Page 6 of Ashes

A beautiful girl with straight long black hair and piercing blue eyes stares back at me from the photo.

And then I jerk back.

Wait, I know her.

She looks older now, but I know who she is.

Paola Esposito.

The only daughter of our biggest enemy.

“You want me to marry Esposito’s daughter?” This is definitely interesting.

Unexpected.

“Yes, her father and I struck a deal. It’s time to put our differences behind us. We’ve lost millions because of our feud with them. Esposito is aware of that.”

I nod.

He’s right.

If you want to be successful, you can’t let emotions rule your decisions.

I have my role to play in this world, just like everyone else.

If my father thinks marrying Paola is a good thing, then I’ll do it. He always wants me to keep my head clear, no matter what.

Except, that sneaky little bitch is one of the reasons why my brother is dead.

I want to make her pay.

And I don’t care if my father agrees or disagrees with it. She’ll be mine to do with as I please.

“Do I have to keep her alive?” I ask, keeping my face expressionless.

If I let even a tiny bit of anger show, my father would see it as a weakness.

“At least for a few years, yes. She’ll belong to you, and you can do whatever you want with her. But don’t ruin her pretty face because we might need her to appear in public with you from time to time, and we don’t want her father to change his mind about our deal.”

That’s perfectly fine with me.

Paola will regret even leaving the house on that damn night that changed everything.

“Do we get anything else?” I ask.

Not having to waste our time and resources fighting each other is a good thing, but I suspect there’s more. With my father, there’s always something more.

“We do. We have a common enemy. I’m sure you know who I’m talking about.”

“Beltran,” I say. “He’s in your way, and in the Espositos’ way too.”

“Yes, Esposito and I are going to attack together. We can defeat him, and once we have his territory, we’re going to divide it between us. That territory will provide us with a safe and more direct route for our shipments.”

“Okay. If you need me to do anything, let me know.”

My father inclines his head, and I get to my feet.