Page 47 of Broken Mafia Prince (His to Break #1)

RAFFAELE

T he entire scene looks like something from a movie: a perfect blue sky, the birds chirping, and a pond with ducks floating in it. From where I’m seated, I stare out over the rolling landscape, with the A-line cabin just behind me and a majestic view of the sunset.

When Giulia gave me this address, I hadn’t thought twice about punching it into the GPS of my car and making my way here.

As soon as I stepped into the park, I was surprised by its scenic beauty.

I had expected her to choose an abandoned warehouse or something similar.

The fact that she chose this place makes me question everything.

The location is far too romantic for the sort of discussion we’re supposed to have here.

Does she want more than just a discussion? No, I tell myself. I can’t let myself think like that, or I’ll just end up with more disappointments.

I want to see her, of course. I’ve wanted to see her since the day she walked away from me, but I can’t let myself think that this is more than it is.

But I still can’t deny the way my heart thuds in my chest, anticipation blazing through me like a fire. Isa had mentioned that she wasn’t the woman I used to know anymore, but I wonder what changes those were. Physical changes, perhaps, Or maybe more? I’m eager to find out.

A glance at my wristwatch reveals that it is forty-five minutes past the time. I’ve never known Giulia to be late.

She’s not coming , a voice in my head says.

Of course she isn’t. Why would she? Remember, she doesn’t want anything to do with you.

Why would she suddenly agree to meet up?

She is not coming. Stop wasting your freaking time.

Get the fuck up and go do what you’re supposed to do, which is run a family and a business that’s gradually taking its toll.

Ten more minutes , I tell myself. I’ll give her ten more minutes, and then I’ll leave.

Overhead, the sky is turning a stunning shade of orange and pink as the sun gradually sinks behind the clouds. I should be enjoying the scenery, but instead, all I can do is stare at my watch as the hands gradually tick down to the stipulated ten minutes I gave myself.

Eventually, the ten minutes come and go. And yet I remain where I am. Eagerness, desperation, or just plain stupidity. I don’t know which one.

She’s not coming , the voice in my head says again, and this time, I believe it.

I rise and turn around, ready to admit to myself that I am a fool and call this a loss. But then, there she is. My breath catches in my throat at the first sight of her. Perfection—that’s all I can think as I stare at her.

She’s even more striking than I remember. I take my time to take her in as she stands there watching me with an inscrutable expression.

I’ve never in my life wanted to know what someone is thinking so bad, but something tells me that it’s better I don’t know.

I watch her now as she approaches. Her hair is shorter now, and there’s something harder about her.

I used to think it was cute when she showed up to our meetings wearing all black like it was some kind of secret mission.

I find that I’m disappointed to see her in tan pants and a thin, light pink blouse.

The urge to scold her for coming out without a jacket hits me immediately, but I decide this is neither the time nor the place. I don’t have the right either, so I swallow back my protest and keep my face as blank as possible.

Giulia stops about ten feet away from me, and I see her shoulders stiffen. “Raffaele,” she says without inflection.

I put just as much inflection in my voice as I reply, “Hello Giulia, long time, no see.”

She snorts. “And you just had to ruin that, didn’t you?”

“I don’t remember putting a gun to your head and forcing you to come here.”

“You shouldn’t have called me in the first place,” she replies. “You knew exactly what would happen the second you called me.”

My sleeves are pushed up just enough for her to see my cufflinks—gold lions, the same pair I’ve always worn.

I catch the way her gaze stumbles when she notices, the way memory flickers behind her eyes.

I remember her fingers tracing those lions once, back when she still believed we could rewrite the story we were born into.

“You still wear those?” Her voice is sharp, but the edge can’t quite hide the softer thing underneath—the memory, the wanting she doesn’t want to admit.

“Always,” I say, voice low. Because no matter how far she runs, no matter who she tries to marry—I’ll always be her first love.

She looks away first. Coward. But her hands tremble slightly at her sides, and I know it’s not from the cold.

Something inside me comes to life, something dark, possessive, and hungry. I try to tamp down the urge to reach for her, and I end up having to curl my hands into fists at my side.

“It’s not my fault you don’t have any self-restraint.”

“And you do?” she asks.

