigler interfering with the latest shipment.

The longer we take to secure the supply, the greater the chance Tuco’s operation will prevail. One of his most prominent capos, Luigi Grasso, has been making progress with his own supplier. They’ve already attempted to outdo us on the party scene by striking deals with club owners like Milos at U4EA.

That’s without addressing the fact that Luigi tried to accost Portia and her sister at Bocca, which he will be held accountable for.

Time is of the essence.

I’ve got to make a move. Destroy any chance they have to gain the upper hand.

But first…

Mind made up, I push the phone into Maurizio’s chest. “Don’t disturb me for the rest of the night.”

“Diavolo, this is time sensitive,” he points out in his usual flat tone.

“Do you think I don’t know that,stronzo?” I snap. “I’m aware what I’ve got to fucking do. But not tonight. Tonight I have plans.Sono con lei stasera. Lei è la mia prima priorità.”

He doesn’t dare object a second time as I stalk toward the door.

I’m a man with only one thing on my mind right now. Everything else has been pushed to the back burner until the sun rises tomorrow morning. Then I’m no longer Rafael—I’m Il Diavolo doing what he needs to do to stay on top.

For tonight, I made a promise. I told Portia we would spend time together and I intend to keep that promise.

I enter the bedroom to Portia wrapped in a towel. She’s just come off a shower and hasn’t even had a chance to change yet.

Her eyes broaden with surprise that I’ve abruptly returned. Her lips part, likely beginning to tell me about how she thought she’d take a hot shower while she was waiting for me. She wanted to rinse off any chemicals from the jacuzzi.

But as I quickly close the gap between us, striding straight toward her, she seems to realize what’s happening. It flickers across her face in the split second before I reach her and drag her toward me by the waist.

“What did I say,dolcezza?” I ask, my palm slipping behind her to grip her ass. “I said we would pick up where we left off.”

I pull her into a fierce kiss conveying this very sentiment—the urgent hunger I have for her that couldn’t wait another minute.

Portia’s still surprised even as my lips touch hers, but she quickly gives in. Her soft mouth relaxes against mine, melting into the kiss. My tongue teases and tastes her. My hands skim back up her body and draw a shudder out of her.

Her skin is so smooth, so lush, that I can’t stop at one caress.

I go from stroking her back to collaring her neck to palming her breasts through the towel.