We both know that I don’t, and saying otherwise will be a clear lie. If I did have any self-restraint, she wouldn’t be here right now. I would have been able to stop myself from wanting to see her.

“Maybe,” I eventually say.

Her mouth quirks up at one corner. “Says the man who can’t help but kiss me every opportunity he gets.”

“I wouldn’t be able to trust a man who doesn’t want to kiss you every opportunity he gets.”

At my words, something sad and conflicted passes through her eyes.

I don’t like the way she’s suddenly hunching her shoulders, like she’s trying to hide from the world.

I want to shake her until she tells me exactly what put that look in her eyes, so I can hunt it down and destroy it.

I open my mouth to do as much, but she beats me to it.

“Why am I here?” she asks.

Because just like me, you have no self-restraint, I want to say, but the last thing I want is to send her running for the hills, and I know that that’s precisely what will happen if I say such a thing.

She’s lying to herself if she thinks the only reason she’s here is because I promised her information that could save her family’s life.

She cares about them, I know that, but her eyes speak to me more than words could ever say.

“My father is plotting to get rid of yours. We both know how the mafia world works. As soon as the head falls, the rest of the castle goes tumbling down with it,” I inform her.

“I won’t let that happen,” she says.

“You won’t be able to stop it.”

A bitter laugh suddenly slips out of her throat. “Fucking hell,” she says. “When is this all going to be over! When will this war be over so I can lead a semi-normal life?”

“If you wanted a normal life, I don’t think getting yourself engaged to that asshole was the way to go at all.” My gaze drops down to her hands hanging at her sides. I immediately clock the obnoxiously large diamond ring on her finger. “How subtle.”

Her fingers curl up, hiding the ring from my view.

“I don’t know where the hell you found someone willing to put up with you. I didn’t think there were a lot of suicidal men running around.”

Her jaw clenches and she takes a threatening step in my direction, eyes narrowed into slits. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean exactly what I’ve just said.”

“Well, forgive me if I’m not willing to take criticism from a guy who goes around fucking the entire population of this city. I hope you at least remember to wrap it up.”

“Jealous?”

If it’s possible, her jaw grinds more. “You’re an asshole.”

“Is that news?” I raise one eyebrow. “I didn’t know you were keeping tabs on me, or I’d have been more discreet. But it’s nice to know that you care about my health.”

“You’re disgusting.”

My only response is a slight smile that’s meant to infuriate her, and judging by the way her mouth purses, it’s working.

“How do you find a way to drag me back into this over and over again? I don’t want this. The overthinking, the second-guessing, the inability to move on from you. Haven’t you done enough?”

The pain in her voice cuts at me. “How do you think it’s been for me? I wish I could let you go. I wish I could tell you that this is the last time you’ll ever see me. But I am not capable of staying away from you, Giulia. I never meant to hurt you.”

“And yet that’s all you’ve ever done.”

I hide my flinch beneath a frown. “You are the one who walked away from us; you ran like a coward.”

“No!” she barks. “I did what I had to do for both of us, and you know it. We’re not good together, and someone had to be brave enough to cut the cord that binds us.”

I glance at the space between us. “Is that why you are all the way over there? To protect us by being the brave one? Is that it? I never asked for your bravery.”

“Well, I never asked for any of this, either,” she says with a shaky laugh. “You shouldn’t have brought me here.”

“I had to warn you,” I tell her.

“There is nothing new about a Gagliardi hunting down Montanari blood. It’s a tale as old as time, and it’s going to continue happening for probably the rest of our lives.”

“I refuse to be drawn into a war that I have nothing to do with,” I growl out. “I refuse to continue being a pawn in their games. Jesus Christ, Giulia, aren’t you tired of all this? Aren’t you sick and tired of living a life dictated by what these men want? Don’t you want more for yourself?”

“And when are you going to realize that we are stuck in this as we are stuck with the blood in our veins?”

“Then I’ll cut myself open and let myself bleed out.”

Her eyes widen with shock, and she stares at me like she’s never seen me before. I hold her eyes and let her see that I mean every bit of it. My voice is softer when I say, “I only want to help you.”

“You can’t help me in the war your own family is instigating against mine. You have to pick a side, and unfortunately, that side was decided for you the moment you were born.”

“There’s only one side I am on,” I tell her.

I see her throat bob with a swallow. “Whose side is that?”